Abigail Sellen facts for kids

Abigail Jane Sellen is a Canadian scientist who studies how people think and how they use computers. She is also an expert in making things work better in companies. She works at Microsoft Research in Cambridge, which is a place where scientists invent new technologies.

She is also a special professor at the University of Nottingham and University College London.

Learning and Degrees

Abigail Sellen went to the University of Toronto and earned a master's degree. This is a special degree you get after finishing college. She studied industrial engineering, which is about making systems and processes more efficient.

Later, she earned a PhD (Doctor of Philosophy) from the University of California, San Diego. A PhD is the highest degree you can get in many fields. She studied cognitive science, which is the study of how the human mind works, including thinking, learning, and memory. Her teacher there was a famous expert named Don Norman.

Her Work and Discoveries

Abigail Sellen's main work is in something called human–computer interaction (HCI). This field looks at how people and computers work together. It's all about making computers easy and fun for people to use.

Before joining Microsoft in 2004, she worked at several big research labs. These included Xerox PARC, Apple Inc., and HP Labs. These companies are well-known for creating new technologies. She was a research fellow at Darwin College, Cambridge, which means she was a scientist doing important studies there.

In 2001, Abigail Sellen wrote a book with Richard H. R. Harper called The Myth of the Paperless Office. This book explored why people still use so much paper, even with all the digital tools available.

Awards and Special Recognitions

Abigail Sellen has received many important awards for her work. She is a fellow of the Royal Society (FRS), which is a very old and respected group of scientists in the UK. She is also a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng) and the British Computer Society.

In 2011, she became part of the CHI Academy. This group recognizes the best researchers in human-computer interaction. In 2016, she was named a fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). This award was given to her for her great work in making technology more focused on people.

In 2020, she was chosen as a foreign member of the National Academy of Engineering. This honor was for her work in making sure that computer systems are designed to fit what humans can do.