Speaker: Dr. Kamran Sedig
Title: Design of human-information interaction for cognitive tools: 
Enhancing their epistemic utility

Abstract:
Cognitive tools are technologies that are intended to support and mediate 
users' intellectual and epistemic activities. Here, epistemic activities refer 
to all activities that are knowledge-oriented, such as problem solving, 
sensemaking, learning, and decision making, among others. One of the main 
features of these tools is that they allow their human users to interact with 
representations of information-where the representations can encode objects, 
structures, processes, and concepts from different information spaces, and the 
interaction can involve such operations as generation, interpretation, 
transformation, and sharing of information. Using this definition, cognitive 
tools can have diverse applications and encompass a wide array of 
computational technologies in different domains, such as interactive 
mathematical visualizations, serious games, scientific simulations, 
programming environments, and even digital libraries. 

Design of the human-information interaction aspect of these tools plays a 
crucial role in their epistemic value. This design involves at least two 
levels of consideration: macro and micro.  Macro-level design deals with 
macroscopic operations and structures of the tools. Micro-level design is 
concerned with microscopic elements and features of the tools - such as how to 
represent information and what interaction techniques to employ. 

In this talk, I will focus on the micro-level design of cognitive tools. I 
will present some tools, discuss their design, highlight the need for and 
value of design frameworks, and talk about some lines of action for future 
research.

BRIEF BIO
Kamran Sedig is an Associate Professor at the University of Western Ontario 
in Canada. He is a member of the Cognitive Engineering Laboratory and has a 
joint position in the Department of Computer Science and the Faculty of 
Information and Media Studies. He received his B.Sc., M.Sc., and Ph.D. from 
Concordia, McGill, and the University of British Columbia, respectively. 
His research interests include design of digital cognitive tools and 
human-information interaction. More information can be found on his website: 
http://www.csd.uwo.ca/faculty/sedig/