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Scott McDermott 1431 St. Claude Ave. New Orleans, LA 70116 |
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| Educational Experience: |  |
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| University of Louisiana, Lafayette, LA | ||
| PhD in Computer Science | ||
| University of Louisiana, Lafayette, LA | ||
| M.S. in Computer Science | ||
| University of Washington, Seattle, WA | ||
| B.A. in Music Technology (Computers and Music), Minor in Music | ||
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| Fellowship Researcher | ||
| University of Louisiana | ||
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| Research Assistant | ||
| University of Louisiana | ||
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| Systems Administrator | ||
| University of Louisiana | ||
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| Technology Coordinator | ||
| Academy of the Sacred Heart | ||
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| Webmaster, CGI Programmer, Network/Computer Consultant | ||
| MCNETCOMM/ISS | ||
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| Freelance Projects | ||
| UW Computing and Communications | ||
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| Software Distribution Center Lead/Macintosh Lab Administrator | ||
| UW Computing and Communications | ||
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| Help Desk Consultant | ||
| UW Computing and Communications | ||
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| Research Interests: | ||||
| Sound in 3D Environments: Designing and implementing efficient algorithms to produce realistic audio effects, real-time, in 3D graphical worlds. | Melody Detection in Digital Sound Formats: Implement algorithms which ascertain melodies and various voices in MP3 files. These can be used to convert music into notation format or allow for melody matching in a music database (information retrieval). | |||
| Automated Application of Cinematic Rules in 3D Graphics: Develop algorithms and graphical user interfaces that employ various rules and guidelines established by the film industry in order to automate the placement of the camera and view angle in computer graphics. | Motion Detection: Find new techniques for the detection of location and movement for use in virtual environments. | |||
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| Magic & Revolution Drum and Bugle Corps | ||
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| YWCA of New Orleans | ||
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| University of Louisiana, Lafayette, LA | ||
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| New Life Center Shelter (for homeless women and children), Opelousas, LA | ||
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Research Interests: Most of the high-end multimedia personal computers on the market today boast audio capabilities which "rival highend home stereo and home theater systems"1. Yet even popular audio hardware manufactures such as Creative Labs©, Turtle Beach©, and ESS© do not realize the shortcomings and pitfalls of this limited goal2. Rather than reinventing home-theater systems (such as Dolby®, THX®, and DTSTM) for computers, we should strive for development of true 3D acoustics, as Aureal© attempted before being taken over by Creative Labs© last decade. I foresee that this will become the path of audio programming in the future, just as truly realistic graphics algorithms have dominated visual programming. Development of accurate and convincing acoustical algorithms will greatly enhance human to computer interaction and requires a depth of knowledge of algorithm design, operating systems, and multimedia programming. My current topic of research is to apply physics-based techniques of acoustical simulations to the audio portion of real-time virtual reality environments. A very few number of other researchers are exploring this topic in any depth. Most of these (such as the group at Princeton3) tackle the problem from a ray tracing approach. Though this method has some merits, especially with respect to efficiency, it can have major drawbacks in terms of effectiveness and portability (i.e. movable sources, etc). My approach to this topic is unique in that I strongly adhere to the concept of interdisciplinary research and collaboration. This is cursorily demonstrated by the disciplines represented in the thesis committee I gathered: three members from the computer science department, two members of the physics faculty, and a music professor. Though logistically challenging, I assembled this group in order to expand my (and each others) perspective of my research. It is my belief that much of academic research in the future will follow this trend of interdisciplinary collaboration. Specifically, the value of collaborative effort in research manifests itself in my solution to the problem implementing true 3D sound. I am incorporating standard wave equation calculations from physics to efficiently calculate many acoustical properties of the environment and then using these to generate realistic acoustic signals. My method should produce accurate and generalizable results, but possibly at the cost of computation time. Optimization of this will create a powerful acoustic calculating algorithm. Eventually, the basic properties of the research may be transferable to other acoustic simulation topics such as underwater acoustics, non-linear acoustics, and even medical bioacoustics. Another topic of interest is music information retrieval (MIR). This involves efficient storage and fetching of songs (such as mp3's) in large databases like well-known Napster©. My intention is to develop algorithms that will allow the user to simply hum a tune in order to search for a song in the database. This topic of research utilizes techniques from database and information retrieval, digital signal processing, human computer interaction, and algorithm analysis. The practical results of this research are wide-ranging and can have immediate impact on a variety of online databases. As both a Master's and PhD student in computer science, I have spent a great deal of time developing 3D graphics virtual environments. Initially this was in the form of research on the implementation of cinematography standards (rules) to automatically generate aesthetically pleasing camera placement and angles. This research topic generated many publications which dealt with our constraint-based approach to the problem, the intelligent user interface we created, and selection and application of visual composition rules. In addition to this, as a Master's student, I began an initial survey of research into pedagogical implementation of multimedia when working with grade-school and learning challenged students. I hope to eventually develop this as a postgraduate topic. |
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1 Product Highlights from the DELL DimensionTM XPS Gen 4 desktop system.
2 From Creative Labs© Knowledge Base: Sound Blaster Audio Technologies Glossary (SID2648): As for extending beyond basic 3D positional audio, Aureal tried to develop a real-time geometry based system, which they named "Wavetracing". This was an ambitious attempt to "model" the effect of sound paths in real time, but the few titles that used it were not able to demonstrate any effective improvement in the 3D audio experience, and gameplay suffered from the intensive CPU load that Wavetracing incurred.3 From the web page of Thomas A. Funkhouser. |
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Teaching Interests: Astronomer Galileo Galilei stated "You cannot teach a man anything; you can only help him discover it in himself." This truly embodies my philosophy and approach to teaching and education, because that is how I have been taught and how I have learned. Through formal education and personal interests, I have the background necessary to teach computer graphics, audio programming, and multimedia, as well as other topics ranging from introductory programming to operating systems and programming languages. Finally, through my diverse background of interdisciplinary collaboration I can bring to any department a unique perspective for teaching and research. When working with students, at any level of interaction, I attempt to first understand how they perceive the concepts they are working on, and then guide them the rest of the way in a manner that makes sense to them. I constantly customize and adapt my teaching style to best suit the student or group I am working with. This patient and empathetic style has been well received by those I have taught and worked with. I approach teaching an entry-level class in a more didactic style; however I am very open to encouraging initiative on the part of a student to incorporate his or her own interests into a final project. At this level, establishing the basics in an informative and engaging manner is most important. For upper-level classes my teaching technique is more fluid. Using the Socratic Method I engage the class by encouraging students to contribute outside knowledge and experience to synthesize their own understanding of the material. I also believe that one of the most important benefits of large-scale projects is the presentation of the topic to the entire class at the culmination of the course. This solidifies their understanding of the topic and presents another perspective to the rest of the class. Especially when teaching multimedia topics, encouraging the incorporation of as many modalities as possible into an independent final project stimulates creativity and innovation. My specific teaching experience includes substituting for a professor teaching a graduate-level multimedia course, as well as judging high school programming fairs. My doctorate fellowship did not mandate any formal teaching responsibility. However on an informal level I have taught basic computer language classes, word processing, and internet subjects to numerous laypersons. As well, I have taught youth drum and bugle corps as a music instructor and drill instructor. I enjoy the camaraderie of a good work environment and the stimulus of student interest and inquisitiveness. One of my passions is developing collaborative projects and encouraging students from other departments to work with computer science students. Visual arts and music students can significantly contribute to creating aesthetically appealing multimedia projects while learning from computer science students about the techniques needed to construct a viable presentation. Physics and math students, as well, can benefit from collaboration on projects such as simulations and world-based models. Education and computer science students can work together to produce more effective methods of using multimedia when teaching children and the learning disabled. Already, I have proven the validity of this interdepartmental collaboration in my PhD research by involving faculty members from computer science, physics, and math in my dissertation development and as committee members. Regardless of what I end up teaching I am certain that I will approach it with enthusiasm, insight, and ingenuity. Teaching, to me, is equally as important as research. As Aristotle wrote, "The one exclusive sign of thorough knowledge is the power of teaching." |
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Dr. Henry Chu cice@cacs.louisiana.edu http://www.cacs.louisiana.edu/~cice/ 1-337-482-6309 |
Center for Advanced Computer Studies The University of Louisiana at Lafayette P.O. Box 44330 Lafayette, LA 70504-4330 | |
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Dr. William Edwards wedwards@cacs.louisiana.edu http://www.cacs.louisiana.edu/~wre/ 1-337-482-6338 |
Center for Advanced Computer Studies The University of Louisiana at Lafayette P.O. Box 44330 Lafayette, LA 70504-4330 | |
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Dr. Ryan Benton rbenton@starsoftware.com 1-337-482-6338 |
Center for Advanced Computer Studies The University of Louisiana at Lafayette P.O. Box 44330 Lafayette, LA 70504-4330 | |
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Sheila Kurtz skurtz@ashcoteau.org http://www.ashcoteau.org/ 1-337-662-5275 |
Academy of the Sacred Heart 1821 Academy Road Grand Coteau, La 70541 | |
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Sheila Kurtz skurtz@ashcoteau.org http://www.ashcoteau.org/ Relationship: Previous Employeer Known since: 1997 |
Academy of the Sacred Heart 1821 Academy Road Grand Coteau, La 70541 1-337-662-5275 | |
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Mellissa Deroche mddlpc@eatel.net Relationship: Worked with as a volunteer Known since: 2002 |
YWCA of New Orleans 601 S. Jefferson Davis Pkwy. New Orleans, LA 70119 1-504-482-9922 | |
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Sister Anne Byrne Relationship: Worked with as a volunteer Known since: 1997 |
New Life Center 411 East Landry Street Opelousas, LA 70570 1-337-948-3161 | |
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