2003-2004 Department of Computer Science and Engineering

Reseach CentersStorytelling is an important part of culturesaround the world, but the arrival ofcomputers and other technologies has notsignificantly changed literature. Sundaramuses mathematical models to develop newways to communicate meaning in books.He also employs computational models tolook at communicating meaning in othertypes of documents. One project examinesways to encourage people to annotatedigital photos, which usually have nonsensefilenames. Sundaram hopes to create asystem in which after the user tells thecomputer something about the photo, thecomputer can express something about theuser and photo that the user did not know.“The humanities end up asking different andprofound questions about the models developed inengineering that force us to reevaluate,” Sundaramsaid. “This questioning by our collaborators broadensour research vision and allows us to construct muchmore sophisticated models.”But research is only one component of AME. Theprogram also allows students the opportunity to workand learn in an interdisciplinary environment. Thedemand for talented workers in multimedia is growing,particularly in entertainment but also in security andmedicine. In fall 2004 CSE will begin to offer master’sand Ph.D. degrees with concentrations in Media andArts. Students will take classes in computer scienceand the arts as well as courses that bridge the twodisciplines.The Arts, Media and Engineering Program grew outof the Distributed Media and Arts laboratory, which wasestablished in 2001. Although a joint project of theFulton School of Engineering and Herberger College ofFine Arts, AME also includes researchers from severalliberal arts disciplines. Such an interdisciplinary venturehas both benefits and challenges.One of the biggest advantages of AME is that itallows researchers to see their work used in actualperformances. Artists and engineers almost speakdifferent languages, however, so researchers haveworked to understand one another.“The arts don’t have the formalism present inscience, but the challenge in both arts and science isthe communication of meaning,” Sundaram said. “Itcomes down to the fundamental problem of humancommunication.”AME’s motion analysis team has been awarded twoprestigious grants in the past year for theirgroundbreaking work in dance analysis and interactiveart tools. The motion analysis team at AME wasawarded a National Science Foundation CISEresearch infrastructure grant. The CISE researchinfrastructure grant is the first for ASU. The motionanalysis team at AME was awarded a NationalScience Foundation CISE research infrastructure grantin the amount of $1.4 million. The CISE researchinfrastructure grant is the first for ASU.ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY 19