Proceedings of the 20th International Conference on Culture and Computer Science: Code and Materiality

Abstract: Fossil preparation is the activity of processing paleontological specimens for research and exhibition. Alongside traditional mechanical extraction methods, fossil preparation presently comprises non-destructive digital techniques within the emerging field of virtual paleontology. Despite significant technological advances, traditional and digital preparation remain cumbersome and time-consuming. However, this field has received scarce attention from a human-computer interaction standpoint. This study aims to present the current state of paleontological fossil preparation, highlighting its key challenges and initiating a dialogue about innovative designs to address current issues. Our research comprises a qualitative study involving technical preparators and virtual paleontologists. The study consists of two main parts: Firstly, a focus group session brought together preparators and researchers to discuss their workflows, obtain a preliminary understanding of their issues, and ideate solutions based on their counterparts’ experiences. Subsequently, a series of contextual inquiries involved direct observations and semi-structured in-depth interviews. By transcribing and analyzing the data through theoretical and inductive thematic analysis, we clustered emerging themes and applied concepts from human-computer interaction and related fields. Our findings report on challenges traditional and digital fossil preparators encounter, shedding light on potential opportunities to enhance their tools and workflows. This work contributes a novel analysis of fossil preparation from an HCI perspective.