Hi, this is

Emily Kuang

PHD STUDENT iN HCI · UX RESEARCHER · GOOGLE PHD FELLOW

Photo of Emily Kuang with long black hair

Bio

I am a PhD student in the Golisano College of Computing and Information Sciences at Rochester Institute of Technology and a member of the Center for Accessibility and Inclusion Research (CAIR). I am honored to be a recipient of the 2023 Google PhD Fellowship in Human-Computer Interaction!


At the forefront of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and User Experience (UX), my research focuses on designing and evaluating human‑AI collaborative tools for improved usability and UX analysis. My work not only advances technology but also champions accessibility, focusing on inclusive computing education and assistive technology for diverse user groups. This website unfolds my journey of blending research with a commitment to inclusive, user‑centered technology development.


If you would like to talk about my work or get connected, don't hesistate to send me an e-mail or connect via LinkedIn.


Recent News

  1. Feb 2024: I have 5 co-authored papers conditionally accepted to CHI 2024, see you in Hawaii!
  2. Oct 2023: I received the 2023 Google PhD Fellowship in Human-Computer Interaction!
  3. Aug 2023: I completed my UX research internship at Meta Reality Labs in Seattle!
  4. Apr 2023: I presented 2 papers and 1 poster at CHI 2023 in Hamburg, Germany!

Research

User interface of proactive conversational assistant

Enhancing UX Evaluation Through Collaboration with Conversational AI Assistants: Effects of Proactive Dialogue and Timing

Emily Kuang, Minghao Li, Mingming Fan, Kristen Shinohara


Proceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '24)


Number of surveys and interviews

Mapping Accessibility Assignments into Core Computer Science Topics: An Empirical Study with Interviews and Surveys of Instructors and Students

Emily Kuang, Selah Bellscheidt, Di Pham, Kristen Shinohara, Catherine M. Baker, Yasmine N. Elglaly


Proceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '24)


Electrotactile guidance features

Designing Unobtrusive Modulated Electrotactile Feedback on Fingertip Edge to Assist Blind and Low Vision (BLV) People in Comprehending Charts

Chutian Jiang*, Yinan Fan*, Junan Xie, Emily Kuang, Kaihao Zhang, Mingming Fan (* indicates equal contribution)


Proceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '24)


Screenshots from livestreams

Bridging the Literacy Gap for Adults: Streaming and Engaging in Adult Literacy Education through Livestreaming

Shihan Fu, Jianhao Chen, Emily Kuang, Mingming Fan


Proceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '24)


AR instructions

Exploring the Opportunity of Augmented Reality (AR) in Supporting Older Adults to Explore and Learn Smartphone Applications

Xiaofu Jin, Wai Tong, Xiaoying Wei, Xian Wang, Emily Kuang, Xiaoyu Mo, Huamin Qu, Mingming Fan


Proceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '24)


Key steps in daily data analysis

Understanding Strategies and Challenges of Conducting Daily Data Analysis (DDA) Among Blind and Low-vision People

Chutian Jiang, Wentao Lei, Emily Kuang, Teng Han, Mingming Fan


The 25th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '23)


User interface of conversational AI assistant

Collaboration with Conversational AI Assistants for UX Evaluation: Questions and How to Ask them (Voice vs. Text)

Emily Kuang, Ehsan Jahangirzadeh Soure, Mingming Fan, Jian Zhao, Kristen Shinohara


Proceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '23)


Keyboard showing gesture typing

Enhancing Older Adults' Gesture Typing Experience Using the T9 Keyboard on Small Touchscreen Devices

Emily Kuang, Ruihuan Chen, Mingming Fan


Proceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '23)


Procedure of the participatory design session

Bridging the Generational Gap: Exploring How Virtual Reality Supports Remote Communication Between Grandparents and Grandchildren

Xiaoying Wei, Yizheng Gu, Emily Kuang, Xian Wang, Beiyan Cao, Xiaofu Jin, Mingming Fan


Proceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '23)


List of research questions

Crafting Human-AI Collaborative Analysis for User Experience Evaluation

Emily Kuang


CHI Doctoral Consortium: Extended Abstracts of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA '23)


Demographic information of respondents

“Merging Results Is No Easy Task”: An International Survey Study of Collaborative Data Analysis Practices Among UX Practitioners

Emily Kuang, Xiaofu Jin, Mingming Fan


Proceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '22)


User interface of the visual analytics tool

A Multi-scale Visual Analytics Approach for Exploring Biomedical Knowledge

Fahd Husain, Rosa Romero-Gómez, Emily Kuang, Dario Segura, Adamo Carolli, Lai Chung Liu, Manfred Cheung, Yohann Paris


In the Workshop on Visual Analytics in Healthcare (VAHC) held in conjunction with VIS, 2021

[Best Paper Award]


User interface of CoUX

CoUX: Collaborative Visual Analysis of Think-Aloud Usability Test Videos for Digital Interfaces

Ehsan Jahangirzadeh Soure*, Emily Kuang*, Mingming Fan, Jian Zhao (* indicates equal contribution)


IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics, vol. 28, no. 1 (Proceedings of VIS '21), 2022


Types of banking transactions

"Too Old to Bank Digitally?": A Survey of Banking Practices and Challenges among Older Adults in China

Xiaofu Jin, Emily Kuang, Mingming Fan


Proceedings of the Designing Interactive Systems Conference (DIS '21)


Selected region of sample under microscope

Compensated lens-free light field microscopy

Ameneh Boroomand, Mohammad Javad Sahfiee, Linda Wang, Emily Kuang, Farnoud Kazemzadeh, Alexander Wong


International Conference on Inverse Problems in Engineering (ICIPE), 2017


Spectrum of calibration source using the smartphone spectrometer

Enhanced Smartphone Spectroscopy via High-throughput Computational Slit

Emily Kuang, Farnoud Kazemzadeh, Alexander Wong


Journal of Computational Vision and Imaging Systems 2 (1), 2016


3D CAD render of the microscope

Compact, Field-Portable Lens-free Microscope using Superresolution Spatio-Spectral Light-field Fusion

Farnoud Kazemzadeh, Emily Kuang, Alexander Wong


Journal of Computational Vision and Imaging Systems 2 (1), 2016


  • Education

  • PhD - Rochester Insitute of Technology

    2020 - present

    Program: Computing and Information Sciences

    Advisors: Dr. Kristen Shinohara and Dr. Mingming Fan

  • BASc - University of Waterloo

    2015 - 2020

    Program: Biomedical Engineering

    Graduated with Distinction - Dean's Honour List

Skills

Research

Using creative and systematic approaches to understand people and build future human-technology partnerships

User-Centered Design

Starting from the human perspective to reach usability goals and invent new solutions. Check out my course project Pasatiempo!

Software Development

Developing applications and research prototypes through programming in Python, Matlab, Java, JavaScript and more

Mentoring

Always open to meeting younger students for coffee and bubble tea (or virtual) chats about school and extracurriculars