Author: daniel.costa.ribeiro

The Interactive Technologies Institute is delighted to announce the closing session of the Game Art and Gender Equity (GAGE) project on March 8th, International Women’s Day. The event, to be held at the Interactive Technologies Institute facilities in the Beato Innovation District with remote participation available, promises to be a culmination of years of dedicated research and creative collaboration. The highlight of the evening will be the teaser presentation of the teaser of the animated short film ‘Mnema,’ a representation of the voices and experiences of women in the gaming industry.

‘Mnema’ is a short animated film directed by Carolina Bonzinho and Inês Costa, produced with the support of the Agency for the Promotion of Atlantic Culture (APCA Madeira). The film incorporates the results of GAGE’s empirical research, presenting a visual universe that encapsulates the stories and experiences of women in the gaming industry.

The event will have the presence of relevant stakeholders in the fields of gaming and gender equity. The event is open but registration is required.

Agenda

16:00: Welcome to Participants
16:10: Presentation of the GAGE Project (Luciana Lima)
16:40: Presentation of the Film Mnema (Carolina Bonzinho and Inês Costa)
17:10: Q&A Session

About GAGE Project

The Game Art and Gender Equity (GAGE) project, initiated by Dr. Luciana Lima and Dr. Patrícia Gouveia at the Interactive Technologies Institute, delves into the history and evolution of female participation in the Portuguese gaming industry. With a team of eleven artists and researchers from diverse fields, GAGE conducted arts-based research between 2020 and 2024, shedding light on the challenges and contributions of women in a predominantly male-dominated industry.

About Mnema short film

This short animated film explores the world of video games through the character Mnema, derived from the Greek goddess Mnemosyne, symbolizing memory and inspiration. The film aims to challenge stereotypes and showcase the resilience of women in the face of adversity within the gaming industry. ‘Mnema’ seeks to raise awareness about representation, equal opportunities, and inclusion in the digital games realm, paying tribute to women who defy stereotypes to claim their rightful place.

The eGames Lab consortium recently hosted a two-day scientific session titled “Level Up @ eGames Lab” at the CCIF Centre in Funchal on February 21 and 22. The event featured experts from various European universities gathering to discuss advancements in video game development.

The symposium commenced with an opening ceremony at 9 a.m. on February 21, with Dr. Cristina Pedra, the Mayor of Funchal. Dr. Cristina Pedra, in her welcome address, expressed the municipality’s satisfaction with the progress of the eGames Lab project. She highlighted the tangible outcomes, including the development of certified games, the recognition of consortium-affiliated companies, and the publication of research papers.

The following sessions included a series of lectures delivered by renowned researchers specializing in areas crucial to the gaming industry. Notable speakers included Lene Nielsen from the University of Copenhagen, Sabine Madsen from the University of Aalborg (Denmark), Nuno Correia from the Nova University of Lisbon, and Terhi Marttila from the Interactive Technologies Institute and the Instituto Superior Técnico, among others.

Throughout the event, 23 scientific posters were displayed, showcasing the research projects of young investigators affiliated with the eGames Lab. These posters provided insights into the ongoing research and development activities conducted since the inception of the eGames Lab project.

The closing session on the second day brought together the invited researchers for a panel discussion. The panel explored various approaches to video game development, addressing key challenges faced by the gaming industry in Portugal and abroad.

The eGames Lab, a project funded by the Recovery and Resilience Plan with a budget of 30 million euros, aims to boost the video game development sector and creative industries in Portugal. The initiative, which commenced last year, has made significant strides in fostering collaboration between researchers, fostering innovation, and contributing to the growth of the gaming industry.

Mariana Pestana, a distinguished architect, researcher at the Interactive Technologies Institute, and Invited Assistant Professor at Instituto Superior Técnico, has been appointed as the Chief Curator of the Architecture Centre at MAC/CCB Museu de Arte Contemporânea in Lisbon. This prestigious appointment comes after a competitive selection process, where Pestana’s innovative curatorial proposal stood out among 25 candidates.

With a background in architecture from the Universidade do Porto and a PhD in architectural design from the Bartlett School of Architecture in London, Mariana Pestana has showcased her work at the Venice Architecture Biennale twice and has curated the fifth Istanbul Design Biennial. Her rich international experience and bold curatorial approach were key factors in securing her position.

Starting from March 1, 2024, Mariana Pestana will serve a four-year term in her role. The selection process, conducted by the CCB board of directors, favoured Mariana Pestana’s project for its quality and innovation in curatorial and programming proposals within the field of architecture.

Born in Viseu in 1982, Mariana Pestana is not only an accomplished architect and curator but also an Invited Assistant Professor at Instituto Superior Técnico and a researcher at the Interactive Technologies Institute. Furthermore, she serves as the coordinator of art and culture for the European project Bauhaus of the Seas Sails, implementing cultural initiatives across 7 coastal cities aimed at redefining their connection with aquatic ecosystems, encompassing rivers, lagoons, and the sea.

The Interactive Technologies Institute congratulates Mariana Pestana on this remarkable achievement and looks forward to the impact she will make in her new role at the heart of Lisbon’s vibrant cultural scene.

In an effort to foster a love for science and technology among young minds, Ana Pires, a distinguished researcher from the Interactive Technologies Institute, engaged this February kindergarten and primary school children at the “Encontro com um Cientista” event organized by Pavilhão do Conhecimento – Centro Ciência Viva.

Ana Pires, an Educational and Inclusive Technology expert, captivated the audience by showcasing her work in developing interactive games that utilize physical pieces to engage with PCs and tablets. Her creations focus on mathematical games designed to stimulate and enhance mathematical skills in children.

During the event, Pires initiated a discussion with the students about the concept of technology, highlighting examples such as agriculture and the wheel as some of the earliest forms of technology. Drawing on her experiences working with children in Uruguay, she noted their inclination towards both technological and physical play, inspiring her to merge the two in her game designs.

One remarkable aspect of Ana Pires’ work is her commitment to inclusivity. Recognising the need for children with visual impairments to interact seamlessly with their peers, she has developed 3D-printed pieces with raised textures, characters with audio descriptions, and joysticks featuring Braille buttons. These innovations have resulted in inclusive games that students can experience firsthand.

Engaging with the young audience, Pires fielded questions from the students, addressing their curiosity about her experiences as a woman in the field of science. Encouragingly, she shared insights into her journey, encouraging the students to pursue scientific careers or, at the very least, maintain a curious spirit akin to that of a scientist.

The Interactive Technologies Institute hosted yet another engaging edition of ITI Talks on Friday, February 9th. The monthly event, known for its insightful presentations and discussions, featured two distinguished speakers who shared their research and findings with a diverse audience both in Lisbon and Funchal.

ITI Talks are monthly events where members of the Interactive Technologies Institute present their work. The hybrid format allows for physical participation in Lisbon and Funchal, with a ZOOM session connecting attendees in both locations and remote participants.

The event of February showcased the expertise of Francisco Vasconcelos, a Junior Researcher at the Interactive Technologies Institute, and Isabel Neto, a Ph.D. Candidate at Instituto Superior Técnico. Francisco delved into the realm of serious games with his talk, “Approaching household food waste reduction with a serious game for children.” Meanwhile, Isabel Neto shared her insights on inclusion with her presentation titled “Inclusion Through A Touch-Based Robot Among Mixed-Visual Ability Children.”

Francisco Vasconcelos: Serious Gaming for Social Impact

Francisco Vasconcelos, a passionate advocate for game development, focused on the pressing issue of household food waste. His talk explored the potential of serious games as a tool to engage and educate children on the best practices for food waste reduction. Collaborating with the local Food Bank, Francisco emphasized the need to approach the topic early on and tailored for younger audiences.

Isabel Neto: Enhancing Inclusion with Touch-Based Robots

Isabel Neto, concluding her Ph.D. at IST, shared her innovative research at the intersection of accessibility, education, artificial intelligence, and human-robot interaction. Her presentation highlighted the development of Touchibo, a tactile storyteller robot designed to create an inclusive space for group interaction among children with mixed visual abilities. The study involved 107 children, with results indicating significant improvements in individual and group participation perception.

The February edition once again demonstrated the Interactive Technologies Institute’s commitment to fostering knowledge exchange and pushing the boundaries of interactive technologies. As we eagerly await the next ITI Talks, the insights shared by Francisco Vasconcelos and Isabel Neto continue to resonate, inspiring further exploration and advancements in the field.

In a remarkable achievement, a research team including Daniel Simões Lopes, a researcher at the Interactive Technologies Institute and a Professor at Instituto Superior Técnico, has been honoured with two prestigious awards during the 66th Congress of the Portuguese Society of Ophthalmology. Their accomplishments, the Novartis Award and the Clinical Research Fellowship were presented to the team in recognition of their groundbreaking work in the field of ophthalmology.

Alongside Daniel Simões Lopes, the winning team includes Diogo Cabral and Pedro Carreira, Ophthalmologists at Hospital Garcia de Horta, João Salgueiro, an alumnus of Instituto Superior Técnico and João Afonso, a Master’s student in Biomedical Engineering at Instituto Superior Técnico. 

The team received the Novartis Award for the Best Retina presentation during the congress, earning a prize of €2,000. The award ceremony took place on December 2023, during the closing session of the congress held in Vilamoura, Portugal.  

The team’s award-winning project focuses on automatically detecting Choroidal Hyperpermeability using machine learning strategies. Choroidal Hyperpermeability is a critical hallmark of Central Serous Chorioretinopathy, a retinal disorder that can impair vision. By leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques, the researchers developed a pipeline for the automatic detection of Choroidal Hyperpermeability and a tool for generating choroidal thickness maps using non-invasive optical coherence tomography scans. The project’s main contribution lies in advancing the understanding of the relationship between Choroidal Hyperpermeability and areas of choroidal thickening, aiding physicians in diagnosing Central Serous Chorioretinopathy. 

In addition to the Novartis Award, the research team was granted the Clinical Research Fellowship. This fellowship aims to provide financial and structural support for clinical research projects in collaboration with national ophthalmic centres. The team’s selected project focuses on precisely identifying hereditary retinal diseases using Optical Coherence Tomography and artificial intelligence techniques.  

The project proposes training a computer to differentiate between two common hereditary retinal diseases—those associated with the mutation of the ABCA4 gene and the PRPH2 gene. The collaboration spans national institutions, including the Centro Hospitalar e Universitário de Coimbra and the Centro Hospitalar Universitário de São João, as well as international cooperation with the University of New York. 

The 70th edition of PubhD Lisbon, held on January 25, showcased the diverse and impactful research being conducted by doctoral students, with special attention on Isabel Neto, a PhD student in Social Robotics at the Interactive Technologies Institute.

The event brought together researchers to discuss their work in an informal setting – a bar – presenting complex topics in an accessible manner. Afonso Bento, a recent PhD graduate in Anthropology/ joined Isabel Neto as the second speaker of the evening.

Isabel is investigating how robots can foster inclusion among children with and without visual impairments in school environments. Her work aims to create innovative approaches to promote equal opportunities for children with diverse visual, auditory, or other abilities.

Isabel, who holds a background in computer engineering and spent over two decades in the telecommunications industry, embarked on her PhD journey in social robotics at the Interactive Technologies Institute. Now in her second year of doctoral studies, Isabel is making significant strides in understanding how robots can contribute to creating equitable and inclusive learning spaces for children.

During her 10-minute presentation at PubhD Lisbon, Isabel shared insights into her multidisciplinary research, acknowledging the collaborative efforts with institutions such as the Instituto Superior Técnico, Cornell University, INESC-ID, the Interactive Technologies Institute, HRC2, and the GAIPS Lab research group. The event allowed for a deeper understanding of the potential impact of Isabel’s work, sparking engaging discussions on the role of robotics in shaping inclusive educational environments.

Afonso Bento delved into his research project on the relationship between penal punishment and morality in the Portuguese context, shedding light on the perspectives of incarcerated individuals and the challenges faced by prison staff. His exploration provided valuable insights into the nuances of moral values within the prison system.

Isabel Neto’s innovative work in Social Robotics stole the show, emphasizing Interactive Technologies Institute’s commitment to cutting-edge research in interactive technologies. The Institute looks forward to more groundbreaking contributions from its dynamic community of researchers and scholars.

In an exciting and educational visit, students in the fields of business and economics program at Universidade Católica Portuguesa had the opportunity to explore the innovative realm of interactive technologies during their visit to the Interactive Technologies Institute on January 23.

Nuno Jardim Nunes, the esteemed President of Interactive Technologies Institute, warmly welcomed the visiting students and hosted an engaging presentation that shed light on the institute’s multifaceted endeavours. During the session, Nunes passionately discussed the institute’s core activities, providing an overview of various groundbreaking projects such as LoGaCulture, Bauhaus of the Sea Sails, MODINA, and DCtizens.

The highlight of the presentation was Nunes’ captivating storytelling about former Interactive Technologies Institute students who, inspired by their experiences at the institute, went on to establish a company that eventually achieved the coveted unicorn status. The narrative served as a testament to the transformative power of the educational and entrepreneurial environment fostered by Interactive Technologies Institute.

Addressing the inquisitive minds of the visiting students, Nuno Nunes actively participated in a Q&A session. He shared valuable insights into the institute’s mission, goals, and the impact of its projects on society. Encouraging the students to think beyond conventional boundaries, he invited them to contribute to real-world problem-solving. He emphasized the importance of involving society in the development of these solutions.

The visit not only provided the students with a glimpse into the cutting-edge work being carried out at Interactive Technologies Institute, but also sparked inspiration for potential collaborations and future endeavors. As the students departed, they carried with them not only newfound knowledge but also a sense of enthusiasm to explore the intersection of business, management, and interactive technologies to create meaningful societal impact.

The Interactive Technologies Institute remains committed to fostering such interactions, bridging the gap between academia and industry, and nurturing the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs. This visit served as a testament to the institute’s dedication to shaping the future of interactive technologies and its commitment to empowering students to make a positive difference in the world.

In an engaging two-hour session on January 12th at the Interactive Technologies Institute Beato premises, researchers delved into the diverse realms of sustainability with Sebastian Prost, a Research Fellow at the Northumbria School of Design. The workshop offered an invaluable opportunity for Interactive Technologies Institute researchers to reflect on sustainability, spanning ecological, economic, political, cultural, and technological aspects within the context of their past, current, or future work.

Sebastian Prost emphasised the broad scope of the workshop, inviting participants to consider sustainability in the broadest sense possible. Attendees were encouraged to choose a focus topic, ranging from a past project, a research group or a theme within the Interactive Technologies Institute to a specific creation. Importantly, this topic did not have to be explicitly related to sustainability; instead, it was entirely open to individual interpretation.

The workshop’s structure was centered around the use of Sustainability Reflection Cards. Participants engaged in a thoughtful interrogation of their chosen topics, mapping various sustainability aspects concerning them. This exercise revealed aspects of sustainability that were well-considered, brought attention to areas needing more focus, and highlighted potential tensions between different elements.

The insights from these reflections served as a foundation for formulating intentions for future action at the Interactive Technologies Institute. The workshop aimed to catalyse a proactive approach to sustainability within the institute by aligning individual and collective visions.

The TIDAL ArtS project has been successfully funded with 2 million euros, bringing together diverse participants from various organisations and countries to address the current environmental and biodiversity crisis. The project aims to inspire and transform aquatic landscapes through arts and sciences, challenging the binary thinking that has historically divided nature and culture. The project should start in mid-2024 and run for three years.

The TIDAL ArtS project will create artistic and scientific residencies in an interdisciplinary and interspecies spirit, bringing together artists, scientists, and more-than-human communities. The goal is to increase awareness about the challenges faced by the ocean and inland waters and inspire the mobilisation of creative, circular actions for their protection and restoration. The residencies will be created in places such as the green and blue lagoon of São Miguel Island in the Azores archipelago, an island in the middle of the Danube across from Budapest, the Turku Archipelago in the Baltic Sea, and the Venice Lagoon.

The Interactive Technologies Institute is one of the project partners and will play a crucial role in the TIDAL ArtS project. As the Bauhaus of the Seas Sails coordinator, the Interactive Technologies Institute brings a unique capacity to tap into the principles of the New European Bauhaus (NEB) Initiative and utilise this knowledge for the project’s scope. “We are thrilled to be a part of the TIDAL ArtS project and contribute to the important work of fostering empathy towards aquatic ecosystems in need of protection”, said Mariana Pestana, researcher at the Interactive Technologies Institute and Assistant Professor at Instituto Superior Técnico. “Our expertise in architecture, biology and interactive technologies will be used to create a support structure for artists to engage with the local context and get to know the complexities of the more-than-human communities found in each location”, she adds. 

The TIDAL ArtS project is a collaborative effort between the coordinator Submariner Network for Blue Growth (DE), Instituto Superior Técnico (PT), University College Cork (IE), Pro Progressione (HU), German Marine Research Consortium (DE), Aalto University (FI), Spanish National Research Council (SP), Digital Training Institute (IE) and the Culture Action Europe (BE). Together, they represent a wealth of expertise and perspectives to address the current environmental and biodiversity crisis. The project aims to promote sustainable ocean cities by 2030 and ensure connections between the European and Global dimensions of TIDAL ArtS, promoting the project’s results internationally.