Design Final Projects

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://www.lib.ncsu.edu/resolver/1840.20/39967

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Now showing 1 - 20 of 52

THE CHANGE WE SEEK: Creative History as Social Justice
(05-10-2021) Bailey, Darrien D.; Dr. Derek Ham; Dr. Blair L.M. Kelley; Marc Russo
In what ways could digital tools enhance the historical material of oral history to inspire public engagement and deepen understanding of the complexity of systemic racism in America? The Change We Seek is a project that intends to promote social change through reimagining how oral history can be used and presented to better inform collegiate and high school students on complex issues of race in American society. Through utilizing the educational value of sharing narratives from people of color (POC), and animation, this project is an all-out effort to redefine how oral history has the potential to provoke a realization within the American public of its sizeable racial disparity. The research included in this paper also documents significant historical and theoretical research that shapes the content produced for The Change We Seek. This research charts numerous instances of how the foundations which shape American society, most specifically education, have significantly affected the lives of black people forcing readers and viewers of content produced from The Change Week Seek to understand the gravity of America’s racial divide.
The Social Design Toolkit
(2021) Pinkston, Russel P.; Traci Rider; Lesley-Ann Noel; Christian Doll; Tania Allen
Designers are instigators of change, and the decisions they make can impact people’s lives in unexpected ways. The ideology behind social design is that designers have a social responsibility to create positive change by prioritizing people in their decisions. However, the commercialization of design practice often puts several degrees of separation between the people who design products, the people who make them, and the people who consume them, leading to design which elevates the designer’s process above people’s needs. There are several human-centered methodologies in existence across a range of disciplines (from cultural anthropology to design thinking), but these usually operate independently of one another, and each has its own unique constraints. The Social Design Toolkit offers a hybrid workflow called participatory design thinking that provides opportunities for these methodologies to overlap, placing human experience at the core of every design decision. Herbert Simon defines design as “courses of action aimed at changing existing situations into preferred ones” (Simon 111), and social design is a holistic way of embracing cultural difference and reducing the social gap between the creators of culture and those who experience that culture. It is through this that we make design accessible and strengthen its output for everyone.
TouchTap
(18-08-2020) Van de Zande, Tyson; Tania Allen; Adam Rogers; Todd Berreth; Kathleen Rieder
TouchTap proposes an interaction model and fabrication mindset for an accessible and low-cost computer interface. The interaction model is transferable to a range of situations, and it may be built using DIY processes or professional fabrication techniques. This thesis focuses on applying the interaction model to a wearable–a bag strap– within the context of bicycling. The interaction model starts as a basic navigation, forward, backward, and selection. The model balances simplicity, intuition, and freedom of control. The contributions of TouchTap can be split into three sections: an interaction design model, a scenario, and a prototype. The first contribution is an interaction design model that can be applied to wearables. The interaction model allows a user to control basic navigation features on their phone or computer by Tapping, Holding & Swiping. The second contribution, the scenario, is an application of the interaction design model to biking. The third contribution of this thesis is a prototype that demonstrates a sustainable mindset for material implementation for the interaction model, within context of the scenario. This thesis implements frameworks from Activity Theory (AT), combined with Human Centered Design (HCD), and Human Computer Interaction (HCI). The process of this thesis starts with research and a re-framing of Activity Theory. HCD and HCI frameworks, tools, and methods tie into the AT tools to create a cohesive, ergonomic, and designed transferable interaction model. The goal of this thesis is to propose the beginning of a widely-accessible interaction model for designers, artists, and the community.
Virtual Presence: Supporting Collaboration
(05-2022) Pryor, Eric; Tasheka Arceneaux Sutton; Deborah Littlejohn; Scott Townsend,
We are in a new age of simple and accessible tools for remote collaboration, but XR applications that enable collaboration are sorely lacking in their implementation of social presence features. Better social representations are needed to make remote collaboration in XR applications feel more natural. This investigation explores visualizations of social presence that break the typical convention of full-body, stylized avatars. The potential of gestural control, and the effects it has on the social aspects of remote collaboration is also explored.
Experiential Noticing
(05-2022) Oweida, Philip; Kermit Bailey; Matthew Peterson; Jarrett Fuller
Environmental literacy and humans’ declining exposure to the natural environment have become cause for concern as citizens are increasingly relied upon to make decisions about the complex and interrelated nature of environmental issues facing the world today (Coyle, 2005). As a result, sustainability initiatives more frequently depend on education strategies that encourage citizens to participate in the learning experience and promote pro-environmental attitudes and behavior (Lewis, 2019). This investigation considers how a multimodal sensing network can leverage Experiential Noticing as an environmental education strategy for citizens to connect with nature and improve their environmental knowledge, attitude, and intention to act.
Reorganizing Narratives: increasing accessibility to comic book literature
(2021) Campbell-Barner, Alec; Marc Russo; Tania Allen; Patrick Fitzgerald
CAMPBELL-BARNER, ALEC, Reorganizing Narratives: Increasing Accessibility To Comic Book Literature. (Under the direction of Professor Marc Russo). Within the medium of sequential art there are numerous unique categories, genres, formats, and styles. One of the oldest formats within the medium is traditional serialized comic books. These periodical magazines have been in circulation since the late 1930’s. My research outlines the artistic, literary, and historical value within the medium of comic books to highlight the significance of my thesis project. Over time the reading format for the medium of periodical comic books has evolved extensively and created a unique type of reader. Now, as the medium charges into a competitive and digitized future, evolving the reading format will become a necessity. My thesis argument proposes ideas on how the reading format of comic books can or should evolve to better support readers and researchers. My thesis argument proposes that the current reading format of comic books lacks accessibility and legibility and a digital resource for better understanding the medium is needed. The conceptual design that I have created could work as a digital literary resource to support readers, researchers, and educators with engaging with the medium. I discuss ways to enhance the reading format by designing digital contextual reading guides. This project design is a proof of concept and is influenced by numerous precedents. This thesis involves the investigation and creation of a platform design intended to improve the overall accessibility of the comic book reading format.
Multisensory Noticing as a Pedestrian Navigation Model
(05-2022) McGalliard, Emily; Scott Townsend; Denise Gonzales Crisp; Deborah Littlejohn,
Walking as a means of transportation is credited with improving health, climate, and personal awareness of space. Cognitive capacity to navigate independently without GPS support has decreased over time, which has increased technological reliance and decreased spatial awareness. For new urban residents, walking can be one of the best ways to acquaint themselves with their new city. By slowing down and taking time to notice, users can develop deeper, more conscious cognitive maps of space. This investigation explores how new urban residents can implement multisensory noticing while walking in order to decrease technological dependence and bring awareness to space around them.
Anxiety-Coping Strategies and their Place in Game-Based Learning: An Exploration into How the Integration of Stress-Reducing Strategies into a Serious Game Can Offer Children a Learning Environment that is Both Encouraging and Effective
(05-05-2021) Hennes, Isabel; Marc Russo; John Nietfeld; JMark Scearce
Every human experiences stress in some form or another, and in the right amount it can act as an excellent motivator. It is only when a person experiences so much anxiety that it negatively impacts his or her ability to function in everyday life that it is truly considered a disorder. Anxiety is the body’s fight or flight response to perceived danger and—when treated appropriately through various therapies and from a young enough age—those who suffer from anxiety can learn to cope and overcome his or her disorder. Unfortunately, many children who develop anxiety, whether due to a learning deficit or a variety of other factors, take that anxiety into adulthood if untreated. By identifying whether or not a child is struggling in school due to symptoms of anxiety, parents and teachers have the opportunity to teach and encourage healthy coping strategies that can enable the child to appropriately react when experiencing an overwhelming amount of stress and worry. By addressing such symptoms early on, parents and teachers have the ability to recognize unhealthy behaviors and seek professional help if they fear their child is struggling. The intended purpose of this project is first, to understand what ways can the integration of anxiety coping tools and strategies into a game-based learning environment help normalize and alleviate assessment-induced stress; and secondly, how can such a system bring attention to parents and teachers of children who might be struggling in school? This project is not meant to diagnose anyone with learning or anxiety disorders, or provide long term therapy, but rather give students, no matter their condition, an opportunity to learn how to react to stressful situations with healthy behaviors.
Combating Conspiracy
(05-2022) Granholm, lydia; Justin Johnson; Kate Greder; Marc Russo
While nothing new, conspiracy theories are shaping our world in dangerous and increasingly apparent ways. From Covid denialists to violent antisemites, conspiracy theorists are killing people by spreading and acting upon misinformation. The goal of this project is to develop in players an understanding of what makes a credible source of information and how to think critically about what they see online and in the news. Combating Conspiracy is a serious game that will achieve this by teaching a mindset that prevents people from falling into conspiracy theories, by gamifying the curriculums of English and Theory of Knowledge classes. The supporting research for this project is based in how games can be used in education, how games reach a diverse audience, and the evaluation of sources of information. The resulting game is one that can be played in a traditional high school classroom setting to engage students in the material and facilitate further classroom discussion.
ENIGMA
(5-2022) Daniels, izzy; Dr. J. Mark Scearce; Dr. Mark Hursty; Tori Ralston; Marc Russo
Losing sight of one's own identity has become increasingly prevalent in today's society between the emergence of the digital age, the isolation of living through a pandemic, and the loss of ‘self’ one often feels while going through a profound life change. The pursuit of self-knowledge and authenticity have long been linked through the philosophical works of countless great minds. Influenced by the works of Sartre, Kierkegaard, Heidegger, and Descartes, ENIGMA is an interactive stop motion experience that not only begs the audience to recognize their own authentic selves, but also builds a community of users who are going through the same process of self-authentication. In order to achieve this, ENIGMA explores empathy through decision making as the user is led through a gritty world of both craft and glitchy CG imagery. ENIGMA is simultaneously about the process of finding one's own authenticity and building an honest and vulnerable community through that process, in equal importance. Through the story told within ENIGMA and the decisions the users make in regard to their treatment of the world, empathy is encouraged as a tool for understanding both oneself and the world at large.
Centennial feminist Tarot
(2020) Caddick, Lauren; Tania Allen; Todd Berreth; Kathleen Rieder
How might a reimagined tarot experience connect feminist movements of the past and present in a way that supports and inspires future generations? The Centennial Feminist Tarot illuminates the parallel histories of the United States women’s suffrage movement and modern feminism in order to help Millennial women understand their place in the context of American history. The creation of this reimagined deck includes a new “Major Arcana”, a spread unique to the deck, biographical information, and interpretations for each card. Stereoscopic digital collages serve as trigger images for an augmented reality application that will allow users to navigate the historical and symbolic meanings of the commemorative cards.
Mediated Communities: A Case Study on the Relationship between User Interfaces and Online Communities
(2021) Bulous, Najla; JMark Scearce; Traci Rider; Derek Ham; Jedidiah Gant
Creatives face a unique challenge in using social media platforms to find online communities that facilitate learning, critique, and the sharing of work. “Mediated Communities” aims to better understand the relationship between user interfaces and online communities of practice through secondary research and a qualitative case study on the ‘Blender Discord’ group on the social media platform Discord. Members of the ‘Blender Discord’ server were surveyed and the resulting data analyzed. Since social media platforms have different user interfaces, a better understanding of how user interfaces use social affordances to influence online communities can help creatives pick platforms that are better suited to their needs. In addition, “Mediated Communities” details the author’s process and reflections on designing a case study around an anonymous online community of practice. This work shows that studying online communities in conjunction with their host platform(s) is valuable and can lead to new insights. It was developed and conducted as a part of the Masters in Art + Design program at NC State.
The Social Design Toolkit
(2021) Pinkston, Russell Paul; Tania Allen; Christian Doll; Lesley-Ann Noel; Traci Rider
Designers are instigators of change, and the decisions they make can impact people’s lives in unexpected ways. The ideology behind social design is that designers have a social responsibility to create positive change by prioritizing people in their decisions. However, the commercialization of design practice often puts several degrees of separation between the people who design products, the people who make them, and the people who consume them, leading to design which elevates the designer’s process above people’s needs. There are several human-centered methodologies in existence across a range of disciplines (from cultural anthropology to design thinking), but these usually operate independently of one another, and each has its own unique constraints. The Social Design Toolkit offers a hybrid workflow called participatory design thinking that provides opportunities for these methodologies to overlap, placing human experience at the core of every design decision. Herbert Simon defines design as “courses of action aimed at changing existing situations into preferred ones” (Simon 111), and social design is a holistic way of embracing cultural difference and reducing the social gap between the creators of culture and those who experience that culture. It is through this that we make design accessible and strengthen its output for everyone.
Mediated Communities : A Case Study on the Relationship between User Interfaces and Online Communities
(2021) Bulous, Najla; JMark Scearce; Traci Rider; Derek Ham; Jedidiah Gant
Creatives face a unique challenge in using social media platforms to find online communities that facilitate learning, critique, and the sharing of work. “Mediated Communities” aims to better understand the relationship between user interfaces and online communities of practice through secondary research and a qualitative case study on the ‘Blender Discord’ group on the social media platform Discord. Members of the ‘Blender Discord’ server were surveyed and the resulting data analyzed. Since social media platforms have different user interfaces, a better understanding of how user interfaces use social affordances to influence online communities can help creatives pick platforms that are better suited to their needs. In addition, “Mediated Communities” details the author’s process and reflections on designing a case study around an anonymous online community of practice. This work shows that studying online communities in conjunction with their host platform(s) is valuable and can lead to new insights. It was developed and conducted as a part of the Masters in Art + Design program at NC State.
Safe Break The Virtual “Third Place”
(05-2021) Poarch, James F.; Justin Johnson; Kirby Culbertson; Patrick Fitzgerald
“Safe Break” is an interactive experience for people with sensory sensitivity to escape to a virtual “third place” when the outside world is overwhelming. Inspired by VR experiences that emulate the autistic experience and taking cues from VR Chat and Mozilla Hub, “Safe Break,” when adaptable by its users, can provide sanctuary and a sense of belonging to those who find it difficult to acclimate to visual and auditory overstimulation. A virtual third place like “Safe Break” can be beneficial to young adults in fostering real world social engagement and can be useful when in accordance with occupational therapy and Ayres Sensory Integration (ASI) intervention to help develop better coping strategies. This fully mobile demo can transport players to a virtual coffee shop—a typical example of a “third place,” social spaces between the home and the workplace—where the skybox outside the shop and the environment inside can be tailored to the user’s desired comfort level. In addition, relaxing environment sounds can be customized to a player’s desired volume. The user interface is designed to accommodate individuals with varying degrees of ASD functionality. Immersion, Presence, and Narrative Theory were considered in developing a convincing environment separate from reality.
THE CHANGE WE SEEK: Creative History as Social Justice
(10-05-2021) Bailey, Darrien Douglass; Dr. Derek Ham; Dr. Blair L.M. Kelley; Marc Russo
Abstract In what ways could digital tools enhance the historical material of oral history to inspire public engagement and deepen understanding of the complexity of systemic racism in America? The Change We Seek is a project that intends to promote social change through reimagining how oral history can be used and presented to better inform collegiate and high school students on complex issues of race in American society. Through utilizing the educational value of sharing narratives from people of color (POC), and animation, this project is an all-out effort to redefine how oral history has the potential to provoke a realization within the American public of its sizeable racial disparity. The research included in this paper also documents significant historical and theoretical research that shapes the content produced for The Change We Seek. This research charts numerous instances of how the foundations which shape American society, most specifically education, have significantly affected the lives of black people forcing readers and viewers of content produced from The Change Week Seek to understand the gravity of America’s racial divide.
Other as Spectacle: Women, Queerness, and the Male Gaze
(05-2020) Fisher, Sara; Todd Berreth; Pat Fitzgerald; Tania Allen
This project, Other as Spectacle, aims to create an interactive installation that explores what it is like to be othered by the male gaze, and through the experience establish a new understanding in the viewer the harm the male gaze has on women and queer individuals. The theme of the work surrounds the concept of a masquerade—the user steps in front of an interactive projection and finds themselves in the role of the ‘outsider.’ The viewer will face their own reflection in a mirror, and witness as their image is distorted—their reflection on the screen slowly morphing into the figure of a monster as the characters on the screen gawk at them.
THINKING STATISTICALLY
(05-2022) Burnham, Lauren; Matthew Peterson; Deborah Littlejohn; Denise Gonzales Crisp
Statistical literacy, or the ability to understand and interpret data, has become increasingly important to navigating our data-driven society. While many efforts have focused on improving formal learning experiences in statistics, research points towards informal learning outside of the classroom as a crucial component of the general public’s understanding of science and mathematics. This situation presents a rich opportunity to enhance statistical learning for young students through the design of compelling informal learning experiences. Drawing from the framework for statistics and data science education from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, this investigation explores the ways in which a mixed reality museum experience can engage middle school-age learners with the stages of the statistical problem-solving process. The resulting studies consider how the affordances of this environment, such as movement, immersion, and learner-driven experimentation, could encourage statistical question-asking and offer supplements to traditional learning approaches. Experiences which lay a foundation of curiosity towards statistical problem solving hold the potential for enriching the learning process for students beginning to engage with the subject.
Nice Folky Things
(05-2022) Sibiran, Gilberto; Tania Allen; Marc Russo; Lesley-Ann Noel
As a child of American immigrants, I often struggled with understanding my identity when it came to the lack of representation in the media that I consumed as a millennial second-generation Latin American. The stories that influenced the media and defined my generation lacked characters that looked like me and were largely inspired by stories from Western European and far removed from the stories that may have included people like me. By examining folk stories from countries of origin not often represented in mainstream American culture remediating them for a detached population - Nice Folky Things, explores the identity and culture of second-generation Americans through cross-cultural folk stories examination. This is an Auto-ethnographic study based on my own experiences as an American-born, second-generation Latin American who has, and still often feels, detached from my family’s heritage, and ostracized by my surrounding mainstream American Culture. Walking the line between contradiction, authenticity, and honoring heritage - this project is meant to be both an examination of my personal experiences, and authentic taste, as well as a larger examination of how media has, and can, re-shaped personal identity.
Enhancing Reading Comprehension Skills through the Graphic Novel Medium An Experimentation on How the Design of a Literary Graphic Novel Can Support and Help Users with their Reading Comprehension Skills
(05-05-2020) Nguyen, Monica; Patrick Fitzgerald; Gregory Carter; Margaret Simon
This project focuses on enhancing reading comprehension skills using the construction elements of the graphic novel medium by transcribing a literary story that has yet to be visualized. Traditional literature in education uses mainly text however visuals are being used more frequently in everyday materials such as textbooks. The transition of society is becoming primarily visual and the need to become visually literate is more of a necessity. Remediation is the act or process that involves improving the conditions of its predecessors. Books have been adapted into non-text forms such as audio, film, animation, and plays. According to the National Council of Teachers of English/International Reading Association’s standards for English language arts, reading comprehension is best practiced using multiple tools because the preferred learning style of individuals vary. As books continue to be remediated the graphic novel medium has been gaining popularity and slowly being accepted as more than just a tool for entertainment. Therefore, this project helps readers improve their reading comprehension skills by the page compositions used in graphic novels.

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