Co-Directors
Charles Chang
Charles Chang’s research interest hinges on the intersections between computation and design. With the rise of smartphones and other internet-connected devices, design choices become increasingly data-driven and dependent on information’s credibility in the construction of the human habitat. Chang’s research focuses on human habitat’s design, environmental impact, and information’s credibility in the Big-Data age. His teaching interests at Duke Kunshan include computational social science, digital humanities, and urban informatics. He has published several articles in peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings, among which are articles on Big Data and machine learning in natural science, social science, and the humanities.
Jung Choi
Jung Choi is an assistant professor of Art History and Visual Studies at Duke Kunshan University. Choi received a MA from New York University in Visual Culture Theory and earned a Ph.D. from Duke University specializing in Visual and Media Studies. She also earned the graduate certificate in information science and studies from Duke University that offered research and training in digital humanities. Choi has worked as curator at renowned media art institutions, including Art Center Nabi, Seoul, Korea, and ZKM Karlsruhe, Germany, and continued to work as an independent curator and exhibition director for various digital 4 humanities research projects. Choi’s research interest lies in the interactions between art and technology and contemporary visual and media culture, especially on the ways in which artistic and creative practices provide constructive criticism on our contemporary media environments. Her current research focuses on the spatio-temporal dimension of human experience in contemporary digital environments and the planetary media art practices that explore, reframe and challenge the paradigms of the 21st-century climate crisis.
Xin Tong
Xin Tong joined DKU as an Assistant Professor in Computation and Design in Oct. this year. Prior to coming to DKU, she was a postdoc fellow affiliated with the Pervasive Wellbeing Technology Lab at Stanford University and received Canada NSERC funding for her postdoc. Dr. Tong has taught undergraduate and graduate courses, including games, VR, human-computer interaction (HCI) related courses. Previously, Dr. Tong was a member of the Pain Studies Lab, and she received her Ph.D. at the School of Interactive Arts and Technology (SIAT), Simon Fraser University (SFU), Canada.
Xin’s research contributes to the larger understanding of how people with physical and psychological disabilities experience and interact with technology. Her work largely centers on understanding, designing, developing, and evaluating interactive systems, such as games and VR/AR environments. She deeply embeds a design-thinking approach, working in partnership with clinicians, caregivers, and patients frequently to solve their problems and reach their goals through a user-centered framework in quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-method studies.
Affiliated Students
Yifei Huang
Yifei Huang is a DKU undergraduate student from the Class of 2025 majoring in Computation & Design. She is now an orientation leader for the class of 2026. Moreover, she is doing an VR & AR project with a DKU professor. She is very excited to be part of this Athropocene XR Lab interdisciplinary project that combines many subjects with XR. It miraculously fits great with her passion for different research fields.
Leiyuan Tian
Leiyuan is a Media and Art major (Art History Track) from the class of 2023. She is interested in the intersections of arts, new media, and philosophy. Working as the Lab Manager at Anthropocene XR Lab, her responsibilities include lab event planning, promotion, hosting, as well as monitoring communication between Lab Co-directors and event participants. She is excited to witness the growth of the lab and help projects move on smoothly as more interesting people come and join the journey. Feel free to reach out to her via email leiyuan.tian@dukekunshan.edu.cn for any question related to the lab.
Meixuan Wang
Meixuan Wang is from the class of 2023 studying Media and Arts (History). Passionate about Sinophone studies, popular culture, and digital media, she explores new, unconventional ways of telling stories and problem-solving whether that be through videos, podcasts, interactive media/design, or journalism, AR/VR, or film. She is now working on two projects with the Anthropocene XR Lab: the XR technologies in China and Chinese artists’ neganthropocene practices.
Yujia Zhai
Yujia Zhai is an undergraduate student from the class of 2023. She is majoring in Art History, Media and Arts. Her research interest lies in the intersection of art, commerce, and technologies. She has done academic research and projects related to social media, the digital economy, and the fashion industry. She is now working on two projects with HRC’s Anthropocene XR Lab: the XR technologies in China and Chinese artists’ neganthropocene practices.
Ruiqi Chen
A student from Duke Kunshan University, majoring in Data Science, focusing on research aimed at diversifying interaction modes through XR and AR technologies. His work seeks to enhance spatial experiences and social interactions within socio-cultural communities, and aims to bridge social distances among people and reconstruct human-place relationships. Currently, he is involved in projects in collaboration with HRC’s Anthropocene XR Lab, under the guidance of two professors from Duke Kunshan University.
