Justine Cassell
Encyclopedia
Justine Cassell is an American
professor and researcher interested in human-human conversation, human-computer interaction, and storytelling. Since August 2010 she has been the director of the Carnegie Mellon Human Computer Interaction Institute
(HCII).
. She holds a DEUG in Lettres Modernes from the Université de Besançon
(1981), a BA in Comparative Literature/Linguistics from Dartmouth College
(1982), a M.LITT. in Linguistics from the University of Edinburgh
(1986), and a double PhD in Linguistics and Developmental/Cognitive Psychology from University of Chicago
(1991) where she studied under David McNeill
. As a tenured professor, she was the director of the Gesture and Narrative Language Research Group at the MIT Media Lab
. After leaving MIT, she became a full professor in the departments of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and Communication Studies at Northwestern University
. There she was the founding director of Technology and Social Behavior Ph.D. program, and the interdisciplinary Center for Technology and Social Behavior. In 2001, Cassell received the Edgerton Faculty Award at MIT; in 2008 she received the Anita Borg Institute Women of Vision Award
for Leadership; in 2009 Cassell was made an ACM Distinguished Lecturer. Cassell has authored more than 100 journal articles, conference proceedings and book chapters on these topics; she has given more than 50 keynote addresses at various conferences.
Cassell’s early work involved verbal and nonverbal aspects of human communication, into which she began introducing computational systems in order to deconstruct the linguistic and nonverbal communication to allow machines to interact with humans. Dean of the School of Computer Science, Randal Bryant, commented on her appointment to directorship of Carnegie Mellon's Human Computer Interaction Institute, that she would "expand the horizons of the institute." The Institute studies how people communicate with and through technology.
Cassell has done work on "animated conversation," designing a human figure animation that integrates gesture, intonation, and facial expression. She helped design a web-based storytelling system called "Renga, the Cyberstory" to help draw girls into new technology. During 1994-1995 she designed and coordinated workshops on survival skills for women in academia at the University of Pennsylvania
and the Linguistic Society of America
Summer Institute in Linguistics. She also has worked on research into what constitutes a "normal" career path in linguistics for women.
A New York Times reviewer described the book From Barbie to Mortal Kombat: Gender and Computer Games (written with Henry Jenkins) as an “academic anthology about what women, or rather girls, want from computer games.” He writes that they “wisely” ask "why there have to be 'girl games’ at all. After all, many games with tremendous appeal to women have no gender affiliation." She has commented frequently in media on topics related to girls and children and toys and technology.
Cassell has opined that "The Internet is not diminishing community activity, but simply transferring it to online communities. Young people who use them are getting just as much practice in leadership and social skills and community involvement as they did before the Internet."
Commenting on why women were not more involved in computing careers, Cassell has commented that the creation of girls’ games had not eliminated “the sense among both boys and girls that computers were ‘boys’ toys’ and that true girls didn’t play with computers.” Additionally, she has written that women do not want to be identified as a “nerd” or “geek.”
Cassell is credited with developing the Embodied Conversational Agent (ECA), a virtual human which can interact with humans using language and gestures. The "virtual child" she created has helped children with autism develop advanced social skills not taught by association with real children or teachers.
Cassell contributed to a 2011 New York Times debate on “Where Are the Women in Wikipedia?” writing: “...Wikipedia may feel like a fight to get one’s voice heard. One gets a sense of this insider view from looking at the ‘talk page’ of many articles, which rather than seeming like collaborations around the construction of knowledge, are full of descriptions of “edit-warring” — where successive editors try to cancel each others’ contributions out — and bitter, contentious arguments about the accuracy of conflicting points of view...However, it is still the case in American society that debate, contention, and vigorous defense of one’s position is often still seen as a male stance, and women’s use of these speech styles can call forth negative evaluations.”
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
professor and researcher interested in human-human conversation, human-computer interaction, and storytelling. Since August 2010 she has been the director of the Carnegie Mellon Human Computer Interaction Institute
Carnegie Mellon Human Computer Interaction Institute
The Human-Computer Interaction Institute is a department within the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It is considered to be one of the leading centers of human-computer interaction research,...
(HCII).
Career
Justine Cassell was born in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. She holds a DEUG in Lettres Modernes from the Université de Besançon
University of Franche-Comté
The University of Franche-Comté is a French university in the Academy of Besançon with five campuses: Besançon , Belfort , Montbéliard , Vesoul , and Lons-le-Saunier ....
(1981), a BA in Comparative Literature/Linguistics from Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
(1982), a M.LITT. in Linguistics from the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
(1986), and a double PhD in Linguistics and Developmental/Cognitive Psychology from University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
(1991) where she studied under David McNeill
David McNeill (Chicago psychologist)
Professor David McNeill is an American psychologist and writer specializing in scientific research into psycholinguistics and especially the relationship of language to thought, and the gestures that accompany discourse....
. As a tenured professor, she was the director of the Gesture and Narrative Language Research Group at the MIT Media Lab
MIT Media Lab
The MIT Media Lab is a laboratory of MIT School of Architecture and Planning. Devoted to research projects at the convergence of design, multimedia and technology, the Media Lab has been widely popularized since the 1990s by business and technology publications such as Wired and Red Herring for a...
. After leaving MIT, she became a full professor in the departments of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and Communication Studies at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
. There she was the founding director of Technology and Social Behavior Ph.D. program, and the interdisciplinary Center for Technology and Social Behavior. In 2001, Cassell received the Edgerton Faculty Award at MIT; in 2008 she received the Anita Borg Institute Women of Vision Award
Anita Borg Institute Women of Vision Awards
The Anita Borg Institute Women of Vision Awards honor exceptional technical women. Three awards are presented by the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology each year, recognizing women in the categories of Innovation, Leadership, and Social Impact.-Awards:...
for Leadership; in 2009 Cassell was made an ACM Distinguished Lecturer. Cassell has authored more than 100 journal articles, conference proceedings and book chapters on these topics; she has given more than 50 keynote addresses at various conferences.
Cassell’s early work involved verbal and nonverbal aspects of human communication, into which she began introducing computational systems in order to deconstruct the linguistic and nonverbal communication to allow machines to interact with humans. Dean of the School of Computer Science, Randal Bryant, commented on her appointment to directorship of Carnegie Mellon's Human Computer Interaction Institute, that she would "expand the horizons of the institute." The Institute studies how people communicate with and through technology.
Cassell has done work on "animated conversation," designing a human figure animation that integrates gesture, intonation, and facial expression. She helped design a web-based storytelling system called "Renga, the Cyberstory" to help draw girls into new technology. During 1994-1995 she designed and coordinated workshops on survival skills for women in academia at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
and the Linguistic Society of America
Linguistic Society of America
The Linguistic Society of America is a professional society for linguists. It was founded in 1924 to advance linguistics, the scientific study of human language. The LSA has over 5,000 individual members and welcomes linguists of all kinds. It works to advance the discipline and to communicate...
Summer Institute in Linguistics. She also has worked on research into what constitutes a "normal" career path in linguistics for women.
A New York Times reviewer described the book From Barbie to Mortal Kombat: Gender and Computer Games (written with Henry Jenkins) as an “academic anthology about what women, or rather girls, want from computer games.” He writes that they “wisely” ask "why there have to be 'girl games’ at all. After all, many games with tremendous appeal to women have no gender affiliation." She has commented frequently in media on topics related to girls and children and toys and technology.
Cassell has opined that "The Internet is not diminishing community activity, but simply transferring it to online communities. Young people who use them are getting just as much practice in leadership and social skills and community involvement as they did before the Internet."
Commenting on why women were not more involved in computing careers, Cassell has commented that the creation of girls’ games had not eliminated “the sense among both boys and girls that computers were ‘boys’ toys’ and that true girls didn’t play with computers.” Additionally, she has written that women do not want to be identified as a “nerd” or “geek.”
Cassell is credited with developing the Embodied Conversational Agent (ECA), a virtual human which can interact with humans using language and gestures. The "virtual child" she created has helped children with autism develop advanced social skills not taught by association with real children or teachers.
Cassell contributed to a 2011 New York Times debate on “Where Are the Women in Wikipedia?” writing: “...Wikipedia may feel like a fight to get one’s voice heard. One gets a sense of this insider view from looking at the ‘talk page’ of many articles, which rather than seeming like collaborations around the construction of knowledge, are full of descriptions of “edit-warring” — where successive editors try to cancel each others’ contributions out — and bitter, contentious arguments about the accuracy of conflicting points of view...However, it is still the case in American society that debate, contention, and vigorous defense of one’s position is often still seen as a male stance, and women’s use of these speech styles can call forth negative evaluations.”
Affiliations
Justine Cassell is affiliated with the following organizations:- Association for Computing MachineryAssociation for Computing MachineryThe Association for Computing Machinery is a learned society for computing. It was founded in 1947 as the world's first scientific and educational computing society. Its membership is more than 92,000 as of 2009...
- Association for Computational LinguisticsAssociation for Computational LinguisticsThe Association for Computational Linguistics is the international scientific and professional society for people working on problems involving natural language and computation. An annual meeting is held each summer in locations where significant computational linguistics research is carried out...
- Linguistic Society of AmericaLinguistic Society of AmericaThe Linguistic Society of America is a professional society for linguists. It was founded in 1924 to advance linguistics, the scientific study of human language. The LSA has over 5,000 individual members and welcomes linguists of all kinds. It works to advance the discipline and to communicate...
- Society for Research in Child DevelopmentSociety for Research in Child DevelopmentThe Society for Research in Child Development is a professional society for the field of developmental psychology, focusing specifically on child development. It is a multidisciplinary, not-for-profit, professional association with a membership of approximately 5,500 researchers, practitioners,...
External links
- Justine Cassell's home page
- Carnegie Mellon's Human-Computer Interaction Institute
- Cassell's ArticuLab, part of Carnegie Mellon University's Human Computer Interaction Institute
- MIT's Gesture and Narrative Language Group