The Knowledge Construction Company (2006-2012)
Mary E. Hopper established a company to build innovative knowledge resources and interfaces.
Below are some brief descriptions of some of the accomplishments.
Developed a “knowledge utility” to provide a systematic top-down inventory of important Web 1.0, Web 2.0 and 3D knowledge resources. The site has almost a thousand pages, and each page has from 10 to 100 links to resources. Many pages appear at the top of a Google or Bing search for "Cosma+Subject" (e.g. Cosma+Media).
Created a special scheme for classifying and organizing web resources into over 100 categories. The scheme is a synthesis of a number of other schemes used for organizing knowledge resources, and it is structured around the knowledge cycle. One of the primary purposes of the scheme is to make hundreds of links per page continue to seem reasonably accessible to typical users.
Developed an innovative linking strategy to access the "hidden web" and provide content specific links to hundreds of database driven sites (e.g. WorldCat, Library of Congress, Open Courseware etc.).
Built a series of relatively well-known SecondLife sites based upon very inviting spatial metaphors (e.g. zoo, amusement park etc.), and they have interactive objects (e.g. animals, vehicles and games). All of the sites are intended to serve as entertaining 3D visual interfaces to Cosma and SecondLife.
Designed proprietary 3D hyperlinks called "magic doors" and "magic windows" to enable and invite spatial knowledge navigation of SecondLife and Cosma. Magic doors give bookmarks to sites within SecondLife, and magic windows open a browser window to display Cosma web pages.
Gathered and analyzed user data on the web and in SecondLife for use in diagnostics and design.
Presentations
Hopper, M. E. (2009, April). Cosma, Constructing a Kingdom of Knowledge. Media in Transition 6 Conference: Stone and Papyrus, Storage and Transmission, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA.
Hopper, M. E. (2008, December). Using Virtual Worlds for Computer Science Education and Research. Computer Science Seminar, University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA.
Hopper, M. E. (2008, May). Ok, now what? Ideas from Havok to the Holodeck. Sloan-C International Symposium, Emerging Technology Applications for Online Learning, Carefree, AZ.
Hopper, M. E. (2007, April). The Knowledge Gates to SecondLife. Media in Transition 5 Conference: Creativity, Ownership and Collaboration in the Digital Age, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA.