The Cornell HCI Group’s current involvement with the design of hybrid spaces that incorporate technology and the context of the physical environment has led to an interest in expanding the definition of the museum experience as well as coming up with new techniques to evaluate this expanded frame.

With the support of CIMI, a consortium of cultural heritage institutions and organizations, and Intel, we designed Museum Detective, a handheld learning experience that encouraged collaboration between pairs of 3rd graders as they embarked on a scavenger hunt through the 5th floor gallery of the Johnson Museum, a space dedicated to the display of objects of Asian culture. The students were provided clues to a certain object in the gallery space, and through a series of interactive games, they were encouraged to unpack the object by actively looking at the object as well as active discussion with their partners. This technological learning experience is integrated within a larger educational program within the local school districts about the history and culture of Ancient China, and by 2005, over 300 students in local school districts have used Museum Detective.

While initial analysis showed that the children exhibited longer-term retention of factual information about the artifacts in the gallery, we hope to develop evaluative techniques that extend beyond mere ‘just the facts’ type learning by further investigating the social processes that occur during the museum experience. We will use Museum Detective, in conjunction with future technology installations to draw upon architecture, environmental psychology, social network theory, and ethnography as a way to capture a broader sense of museum experience and its relationship to technology in terms of the formation of a sense of place.

As we continue to explore the realm of technology and handhelds inside the museum, we venture forth now to an exhibit where the visitor is actually meant to pick up a handheld and learn from it as they explore the objects. We are currently developing an online tour to be viewed exclusively on the Apple Ipod Touch, or the Apple Iphone of what will be the Museum's Open Storage exhibit. With this handheld tour, we will also allow visitors to create and follow their own personally customized "tour," or follow tours left by previous visitors.

By using Apple's new handheld devices with their touchscreen technology, we are creating rich content in order to intrigue visitors and engage them in the museum through the interactive handheld display, in essence, improving on the museum visit by enabling visitors to access information which would only be available when talking directly to a docent or curator.

For our research, we are exploring the different levels of trust the average museum visitor has in a handheld-recommended tour. We want to see how different levels of authority (museum curator, a friend or peer, basic computer) will effect the way in which visitors both take a tour provided by the handheld, and enjoy the tour, as well as their general museum experience.

Team Members

Andrew Herman, Jenna Holloway, Jonathan Baxter, JP Pollak, Geri Gay

Thom-Santelli, J., Boehner, K., Gay, G., & Hembrooke, H. (under review). Beyond Just the Facts: Designing for Engaged Distraction in the Museum, submitted to CHI 2006.