Analogical representations based on pictures of domain objects can be used in visual programming to provide a close mapping between the program and the resulting runtime display, which can make programming easier for children and other users. The use of graphical rewrite rules with before and after pictures is an example of this approach. Graphical rewrite rules have some similarities with comics strips, which also use picture sequences of graphical objects to describe dynamics in a static form. However, the visual language of comics is not used to its full potential in visual programming. We discuss how a semiotic analysis of comics can be used to address some of the limitations of graphical rewrite rules. We use a visual programming system we have designed to illustrate that comic strips can express more general computations and be more intuitive and flexible than traditional graphical rewrites. Our conclusion is that the visual language of comics has a strong potential for increasing the expressiveness and flexibility of visual programming with analogical representations of domain objects, while maintaining a direct mapping between the program representation and the runtime representation. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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Enactive cognitive science is an approach to the study of mind that seeks to explain how the structures and mechanisms of autonomous cognitive systems can arise and participate in the generation and maintenance of viable perceiver-dependent worlds -- rather than more conventional cognitivist efforts, such as the attempt to explain cognition in terms of the "recovery" of (pre-given, timeless) features of The (objectively-existing and accessible) World. As such, enactive cognitive science is resonant with radical constructivism. And as with other scientific efforts conducted within a constructivist orientation, it is broadly "conventional" in its scientific methodology. That is, there is a strong emphasis on testable hypotheses, empirical observation, supportable mechanisms and models, rigorous experimental methods, acceptable criteria of validation, and the like. Nonetheless, this approach to cognitive science does also raise a number of specific questions about the scope of amenable phenomena (e.g. meaning, consciousness, etc.) -- and it also raises questions of whether such a perspective requires an expansion of what is typically considered within the purview of scientific method (e.g. the role of the observer/scientist). This paper is a brief introduction to enactive cognitive science: a description of some of the main research concerns; some examples of how such concerns have been realized in actual research; some of its research methods and proposed explanatory mechanisms and models; some of the potential as both a theoretical and applied science; and several of the major open research questions.

The various models and simulations of automobile driving that have been suggested over time have differential explanatory and predictive power. Some address the processes within the driver, others have the joint system of driver and car as a unit of analysis. One of the particular limitations that is not well-addressed in these models is the prospect of semi-autonomy that currently emerges when technology enables the car to take over parts of the driving task. The utility of combined human-machine subsumption architectures in semi-autonomous wheelchair control suggests that the joint subsumption architecture has the potential to address the issue of semi-autonomy in motor vehicles generally. In order to address semi-autonomy in simulated driving, we have explored a joint subsumption model in a 2D top-down view driving simulation in which the human controller is a layer in a subsumption control architecture, extended with a behaviour coordination mechanism that combines simple command fusion with priority-based arbitration. Joint human-machine subsumption seems to be a useful architecture to conduct research concerning semi-autonomy. Several possibilities for future research are sketched.

The importance of including contact expressions in different kinds of devices is discussed. The technical development of sensor-motor systems, tactile interfaces, and contact-expressive devices that embody and understand affect are also discussed. The existing attempts to describe human contact tend to be attempts to create general descriptive taxonomies. The development of semiotic models of imagery has helped in designing visual interfaces.

Contact-expressive devices could improve our lives -- from practical improvements that let us interact with devices when other modalities are impossible, inappropriate, or inadequate to devices that have important consequences for physical well-being. We can also imagine using contact expressions in devices that are pleasurable, playful, artistic, or otherwise important to a human's experience. This paper discusses the technical development of sensor-motor systems, tactile interfaces, and technologies that can embody and understand affect. Contact-expressive devices are technologies that understand and use touch in meaningful ways-that can distinguish between a press and a caress. Also discussed are the following issues: technical requirements and the nature of contact expressions. Although a fairly large body of research exists regarding nonverbal communication, the majority of this work is on visual expression (facial expressions, physical appearance, direction of gaze, physical posture, and other visible forms of body language) and paralinguistics (such as vocal inflection, pitch, volume, and speech rate). Work needs to begin on studies of human contact with the goal of leveraging those insights for the design of contact-expressive devices-and work needs to begin on the implementation of technologies that have rich contact-expressive range and appeal.

In order to create applications that programmatically use the Web as an expressive medium, the current choice is largely between conventional programming languages that are difficult to learn and use -- and less expressive alternatives. In order to address this issue, we have been developing CrawLogo, a Logo-inspired programming environment in which Web-elements are programmable, body-syntonic "Crawltures" that exist within a 5-dimensional Crawlture Geometry. In this paper we briefly summarize related work, describe the CrawLogo environment, some sample applications, and the initial response of end-user programmers who have successfully used it to build Web-enabled applications. We conclude with a discussion of some insights into the larger question of empowering end-user programming of the Web, the development of a Crawlture Geometry, and future research challenges.

File–sharing has become very popular in recent years, but for many this has become synonymous with file–getting. However, there is strong evidence to suggest that people have strong giving (or gifting) needs. This evidence suggests an opportunity for the development of gifting technologies — and it also suggests an important research question and challenge: what needs and concerns do gifters have and what technologies can be developed to help them? In this paper, we discuss the existing literature on gifting, report on an initial study of gifting in an online sharing community, and suggest some ways the study results can inform future research into gifting desires — as well as the design of specific gifting technologies.

There are activities where a dynamic, creative partnership among equals seems like an appropriate model of empowerment. Not only do good partnerships seem to help people attain or sustain powerful engagement in their current activities, in some cases they seem to enable people to successfully enter new activities. In this paper we describe our initial work to develop partner technologies. Using examples from four partner prototypes being developed, we discuss some design patterns based on the work to date, some insights into aspects of partnership, and conclude with a discussion of some future prospects and potential of partner technologies.

Traditionally, most interface work has emphasized visual features, and even when other senses such as speech, audio, and touch have been taken into account, these are often done to supplement (or compensate for) visual information. However, there is one area of physical contact that has received virtually no attention from the HCI community: the "contact expressions" used by people and animals in different contexts. As robotic toys and embodied technological devices become more commonplace, it is our belief that this aspect of "interface" will have great significance. It is clear that the future of computational interfaces will include devices that are both physically embodied and which will include physical contact and "contact expressions" as part of their "interface." Future generations of autonomous devices will not only "display" significant gestures -- they will express themselves through physical contact. This paper outlines an initial design taxonomy of basic contact expressions -- and describes a "contact cushion" we have built and tested to explore some of the potential for Contact User Interfaces (CUIs). The paper concludes with a discussion about some of the implications of this work for future interface development.