Francesco Cafaro, Ph.D.
- Assistant Professor, Human-Computer Interaction
Contact
fcafaroiu [dot] edu
317-278-9206
IT 579
Related Links
Education
- Ph.D. Computer Science, University of Illinois at Chicago (2015)
- M.S. Computer Science, University of Illinois at Chicago (2009)
- “Laurea Specialistica” (equivalent to M.S.), Engineering of Computing Systems, Politecnico di Milano, Italy (2008)
- “Laurea” (equivalent to B.S.), Engineering of Computing Systems, Politecnico di Milano, Italy (2006)
Biography
Francesco Cafaro’s work is centered on the use of novel interaction techniques in support of STEM informal learning and cultural heritage. Specifically, he investigates how theories from learning, cognitive, and computer sciences can provide the scaffolding for the design of intuitive, embodied interactions. Cafaro’s recent efforts have focused on:
- Designing and implementing hand gestures and body movements for interactive museum installations that can help visitors to make sense of what they see on the screen.
- Defining design strategies to aid visitors in navigating multiple, complex historic narratives at outdoor cultural heritage campuses.
- Using tracking technologies in augmented mirrors for ballet studios.
Cafaro’s multi-disciplinary research has involved the design and evaluation of prototype exhibits at Discovery Place in Charlotte, North Carolina, and for the Historic New Harmony program in southern Indiana.
Before joining our school as an assistant professor of human-computer interaction, Cafaro was a research assistant at the Learning Technology Group (Electronic Visualization Laboratory) of the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he served as a key collaborator on multi-disciplinary, federally-funded research projects. These efforts have produced prototype interactive exhibits for collaborative data exploration, first at the Jane Addams Hull House Museum in Chicago, and then at the New York Hall of Science in Queens.
Research Interests
- Embodied interaction
- Interaction design
- Informal learning
Active Research Grants
Prior Research Grants
Courses
INFO-I 101 Introduction to Informatics
INFO-I 480 Experience Design and Evaluation of Ubiquitous Computing
INFO-H 566 Experience Design for Ubiquitous Computing
INFO-H 570 Experience Design for Tangible and Embodied Systems
INFO-H 680 Human-Computer Interaction Professional Practice 1
INFO-H 681 Human-Computer Interaction Professional Practice 2
Related News
- September 16, 2021
Robots, personal safety, and moving to learn: faculty research is far-reaching - November 10, 2020
HCI assistant professor studies casual data sharing errors on social media - August 30, 2018
Cafaro receives NSF EAGER grant to study how causation and correlation are learned - May 31, 2017
Faculty and students present work at 2017 CHI Conference - May 23, 2017
HCC grad student participating in Google Summer of Code