[Air-L] CFP: PRESENCE 2009

[Matthew Lombard]

FIRST CALL FOR PAPERS - PLEASE DISTRIBUTE WIDELY

Call for Papers

PRESENCE 2009
12th Annual International Workshop on Presence

Los Angeles, California, USA
November 11-13, 2009

Submission deadline: July 1, 2009

Conference web site: http://ispr.info/conference


OVERVIEW

Academics and practitioners with an interest in the concept of (tele)presence 
are invited to submit their work for presentation at the 12th Annual 
International Workshop on Presence, to be held in Los Angeles, California 
on November 11-13, 2009. Often described as a sense of "being there" in a 
mediated environment, telepresence is broadly defined as a psychological 
state or subjective perception in which a person fails to accurately and 
completely acknowledge the role of technology in an experience. It is a rich, 
fascinating subject of scientific investigation, artistic exploration and diverse 
application, with increasingly important implications for the ways in which 
people work, play and live, and technologies are developed.  

Designing technologies and imagining practices to modify, prolong and 
reconfigure the possibilities of being present and co-present has been a 
continuous endeavor of the human species, from early attempts at 
constructing communication and transportation devices, to the many current 
technologies we continue to develop to reach other places and people. 
Today presence phenomena are the subject of research and theory in 
communication, computer science, psychology, business, philosophy and 
many other fields. Technology designers are working to create and refine 
presence experiences for entertainment, business, medicine and health, 
teaching and learning, exploration, art and performance, and a great many 
other commercial and noncommercial arenas. The PRESENCE conferences 
provide a relaxed and enjoyable forum for presentation of presence 
scholarship and applications and (especially in the planned format this year), 
discussion sessions that allow attendees to join together in synthesizing and 
expanding our collective knowledge and visions for the future regarding this 
compelling topic.  

PRESENCE 2009 is co-organized by the International Society for Presence 
Research (ISPR; http://ispr.info) and The University of Southern California 
Institute for Creative Technologies (ICT; http://ict.usc.edu).  


TOPICS  

Issues of prominent interest include (but are not limited to):  

* Presence in shared virtual environments and online communities  

* Presence in social interactions with virtual agents and digital counterparts  

* Real bodies, avatars and cyborgs  

* Presence and ubiquity with mobile and geo-location technologies  

* Realistic action in virtual environments  

* Parasocial interaction and relationships  

* Presence as a socio-cultural achievement; practices, preferences and 
material resources to manifest presence  

* Linguistic and non-verbal strategies to create, negotiate and challenge 
presence in mediated environments  

* Cognitive processes and the sense of presence  

* Neuropsychology of presence  

* Presence affordances in digital technologies  

* 3D sound, acoustic environments and presence  

* Advanced broadcast and cinematic displays (stereoscopic TV, HDTV, 
IMAX)  

* Haptic and tactile displays  

* Holography  

* Affective and socio-affective interfaces  

* Presence augmentation through social, physical, and contextual cues  

* Presence, involvement and digital addiction  

* Presence theory; historical investigation of presence concepts; fictions, 
constructions and realism; transportation, flow, absorption, awareness; 
philosophical perspectives on presence  

* Causes and consequences (effects) of presence  

* Presence analysis, evaluation, and measurement techniques  

* Presence applications (communication and collaboration; education and 
training; medicine, health and cybertherapy; entertainment and gaming; art 
and performance; exploration; teleoperation; technology usability and design; 
etc.)  

* Ethical and societal implications of presence technologies  

* The future of presence experiences  

We seek original, high quality papers that make substantial contributions to 
the field. All accepted papers will be collected in the official conference 
Proceedings (with ISBN) and will also be permanently available for download 
on the ISPR conference archive (http://ispr.info).  

Authors may also be invited to revise their paper for publication in a special 
issue of PsychNology (http://www.psychnology.org) or another journal.  


CONFERENCE FORMAT  

PRESENCE 2009 will have an interactive format in which all participants 
(attendees, presenters, invited speakers) attend each of the sessions as well 
as several social events, allowing participants to exchange ideas and build 
knowledge together as the conference progresses. Discussion sessions will 
be built into the schedule to enhance collective knowledge-building. The 
language of the conference is English. Please visit the conference web site 
(http://ispr.info/conference) in the weeks ahead for more information on the 
conference program, local accommodations, registration, etc.  


VENUE  

The conference will be hosted by The The University of Southern California 
Institute for Creative Technologies (ICT) in Los Angeles, California. The 
conference events will take place at The Marina del Rey Hotel 
(http://www.marinadelreyhotel.com) in the beautiful Marina del Rey area. 
Only 4 miles from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), and easily 
accessible from all major Southern California freeways, the Marina del 
Rey/Venice Beach area offers waterfront beauty with shopping, dining, great 
recreation and miles of beautiful beaches.  


SUBMISSIONS  

We invite researchers and practitioners to submit work in the following 
categories:  

PAPERS: Comprehensive descriptions of research or design work and/or 
theoretical investigation within the scope of the workshop. Papers must 
relate to existing literature on presence and make an original contribution to 
it. Papers are 4 to 10 pages including references in the PRESENCE 2009 
template format (see the submission page at http://ispr.info/conference). 
Accepted papers will be included in the Proceedings, and will be allocated 
time for oral presentation.  

PANELS: Sets of presentations on a single theme or topic within the scope 
of the workshop. Submitters are encouraged to be creative regarding both 
the topic or theme and the format for panel proposals (formats that 
encourage guided discussion are particularly welcome). Panel proposals 
must identify and provide contact information for all proposed participants 
and be 4 to 10 pages long including references in the PRESENCE 2009 
template format). Accepted panels will be included in the proceedings.  

POSTERS: Visual display presentations. Poster proposals are limited to 4 
pages including references in the PRESENCE 2009 template format. 
Accepted poster proposals will be published in the conference proceedings. 
Posters will be displayed on an approximately 28 in (70 cm) by 40 in (100 
cm) board during a dedicated session of the conference and will be allocated 
a 30 second oral preview.  

DEMONSTRATIONS/EXHIBITIONS: Step-by-step audiovisual 
demonstrations and/or hands-on experiences of non-commercial work within 
the scope of the workshop. Proposals for demonstrations/exhibitions are 
limited to 4 pages in the PRESENCE 2009 template format. Accepted 
demonstration/exhibition proposals will be included in the conference 
proceedings and will be presented during a dedicated session of the 
conference. For the exhibitions of commercial products, please contact ISPR 
(ispr at ispr.info) for sponsorship terms and opportunities.  

All submissions will be made through the conference online submission 
system at <http://ispr.info> and will undergo a double-blind peer-review 
process by at least two selected reviewers. The submission deadline is July 
1, 2009.  


IMPORTANT DATES  

July 1, 2009 - Submissions due; early registration opens  

August 15, 2009 - Acceptance/Rejection notifications  

September 15, 2009 - Finished, camera-ready papers due (electronic 
submission)  

October 1, 2009 - Early registration closes  

November 11-13, 2009 - Conference (onsite registration)  


CONFERENCE COMMITTEE  

Conference Co-Chairs  

Jacki Morie and Belinda Lange (Institute for Creative Technologies)  

Program Co-Chairs  

Kwan Min Lee (USC) and Matthew Lombard (Temple University)  


CONTACT  

For more information or assistance, please send e-mail to ispr at ispr.info or 
Matthew Lombard (<lombard at temple.edu>.  
   
-- 
Matthew Lombard, Ph.D.
Temple University
President
International Society for Presence Research (ISPR)

(215) 204-7182
lombard at temple.edu
http://matthewlombard.com
http://ispr.info