Can't We All Just Get Along?

#sxsw #GetAlong

There's too much contention in our society. From a gridlocked Congress to neighborhood disputes, it seems like we spend too much energy fighting and not enough figuring how we can work together. Online discussion and debate hold the potential for helping us talk out our differences, but even those discussions tend to bog down in "flaming" and talking past each other. Justify is a new system for organizing large-scale debate about important topics to aid decision-making. Rather than simply organize posts chronologically, it organizes discussion around "points" -- single ideas or opinions that can be classified, agreed or disagreed with, supported or refuted. The system provides semi-automatic summarization of the discussion at all levels, making it easier for participants to reflect on what's going on, or newcomers to join.

Presenters

Christopher Fry

Research Scientist

MIT Media Lab

Christopher Fry has been a Visiting Research Scientist at the MIT Media Lab since 2011. He is expert in artificial intelligence software, programming environments, transportation, decision support, music and other areas. He has extensive startup experience, having founded four software startups, one of which was sold to Apple. He previously worked at the MIT Center for Coordination Science, IBM, Voice Processing, and other companies. He attended the Berklee School of Music, and wrote a seminal system for music processing. Recently, he won the Judges' Choice award at an MIT Sloan School contest for solutions to the climate problem, and presented to the US House of Representatives, and the United Nations.

Elizabeth Rosenzweig

Principal Usability Consultant

Bentley University

Elizabeth Rosenzweig is a Principal Usability Consultant at the User Experience Center. Elizabeth has worked as a consultant and employee in several major corporations for over 25 years. Her experience includes design and development, ranging from website and applications to hardware products and technology development. Elizabeth has completed projects for many major corporations as well as academic institutions. Elizabeth holds 4 patents in intelligent user interface design.

Elizabeth is founder and Director of World Usability Day, which she started in 2004 after her term as President of Usability Professionals Association was completed. World Usability Day has grown to include 44 countries with more than 180 events. Elizabeth frequently publishes in industry journals, has written chapters in three published books and presents lectures at conferences around the world.

Elizabeth holds a BA in Fine Art Photography and Printing Technologies from Goddard College and a MS in Visual Studies (User Interface Design and Computer Output) from the Media Lab at MIT.