Katia Vega

io lab

Associate Professor, UC Davis

she/ella/ela
One Shields Ave, Davis CA 95616-5270

Ph.D. Computer Science, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
M.A. Computer Science, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
​B.A. Computer Science, National University of San Marcos, Peru
​Personal Website

About

Katia Vega is an Assistant Professor of the Department of Design at the University of California, Davis, where she founded and directs the Interactive Organisms Lab. Her research leads new explorations of organisms-device symbiosis. She was a Postdoc Associate at MIT Media Lab (USA). She got her PhD and Master degree in Computer Science at PUC-Rio (Brazil). She was a researcher in the Fine Arts Department at HKBU (Hong Kong). Her undergraduate studies were done in Computer Science at UNMSM (Peru). She publishes at top-tier computer science conferences and journals including CHI, TEI, DIS, IUI and IEEE Computer. Her work has been featured by BBC, New Scientist, Wired, Discovery, CNN,  and awarded by SXSW, Ars Electronica, Ubimedia Competition, among others. Springer  published her book: "BeautyTechnology: Designing Seamless Interfaces for Wearable Computing”.

 

We are looking for a new CS PhD. student! 
We would like to work with a student that is independent, not afraid to explore unconventional research areas, and work in multidisciplinar environments. 
Our research interests include wearable technologies, on-skin interfaces, biosensors and material design.
For more information: here

Publications contributed to by Katia Vega

GluCAT: A Feline Biofluids IoT Hub for Electrochemical Glucose Biosensing

Shuyi Sun, Krystle Reagan, Erkin Seker, and Katia Vega. 2024. "GluCAT: A Feline Biofluids IoT Hub for Electrochemical Glucose Biosensing" In Eighteenth International Conference on Tangible, Embedded, and Embodied Interaction (TEI '24), February 11-14, 2024.
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BioSparks: Jewelry as Electrochemical Sweat Biosensors with Modular, Repurposing and Interchangeable Approaches

Shuyi Sun, Alejandra Ruiz, Sima Pirmoradi, and Katia Vega. 2023. "BioSparks: Jewelry as Electrochemical Sweat Biosensors with Modular, Repurposing and Interchangeable Approaches" In Adjunct Proceedings of UbiComp/ISWC '23., 2023.

PURRtentio: Implementing a Smart Litter Box for Feline Urinalysis with Electrochemical Biosensors

Shuyi Sun, Gabriela Vega, Erkin Seker, Krystle Reagan, and Katia Vega. 2023. "PURRtentio: Implementing a Smart Litter Box for Feline Urinalysis with Electrochemical Biosensors" In Adjunct Proceedings of the 36th Annual ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (UIST '23 Adjunct)., 2023.

cirCAT: PURRtentio: a Litter Box that Monitors Feline Urine using Electrochemical Biosensors

Shuyi Sun, Gabriela Vega, Erkin Seker, Krystle Reagan, and Katia Vega. 2023. "cirCAT: PURRtentio: a Litter Box that Monitors Feline Urine using Electrochemical Biosensors" In The Tenth International Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction (ACI '23), December 04-08, 2023.
​

cirCAT: Cat Centered Smart Home System and Veterinary Complementary Devices

Shuyi Sun and Katia Vega. 2023. "cirCAT: Cat Centered Smart Home System and Veterinary Complementary Devices" In The Tenth International Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction (ACI '23), December 04-08, 2023.
​

Sweatcessory: a Wearable Necklace for Sensing Biological Data in Sweat

Meredith Young-Ng , Grace Chen , Danielle Kiyama , Anna-Sofia Giannicola , Erkin Şeker , Katia Vega. 2022. "Sweatcessory: a Wearable Necklace for Sensing Biological Data in Sweat" In Adjunct Proceedings of UbiComp/ISWC , 2022.

The 25th Edition of the International Symposium on Wearable Computers

Daniel Roggen; Katia Vega; Cindy Hsin-Liu Kao; Troy Nachtigall; Jamie A. Ward; Michael Beigl. 2022. "The 25th Edition of the International Symposium on Wearable Computers" In Adjunct Proceedings of UbiComp/ISWC , 2022.

Fun learning in inclusive education: an approach using Beauty Technology, a tangible artifact, and affective states evaluation

Andriele O Costa, Ada SF Araújo, Thaís Helena C Castro, Elaine Harada T Oliveira, Eliana A Moreira, Katia C Vega, Bruno F Gadelha, Maria Cecília C Baranauskas. 2022. "Fun learning in inclusive education: an approach using Beauty Technology, a tangible artifact, and affective states evaluation" In 2022 International Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies (ICALT), 2022.

XRDS: Augmented Humans: Cyborg Visions of the Future

Katia Vega, Kai Kunze. 2023. "Augmented Humans: Cyborg Visions of the Future (editorial)" In Adjunct Proceedings of XRDS , 2022.

WOOFlex: A Wearable Device to Aid Canine Flexibility Exercises

Shuyi Sun, Gabriela Vega, Denis Marcellin-Little, and Katia Vega. 2023. "WOOFlex: A Wearable Device to Aid Canine Flexibility Exercises" In Proceedings of the Eight International Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction., 2021.

GemiN' I: Seamless Skin Interfaces Aiding Communication through Unconscious Behaviors

Shuyi Sun, Neha Deshmukh, Xin Chen, Hao-Chuan Wang, and Katia Vega. "GemiN' I: Seamless Skin Interfaces Aiding Communication through Unconscious Behaviors" In Proceedings of The Augmented Humans (AHs) International Conference, 2021.
AHs 2020 Best Demo Award!

BraceIO:
​Biosensing through hydrogel dental ligatures

Vasquez, Eldy S. Lazaro, Ali K. Yetisen, and Katia Vega. "BraceIO: biosensing through hydrogel dental ligatures." Proceedings of the 2020 International Symposium on Wearable Computers. 2020.

Eslucent:
An eyelid interface for detecting eye blinking

Luo, Elle, Ruixuan Fu, Alicia Chu, Katia Vega, and Hsin-Liu Kao. "Eslucent: an eyelid interface for detecting eye blinking." In Proceedings of the 2020 International Symposium on Wearable Computers, pp. 58-62. 2020.

Introducing the Sustainable Prototyping Life Cycle for Digital Fabrication to Designers​

Eldy S. Lazaro Vasquez , Hao-Chuan Wang, and Katia Vega. 2020. Introducing the Sustainable Prototyping Life Cycle for Digital Fabrication to Designers. To appear in Proceedings of the 2020 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference (DIS 2020).
​DIS 2020 Best Demo Honorable Mention!

Beauty Tech Nails: Towards interaction and functionality

Ada Suzany Franco de Araújo, Katia Vega, Thais Castro, Bruno Gadelha​. Beauty Tech Nails: towards interaction and functionality. XIX Brazilian Symposium on Human Factors in Computing Systems (IHC '20), October 26-30, 2020, Diamantina, Brazil.

Towards Environmental Sustainability in Digital Fabrication Classes: DIY Prototyping with Biomaterials

Eldy S. Lazaro Vasquez and Katia Vega. Towards Environmental Sustainability in Digital Fabrication Classes: DIY Prototyping with Biomaterials- for the 2nd Annual ACM SIGCHI Symposium on HCI Education (EduCHI 2020). 

The Environmental Impact of Physical Prototyping: a Five-Year CHI Review

Eldy S. Lazaro Vasquez , Hao-Chuan Wang, and Katia Vega. The Environmental Impact of Physical Prototyping: a Five-Year CHI Review- for the CHI 2020 Workshop on self-powered sustainable interfaces and interactions (SelfSustainableCHI 2020).

From plastic to biomaterials: prototyping DIY electronics with mycelium

Vasquez, Eldy S. Lazaro, and Katia Vega. "From plastic to biomaterials: prototyping DIY electronics with mycelium." In Adjunct Proceedings of the 2019 ACM International Joint Conference on Pervasive and Ubiquitous Computing and Proceedings of the 2019 ACM International Symposium on Wearable Computers, pp. 308-311. 2019.

Myco-accessories: sustainable wearables with biodegradable materials

Vasquez, Eldy S. Lazaro, and Katia Vega. "Myco-accessories: sustainable wearables with biodegradable materials." In Proceedings of the 23rd International Symposium on Wearable Computers, pp. 306-311. 2019.
First Place Category: Fiber Arts!

Dermal Tattoo Biosensors for Colorimetric Metabolite Detection​

Yetisen, Ali K., Rosalia Moreddu, Sarah Seifi, Nan Jiang, Katia Vega, Xingchen Dong, Jie Dong et al. "Dermal Tattoo Biosensors for Colorimetric Metabolite Detection." Angewandte Chemie 131, no. 31 (2019): 10616-10623.

Redefining Audience Role in Live Performances

Vasconcelos, Victor, Mauro Amazonas, Thais Castro, Rosiane Rodrigues, Hugo Fuks, Katia Vega, and Bruno Gadelha. "Redefining Audience Role in Live Performances." In International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, pp. 358-377. Springer, Cham, 2019.

Ethnicity in Artificial Intelligence

Laurenzo, Tom, and Katia Vega. "Ethnicity in Artificial Intelligence." (2019).

DOOR: Ethnicity in artificial intelligence

Laurenzo, Tomas, and Katia Vega. "DOOR: Ethnicity in artificial intelligence." In Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Conference on Tangible, Embedded, and Embodied Interaction, pp. 535-540. 2019.

Landscape-freestyle: restyling site plans for landscape architecture with machine learning

Zheng, Qiaoyu, and Katia Vega. "Landscape-freestyle: restyling site plans for landscape architecture with machine learning." In Proceedings of the 24th International Conference on Intelligent User Interfaces: Companion, pp. 101-102. 2019.

Eunoia: Dynamically Control Thermochromic Displays for Animating Patterns on Fabrics

Song, Manlin, Chenyu Jia, and Katia Vega. "Eunoia: Dynamically Control Thermochromic Displays for Animating Patterns on Fabrics." In Proceedings of the 2018 ACM International Joint Conference and 2018 International Symposium on Pervasive and Ubiquitous Computing and Wearable Computers, pp. 255-258. 2018.

The Dermal Abyss: Color-Changing Tattoos for Medical Diagnostics

Vega, Katia, Nan Jiang, Xin Liu, Viirj Kan, Nick Barry, Pattie Maes, Ali K. Yetisan, and Joe Paradiso. "The Dermal Abyss: Color-Changing Tattoos for Medical Diagnostics." GetMobile: Mobile Computing and Communications 22, no. 2 (2018): 38-42.

Scentery: a calming multisensory environment by mixing virtual reality, sound, and scent

Luo, Elle, and Katia Vega. "Scentery: a calming multisensory environment by mixing virtual reality, sound, and scent." In Proceedings of the 20th International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services Adjunct, pp. 158-165. 2018.

HeartMe: Thermochromic Display as An Expression of Heart Health

Song, Manlin, and Katia Vega. "HeartMe: Thermochromic Display as An Expression of Heart Health." In Proceedings of the 2018 ACM Conference Companion Publication on Designing Interactive Systems, pp. 311-314. 2018.

IntiWear: acrylic glass as a solar energy concentrator for wearables

Vega, Katia, Julian Noel, Sthy Flores, and Eunice Villicana. "IntiWear acrylic glass as a solar energy concentrator for wearables." Journal of Textile Engineering & Fashion Technology 4, no. 4 (2018).