Benjamin B. Bederson

Bio: Benjamin B. Bederson is an academic researcher from University of Maryland, College Park. The author has contributed to research in topics: User interface & Digital library. The author has an hindex of 54, co-authored 182 publications receiving 14487 citations. Previous affiliations of Benjamin B. Bederson include University of New Mexico & Swedish Institute of Computer Science.

Technology probes: inspiring design for and with families

Abstract: We describe a new method for use in the process of co-designing technologies with users called technology probes. Technology probes are simple, flexible, adaptable technologies with three interdisciplinary goals: the social science goal of understanding the needs and desires of users in a real-world setting, the engineering goal of field-testing the technology, and the design goal of inspiring users and researchers to think about new technologies. We present the results of designing and deploying two technology probes, the messageProbe and the videoProbe, with diverse families in France, Sweden, and the U.S. We conclude with our plans for creating new technologies for and with families based on our experiences.

Human computation: a survey and taxonomy of a growing field

Abstract: The rapid growth of human computation within research and industry has produced many novel ideas aimed at organizing web users to do great things. However, the growth is not adequately supported by a framework with which to understand each new system in the context of the old. We classify human computation systems to help identify parallels between different systems and reveal "holes" in the existing work as opportunities for new research. Since human computation is often confused with "crowdsourcing" and other terms, we explore the position of human computation with respect to these related topics.

Pad++: a zooming graphical interface for exploring alternate interface physics

Abstract: We describe the current status of Pad++, a zooming graphical interface that we are exploring as an alternative to traditional window and icon-based approaches to interface design. We discuss the motivation for Pad++, describe the implementation, and present prototype applications. In addition, we introduce an informational physics strategy for interface design and briefly compare it with metaphor-based design strategies.

A review of overview+detail, zooming, and focus+context interfaces

Abstract: There are many interface schemes that allow users to work at, and move between, focused and contextual views of a dataset. We review and categorize these schemes according to the interface mechanisms used to separate and blend views. The four approaches are overview+detail, which uses a spatial separation between focused and contextual views; zooming, which uses a temporal separation; focus+context, which minimizes the seam between views by displaying the focus within the context; and cue-based techniques which selectively highlight or suppress items within the information space. Critical features of these categories, and empirical evidence of their success, are discussed. The aim is to provide a succinct summary of the state-of-the-art, to illuminate both successful and unsuccessful interface strategies, and to identify potentially fruitful areas for further work.

Single display groupware: a model for co-present collaboration

Abstract: We introduce a model for supporting collaborative work between people that are physically close to each other. We call this model Single Display Groupware (SDG). In this paper, we describe the model, comparing it to more traditional remote collaboration, We describe the requirements that SDG places on computer technology, and our understanding of the benefits and costs of SDG systems. Finally, we describe a prototype SDG system that we built and the results of a usability test we ran with 60 elementary school children.

The eyes have it: a task by data type taxonomy for information visualizations

Abstract: A useful starting point for designing advanced graphical user interfaces is the visual information seeking Mantra: overview first, zoom and filter, then details on demand. But this is only a starting point in trying to understand the rich and varied set of information visualizations that have been proposed in recent years. The paper offers a task by data type taxonomy with seven data types (one, two, three dimensional data, temporal and multi dimensional data, and tree and network data) and seven tasks (overview, zoom, filter, details-on-demand, relate, history, and extracts).

Childhood and Society.

Abstract: Erik Eriksen is a remarkable individual. He has no college degrees yet is Professor of Human Development at Harvard University. He came to psychology via art, which explains why the reader will find him painting contexts and backgrounds rather than stating dull facts and concepts. He has been a training psychoanalyst for many years as well as a perceptive observer of cultural and social settings and their effect on growing up. This is not just a book on childhood. It is a panorama of our society. Anxiety in young children, apathy in American Indians, confusion in veterans of war, and arrogance in young Nazis are scrutinized under the psychoanalytic magnifying glass. The material is well written and devoid of technical jargon. The theme of the volume is that it is human to have a long childhood which will leave a lifelong residue of emotional immaturity in man. Primitive groups and

A conceptual framework and a toolkit for supporting the rapid prototyping of context-aware applications

Abstract: Computing devices and applications are now used beyond the desktop, in diverse environments, and this trend toward ubiquitous computing is accelerating. One challenge that remains in this emerging research field is the ability to enhance the behavior of any application by informing it of the context of its use. By context, we refer to any information that characterizes a situation related to the interaction between humans, applications, and the surrounding environment. Context-aware applications promise richer and easier interaction, but the current state of research in this field is still far removed from that vision. This is due to 3 main problems: (a) the notion of context is still ill defined, (b) there is a lack of conceptual models and methods to help drive the design of context-aware applications, and (c) no tools are available to jump-start the development of context-aware applications. In this anchor article, we address these 3 problems in turn. We first define context, identify categories of contextual information, and characterize context-aware application behavior. Though the full impact of context-aware computing requires understanding very subtle and high-level notions of context, we are focusing our efforts on the pieces of context that can be inferred automatically from sensors in a physical environment. We then present a conceptual framework that separates the acquisition and representation of context from the delivery and reaction to context by a context-aware application. We have built a toolkit, the Context Toolkit, that instantiates this conceptual framework and supports the rapid development of a rich space of context-aware applications. We illustrate the usefulness of the conceptual framework by describing a number of context-aware applications that have been prototyped using the Context Toolkit. We also demonstrate how such a framework can support the investigation of important research challenges in the area of context-aware computing.

Interactive Tree Of Life (iTOL): an online tool for phylogenetic tree display and annotation

Abstract: Summary: Interactive Tree Of Life (iTOL) is a web-based tool for the display, manipulation and annotation of phylogenetic trees. Trees can be interactively pruned and re-rooted. Various types of data such as genome sizes or protein domain repertoires can be mapped onto the tree. Export to several bitmap and vector graphics formats is supported. Availability: iTOL is available at http://itol.embl.de Contact: [email protected]

Random Walks for Image Segmentation

Abstract: A novel method is proposed for performing multilabel, interactive image segmentation. Given a small number of pixels with user-defined (or predefined) labels, one can analytically and quickly determine the probability that a random walker starting at each unlabeled pixel will first reach one of the prelabeled pixels. By assigning each pixel to the label for which the greatest probability is calculated, a high-quality image segmentation may be obtained. Theoretical properties of this algorithm are developed along with the corresponding connections to discrete potential theory and electrical circuits. This algorithm is formulated in discrete space (i.e., on a graph) using combinatorial analogues of standard operators and principles from continuous potential theory, allowing it to be applied in arbitrary dimension on arbitrary graphs