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Fabrics That Remember

Michael Kwolek — Fri, 18 Apr 2025 19:30:44 +0000

Fabrics That Remember Michael Kwolek Fri, 04/18/2025 - 13:30

Laura Devendorf describes how wearable technologies like e-textiles can help people to gather insights into and reflect upon intimate moments rather than to modify or enhance them.

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The Trouble with Wearables

Michael Kwolek — Tue, 04 Mar 2025 22:04:58 +0000

The Trouble with Wearables Michael Kwolek Tue, 03/04/2025 - 15:04

E-textiles and smart textiles have sustainability challenges related to recycling and reuse. ATLAS researchers are investigating novel materials and techniques to simplify how we can separate and recover valuable materials from textile waste.

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Devendorf bridges engineering and craft communities with new initiative

Anonymous — Tue, 13 Aug 2024 15:54:01 +0000

Devendorf bridges engineering and craft communities with new initiative Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 08/13/2024 - 09:54

Michael Kwolek

Weaving and engineering might seem unrelated on the surface, but they in fact have a great deal in common. Laura Devendorf, assistant professor at the ATLAS Institute and Information Science, is determined to build bridges among practitioners across these disciplines to unlock the potential for new lines of scientific and creative innovation.

To support this work, Devendorf, who directs the Unstable Design Lab, was recently awarded a U.S. National Science Foundation grant of $297,630 for phase one of a larger project entitled, “Cultivating an Ecosystem for Interdisciplinary Smart Textiles Research.”

The research builds on software Devendorf and her team developed called, AdaCAD, an open-source tool they describe as an “experimental workspace that applies parametric design to the domain of weave drafting. It supports algorithmic and playful approaches to developing woven structures and cloth, for shaft and jacquard looms.”

The aim of this new research, as Devendorf describes it, is to, “take this software that we built for doing complex weave drafting and transition it to a project where it is sustained and grown by a larger community of weavers and [those] who we call ‘textile-adjacent engineers’.” That way, AdaCAD can develop and adapt to the needs of a wider user-base over time as all good open source software does.

This work exemplifies the radically interdisciplinary work that the ATLAS Institute champions. By bringing together disparate experts and communities—in this case, artists, artisans, engineers and researchers—we create new approaches to discovery.

From adjacent to integrated
Textiles are pervasive, yet often misunderstood in engineering spaces. The surprising mathematical complexity, materials knowledge and innovation that have arisen over centuries of textile practice are often overlooked. At the same time, weavers who come from a tradition of craftsmanship, art and design may be unfamiliar with meaningful advances in the engineering space.

By bringing together these two worlds, Devendorf hopes to open up opportunities for breakthroughs in technology and craft, whether that is in advancing electronic-textile science or pushing the boundaries of artistic expression.

For example, an engineering team may seek ways to monitor health without the use of adhesives often required for electrodes, while weavers already have options for materials and techniques that could replace such adhesives. Yet both groups are often unaware of each other’s needs and skills. But overcoming this knowledge gap, Devendorf believes engineers and weavers could together achieve greater impact.

There are signs this is beginning to take place, and she aims to speed the process. Research labs at CalTech and MIT as well as industrial design studios around the globe have acquired digital looms to experiment with weaving advanced materials and experimental forms.

But first: listening
Phase I of this project will focus on fact-finding and planning. The team will lead community-engagement activities and trainings and gather points-of-view from craftspeople, designers, engineers and others across many communities.

Devendorf and her team have begun interviewing people from a range of overlapping disciplines. They include a weaver with a fine arts background who now works on woven implantables for a medical devices company and a textiles expert researching stronger, lighter woven materials for the aviation industry. Still others in the cohort are studying zero-waste, “whole garment” clothing manufacturing and human-computer interaction surfaces on the body. The range of applications for textiles is growing at an impressive pace.

Devendorf explains this recent uptick in interest: “Ten years ago, it was all about the maker movement and digital fabrication, and it took a while before people realized that textile machines are also fabrication machines that can do things that we're still trying to get 3D printers to do. Textiles are inherently multi-material. They are flexible, they can be made stiff, they can be soft. It's a totally different mindset to control a textile machine [compared] to a printer that is making stacks. There’s a big learning gap there, but you see a lot of fabrication people jumping in.”

The TC2 Loom by Digital Weaving Norway has also expanded access to advanced weaving techniques as a first-of-its-kind prototype-scale digital jacquard loom that is programmable with a bitmap image. Now you no longer need a factory-scale setup to experiment with textiles fabrication.

What’s next
For Phase II, the team will focus on cultivating the ecosystem through on-the-ground work with communities and creating opportunities for practitioners to share what they are making. Devendorf also aims to expand opportunities for craftspeople in scientific research and product design spaces.

She explains, “we have huge problems to tackle as a society. I believe that engineering can address some of those, but I don't think we can do it if we don't have access to every possible technique… We're overlooking a huge set of practices and people in communities that have knowledge we need to solve some of these bigger challenges. My hunch is that craftspeople understand materials, process and machinery where so much of engineering is happening at a simulation level [while] trying to engineer materials that behave like the simulations.”

By fostering interconnectivity between engineering and weaving communities, Devendorf and her team in the Unstable Design Lab will position textiles as a leading source for innovative solutions to global challenges.

The Unstable Design Lab director has embarked on the first phase of a years-long project to bring together engineering and craft communities to advance textile research across a range of scientific disciplines.

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Wear it, then recycle: ATLAS Designers make dissolvable textiles from gelatin

Anonymous — Mon, 17 Jun 2024 19:24:50 +0000

Wear it, then recycle: ATLAS Designers make dissolvable textiles from gelatin Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 06/17/2024 - 13:24

In a new study, a team of ATLAS engineers and designers developed a DIY machine that spins textile fibers made of materials like sustainably sourced gelatin. The group’s “biofibers” feel a bit like flax fiber and dissolve in hot water in minutes to an hour.

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ATLAS in Ireland: 12 community members present at TEI’24

Anonymous — Fri, 09 Feb 2024 19:05:23 +0000

ATLAS in Ireland: 12 community members present at TEI’24 Anonymous (not verified) Fri, 02/09/2024 - 12:05

Michael Kwolek

ATLAS is well-represented at #TEI2024 - the 18th ACM International Conference on Tangible, Embedded and Embodied Interaction. This year’s conference, in Cork, Ireland, celebrates “cutting-edge scientific research and art that is on the edge of disciplines and on the edge of new unique developments and possibilities.”

Research from 12 members of the ATLAS community including faculty, alumni and students is featured at the conference. The work spans a range of disciplines, including weaving, biomaterials, mixed reality and robotics. In addition, ACME Lab director, Ellen Do, acted as Co-Chair of Graduate Student Consortium; PhD student, Sandra Bae, was an Associate Chair for Pictorials; and ATLAS PhD alum, Fiona Bell, was an Associate Chair for Papers.

Research ATLAS PhD students presented at TEI’24

Loom Pedals: Retooling Jacquard Weaving for Improvisational Design Workflows
Shanel Wu, Xavier A Corr, Xi Gao, Sasha De Koninck, Robin Bowers, and Laura Devendorf

Abstract: We present the Loom Pedals, an open-source hardware/software interface for enhancing a weaver’s ability to create on-the-fly, improvised designs in Jacquard weaving. Learning from traditional handweaving and our own weaving experiences, we describe our process of designing, implementing, and using the prototype Loom Pedals system with a TC2 Digital Jacquard loom. The Loom Pedals include a set of modular, reconfigurable foot pedals which can be mapped to parametric Operations that generate and transform digital woven designs. Our novel interface integrates design and loom control, providing a customizable workflow for playful, improvisational Jacquard weaving. We conducted a formative evaluation of the prototype through autobiographical methods and collaboratively developed future Loom Pedals features. We contribute our prototype, design process, and conceptual reflections on weaving as a human-machine dialog between a weaver, the loom, and many other agents.

Bio-Digital Calendar: Attuning to Nonhuman Temporalities for Multispecies Understanding
Fiona Bell, Joshua Coffie, and Mirela Alistar

Abstract: We explore how actively engaging with the temporalities of a nonhuman organism can lead to multispecies understanding. To do so, we design a bio-digital calendar that brings attention to the growth and health of kombucha SCOBY, a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast that lives in a tea medium. The non-invasive bio-digital calendar surrounds the kombucha SCOBY to track (via sensors) and enhance (via sound) its growth. As we looked at and listened to our kombucha SCOBY calendar on a daily basis, we became attuned to the slowness of kombucha SCOBY. This multisensory noticing practice with the calendar, in turn, destabilized our preconceived human-centered positionality, leading to a more humble, decentered relationship between us and the organism. Through our experiences with the bio-digital calendar, we gained a better relational multispecies understanding of temporalities based on care, which, in the long term, might be a solution to a more sustainable future.

Wizard of Props: Mixed Reality Prototyping with Physical Props to Design Responsive Environments
Yuzhen Zhang, Ruixiang Han, Ran Zhou, Peter Gyory, Clement Zheng, Patrick C. Shih, Ellen Yi-Luen Do, Malte F Jung, Wendy Ju, and Daniel Leithinger

Abstract: Driven by the vision of future responsive environments, where everyday surroundings can perceive human behaviors and respond through intelligent robotic actuation, we propose Wizard of Props (WoP): a human-centered design workflow for creating expressive, implicit, and meaningful interactions. This collaborative experience prototyping approach integrates full-scale physical props with Mixed Reality (MR) to support ideation, prototyping, and rapid testing of responsive environments. We present two design explorations that showcase our investigations of diverse design solutions based on varying technology resources, contextual considerations, and target audiences. Design Exploration One focuses on mixed environment building, where we observe fluid prototyping methods. In Design Exploration Two, we explore how novice designers approach WoP, and illustrate their design ideas and behaviors. Our findings reveal that WoP complements conventional design methods, enabling intuitive body-storming, supporting flexible prototyping fidelity, and fostering expressive environment-human interactions through in-situ improvisational performance.

Making Biomaterials for Sustainable Tangible Interfaces
Fiona Bell, Shanel Wu, Nadia Campo Woytuk, Eldy S. Lazaro Vasquez, Mirela Alistar, and Leah Buechley

Abstract: In this studio, we will explore sustainable tangible interfaces by making a range of biomaterials that are bio-based and readily biodegradable. Building off of previous TEI studios that were centered around one specific biomaterial (i.e., bioplastics at TEI’22 and microbial cellulose at TEI’23), this studio will provide participants the ability to experience a wide variety of biomaterials from algae-based bioplastics, to food-waste-based bioclays, to gelatin-based biofoams. We will teach participants how to identify types of biomaterials that are applicable to their own research and how to make them. Through hands-on activities, we will demonstrate how to implement biomaterials in the design of sustainable tangible interfaces and discuss topics sensitized by biological media such as more-than-human temporalities, bioethics, care, and unmaking. Ultimately, our goal is to facilitate a space in which HCI researchers and designers can collaborate, create, and discuss the opportunities and challenges of working with sustainable biomaterials.

Paper Modular Robot: Circuit, Sensation Feedback, and 3D Geometry
Ruhan Yang

Abstract: Modular robots have proven valuable for STEM education. However, modular robot kits are often expensive, which makes them limited in accessibility. My research focuses on using paper and approachable techniques to create modular robots. The kit’s design encompasses three core technologies: paper circuits, sensation feedback mechanisms, and 3D geometry. I have developed proof-of-concept demonstrations of technologies for each aspect. I will integrate these technologies to design and build a paper modular robot kit. This kit includes various types of modules for input, output, and other functions. My dissertation will discuss the development of these technologies and how they are integrated. This research will address the considerations and techniques for paper as an interactive material, providing a guideline for future research and development of paper-based interaction.

Research from 12 members of the ATLAS community including faculty, alumni and students is featured at the 18th ACM International Conference on Tangible, Embedded and Embodied Interaction.

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ATLAS PhD Shanel Wu completes Open Hardware Creators fellowship

Anonymous — Tue, 31 Oct 2023 18:08:55 +0000

ATLAS PhD Shanel Wu completes Open Hardware Creators fellowship Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 10/31/2023 - 12:08

Michael Kwolek

ATLAS PhD Shanel Wu recently concluded their participation in the Open Hardware Creators in Academia Fellowship, an initiative run by the Open Source Hardware Organization (OSHWA).

The fellowship, funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, brought together nine diverse, passionate researchers in the open hardware field to create assets to assist other academics studying the topic, support the movement, foster collaboration and amplify the power of open hardware in academia. Wu says, "I was excited to be part of OSHWA's work in building an academic community in open hardware, especially because the organization has been so involved with promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion."

As a member of the ATLAS Unstable Design Lab, directed by assistant professor Laura Devendorf, Wu centered their PhD research on making things that are both useful and beautiful, and exploring technical complexities through handcraft, including e-textiles, wearables and unique materials with embedded electronics. This culminated in their recently-published dissertation, Retooling E-Textiles for Coproduction: Weaving Circuitry as Cloth.

Wu embarked on an extensive set of research outputs through the course of the fellowship, including talks, essays, documentation and articles, with particular focus on Loom Pedals, an open-source customizable interface for a Jacquard loom, designed to promote improvisation and experimentation for makers. In this work, Wu relates, "I learned to trust in my ability to contribute to my field and to have confidence in my value as a researcher."

An open-source approach to research and tool development is particularly important to Wu as they “believe in sharing knowledge outside of traditional institutions as widely as possible, [as the] work will be more impactful if it is openly available.”

According to OSHWA, the fellowship program has achieved critical outcomes including:

Innovative Designs: Participants have designed cutting-edge open source solutions in fields ranging from robotics and electronics to museum studies and environmental monitoring.
Open Source Resources: A wealth of educational materials, guides and documentation has been created, making open source more accessible to the broader academic community and beyond.
Community Building: The program has fostered a global network of open source enthusiasts, encouraging collaborative research, idea exchange and support.
Increased Visibility: The fellowship has increased the visibility of open source research in academia, contributing to the global conversation about open science and technology in academia.

Wu has now embarked on post-doc research at Carleton College in Ottawa as Research Associate in the Creative Interactions Lab working on wearable technologies and accessibility. The lab, headed by professor and Associate Dean (Research), Audrey Girouard, studies computer-human interaction through the lens of deformable materials and flexible displays. On this new endeavor, Wu says, "Working in the HCI accessibility space will be a great opportunity to do more community-based research, while continuing to explore textiles and handcraft in wearables."

ATLAS PhD Shanel Wu recently concluded their participation in the Open Hardware Creators in Academia Fellowship, an initiative run by the Open Source Hardware Organization (OSHWA).

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Unstable Design Lab 2023 Residency in Review

Anonymous — Thu, 28 Sep 2023 17:59:50 +0000

Unstable Design Lab 2023 Residency in Review Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 09/28/2023 - 11:59

The 2023 Experimental Weaving Residency, featuring Elizabeth Meiklejohn, has left us with new understandings about electromagnetics and cloth movement.

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16 Members of the ATLAS Community Present Groundbreaking Research on Human-Computer Interaction at ACM DIS 2023

Anonymous — Wed, 05 Jul 2023 19:43:45 +0000

16 Members of the ATLAS Community Present Groundbreaking Research on Human-Computer Interaction at ACM DIS 2023 Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 07/05/2023 - 13:43

Michael Kwolek

ATLAS is well-represented at this year’s ACM Designing Interactive Systems (DIS) 2023 conference convening at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh from July 10-14, 2023. This year’s theme is resilience.

"Resilience is at once about flexibility, durability, and strength as well as a sense of mutuality and hope where solidaristic modes of engagement make new kinds of worlds possible.

This also recognizes that resilience takes many forms in design discourse, ranging across: indigenous knowledge, more-than-human perspectives, and the relationship between human, material and artificial intelligences."

It is exciting to see members across more than half of ATLAS labs represented in this year’s proceedings, with broad-reaching research covering microbiomes as materials for interactive design; 3D printing with spent coffee grounds; personal informatics systems; improving cross-disciplinary collaboration among artists and researchers; expressive movement for altering emotions and awareness; and the intersection of crocheting and data. Take a look:

µMe: Exploring the Human Microbiome as an Intimate Material for Living Interfaces
Fiona Bell (ATLAS PhD alum), Michelle Ramsahoye (ATLAS affiliate PhD student), Joshua Coffie (ATLAS MS alum), Julia Tung (ATLAS BS student), and Mirela Alistar (ATLAS Living Matter Lab director, assistant professor)

Our bodies are home to an unseen ecosystem of microbes that live in symbiosis with us. In this work, we extend the “human” in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) to include these microbes. Specifically, we explore the skin microbiome as an intimate material for interaction design. Viewing the body as a microbial interface, we start by presenting a method to grow our microbiome such that it becomes visible to the human eye. We then present a design space that explores how different environmental parameters, such as temperature and growth media, can be controlled to influence the color of the microbiome. We further investigate how our interactions in a daily uncontrolled environment (e.g., exercising, hugging, typing) can impact the microbiome. We demonstrate several wearable applications that reveal and control the microbiome. Lastly, we address the challenges and opportunities of working with the microbiome as an intimate, living material for interaction design.

Designing a Sustainable Material for 3D Printing with Spent Coffee Grounds
Michael L. Rivera (ATLAS Utility Research Lab Director, assistant professor), S. Sandra Bae (ATLAS PhD student)

The widespread adoption of 3D printers exacerbates existing environmental challenges as these machines increase energy consumption, waste output, and the use of plastics. Material choice for 3D printing is tightly connected to these challenges, and as such researchers and designers are exploring sustainable alternatives. Building on these efforts, this work explores using spent coffee grounds as a sustainable material for prototyping with 3D printing. This material, in addition to being compostable and recyclable, can be easily made and printed at home. We describe the material in detail, including the process of making it from readily available ingredients, its material characteristics and its printing parameters. We then explore how it can support sustainable prototyping practices as well as HCI applications. In reflecting on our design process, we discuss challenges and opportunities for the HCI community to support sustainable prototyping and personal fabrication. We conclude with a set of design considerations for others to weigh when exploring sustainable materials for 3D printing and prototyping.

For additional details, see our article on how this and other Utility Research Lab projects won awards at the Rocky Mountain RepRap Festival.

Being, Having, Doing, and Interacting: A Personal Informatics Approach to Understanding Human Need Satisfaction in Everyday Life
Michael Jeffrey Daniel Hoefer, Stephen Voida, (ATLAS affiliate assistant professor, founding faculty, information science)

A grand challenge for computing is to better understand fundamental human needs and their satisfaction. In this work, we design a personal informatics technology probe that scaffolds reflection on how time-use satisfies Max-Neef's fundamental needs of being, having, doing, and interacting via self-aspects, relationships and organizations, activities, and environments. Through a combination of a think-aloud study (N=10) and a week-long in situ deployment (N=7), participants used the probe to complete self- aspect elicitation and Day Reconstruction Method tasks. Participants then interacted with network visualizations of their daily lives, and discovered insights about their lives. During the study, we collected a dataset of 662 activities annotated with need satisfaction ratings. Despite challenges in operationalizing a theory of need through direct elicitation from individuals, personal informatics systems show potential as a participatory and individually meaningful approach for understanding need satisfaction in everyday life.

Enhancing Accessibility in Soft Robotics: Exploring Magnet-Embedded Paper-Based Interactions
Ruhan Yang (ATLAS PhD student), Ellen Yi-Luen Do (ATLAS ACME Lab director, faculty member)

This paper explores the implementation of embedded magnets to enhance paper-based interactions. The integration of magnets in paper-based interactions simplifies the fabrication process, making it more accessible for building soft robotics systems. We discuss various interaction patterns achievable through this approach and highlight their potential applications.

[Workshop] Towards Mutual Benefit: Reflecting on Artist Residencies as a Method for Collaboration in DIS
Laura Devendorf (ATLAS Unstable Design Lab director, assistant professor), Leah Buechley, Noura Howell, Jennifer Jacobs, Hsin-Liu (Cindy) Kao, Martin Murer, Daniela Rosner, Nica Ross, Robert Soden, Jared Tso, Clement Zheng (ATLAS PhD alum)

While cross-disciplinary collaboration has long been, and continues to be a cornerstone of inventive work in interactive design, the infrastructures of academia, as well as barriers to participation imposed by our professional organizations, make collaboration for some groups harder than others. In this workshop, we’ll focus specifically on how artists residencies are addressing (or not) the challenges that artists, craftspeople, and/or independent designers face when collaborating with researchers affiliated with DIS. While focusing on the question “what is mutual benefit”, this workshop seeks to combine the perspectives of artists as well as researchers collaborating with artists (through residencies or otherwise) to (1) reflect on benefits or deficiencies in what we are currently doing and (2) generate resources for our community to effectively structure and evaluate our methods of collaboration with artists. Our hope is to provide recognition of and pathways for equitable inclusion of artists as a first step towards broader infrastructural change.

Refer to the Unstable Design Lab website for more details on this research.

[Demo] SoniSpace: Expressive Movement Interaction to Encourage Taking Up Space with the Body
Ruojia Sun (ATLAS PhD student), Althea Vail Wallop (ATLAS MS student), Grace Leslie (ATLAS Brain Music Lab director, assistant professor), Ellen Yi-Luen Do (ATLAS ACME Lab director, faculty member)

Movement forms the basis of our thoughts, emotions, and ways of being in the world. Informed by somaesthetics, we design for "taking up space" (e.g. encouraging expansive body movements), which may in turn alter our emotional experience. We demonstrate SoniSpace, an expressive movement interaction experience that uses movement sonification and visualization to encourage users to take up space with their body. We use a first-person design approach to embed qualities of awareness, exploration, and comfort into the sound and visual design to promote authentic and enjoyable movement expression regardless of prior movement experience. Preliminary results from 20 user experiences with the system show that users felt more comfortable with taking up space and with movement in general following the interaction. We discuss our findings about designing for somatically-focused movement interactions and directions for future work.

[Demo] Crochet and Data Activity Book
Mikhaila Friske (ATLAS affiliate PhD student)

This demo focuses around crocheting and data. In addition to a physical workbook for conference goers to peruse and try, there will be a few small set-ups for specific activities and a small craft circle for people to craft within if they so choose.

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ATLAS Institute Faculty Nationally Recognized for Radical Creativity and Invention

Anonymous — Thu, 08 Jun 2023 16:46:00 +0000

ATLAS Institute Faculty Nationally Recognized for Radical Creativity and Invention Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 06/08/2023 - 10:46

Michael Kwolek

The National Science Foundation’s CAREER award is among the most prestigious honors supporting junior faculty doing outstanding work integrating research and education toward a meaningful social impact. The CAREER award is highly competitive and is a strong indicator of future research success.

Award criteria focus on intellectual merit and broad impact—the NSF awards academic role models who have a plan to explore a body of significant research in their field. This balance of the desire to educate students within a pursuit of deep inquiry toward a purposeful goal is the signature of CAREER award winners.

At ATLAS Institute, we are proud to have had five faculty members who have received CAREER awards out of the nine so far who have been eligible. This remarkable achievement speaks to the nature of our research community as one that empowers creative engineers to bring their full selves to their work.

Ben Shapiro, Computer Science (2015): Constructing Modern and Inclusive Trajectories for Computer Science Learning
Laura Devendorf, Information Science (2020): Investigating Novel Tools and Collaborative Programs for Smart Textiles Innovation at the Intersection of Engineering and Craft
Danielle Szafir, Computer Science (2021): Developing Perceptually-Driven Tools for Estimating Visualization Effectiveness
Grace Leslie, Music (2022): Multimodal Brain and Body Music Interfaces to Promote Entrainment, Connection, and Creative Science Education
Carson Bruns, Mechanical Engineering (2023): Intradermal Biocompatibility of Nanoparticles as Minimally Invasive Implants for Human Health

ATLAS Director Mark D Gross explains faculty hiring: “Rather than saying, ‘We specifically want to hire a brain scientist,’ we say, ‘We just want to hire a really brilliant person.’ We seek applicants who are interesting to us and who are going to do great work. We believe in them.”

The power of the research

The ��ɫ��Ƶ is one of only 35 U.S. public research institutions in the Association of American Universities (AAU), a group widely recognized as America’s leading research universities. This emphasis on research undergirds everything we do at CU-Boulder overall and at ATLAS specifically.

ATLAS Institute is housed under the Research & Innovation Office at CU-Boulder, with degree programs in the College of Engineering and Applied Science (CEAS), itself a heavily decorated and high-ranked college. ATLAS contributes to the research rigor CEAS is known for while pushing the community’s perception of where serious inquiry can spring from.

For example, recent CAREER recipient and ATLAS assistant professor of mechanical engineering, Carson Bruns, studies new ways to apply nanotechnology for improving human health—but through the lens of “smart” tattoos that can change color with UV light exposure or temperature increases. This melding of disparate lines of interest—nanoparticles, smart technology, human health and body art—seeds unique, useful discoveries traditional methods might otherwise overlook.

Why ATLAS?

So what is it exactly about ATLAS that attracts such talent? Gross says, “Those who know what we're doing tell us we have a really interesting group of people, we’re unlike a traditional department, we’re very interdisciplinary, we blend fields, we’re open to change. Those are the kind of things that attract the people we hire.”

The term “interdisciplinary” refers to work in two distinct academic fields of study. At ATLAS, we push this notion further, to expand boundaries, to cross-pollinate and change how we think about thinking—deep, focused research into highly specialized topics is essential, but equally important is our ability to investigate ideas across a wide range of fields.

ATLAS faculty have a different way of thinking about problems, one that sparks teams to come up with novel solutions. Despite this often unexpected approach, their research is grounded in the real world, in designing tangible things and in creating tools for others to expand on the core idea. Consider the work that Laura Devendorf, assistant professor of information science, undertakes in the Unstable Design Lab—she develops advanced software that opens the craft of weaving up to new possibilities of form and design, empowering artisans to push the medium forward.

We will continue to champion this expansive view of interdisciplinary research at ATLAS as a model for how polymaths can pursue research that would be unlikely to find a home in traditional settings, particularly in the fields of engineering and design. Our success in attracting CAREER-worthy talent proves the power of our approach to radical creativity.

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ATLAS Professor Laura Devendorf Explores Innovations in Weaving at CHI 2023

Anonymous — Tue, 16 May 2023 15:45:43 +0000

ATLAS Professor Laura Devendorf Explores Innovations in Weaving at CHI 2023 Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 05/16/2023 - 09:45

Weaving has been a central craft in global culture for thousands of years—so ubiquitous that it often feels invisible. Laura Devendorf, ATLAS Unstable Design Lab Director, Information Science faculty member, is changing this perception by proving that weaving is very much a source of radical innovation, and inspiring others in the world of computer-human interaction to expand their conception of what advanced materials can look like.

At this year’s ACM CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, in Hamburg, Germany, Devendorf presented research 5 years in the making on the intersection of human-computer interaction and textile weaving, a true melding of engineering and craft.

Her paper, AdaCAD: Parametric Design as a New Form of Notation for Complex Weaving (Laura Devendorf, Kathryn Walters , Marianne Fairbanks ,Etta Sandry [ATLAS Unstable Design Lab weaving resident], Emma R. Goodwill [ATLAS Unstable Design Lab member, undergraduate student]) was awarded Best Paper Honorable Mention at the conference.

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7q3fc9aArM]

In addition to presenting the paper, Devendorf demoed her research, shared sample textiles and distributed workbooks to ground observers in an understanding of the craft and its potential in advanced computer-human interaction. Her open-source framework bridges communities of weavers and engineers around the common goal of pushing the boundaries of textile structure.

Weaving is not the flat plane art many think it is. It can be a medium for building precisely-designed 3D structures, interwoven shapes and generative patterns. Weavers can build these structures without adhesives from materials they can mend and reharvest.

Devendorf notes that she “has been interested in people working in textiles and seeing how that work is happening in all different spaces and from disciplinary perspectives. It feels like it’s building from many unique angles.” At CHI, she got to see how her work fits into so many disparate conversations. Indeed, one of the most exciting elements of the conference was showing tangible woven objects and proposing new ways to explore the techniques used to create them.

By opening up possibilities for how we make and interact with woven forms, Devendorf’s work has sparked dialog around the future of textiles. It is a visible technology—something you can hold in your hands—one that embodies experience, play and storytelling and encourages collaborative interaction.

For example, when we think about heirlooms, we envision objects passed through generations because they hold meaning. What if we could make that meaning literal? What if a mother could weave a blanket embedded with digital data that gives it context and a deeper narrative for her children and grandchildren? What if it could store new memories across generations? This could be possible through weaving electronic materials or even designing computer-readable woven patterns.

Devendorf takes a unique approach to thinking about her research. “We approach everything we work with as craftspeople, whether textiles, clay or software from a perspective of sculpting. Change a variable and see what happens, then follow that conversation to new design spaces.”

The future of human-computer interaction is not purely digital, it is very much embedded in craft. Devendorf’s work proves that fiber art is a medium for radical innovation.

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