Riya Patel

Scitories Website

Scitories is a web platform for sharing science-related stories and conversations.

Scitories - Snowpore uses elements of storytelling, WebVR and spatial sound to communicate the adverse effects of climate change. The Snowpore story invites audiences to navigate the melting world of a polar bear, a bright day of storytelling that gradually becomes a place of silence. Scitories aims to give agency to the viewer to shape their own journey, and includes a brief set of readings for people to take away with them.

What is water to you? Does it resonate with your most personal memories? This is a collection of aquatic tales from our childhoods, contemporary ones we encounter or makeup, extracts from dreams we had... An ocean of recollections that expands as we collectively immerse ourselves in telling stories and leaving them behind for others to hear. Dive into this body of water with us and listen to what it has to say.

Presented at IRCAM Forum, Paris, 2020

Collaborators: Qize Zhu, Anne-Sophie Gauvin, Danni Yang, Riya Patel

We invited all the wanderers and explorers who were stuck at home because of the pandemic to time travel to an alternate London for a glimpse of the impacts that may arise due to climate change. In this interactive digital exhibit, one can wander through the city of the future and the landscape of the past and get inspired to take action on climate change in their own backyard.

Presented at  Wandsworth Art, London, 2020.

Collaborators: Qize Zhu. Riya Patel

The experience of visiting Shakespeare's Globe is unique and should be uninterrupted. However, navigating the building can be challenging, especially if disabilities are taken into consideration. To unify all the different experiences offered at the Globe, a layer of sound is proposed, the Voice of the Globe. The voice can guide you through the whole experience, from buying your tickets to exiting the theatre.

Problem Statement

How might we propose a way to render Shakespeare’s Globe more inclusive and accessible?

The journey starts when purchasing tickets. For online purchases, the Globe Voice app can guide the visitor through the process and help personalise their tickets, identifying the best seats for their requirements. For offline purchases, the app can guide the visitor to the box office. When the tickets are received and the visitor enters the building the app will assist navigation, guiding people to the bar, the restroom, or directly to their seats. If it’s too early to enter the theatre, it could suggest a visit to an exhibition or a workshop to attend. The guide will also take individual requirements into account when selecting the best routes. All of it is done through storytelling, with the user choosing a voice and layers of sound to hear along with the speed of the narration. Once the event is over Globe Voice will guide the user to the closest and safest exit.

Collaborators: Atlanta De Guzman, Santra Navas, Daniel Andreas Vera-Villalobos, Ankur Guha, Anne-Sophie Gauvin, Zijie Qu, Riya Patel