Ed Chi
Encyclopedia
Ed Chi is a Taiwanese American computer scientist specializing in social computing
and human-computer interaction. Chi was formerly a research scientist at the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) and is currently a research scientist at Google
. Chi is known for his early work in information scent, which pioneered ways of understanding how people search for information online. He is also known for his work on information visualization
and authored the book A Framework for Visualizing Information describing approaches to make information visualization systems easier to develop through the use of reference models. His recent research has analyzed social behavior in large socio-technical systems like Wikipedia
, Twitter
, and Digg
, among other social software platforms. He has published over 80 academic articles and he has over 20 patents. His top 9 publications have over 200 citations each.
(1994), M.S.
(1996), and a Ph.D.
(1999), all in Computer Science, in 6.5 years from the University of Minnesota
.
Chi’s dissertation, titled, "A Framework for Information Visualization Spreadsheets", was chaired by John T. Riedl. The dissertation was an early example of the power of small multiple
s in information visualizations. During this time, he was awarded a University of Minnesota Graduate School Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship, Research Contribution Award, Doctoral Dissertation Award, and Best Teaching Award.
Chi worked as a Research Scientist at Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) for 13 years. He began in 1997 as an intern and was officially hired in 1999. From 1999-2007, he worked in the User Interface Research Group during which time he was promoted to Senior Research Scientist in 2005. He became Area Manager of the Augmented Social Group in 2007. In 2011, he left PARC and became a Research Scientist at Google reporting directly to Peter Norvig
in the areas of human-computer interaction and social computing.
and human-computer interaction related fields. His work has been covered in various newspapers and magazines around the world including The Economist
, Time Magazine, Los Angeles Times
, Technology Review
, and Wired
.
In 2012, Chi will serve as Technical Program Co-chair for CHI
, the most prestigious academic conference in the field of HCI.
In his spare time, Chi is an avid Taekwondo martial artist, photographer, and snowboarder. He is married and has one daughter.
Social computing
Social computing is a general term for an area of computer science that is concerned with the intersection of social behavior and computational systems. It has become an important concept for use in business. It is used in two ways as detailed below....
and human-computer interaction. Chi was formerly a research scientist at the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) and is currently a research scientist at Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
. Chi is known for his early work in information scent, which pioneered ways of understanding how people search for information online. He is also known for his work on information visualization
Information visualization
Information visualization is the interdisciplinary study of "the visual representation of large-scale collections of non-numerical information, such as files and lines of code in software systems, library and bibliographic databases, networks of relations on the internet, and so forth".- Overview...
and authored the book A Framework for Visualizing Information describing approaches to make information visualization systems easier to develop through the use of reference models. His recent research has analyzed social behavior in large socio-technical systems like Wikipedia
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 20 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site,...
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
, and Digg
Digg
Digg is a social news website. Prior to Digg v4, its cornerstone function consisted of letting people vote stories up or down, called digging and burying, respectively. Digg's popularity prompted the creation of copycat social networking sites with story submission and voting systems...
, among other social software platforms. He has published over 80 academic articles and he has over 20 patents. His top 9 publications have over 200 citations each.
Background
Chi was born and raised in Taiwan. He moved to Minnesota in the 9th grade and has lived in the U.S. ever since. He completed his B.Sc.Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
(1994), M.S.
Master of Science
A Master of Science is a postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is typically studied for in the sciences including the social sciences.-Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay:...
(1996), and a Ph.D.
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
(1999), all in Computer Science, in 6.5 years from the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
.
Chi’s dissertation, titled, "A Framework for Information Visualization Spreadsheets", was chaired by John T. Riedl. The dissertation was an early example of the power of small multiple
Small multiple
Small multiples are a series of small similar pictures, making a point through repetition...
s in information visualizations. During this time, he was awarded a University of Minnesota Graduate School Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship, Research Contribution Award, Doctoral Dissertation Award, and Best Teaching Award.
Chi worked as a Research Scientist at Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) for 13 years. He began in 1997 as an intern and was officially hired in 1999. From 1999-2007, he worked in the User Interface Research Group during which time he was promoted to Senior Research Scientist in 2005. He became Area Manager of the Augmented Social Group in 2007. In 2011, he left PARC and became a Research Scientist at Google reporting directly to Peter Norvig
Peter Norvig
Peter Norvig is an American computer scientist. He is currently the Director of Research at Google Inc.-Educational Background:...
in the areas of human-computer interaction and social computing.
Academic work
Chi has chaired top conferences and publishes regularly in top-tier academic conferences in computer scienceComputer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
and human-computer interaction related fields. His work has been covered in various newspapers and magazines around the world including The Economist
The Economist
The Economist is an English-language weekly news and international affairs publication owned by The Economist Newspaper Ltd. and edited in offices in the City of Westminster, London, England. Continuous publication began under founder James Wilson in September 1843...
, Time Magazine, Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, Technology Review
Technology Review
Technology Review is a magazine published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It was founded in 1899 as "The Technology Review", and was re-launched without the "The" in its name on April 23, 1998 under then publisher R. Bruce Journey...
, and Wired
Wired (magazine)
Wired is a full-color monthly American magazine and on-line periodical, published since January 1993, that reports on how new and developing technology affects culture, the economy, and politics...
.
In 2012, Chi will serve as Technical Program Co-chair for CHI
CHI (conference)
The ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems series of academic conferences is generally considered the most prestigious in the field of human–computer interaction. It is hosted by ACM SIGCHI, the Special Interest Group on computer–human interaction. CHI has been held annually since...
, the most prestigious academic conference in the field of HCI.
In his spare time, Chi is an avid Taekwondo martial artist, photographer, and snowboarder. He is married and has one daughter.