Abstract

Abstract
Procedural systems allow unique modes of authorship and singular aesthetic experiences. As creators and users of these systems, we need to be aware that their aesthetic potential is not solely defined by interaction but that interpretation, and the capacity to understand and simulate the processes taking place within these artefacts is highly significant. This paper argues that although direct interaction is usually the most discernible component in the relationship between ergodic artefacts and their users, ergodicity does not necessarily imply interaction. Non-interactive procedural artefacts may allow the development of ergodic experiences through interpretation, and the probing of the system by its reader through simulations. We try to set the grounds for designing towards virtuosic interpretation, an activity that we may describe as the ergodic experience developed by means of mental simulation through the development of theories of systems.

Abstract

Abstract

Abstract
In an increasingly aged society, with unmeasurable cultural richness kept by its elder elements for their vast life experience, it is urgent to preserve this cultural knowledge before it disappears. The capacity of the computational space to accommodate a virtualization of reality is evident, alongside with the possibility to preserve perspectives of reality with spontaneous and very easy to sort creations thanks to the web tools that now support content production by any common user. Despite all the relevant problematics brought by this context where the common user is simultaneously consumer and producer of information, the opportunities for the present and future of cultural identity maintenance are numerous. This paper approaches the idea of supporting the participatory maintenance of cultural identity through intergenerational storytelling and the dynamization of digital affinity spaces. Our contribution aims to grow the understanding of the role that interactive narratives can have in the real world and in the specific context of cultural identity maintenance, by developing new usage strategies to enhance cultural mediation with the tools we have available and with the help of social, ubiquitous and mobile storytelling strategies.

Abstract
Digital technologies have become our privileged method of interacting with information. With their ubiquity, and focus on personalisation, optimisation and functionality, chance and accidental interactions in the Digital Medium are being replaced with filtered, predictable and known ones, limiting the scope of possible user experiences. In order to promote the design of richer experiences that go beyond the functionally-driven paradigm, we propose that digital systems be designed in order to favour serendipity. Through a literature-based analysis of serendipity, we explore the distinct meanings of value that are possible with serendipitous systems, offering examples of the current state of the art, observing the methods used to do so, and proposing a possible typology, while highlighting unexplored fields, experiences and interactions.