Sara Mostowfi

NSF Project: Integrating Augmented Reality into Undergraduate Engineering Laboratories

• Developed an immersive learning environment in Augmented Reality (AR), specifically tailored for undergraduate engineering labs, enhancing students' engagement and understanding of complex concepts.
• Conducted experiments and data collection for 32 students, systematically capturing and analyzing their interaction with AR modules.
• Analyzed metacognitive awareness data to evaluate the effectiveness of metacognitive monitoring prompts in enhancing students' self-regulation and metacognitive awareness within the AR environment.
• Performed motion capture data analysis to identify and understand the underlying factors contributing to students' specific body postures during learning sessions in AR, offering insights into ergonomics and user experience.
• Utilized Eye-tracking data to predict student performance in AR, employing advanced analytics to correlate eye movement patterns with learning outcomes.
• Investigated metacognitive awareness improvement for low performers through eye-tracking analysis, aiming to uncover strategies to boost cognitive engagement and awareness among students with lower initial performance levels.
• Utilized Functional Data Analysis (FDA) in eye-tracking data analysis to develop predictive models of student performance, leveraging advanced statistical techniques to gain insights into user behavior and outcomes.

Collaborative Project with Medical School: "Virtual Reality Immersion: Enhancing Physician-Patient Communication"

• Developed and designed a Virtual Reality (VR) environment focused on improving physician-patient communication, integrating realistic avatar facial expressions to enhance the immersive experience.
• Led the creation and implementation of avatar facial expressions, ensuring accurate and responsive interactions within the VR environment to simulate real-world medical scenarios.
• Presented UX designs and solutions to senior staff, effectively advocating for user-centric design principles and driving decisions that prioritize user experience.
• Conducted comprehensive data collection, systematically capturing user interactions and feedback to inform iterative design improvements and validate the effectiveness of the VR training module.

Research Project: Investigating the Relationship Between Driver's Psychological States and Biosensor Data

• Conducted an eye-integrated Human-in-the-Loop (HTIL) simulation experiment, exploring the interplay between drivers' psychological states and biosensor data, with a focus on eye-tracking metrics.
• Led data collection efforts involving approximately 50 participants, ensuring accurate and comprehensive capture of both psychological and physiological data.
• Analyzed eye-tracking data to gain insights into drivers' psychological states, leveraging advanced analytical techniques to uncover correlations and inform predictive models.

Project: Persona Development for Latino Use of Social Media and Mobile Technologies for Information-Seeking

• Analyzed observational data to develop detailed personas representing Latino users, focusing on their social media and mobile technology behaviors for information-seeking.
• Presented UX designs and solutions to senior staff, advocating for user-centric design decisions based on persona insights and ensuring that user needs were at the forefront of the design process.

Project: Usability Research for Push Mobile News App

• Conducted comprehensive usability research to identify design issues and improve user experience.
• Assessed task completion rates to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of user interactions with the app.
• Measured user satisfaction and perception of the system to gauge overall user experience and pinpoint areas for improvement.
• Developed actionable recommendations for enhancing the two apps built on the Push platform, based on research findings.