• Establishing recognized value for work-centered analysis and design practices
  
• Creating work-centered interface designs for agent-based support systems
  
• Conducting cognitive task analyses of mission planning and decision making
  
• Developing novel instruments and techniques for participatory knowledge acquisition and cognitive task analysis
  
• Specifying and evaluating advanced multi-modal interaction technologies for high-performance team work

Since 1995, my primary assignments have been in (information warfare (IW)) - the area focusing on power projection and manipulation in cyberspace. My IW reseach foci have ranged from theoretical analyses of this emergent venue to cognitive engineering for collaborative information management and manipulation in very high performance real-time operations.

Crew-Aiding and Information Warfare Analysis Laboratory (CIWAL)
Information Analysis and Exploitation Branch, AFRL
April 1995 through March 2001

Tasked to research and analyze cognitive and collaborative aspects of information warfare (IW). Conducted literature searches, compiled reference library materials, and participated in programmatic planning. Generated a cognitive engineering agenda addressing decision making demands in high performance real-time distributed command and control. Generated technical reports, proposals, briefing materials, and attendant graphic materials. Consulted and advised on research methodologies, computer support, distributed interactive simulation (DIS), and human-computer interaction issues relevant to other CIWAL programs. Ongoing activities include research and analysis on:

• group interface technologies for IW-related command and control
  
• cognitive engineering models for IW-oriented systems analyses
  
• applications of semiotics and systems theory to IW

 

---

Collaborative Systems Technology Laboratory (CSTL)
Collaborative Systems Technology Branch, AFRL
June to December 1997

Tasked to establish a reconfigurable testbed facility for creating and demonstrating advanced collaborative technology concepts in the areas of (e.g.) command and control, remote sensing, intelligence analysis, and information warfare. Developed concept demonstration of distributed group IT applications in the context of battlespace management command and control. Aided in setting up human performance assessment software suite and Java-based interactive unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) remote control simulation suite.

---

Collaborative Design Technology Laboratory
(CDT Lab)
June 1993 - April 1995

Hired as chief researcher for start-up CSCW program within U.S. Air Force human factors laboratory. Set up and maintained CDT laboratory with reconfigurable collaborative work testbed, Internet links, groupware tools, resident audio / video capacities, and remote video link. Conducted both experimental and observational studies of group design activities. Tested and evaluated group support products. Extended earlier cognitive science / knowledge elicitation work to support collaborative design teams operating in both co-located and distributed work settings. Additional duties include: technical writing, editing, proposal writing, meeting facilitation, generation of graphics and presentation materials, print and electronic literature searches, purchasing, and project planning with USAF and other partners. USAF budget cuts forced closure of CDT Laboratory in spring 1995. Specific CDT project areas included:

Organizational (Re-)Engineering (related terms = TQM, BPR)

Research and applied work toward analyzing organizational structures, defining operational niches, and (re-) designing both organizational and operational features for better performance and service.
 

Advanced Group Interfaces

Interface devices providing information display, control of the display, control of the software driving the display, and direct data input (via handwriting recognition) at one unified surface.
 

Observational Studies of Work Teams

Analyses of teams' work activities, interactional patterns, and their usage of available IT resources. Results have informed: (1) work team members about possibilities for process improvement and (2) developers about how best to support such teams.
 

Experimental and Observational Studies of Collaborative Decision Making

Design, execution, analysis, and publication of team decision making research. Some of these studies employed real world experts in artificial experimental settings, and some involved structured interventions and process analyses of actual team meetings.
 

Video Teleconferencing

Installed a multi-channel audio / video link between our laboratory and the primary local presentation / meeting room, permitting multimedia support for local meetings as well as testing of the performance and usability characteristics of video conferencing tools.

 

Cognitive Task Analysis of Mission Planning / Course of Action Analysis

Conducted solo cognitive task analysis of mission planning doctrine, procedures, and practices. Designed and implemented novel methodologies for knowledge acquisition aimed at illuminating the unique characteristics of this decision making process. Conducted interactive exercises and observational studies of simulated mission planning to determine critical processual factors. Produced initial sets of key process data elements, data element interdependencies, relative criticality assessments, and recommendations for clarifying doctrinal and definitional foundations.
 

---

Interface Concepts for Agent-Based Intelligent Support Systems

Tasked to develop interface concepts connecting direct manipulation elements at the user / screen side to an arbitrarily large population of intelligent agents performing support tasks in the background. Developed a framework for illustrating relative trade-offs (e.g., between agent autonomy and user control). Devised highly graphic on-screen displays and manipulables with assignments among these elements and their affiliated agents. Mapped relationships linking user acts, events, interface elements, agent actions, and data requirements in the context of a demonstration scenario.
 

---

Other Tasks as Required, including:

• Analysis of program announcements for business opportunities

• Proposal planning, generation, and presentation

• Labor and resource estimation for proposed projects

• Review and analysis of corporate technical efforts and products

This was a fixed-term research post at a rank corresponding to assistant professor. The duties included:

• conducting my own research
  
• advising students on independent study projects
  
• occasional lecturing and teaching
  
• dissertation advising; project proposal development
  
• responding to academic and government inquiries (on network, data communication, and CSCW issues)
  
• occasional consulting work.

I maintain an affiliation with the department as an Adjunct Researcher.

 

Recruited for the agency's knowledge-based systems group. Duties included: conducting research and enquiry into a range of advanced IT (Information Technology) issues of interest to the Swedish government; training; and serving as Swedish representative to international working groups. More specific duties included:

---

Knowledge Engineer

Worked on design, implementation, and evaluation of knowledge-based systems (KBS) in government pilot projects. Planned successive phases of ongoing projects, reviewed new software tools, and participated in project management functions (e.g., budgeting, reporting). Advised programming staff on technical matters and oversaw ongoing elaboration of user interfaces.
 

---

National Representative: ICA Study Group on KBS in Government

Assigned as Swedish government's delegate to working group sponsored by the International Council on Information Technology in Government, researching the potentials and the pitfalls of knowledge based systems (KBS) in government operations. Planned program and drafted material for national representatives' discussions of KBS work / experiences. Served as both contributing author and editor for the group's final report presented (by me) to the ICA Annual International Conference in October 1990 and published by ICA in 1991. Reaction to the report and its presentation was sufficiently positive to motivate multiple requests for related consulting services and invited lectures throughout Europe.
 

---

National Project Leader: Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW)

Appointed national CSCW project leader for UtvecklingsRådet (the Development Council) -- a national program for promoting innovative IT applications in the public sector. Managed a working group comprised of representatives from government, business, defense, and labor. Budgeted and managed monies from Arbetsmiljöfonden (The Swedish Work Environment Fund). Conducted CSCW workshops, seminars, and surveys of technology trends, products, and prospective applications. Generated (a) a preliminary study outlining CSCW and its potential for theSwedish public sector, (b) recommendations for a public sector policy on CSCW research and development, and (c) an integrated package of project proposals.
 

---

Other Duties

• Swedish representative to the working group that established the CO-TECH (Collaboration Technology) initiative under the EC's COST program.
• Evaluator for strategies and products for public access to large databases.
• Technical writer and editor of scientific articles and other publications.

 

Editor:

The Observer Web

The largest Internet site dedicated to autopoiesis and enaction and related work. Established April 1996.

Widely acknowledged as the most comprehensive Webspace on these topics.

The Observer Web is mirrored in Portuguese at UFMG, Brazil. The tutorial has also been translated into Italian, and it appears in its original English form at multiple Websites worldwide.

http://www.informatik.umu.se/~rwhit/AT.html
 

Second-Order Cybernetics

Reference category on the Open Directory Project.
Beginning in 2001.
 

The Observer

An Internet journal / newsletter on autopoiesis and enactive cognitive science.
1993 to 1997.

 

---

Editorial Advisory Board:

Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW): The Journal of Collaborative Computing, 1994 - 1999.
 

---

Organizing Committee:

Biology, Cognition, Language, and Society: An international symposium on autopoiesis, Belo Horizonte (Brazil), 18-21 November, 1997.
 

---

Consultant / Invited Lecturer on Topics Including:

• Technology Support for Group Work.
  
• Knowledge Based Systems.
  
• Computer Supported Cooperative Work.
  
• Groupware.
  
• Knowledge Based Systems in Government Administration.
  
• Scandinavian Participatory Design.
  
• Programmatic Concerns in Human-Computer Interaction Research: A Military Perspective.
  
• Change Agency in Military Research Organizations.
  
• Group Decision Support for Change Agents in Large Organizations.
  
• Internet as a Medium for Business Development.
  
• Applying Self-Organization in Enterprise (Re-)Engineering.
  
• Applications of Autopoietic Theory

---

Invited Contributor:

Information Warfare

Article in the Encyclopedia of International Media and Communications, Academic Press, forthcoming (Fall 2002).

 

---

Memberships / Affiliations:

• Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)

• ACM SIGCHI (Human-Computer Interaction special interest group)

• ACM SIGGROUP (Group Work special interest group)

• American Society for Cybernetics (ASC)

• Mensa

 

Communication / Presentation Skills:

• Excellent writing, editing, reviewing, graphics, and presentation skills.
  
• Over ten years' experience as a consulting technical writer, editor, facilitator, and presenter.
  
• Substantial experience in generating planning and proposal documentation.
  
• Extensive experience in diverse communications / presentation media including:
  • audio
    
  • video
    
  • electronic / printed text
    
  • hypertext / HTML
    
  • multimedia

 

---

Team / Project Skills:

• A consistently effective collaborator in teams ranging from 3 to over 40 members.
  
• Extensive experience with cross-organizational and international work groups involving public and private sectors.
  
• Experience in project and project group planning, budgeting, and management.
  
• Extensive experience in proposal generation and funding solicitation.

 

---

Internet:

• Over ten years' experience and established presence in the global networks.
  
• Founder / editor of Internet newsletter / journal.
  
• Author of numerous WWW pages

 

---

Facilitation Tools:

Flowcharting, concept mapping, semantic modelling, logic modelling, ethnography, qualitative research, conversational analysis, IDEF, storyboarding, and multiple original techniques developed over the years.
 

---

Operating Systems:

OS/VS1, CMS, VMS, Unix, MS-DOS, Windows, Macintosh.
 

---

Programming Tools:

Fortran (IV,V,77), COBOL, PL/1, C, C++, Prolog, SmallTalk, Pascal, HyperTalk, HTML, expert systems shells, various 4GL's and API's.
 

---

Software:

Diverse text processing, communications, graphics, publishing, database, artificial intelligence, groupware, presentation, and other packages.