On Monday, September 16, 2024, the master's thesis of student Dima Wahab Abdul Rasool, titled "Digitizing Urban Spaces: An Exploratory Study Towards Interactive Urban Spaces," was discussed. The thesis addressed the concept of "urban digitization" and its impact on creating interactive urban spaces. This includes equipping open spaces with modern digital structures supported by sensory elements (auditory, visual, kinetic, and tactile) and their influence on adapting traditional spaces to meet the demands of the digital age and its users, in line with the global trend towards smart cities. The aim is to enrich the human urban experience, create new user experiences, and enhance social interactions in innovative and creative ways.
The thesis highlighted the lack or scarcity of digital structures at the local level and the challenges faced in establishing them. The study aimed to build a theoretical framework linking the characteristics of interactive digital structures to their effect on enhancing social interactions and improving urban space, thus elevating the overall urban performance of the city.
The study employed a mixed-methods approach (quantitative and qualitative), including surveys and questionnaires, direct interviews, and analysis of respondents' answers using statistical methods and software. The findings concluded that the presence of interactive digital structures (such as screens, floors, gates, and interactive fountains) significantly contributed to increasing urban social interactions, making users feel a sense of ownership of public space, meaning that users create their open space rather than just being spectators.
The discussion committee consisted of esteemed professors:
- Prof. Dr. Wahda Mahmoud Shukr ………..…… Chair
- Asst. Prof. Dr. Nada Abdul-Mueen Hassan ………… Member
- Dr. Lina Ghanem Yaqoub ……… Member
- Asst. Prof. Dr. Haider Jasim Al-Saadi ………… Member and Supervisor
We wish the researcher and all our graduate students success and prosperity.
