Human-Computer Interaction, or HCI, is a discipline traditionally devoted to the study and creation of computer products that help users carry out tasks, focusing on the ease of use, execution time, avoidance of possible errors, and user satisfaction. HCI combines diverse areas of knowledge such as cognitive psychology, computer science, design engineering, and linguistics to develop new devices and interaction styles that incorporate people’s language capabilities into human-machine dialogue. HCI research aims to design simpler, safer, more comfortable, more reliable, and more effective systems to allow individuals to perform their activities productively with sufficient levels of “manageability”, “usability” or “friendliness”. It also addresses the design of intelligent systems and interfaces capable of emulating aspects of human behavior such as proactively assisting in problem solving, enabling more natural communication with individuals themselves, and acting autonomously in response to changes in context.

As software becomes more sophisticated and state-of-the-art interaction technologies are incorporated into its development to provide a more natural dialogue with users and more convenient access to data, HCI research and development grows increasingly important. The EAC, as a research center with expertise in data analytics and visualization, is in the perfect position to be a partner for companies who are eager to create well thought out, designed, and developed interfaces or software applications to deliver their customers higher quality products or make their employees work better. This means not just delivering something visually appealing, enjoyable, or “cool”. It involves understanding people, the environment, and the processes to make digital tools or services that are easily manageable and provide data access and information in a more user-friendly manner.