The Candy Workshop: Supporting Rich Sensory Modalities in Constructive Data Physicalization

Abstract

Constructive data physicalization (i.e. the creation of visualizations by non-experts using physical elements) is a promising research area in a context of rapid democratization of data collection and visualization, driven notably by the quantifed-self movement. Despite a prolifc body of work developed to explore physicalization as a mean to communicate data to individuals, little is known about how people transform data into physical artefacts. Current research also falls short in studying constructive physicalizations using other sensory modalities than sight or touch. Building on the principles of data edibilization, we propose to use candies as a medium to study constructive data physicalization processes, due to their ability to leverage multiple sensory channels. We conducted a preliminary study (candy workshop) to gain insights into how people make use of various sensory modalities in the construction of data physicalizations. We hope to inspire new research using candies as accessible research material. CCS CONCEPTS• Human-centered computing → Human computer interaction (HCI); User studies.

Habilyzer: Empowering Office Workers to Investigate their Working Habits using an Open-Ended Sensor Kit

“…Is the physicalization of data [21] similar to Stamhuis et al [35] a way to go to trigger meaningful data explorations? Could people construct their own physicalizations to engage more deeply with their data [20,36], possibly by using cost-efcient and fun material to do so [28]? How can we facilitate insights gained from combining several variables (e.g., infuence on environment distractions on productivity)?…”