Ph.D. Degree
Spotlight
Christian Briggs
“Information is instrumental to human existence. From the single protein that informs the construction of a new cell to the billions of internet signals that inform the construction of culture, humans produce and are produced by, information. As a Ph.D. student, the HCID program in the School of Informatics has provided me with a unique opportunity to begin to understand this increasingly computer-mediated relationship through the combined lenses of traditional HCI and Design, as well as other parallel paradigms like Anthropology, Complexity Theory, Sociology and others. The school’s combination of HCI and Design dares to consider not only how humans and computers interact, but also how we as researchers and practitioners can actively make those interactions more sustainable, profitable, healthy, joyful, etc.
The research conducted by my colleagues and by me has benefitted greatly from the freedom and encouragement to work with faculty in all departments within the School of Informatics. As an example, some of my recent thinking about the design principles for massive social participatory Web sites relies in equal parts on traditional HCI and Complexity Theory. At the IU School of Informatics, I have had the unique opportunity to be formally trained by world-class thinkers in both areas. Many of my fellow Ph.D. students are doing amazing work which is a direct result of the rich, diverse intellectual ecosystem thriving here at Informatics.
Practically speaking, the faculty here are world-class in their skills and reputation, while exhibiting an equally world-class level of approachability. I have found working with members of the HCID program as well as others to be extremely enjoyable. I have made not only valuable professional connections here, but life-long friends.
When I’m not working on my research, teaching a new media theory course or working on my business startup BigTreetop.com (a great way to test my theoretical ideas in-practice!), I can sometimes be found playing basketball at one of IU’s excellent athletic facilities or attending one of the 900-something free music performances that take place in Bloomington every year.”
