http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/7898 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/42407 Designing for long-term human-robot interaction and application to weight loss Kidd, Cory David, 1977- Human-robot interaction is now well enough understood to allow us to build useful systems that can function outside of the laboratory. This thesis defines sociable robot system in the context of long-term interaction, proposes guidelines for creating and evaluating such systems, and describes the implementation of a robot that has been designed to help individuals effect behavior change while dieting. The implemented system is a robotic weight loss coach, which is compared to a standalone computer and to a traditional paper log in a controlled study. A current challenge in weight loss is in getting individuals to keep off weight that is lost. The results of our study show that participants track their calorie consumption and exercise for nearly twice as long when using the robot than with the other methods and develop a closer relationship with the robot. Both of these are indicators of longer-term success at weight loss and maintenance. Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2008. Includes bibliographical references (p. 241-251). Mon, 29 Oct 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/42406 Understanding the embodied teacher : nonverbal cues for sociable robot learning Berlin, Matthew Roberts, 1980- As robots enter the social environments of our workplaces and homes, it will be important for them to be able to learn from natural human teaching behavior. My research seeks to identify simple, non-verbal cues that human teachers naturally provide that are useful for directing the attention of robot learners. I conducted two novel studies that examined the use of embodied cues in human task learning and teaching behavior. These studies motivated the creation of a novel data-gathering system for capturing teaching and learning interactions at very high spatial and temporal resolutions. Through the studies, I observed a number of salient attention-direction cues, the most promising of which were visual perspective, action timing, and spatial scaffolding. In particular, this thesis argues that spatial scaffolding, in which teachers use their bodies to spatially structure the learning environment to direct the attention of the learner, is a highly valuable cue for robotic learning systems. I constructed a number of learning algorithms to evaluate the utility of the identified cues. I situated these learning algorithms within a large architecture for robot cognition, augmented with novel mechanisms for social attention and visual perspective taking. Finally, I evaluated the performance of these learning algorithms in comparison to human learning data, providing quantitative evidence for the utility of the identified cues. As a secondary contribution, this evaluation process supported the construction of a number of demonstrations of the humanoid robot Leonardo learning in novel ways from natural human teaching behavior. Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2008. Includes bibliographical references (p. 103-107). Mon, 29 Oct 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/42405 Photoelectromechanical synthesis of low-cost DNA microarrays Chow, Brian, 1978- Recent advances in de novo gene synthesis, library construction, and genomic selection for target sequencing using DNA from custom microarrays have demonstrated that microarrays can effectively be used as the world's cheapest sources of complex oligonucleotide pools. Unfortunately, commercial custom microarrays are expensive and not easily accessible to academic researchers, and technical challenges still exist for dealing with the small amount of DNA synthesized on a chip. Genomic research would certainly benefit from the creation of cheaper custom microarrays with larger oligonucleotide concentrations per spot. This thesis presents the development of a novel DNA microarray synthesis platform based on semiconductor photoelectrochemistry (PEC) designed with these needs in mind. An amorphous silicon photoconductor is activated by an optical projection system to create "virtual electrodes" that electrochemically generate protons in a site-selective manner, thereby cleaving acid-labile dimethoxytrityl protecting groups with the spatial selectivity that is required for in-situ DNA synthesis. This platform has the potential to be particularly low-cost since it employs standard phosphoramidite reagents, visible wavelength optics, and a cheaply microfabricated and reusable substrate. By incorporating a porous thin-film glass that dramatically increases the DNA quantity produced by over an order of magnitude per chip, this platform may also simplify the handling of DNA cleaved from chip and drive down the cost per base synthesized. The hybridization detection of single-base errors was successfully demonstrated on PEC synthesized microarrays. This thesis also reports a suite of new surface chemistries and high-resolution techniques for patterning biological molecules. Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2008. Includes bibliographical references. Mon, 29 Oct 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/42404 The sharing of wonderful ideas : influence and interaction in Online Communities of Creators Sylvan, Elisabeth, 1973- This thesis presents a new framework for understanding how communities of creators share work, influence one another's creative processes, and learn from one another. I introduce the concept of Online Communities of Creators (OCOCs), which are online communities where the core activity is sharing personal creations. These communities can play an important part in the development of the Creative Society by providing venues for people to encourage each other's creative processes and output. By fostering each other's desires to create and share, these communities help individuals to experience the joy of designing, creating, and sharing. Through these explorations, people develop skills important to their personal development and their ability to participate in the modern workplace. I analyze how ideas spread through OCOCs using the framework for diffusion of innovation developed by Everett Rogers. I map specific behaviors in OCOCs to Roger's five stages of adoption of innovation: awareness, interest, evaluation, trial and adoption. Within OCOCs each of these stages represent deepening understanding of other community members' work. Using a mixed-methods approach of ethnography and social network analysis, I study two specific OCOCs: the Computer Clubhouse Village and the Scratch online community. Both of these communities are designed to facilitate learning with computers. The Village enables members of network of socially-supported computer clubs to share their work, their concerns, and their selves. The Scratch site is a new web community for people sharing work created with the Scratch programming environment. The thesis focuses on four topics: forms of participation, network diffusion of ideas, individuals' adoption of ideas, and identifying influentials. (cont.) I report on how different social and project-related participation support the communities. I discuss how a particular technology I developed diffused through an OCOC. I analyze which community members' projects enter the "trial" stage of adoption. Finally I describe what creator and project factors predict influence in OCOCs. As I considered the various research topics this thesis addresses, I created technologies and developed some design guidelines for OCOCs. I introduce two of these technologies -the Village Profile Survey and the Village Visualizer- and describe the motivation, design, and impact of these tools. I also describe a design philosophy that motivates these and other projects I have worked on and outline both design principles and ethnical concerns for the development of OCOCs. Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, February 2008. Includes bibliographical references (v. 2, leaves 294-297). Mon, 29 Oct 2007 22:58:59 GMT