We are delighted to announce that Dr Marta Sibierska, a member of POB, has been awarded a grant under the National Science Centre’s SONATA BIS 15 scheme. The grant, worth PLN 1,237,516, will be used to fund the project ‘RIECS: The Role of Indices in Emerging Communication Systems’.
Imagine you are trying to communicate with someone who does not speak your language. What do you do? Most likely, you will point to the objects you need or try to convey your message through pantomime. In technical terms, we would say that you are using either indexical signs (pointing at something with your fingers or another part of your body) or iconic signs (for example, forming the shape of an object in the air so that the form of your movements resembles what it signifies). These kinds of movements – especially pointing – are among the earliest and most universal ways humans communicate. How exactly do they work when we use them to create entirely new communication conventions?
Although researchers have already investigated how iconic body movements help to create an entirely new system of communication, pointing and other indexical gestures have not attracted as much attention, at least not in experimental research. In this project, we ask a few simple but important questions: When is a pointing gesture sufficient to convey a message? When do people need to resort to more detailed gestures that mimic an object or an action? Could pointing be more complex than we realise? To investigate this, we will conduct a series of experiments in which participants will have to communicate without using words. We will use video analysis and AI-based motion tracking to examine how indices and icons differ – how long they last, how fast they are, how much space they occupy, and which body parts are involved. We will also use virtual reality and 3D printing to control parameters such as the size or distance of objects and see how this affects the way people use gestures and icons. The knowledge gained may give us new insights into the evolution of language, the way children learn to communicate, and the potential for designing better communication tools in various environments – from classrooms to virtual reality.
Source: NCU Information Portal