Margarita Vinnikov
Assistant Professor, Informatics
- margarita.vinnikov@njit.edu
- 973-596-6252
- 3802 Guttenberg Information Technologies Center (GITC)
About Me
Dr. Margarita Vinnikov (Ph.D., York University, Canada), Assistant Professor in Department of Informatics, joins NJIT from the National Research Council (NRC) of Canada where she was a human factors research officer, specializing in cross reality and immersive displays, including flight and driving simulations. She has extensive experience in prototyping and developing experimental platforms for these kinds of simulations using various languages, libraries and platforms. While at the NRC, for example, she worked with pilots and aircrew using augmented and virtual reality technology to improve the safe operation of helicopters and other aircraft during low visibility conditions. She also studies human-computer interaction, with an emphasis on visual and audio perception. While earning her Ph.D. at York University, she researched gaze-contingent, multi-sensory immersive environments, which change the display based on a user's gaze location, with real-time simulations of impaired vision. She used eye- and head-tracking to simulate different visual defects to conduct psychophysical experimentation, using quantitative methods to investigate the relationship between visual and auditorial stimuli and a participant's experience or behavior, in various virtual environments. She has worked for many years for a pre-college program teaching students how to develop games while employing diverse technologies and programming languages. Her research has been published in journals such as the International Journal of Human-Computer Studies and ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction.
Education
Ph.D.; York University; Computer Science; 2015
M.S.; York University; M.Sc. Computer Science; 2009
B.S.; York University; B.Sc. Specialized, Honors, Computer Science; 2006
B.Ed; York University; Intermediate/Senior Computer Science & Mathematics; 2006
Website
2026 Fall Courses
CS 701B - MASTER'S THESIS
IS 725 - INDEPENDENT STUDY I
IS 792 - PRE-DOCTORAL RESEARCH
IS 488 - INDEPENDENT STUDY IN INFO
CS 489 - COMPUTER SCIENCE RESEARCH PROJ
CS 792 - PRE-DOCTORAL RESEARCH
IS 491 - SENIOR PROJECT - IS
CS 488 - INDEPENDENT STUDY IN CS
CS 700B - MASTER'S PROJECT
IS 700B - MASTER'S PROJECT
IS 701B - MASTER'S THESIS
IT 201 - INFORMATION DESIGN TECHNIQUES
CS 726 - INDEPENDENT STUDY II
IS 489 - INFO UNDERGRAD THESIS RESEARCH
IS 790A - DOCT DISSERTATION & RES
IT 488 - INDEPENDENT STUDY
CS 790A - DOCT DISSERTATION & RES
IS 726 - INDEPENDENT STUDY II
IS 776 - IS RESEARCH STUDY
CS 725 - INDEPENDENT STUDY I
Teaching Interests
Within the context of teaching Informatics, Computer Science, or Mathematics courses, and I am especially interested in teaching courses on VR/AR/MR and serious gaming, especially in the areas of digital image processing, computer graphics, and human and machine perception. I enjoy teaching fundamental programming courses in a variety of languages such as Java, C/C++, Python, and C#. In terms of more advanced topics, I like to teach courses addressing 3D computer graphics and shaders, as well as VR/AR/MR courses that address topics such as body tracking, calibration, and registration, simulation of different modalities and senses, and perceptual issues associated with simulating each modality.
Past Courses
Research Interests
My research interests are virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality (XR) technologies. Specifically, I am interested to explore immersion in increasingly complex visual, as well as auditory and tactile virtual worlds. I specialize in eye and body tracking as well as multi-sensory augmentation. In my research, I use simulations of real-life scenarios in virtual environments to improve the user experience with current XR technology.
In Progress
AR/VR in Crime Scene Investigation
Can VR/AR be used to effectively teach Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) in Forensic Science?
Can VR/AR be used to effectively teach Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) in Forensic Science?
Attention Guidance in Virtual reality
The project focuses on examining various factors contributing to car crashes in virtual reality simulations. Also, the project examines various displays and input for virtual driving simulators and the impact on realism, performance, situational awareness.
The project focuses on examining various factors contributing to car crashes in virtual reality simulations. Also, the project examines various displays and input for virtual driving simulators and the impact on realism, performance, situational awareness.
Education and Mixed Reality Tools
We look at various mixed-reality displays and compare them in the context of learning Chemistry.
We look at various mixed-reality displays and compare them in the context of learning Chemistry.
Medical Ontology in Virtual Reality
The project focuses on Visualizing complex medical ontologies with thousands of nodes in VR. We are in the second phase of the project. We are actively writing the results of our first user study and developing an experiment for the second user study.
The project focuses on Visualizing complex medical ontologies with thousands of nodes in VR. We are in the second phase of the project. We are actively writing the results of our first user study and developing an experiment for the second user study.
Conference Paper
Conference Proceeding
Conference Abstract
Journal Article
Chapter