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Lan Gao (She/Her)

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Hello! I am a second-year Ph.D. student in Computer Science at UChicago, luckily advised by Dr. Marshini Chetty. I got my Master's degree in Industrial Design at Georgia Tech. During my master's study, I worked closely with Dr. Sauvik Das, Dr. Jennifer Kim, and Dr. Munmun De Choudhury

I am passionate about
HCI, CSCW, and Technology Harms & Ethics. With a goal of making technology more human-centered, I focus on the ethical aspects of technology, such as Privacy & Security, Inclusion, and Accountability.  Using mixed-methods and design approaches, my works underscore the unreasonable regulations, designs, and deployments of technology, proposing suggestions and guidelines on how to apply technology that fits human and social values. 

I am an advocator of slow science.

Some interesting (or boring) facts:

1) I am a super fan of the Pokemon series (the icon of my personal website is a Minccino, the Pokemon I like the best).

2) I enjoy creating fan art illustrations in my spare time, however, I have been too busy to do that recently.

3) I like using my nickname "Kulu" or "Pigeon" on social media, but I prefer to be called by my official name at the workplace.

4) My name is written as 高澜 in Chinese.

I do research in ...

Responsible Technology Development and Deployment

I study safety and guardrails of innovative technology like AI. By looking into end-user experience, stakeholder engagement, and policy enforcement, I unpack the current stage of responsible technology practice in the wild. I am also interested in design guidelines and principles for developing future responsible technology.

Selected Projects: 

How AI Practitioners Work on Privacy (USENIX' 24🏆)

Critical Perspectives of Socio-technical Systems

I investigate how technology deployment could facilitate or violate personal wellbeing and social dynamics. I am especially interested in this problem in specific social settings, such as in healthcare and the workplace. Through both speculative and grounded approaches, I investigate the values and risks that innovative technology could bring, in order to envision safer future socio-technical systems.

Selected Projects:

Sensing and Sharing Non-Verbal Cues in Remote Psychotherapy (CSCW' 25, To Appear)

Passive-Sensing-Enabled AI in Workplace (CHI' 23, CHI' 24🏆)

Critical Technology Literacy

I design, build, and evaluate tools that promote people’s awareness and practice of critical aspects of technology, such as privacy and responsible technology usage.

Selected Projects: 

Privacy and Security Micro-Lessons (In Submission for CSCW)

Design for Inclusiveness and Wellbeing

I investigate dark and deceptive design patterns for users on digital platforms and technical systems. Additionally, I redesign user interfaces and build tools to form inclusive and harmonious socio-technical systems.

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