Upcoming Events |
Interactive Inference and the Potential Energy of Actions
11 December from 7pm to 8pm at the DGP Lab, Bahen Centre
Dr. Roel Vertegaal, Professor of HCI and director of the Human Media Lab at Radboud University in Nijmegen (Netherlands), presents a theory for the design of interactive systems based on cognitive neuroscience called Interactive Inference. Based on the neuroscience theory of Active Inference, it elegantly explains how users process tasks by first predicting the world around them, then choosing to learn or act when their predictions do not correspond with their observations. He will discuss how quantifying the amount of surprise in a task can produce elegant behavioural laws that appear to be governing user performance and error, including Fitts’ Law. Surprise is the amount of information processed when performing a task that brings the world closer to the state you predicted. In this talk, he'll show how it appears to also function as a physics equation, e.g., describing potential energy when planning movements. He'll conclude with some examples of how the study of surprise might lead to more intelligent interactive systems.
Innovations in Social Gaming
19 January 2026 from 7pm to 8:30pm (EST)
Games have long been used to support social interaction and create shared experiences that draw us closer together. Digital games are increasingly being used to form and maintain relationships, and in-game friendships have been shown to help satisfy our need to belong and can even combat loneliness, improving our wellbeing. In this talk, Mandryk will present her perspective on the benefits of social gaming—including in casual, esports, and streaming contexts, show how the benefits can be thwarted by toxicity and harassment, and discuss innovative game technologies that can better connect players, streamers, spectators, and fans.
Regan Mandryk is a Canada Research Chair in Digital Gaming and Immersive Social Technologies and Professor of Computer Science at the University of Victoria, Canada who has made foundational and significant contributions in modeling the emotional experience and personality of players, facilitating social connection through play, combating toxicity within multiplayer games, and harnessing games for the assessment and treatment of mental health.
Recent Past Events |
Disney: Designed to be the Happiest Place |
Watch past events on YouTube's TorCHI Channel
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About TorCHI
| TorCHI is a professional association of people in the Toronto UX community. Our diverse membership includes people with backgrounds in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Engineering, User Experience (UX), User Experience Research (UXR), Information Architecture (IA), Design Thinking, Usability, and Design among others. As well, our members include professionals, academics, and students. TorCHI was founded in 1990 as the local chapter of ACM's SIGHI, the Special Interest Group on Computer-Human Interaction. We offer ways to learn, share and network. |
