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Chris Schmandt. Harry, Drew Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture. Program in Media Arts and Sciences. Program in Media Arts and Sciences (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) 2013-03-28T18:17:26Z 2013-03-28T18:17:26Z 2012 2012 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/78213 830395336 Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2012. This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis. Includes bibliographical references (p. [163]-172). We have long assumed that being face to face is the best environment for social interaction. But is "being there" the best we can aspire to? One common approach to improving face-to-face contexts is to add new communication channels - a strategy often described as creating "backchannels." In my work, I use a series of novel complementary communication systems to show how adding communication platforms to collaborative situations can be useful while also arguing for a new conceptual model of a main stage and a side stage (in the Goffman sense) that contrasts with the traditional model of backchannels. I describe a series of projects that embody this approach and explore its limits. My work covers virtual world meetings and presentations, an audience interaction tool for large groups (backchan.nl), a tablet-based system for small group discussions (Tin Can), and a platform for connecting huge distributed audiences (ROAR). In each of these projects I trace my three major research themes: understanding how conversational grounding operates in these environments, how non-verbal actions complement text-based interaction, and how people make decisions about how to manage their attention in environments with multiple simultaneous communication channels. by Drew Harry. Ph.D. 172 p. eng Massachusetts Institute of Technology M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission. http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582 Architecture. Program in Media Arts and Sciences. Designing complementary communication systems Thesis application/pdf false Publication unknown unknown <Publication xmlns="https://www.openaire.eu/cerif-profile/1.1/" id="006ecac8-817c-4f23-8672-b1eed00183c1"> <Type xmlns="https://www.openaire.eu/cerif-profile/vocab/COAR_Publication_Types">http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_1843</Type> <Language>eng</Language> <Title>Designing complementary communication systems</Title> <PublishedIn> <Publication> </Publication> </PublishedIn> <PublicationDate>2012</PublicationDate> <Authors> <Author> <DisplayName>Harry, Drew</DisplayName> <Affiliation> <OrgUnit> </OrgUnit> </Affiliation> </Author> </Authors> <Editors> </Editors> <Publishers> <Publisher> <DisplayName>Massachusetts Institute of Technology</DisplayName> <OrgUnit /> </Publisher> </Publishers> <License>http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582</License> <Keyword>Architecture. Program in Media Arts and Sciences.</Keyword> <Abstract>We have long assumed that being face to face is the best environment for social interaction. But is &quot;being there&quot; the best we can aspire to? One common approach to improving face-to-face contexts is to add new communication channels - a strategy often described as creating &quot;backchannels.&quot; In my work, I use a series of novel complementary communication systems to show how adding communication platforms to collaborative situations can be useful while also arguing for a new conceptual model of a main stage and a side stage (in the Goffman sense) that contrasts with the traditional model of backchannels. I describe a series of projects that embody this approach and explore its limits. My work covers virtual world meetings and presentations, an audience interaction tool for large groups (backchan.nl), a tablet-based system for small group discussions (Tin Can), and a platform for connecting huge distributed audiences (ROAR). In each of these projects I trace my three major research themes: understanding how conversational grounding operates in these environments, how non-verbal actions complement text-based interaction, and how people make decisions about how to manage their attention in environments with multiple simultaneous communication channels.</Abstract> <Access xmlns="http://purl.org/coar/access_right" > </Access> </Publication>