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Katerina Alexiou
Katerina is an RCUK Academic Fellow on Design and
Complexity in the Design and Innovation Group. She first joined the department
as a part-time research fellow in 2004. Her design background and professional
experience is in architecture. Her academic research falls in the area of
design theory and methods (including design cognition, collaborative design,
learning, creativity, and social aspects of design). As a background to this
there is a special interest on the relationship between complexity science and
design, and the exchange of theories and methodologies between the two
disciplines. She is also interested in design computing, artificial
intelligence, simulation, the development of design and planning support
systems and the investigation of the relationship between space and human
behaviour. Katerina is also a Honorary Researcher in CASA, UCL.
Teaching
Katerina is the module team chair of T189: Digital Photography. Additionally she is a member of the production team for the new 2nd level design module planned to replace T211: Design and Designing in 2013. She has also been module team member in T183: Design and the Web and A178: Perspectives on Leonardo Da Vinci.
Research Supervision
Katerina would be happy to hear from potential MPhil and PhD students interested to work in any of the research areas described above.
With Theodore Zamenopoulos, Katerina is also leading the Design, Computing and Complexity strand of research in the Virtual MPhil programme led by the Computing Department. Visit the virtual mphil website for more details.
Contact Information
Contact Information
Email: a.k.alexiou@open.ac.uk
Phone: +44 (0)1908 655960
Fax: +44 (0)1908 654052
Room: N2015, Venables building
Selected Publications
Books
Alexiou, K., Johnson, J., and Zamenopoulos, T. editors (2009) Embracing Complexity in Design, Routledge.
Journal articles
Alexiou, K. (2011) ‘Understanding design as a multi-agent coordination process: distribution, complexity and emergence’, Environment and Planning B, 38(2): 248-266.
Alexiou, K. (2010) ‘Coordination and emergence in design’, Codesign, 6(2): 75-97.
Gilbert, S.J., Zamenopoulos, T., Alexiou, K., Johnson, J.H. (2010). 'Involvement of right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in ill-structured design cognition: An fMRI study', Brain Research, 1312: 79-88. [pdf]
Alexiou, K., Zamenopoulos, T., Johnson, J. and Gilbert, S. (2009) ‘Exploring the neurological basis of design cognition using brain imaging: some preliminary results’, Design Studies, 30(6): 623-647. [pdf]
Alexiou, K. and Zamenopoulos, T. (2008) ‘Design as a social process: a complex systems perspective’, Futures, 40(6): 586-595. Special Issue on Design out of Complexity, Alexiou, K., Besussi, E. and Zamenopoulos, T. (eds). [pdf]
Zamenopoulos, T. and Alexiou, K. (2007) ‘Toward an anticipatory view of design’, Design Studies, 28(4): 411-436. [pdf]
Zamenopoulos, T. and Alexiou, K. (2007) ‘Rethinking the cybernetic basis of design: the concepts of control and organisation’, Kybernetes, 36(9/10): 1570-1589. Special Double Issue on Cybernetics and Design, Glanville, R. (ed). [pdf]
Alexiou, K. and Zamenopoulos, T. (2000) 'The morphogenesis of limits in the city', In Architects the official magazine of the Architects Association in Greece, 20 (March/April): 70-77. (in Greek)
Book Chapters
Alexiou, K., Johnson, J. and Zamenopoulos, T. (2010) ‘Embracing Complexity in Design: Emerging Perspectives and Opportunities’ in Designing for the 21st Century Volume 2: Research Methods & Findings, Inns, T. (ed), Gower Ashgate, UK. [pdf]
Alexiou, K. (2009) ‘Complexity and Coordination in Collaborative Design’, in Embracing Complexity in Design, Alexiou, K., Johnson, J., and Zamenopoulos, T. editors, Routledge, pp 73-93.
Johnson, J., Alexiou, K, Creigh-Tyte, A., Chase, S., Duffy, A., Eckert, C., Gascoigne, D., Kumar, B., Mitleton-Kelly, E., Petry, M., Qin, S-F, Robertson, A., Rzevski, G., Teymur, N., Thompson, A., Young, R., Willis, M., Zamenopoulos, T. (2007) ‘Embracing complexity in design’, in Designing for the 21st Century: Questions and Insights, Innes, T. (ed), Gower Ashgate, UK, pp 129-149. ISBN-13 9780566087370
Zamenopoulos, T. and Alexiou, K. (2003) 'Structuring the plan design process as a coordination problem: the paradigm of distributed learning control coordination'. In Advanced Spatial Analysis: the CASA Book of GIS, P. Longley and M. Batty (eds), ESRI Press: US, pp 407-426. ISBN 1589480732.
Edited Proceedings and Journal Issues
Johnson, J. H., Zamenopoulos, T., Alexiou, K. eds. (2005) Proc. European Conference on Complex Systems (ECCS’05) Satellite Workshop: Embracing Complexity in Design, Open University: UK. ISBN 978-0-74921545-3. [pdf]
Alexiou, K., Besussi, E. and Zamenopoulos, T. eds. (2008) Special Issue on Design out of Complexity in Futures 40(6).
Refereed Papers in Conference Proceedings
Alexiou, K. Zamenopoulos, T. and Gilbert, S. (2011) 'Imaging the designing brain: a neurocognitive exploration of design thinking'. In Design Computing and Cognition '10, Gero, John S ed. Springer, pp 489–504.
Zamenopoulos, T. and Alexiou, K. (2003) ‘Computer-aided creativity and learning in distributed cooperative human-machine networks’. In Digital Design: research and practice, Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on CAAD Futures 2003, Chiu, M-L., Tsou, J-Y., Kvan, T., Morozumi, M. and T. Jeng (eds), Kluwer Academic Publishers: Dordrecht, The Netherlands, pp 191-201.
Alexiou, K. and Zamenopoulos, T. (2002) ‘A Control Based Approach to Artificial Design and Plan Generation’. In Proceedings of the Conference Common Ground, Design Research Society International Conference, D. Durling and J. Shackleton (eds), Staffordshide University Press: UK, pp 13.
Alexiou, K. and Zamenopoulos, T. (2002) ‘Artificial Design and Planning Support: Interactive Plan Generation and Coordination in Distributed Decision-Making’. In Design and Decision Support Systems in Urban Planning, Proc. of the 6th International Conference, Eindhoven University of Technology: The Netherlands, pp 1-11.
PhD Thesis
Alexiou, A. (2007) Understanding Multi-Agent Design as Coordination PhD Thesis, University College London, University of London. [pdf]
Projects
The Role of Complexity in the Creative Economy: connecting people, ideas and practice
An AHRC funded study as part of the Connected Communities Programme. This one year project starting on May 2011 aims to explore how complexity theory and its methodological approaches can help in providing a better understanding of the creative economy as a field of research. Complexity theory offers us the possibility to explore and understand the interconnections across the different levels of understanding of the creative economy (micro, meso and macro) as well as the possibility to integrate different disciplinary understandings and findings. The project is in collaboration with Roberta Comunian (Kent University) and Caroline Chapain (Birmingham University).
Community Media Spheres and the Creative Citizen
An AHRC funded project in collaboration with University of West of England, Cardiff University, RCA, Birmingham University, and Birmingham City University. Partners were awarded funding to prepare for a much larger (£1.5m) bid in June 2011. The project aims to understand the changing landscape of digital and physical media and how they can be used to transform communities and support creative citizenship.
ARCHI21
The project entitled ‘Architectural and design based education and practice through content & language integrated learning using immersive virtual environments for 21st century skills’ (or ARCHI21 for short) is funded by EU Lifelong Learning programme (Key Activity 2: Languages) for two years starting in November 2010. The project involves six EU partner universities and aims to explore the application of new technologies to language learning and teaching in design – particularly architecture education. Other co-investigators of the OU team are Steve Garner, Theo Zamenopoulos, Georgy Holden, and Nicole Schadewitz.
Pilot study on the neurological basis of design cognition
A study funded initially by the Embracing Complexity in Design project and carried out in collaboration with cognitive neuroscientists from UCL and Goldsmiths College. It is part of a larger research programme aimed at understanding the neurological basis of individual and social cognition, using advanced neuro-imaging techniques like fMRI and EEG. The project involves Katerina Alexiou, Theodore Zamenopoulos, Jeff Johnson, Sam Gilbert (UCL), Joydeep Bhattacharya (Goldsmiths College). See publications for more details.
Embracing Complexity in Design
Embracing Complexity in Design (ECiD for short) is a research project funded by EPSRC (Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council) and AHRC (Arts and Humanities Research Council) under the Designing for the 21st Century initiative. The project is funded for 18 months starting from October 2006 and continues the work of a research cluster with the same name funded in the previous year. The objective of ECiD is to understand the part played by complexity science in design, and increasingly the potential for design to play a major role in the emerging science of complex systems.
Open Network of Centres of Excellence in Complex Systems
The Open Network of Centres of Excellence in Complex Systems (ONCE-CS) is a project funded by the European Commission under FP6. The purpose of ONCE-CS is to strengthen European research in complex systems, and to assist people in business and public services to use the new science effectively. After ONCE-CS ends it will hand over to the Complex Systems Society to continue the work of servicing the complex systems community.
Curriculum Vitae
Education
2007. PhD in Architecture. Bartlett School of Graduate Studies and the Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, University College London, UK
1999. Professional Degree in Architectural Engineering (Dip.Arch.Eng). Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece
Professional Qualifications
Registered architect in Greece since June 1999 (Member of the Technical Chamber of Greece).
Page Last Updated: 16 June, 2011