Affective Sciences Emerging: the interdisciplinary study of emotion Day 1:
Virtual Emotions in Human Computer-Interfaces

An “affective” revolution is currently taking place in many different disciplines. The exclusive emphasis placed on logical inference and rational choice to explain human action is replaced by the investigation of the manifold ways in which affect and emotion shape behavior and decision making.

The Swiss National Center of Competence in Research (NCCR) for Affective Sciences and the Collegium Helveticum will meet with local U.S. institutions and companies at swissnex on April 6 & 7 2006 to debate this fascinating topic, present their research and discuss applications and implications with the industry.


Thursday, April 6 2006:
Virtual Emotions in Human-Computer Interfaces

9:00 - 10:30 am, Session 1: Contributions from Affective Science
What is an emotion, how many are there and which are the most important? Which mechanisms are central for computational modeling of emotion? What is the role of cultural differences? What are the implications of virtual emotion work in business? Speakers: Dr. Klaus Scherer, Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, and Dr. Stacy Marsella, Project Leader, Information Sciences Institute, University of Southern California

10:45 am – 12:15 pm: Session 2: Contributions from Face Science
How does facial expression work and how can facial and bodily animation be made more natural and authentic? Speakers: Dr. Paul Ekman, UCSF (Emeritus) & Mr. Peter Docter, Pixar

12:30 – 2:00 pm: Session 3 (lunch included):
Artificial Emotions: Promises & Risks Entertainment and business potential, ethical issues
Moderator: Charles London, Electronic Arts Speakers: all participating experts, including Dr. Klaus Scherer, Dr. Paul Ekman, Dr. Didier Granjean, Dr. David Sander, Dr. Patrik Vuilleumier, Dr. Gerd Folkers, Dr. Stacy Marsella, Nicole Lazzaro (XEODesign) etc…

2:15 – 3:45 pm: Session 4: Contributions from Voice Science
How does vocal expression work and how can vocal synthesis be made more natural and authentic? Speakers: Dr. Klaus Scherer, Swiss Center for Affective Sciences & Dr. Kim Silverman, Apple Computer Inc.

4:00 – 5:30 pm: Session 5: Toward Multimodal Models of Emotion Expression
How can the different channels of expression be integrated and synchronized?
Moderator: Dr. David Matsumoto, SFSU Speakers: all participating experts, including Dr. Klaus Scherer, Dr. Paul Ekman, Dr. Didier Granjean, Dr. David Sander, Dr. Patrik Vuilleumier, Dr. Gerd Folkers, Dr. Stacy Marsella, Nicole Lazzaro, (XEODesign) etc…

…please join us for the evening program & cocktail reception!


This event is free: please register indicating which session(s) you will attend. To register for the evening programs or for Day 2: the Neural Architecture of Emotion, Emotional Disturbance & Pain, please click here. We apologize for the inconvenience.