Toolkit uses 3D shapes to show London river health data
Exploring 3D Glyph Physicalizations for Public Engagement through River Health
Human-Computer Interaction
Summary
Understanding complex environmental data like river health can be hard for many people. The authors designed a toolkit that helps make physical 3D shapes, called glyphs, using recycled materials to represent water quality data from London's rivers. This hands-on approach allows people to connect with the data through making and handling these shapes, helping them learn and reflect on local environmental issues. The toolkit aims to make this information accessible to people of all abilities and encourage care for the environment.
What this means in practice
- •For environmental outreach teams: Create interactive physical models of river health data to engage the public in local environmental issues.
- •For museum exhibit designers: Design hands-on exhibits that use 3D glyphs to represent complex environmental data for visitor education.
Tested on one dataset.
Authors
Maria Teresa Ortoleva, Min Chen, Rita Borgo, Alfie Abdul-Rahman
Abstract
Introduction: In this paper, we present the preliminary design of a toolkit for making glyph-based physicalizations for public engagement. We use London river health data as a case study: a data set of significance to urban issues related to climate change and of interest to draw public attention, as part of the Greater London Authority's strategies. Design: We present the components of a 3D glyph-making toolkit, its encodings, and a step-by-step process for crafting a physicalization of a river's water quality using recycled materials. We reason about how users can use the template to learn about a data set while reflecting on the data's significance to their personal experience and self-mapping onto the physicalization. Reflection: We reflect on the opportunities that extending the design space of glyphs to 3D physicalization offers for supporting public engagement with complex, multi-dimensional data sets, scaffolding cognitive processes, and self-reflection, thereby bringing crucial environmental data to life. Conclusion: Future implementation of the 3D glyph template will enable the public of all abilities to explore river health data, physicalize complexity, and realize its relevance. We hope that its use in public engagement workshops will help raise awareness, invite care, and foster a sense of belonging.