WORKSHOP: ThinkTank (Doctoral Consortium) at International Community for Auditory Display (ICAD) 2018

该奖项支持一个由大约13名有前途的研究生学者和杰出的研究人员导师组成的“智囊团”(研讨会)，以及将于6月11日至15日在密歇根科技大学密歇根大学校园举行的第24届国际听觉显示会议(ICAD 2018)，ICAD是展示使用声音显示数据、监控系统以及为计算机和虚拟现实系统提供增强用户界面的研究的主要国际论坛。它的独特之处在于它只专注于听觉显示以及它所涵盖的一系列感知、技术和应用领域，其中包括例如数据发声、听觉寻路、听觉图形、语音接口、虚拟环境以及相关的感知、认知、技术和技术研究和开发。许多跨学科的研究和开发努力与知觉障碍者，特别是视觉障碍者直接相关；例如，为盲人开发指路系统需要研究听觉显示中使用的有效距离线索和物体识别器。对听觉图形功效的研究可能有助于视障学生和科学家更充分地参与科学。即使是家用设备，也可以有更有效的听觉显示器，提供比它们目前倾向于产生的基本“哔哔”声更丰富的信息。该领域的一种常见方法是通用设计，其中只开发一次显示策略，供所有类型的用户使用，包括那些有或没有特定访问问题的用户。今年的会议主题是“可听化为艺术/设计/科学/研究”；有关2018年ICAD2018的更多细节可在http://icad2018.icad.org/.网站上查阅。ICAD智库是一个博士联盟，旨在促进这一重要的新兴跨学科领域的新研究人员之间的学术和网络联系。它将有助于形成正在进行的和未来的研究项目，这些项目对辅助技术和普遍获取的发展具有明确和重要的影响。博士联盟将让参与者接触到更大的社区，使他们能够相互联系，并在其专业发展的关键阶段与高级研究人员建立联系。由于学生和教职员工在不同的维度上构成了一个多样化的群体，包括民族和文化、科学学科和制度，学生的视野被开阔到该领域未来的利益。今年，组织者预计，多达10名美国智库学者将获得巨额旅行和出席补贴。此外，最多3名密歇根科技区(包括威斯康星州和明尼苏达州)的美国智库学者将获得参加2018年ICAD(但不包括旅行和住宿)的补贴，总共有13名学生学者。一些NSF资金也将用于支持研究人员小组成员(包括美国和外国)的旅行，因为他们为美国学生提供了巨大的价值，但NSF资金不会用于支持非美国学生的旅行和参与。组织者将积极促进与会者的多样性；他们的学术计划的阶段、研究主题、性别和残疾状况是追求参与者多样性的方面，同时也将强烈考虑地域和机构的多样性。为了进一步促进学生学者的多样性，来自任何一所大学的参与者将不超过两人。ICAD智库是一项全天活动，将于6月10日紧接会议之前举行，向包括硕士和博士生在内的所有阶段的研究生开放。在研究生生涯中表现出有兴趣从事这一领域的优秀本科生也可以考虑。智库将汇集来自不同背景(如工程、计算机、音乐和心理学)的学生，以便他们能够体验到听觉显示、辅助技术和通用设计的广泛方法。智库将建立一个相互支持的学者社区和合作研究精神，为参与者提供一个友好、开放但严格的科学论坛，在其中展示他们的研究想法，听取同行学生正在进行的工作，并从杰出专家小组获得建设性的反馈。小组反馈旨在帮助学生了解和清楚他们的工作相对于相关研究的定位，他们的主题是否足够集中于论文研究项目，他们的方法是否得到正确的选择和应用，以及他们的结果是否得到适当的分析和展示。智库还将提供受邀的演讲者和讨论小组(例如，为博士生提供关于重要问题的相关信息，无论他们正在考虑学术或行业职业道路)。学生参与者将在ICAD 2018技术项目期间通过海报展示他们的作品，并通过ICAD 2018网站上发布的扩展摘要展示他们的作品。智库主席将在会议宴会上提供总结和审查，其中将包括对活动成功的概述，并向社区介绍所有智库参与者(学生和小组成员)。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This award supports a "Think Tank" (workshop) of about 13 promising graduate student scholars along with distinguished research faculty mentors, in conjunction with the 24th Annual International Conference on Auditory Display (ICAD 2018), which will be held June 11-15 on the campus of Michigan Technological University in Houghton, MI, ICAD is the premier international forum for presenting research on the use of sound to display data, monitor systems, and provide enhanced user interfaces for computers and virtual reality systems. It is unique in its singular focus on auditory displays and the array of perception, technology, and application areas that this encompasses, which include for example data sonification, auditory wayfinding, auditory graphs, speech interfaces, virtual environments, and associated perceptual, cognitive, technical, and technological research and development. Many of the interdisciplinary research and development efforts are of direct relevance to persons with perceptual disabilities, especially visual impairments; for example, developing wayfinding systems for the blind requires research into effective distance cues and object identifiers used in auditory displays. Research into the efficacy of auditory graphs may be used to help visually impaired students and scientists participate more fully in science. Even household devices can have more effective auditory displays that provide richer information than the basic "beeps" they presently tend to generate. A common approach in this field is universal design, wherein a display strategy is developed once, to be used by all kinds of users, including those with and without specific access issues. This year's conference theme is "Sonification as Art / Design / Science / Research"; more details about ICAD 2018 are available online at http://icad2018.icad.org/. The ICAD Think Tank is a doctoral consortium that promotes scholarship and networking among new researchers in this important emerging interdisciplinary area. It will help shape ongoing and future research projects that have clear and important implications for development of assistive technologies and universal access. The doctoral consortium will afford participants exposure to a larger community, allowing them to bond among themselves and with senior researchers at a critical stage in their professional development. Because the students and faculty constitute a diverse group across a variety of dimensions, including nationality and culture, scientific discipline, and institution, the students' horizons are broadened to the future benefit of the field. This year, the organizers expect that up to 10 U.S.-based Think Tank Scholars will have their travel and attendance heavily subsidized. Additionally, up to 3 U.S.-based Think Tank Scholars local to the Michigan Tech area (including Wisconsin and Minnesota) will have their attendance at ICAD 2018 (but not travel and accommodation) subsidized, for a total of 13 Student Scholars. Some NSF funds will also be used to support travel by research faculty panelists (both U.S. and foreign-based), since they provide great value to the US students, but NSF funds will not be used to support travel and participation of non-U.S. students. The organizers will be proactive in promoting diversity among the attendees; stage in their academic program, research topic, gender and disability status are examples of dimensions on which participant diversity will be pursued, while geographic and institutional diversity will also be strongly considered. To further promote diversity among the Student Scholars, no more than two participants will be selected from any one university.The ICAD Think Tank, a full-day event which will take place on June 10 immediately preceding the conference, is open to graduate students at all stages of their educational program, including both Masters and PhD students. Exceptional undergraduates who have demonstrated interest in pursuing this field in their graduate careers may also be considered. The Think Tank will bring together students from diverse backgrounds (e.g., engineering, computing, music, and psychology), so that they can experience the broad spectrum of approaches to auditory displays, assistive technologies and universal design. The Think Tank will develop a supportive community of scholars and a spirit of collaborative research, by providing participants with a friendly and open, yet rigorous, scientific forum in which to present their research ideas, to listen to ongoing work from peer students, and to receive constructive feedback from a panel of distinguished experts. Panel feedback is designed to help students understand and articulate how their work is positioned relative to related research, whether their topics are adequately focused for thesis research projects, whether their methods are correctly chosen and applied, and whether their results are appropriately analyzed and presented. The Think Tank will also offer invited speakers and discussion groups (e.g., to provide students with relevant information about important issues for doctoral candidates, whether they are considering academic or industrial career paths). Student participants will present their work via posters during the ICAD 2018 technical program, and via extended abstracts published on the ICAD 2018 website. The Think Tank Chair will provide a summary and review at the conference banquet, which will includes an overview of the event's success, and in which all Think Tank participants (students and panelists) are introduced to the community.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.