Hello TUX!
A reminder that tomorrow we have a Sanders Series Invited Lecture by Prof.
Sara Diamond
We look forward to seeing you there!
Ali, Daniel, and Tovi
Sanders Series Invited Lecture: Prof. Sara Diamond
January 16th, 2018. Autodesk MaRS IDEaS Lab, 661 University Avenue, Ground
Floor.
Lunch reception begins at 12:30 pm. Presentation begins at 1:00 pm.
Data Visualization - Fundamental 21st Century Knowledge
I side-stepped into data visualization two decades ago, as an artist trying
to answer a series of related questions about IRC chat that had arisen for
me as a user and through my dialogues with other users, "Why can't IRC chat
be more dynamic, less linear, relational? How can we manage flaming, lurking
and other behaviors that discourage users? What strategies, like play, might
resolve conflicts?" Over a number of years I led the creation of the
CodeZebraOS which was a playful, non-linear visual chat environment that
applied basic affective computing to text analytics. Now a decade later I
lead the Visual Analytics Laboratory at OCAD University - a group of
researchers who are committed to bringing together visualization design and
data analytics. Times have changed and with them the recognition that big
data requires analytics tools to be usable. Visualization systems are built
into many software packages and info graphics are everyday fare. The Visual
Analytics Laboratory works in partnership with data owners and sources, some
with their own analytics capacities, others who rely on the VAL to analyze
as well as represent the data. Over the course of the lecture I will
present a glimpse of my early work and provide a history of VAL projects,
addressing differing strategies for making meaning from data. Projects
include public displays of data, artistic data presentations, media
analytics, urban planning, public data analytics, social media analytics,
etc. Researchers in the VAL also raise questions about the use of data and
the need for critical literacy regarding data sources and visualizations.
Bio:
Dr. Sara Diamond is the President of OCAD University, Canada's, "University
of the Imagination". She holds a PhD in Computing, Information Technology
and Engineering, a Masters in Digital Media and Honours Bachelors of Arts in
History and Communications. She is an appointee of the Order of Ontario and
the Royal Canadian Academy of Artists and a recipient of the Queen's Diamond
Jubilee Medal for service to Canada. She is the winner of the 2013 GRAND
NCE Digital Media Pioneer Award, recognized as one of Toronto Life's Top
Fifty and. she is a Senior Fellow at Massey College, University of Toronto.
She was recently honored as one of Canada's 150 leading women. Since her
appointment in 2005 she has led OCAD University's evolution to a full
university, helping to build its transdisciplinary and research-creation
research capacity and infrastructure, integrate STEM subjects, create its
Digital Futures Initiative, launch the Indigenous Visual Culture Program,
strengthen its approach to inclusion, and grow its undergraduate and
graduate programs in studio art and design. Diamond is a researcher in
media arts history and policy, visual analytics and has created wearable
technologies, mobile experiences and media art. Diamond was honoured with a
1992 retrospective at the National Gallery of Canada, represented Canada in
festivals and biennials, and her works reside in collections such as the
MoMA in New York City, National Gallery of Canada and Vancouver Art Gallery.
OUR SPONSORS:
TUX is made possible by the support of our sponsors, Steven Sanders,
Autodesk,
University of Toronto Department of Computer Science, and MaRS.
About MaRS: MaRS is the one of the world's largest urban innovation hubs-a
place for collaboration, creativity and entrepreneurship. Located in the
heart of Toronto's research district, MaRS provides the space, training,
talent and networks required to commercialize important discoveries and
launch and grow Canadian startups.
