[Ltg] HAIL Seminar (20th July): Dr Kate Crawford, Creative Interactive Systems

[Andrew Lampert]

                      H.A.I.L. Seminar series
                          CSIRO ICT Centre
                   http://www.ict.csiro.au/HAIL/


Title:          Why are people change averse? Dealing with complexity
                    in post industrial work settings

Speaker:        Dr Kate Crawford
                Director
                Creative Interactive Systems Pty Ltd

Date:           Tuesday 20th July 2004 at 11am

Location:       CSIRO Conference Room,
                Building E6B, Macquarie University.

                NOTE: Due to construction work access to the CSIRO ICT Centre
                in Building E6B has changed.

                See http://www.ict.csiro.au/HAIL/location.htm for details.

Video:          If you can't make it to the seminar, you can request
                to have it video-recorded (if the speaker agrees).
                Prior to the seminar, send us an email with your name,
                postal address and the author/title of the seminar you
                want to be recorded.

                Video recordings are available in Windows Media format
                on CD-ROM or VHS (please send a blank VHS tape).

Abstract

Key features of the emerging post industrial work settings are continuous change, unpredictability, complexity and imperatives to create new responses to with unexpected outcomes. Recent research in knowledge management and mobilization indicates that, in such settings, people are learning to communicate and collaborate most effectively in teams rather than at the organizational or individual level. Further, there is some evidence that intuitive as well as analytic thinking styles of thinking are important. For people in changing and creative contexts, the opportunitities to learn, communicate, collaborate, critique, consult, and co-invent are often perceived as essential for survival.

The seminar will discuss recent work investigating the dynamics of collaborative contexts, how they can interface with traditional institutional organizations and a technical application to enable people to design virtual environments to support such activities.


Short resume

Dr Kate Crawford has researched learning in technologically rich environments for 15 years. Her doctorate research investigated social experience and problem solving from a psychological perspective. She has extensive international experience in networked learning projects including cooperative projects with Digital Equipment Corporation, AT&T Research, the Community of explorers Project (with the then BBN Laboratories), and the New Directions in Distance Learning project (with Dr S. Crichton) in British Columbia. Most recently she has been working with researchers in six countries in Europe in a cooperative network to explore user representations of digital technology in the education sector.

She is the director of the Novae Research Group based at the Australian Technology Park, Sydney, and works cooperatively with scientific and technical innovators to conduct developmental research on the dynamics of human aspects of innovation and learning in technologically rich environments. Kate has a particular interest in applications of theoretical insights, from a systems activity perspective, to the design of user-centered technologies and the dynamics of networked socio-cultural systems to enable learning. The group has research and development expertise on on-line courses at university level, in Education. Science and Arts, and a large postgraduate research program.

Dr Crawford has recently been appointed as a board member for the Higher Education Knowledge and Technology Exchange group (www.hekate.org) and will take a leadership role in support of development projects sponsored by HEKATE.


----------------------------------------
The HAIL Seminars' URL:
http://www.ict.csiro.au/HAIL/

Contacts:       Andrew Lampert
Address:        CSIRO HAIL Seminars,
                c/o Andrew Lampert,
                Locked Bag 17,
                North Ryde NSW 1670

Phone:  (02) 9325 3100
Email:  Andrew.Lampert at csiro.au


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