Hirokazu Kato

Renjie Zhang, Yu Fang, Huaxin Song et al.

Cloth changing person re-identification(Re-ID) can work under more complicated scenarios with higher security than normal Re-ID and biometric techniques and is therefore extremely valuable in applications. Meanwhile, higher flexibility in appearance always leads to more similar-looking confusing images, which is the weakness of the widely used retrieval methods. In this work, we shed light on how to handle these similar images. Specifically, we propose a novel retrieval-verification framework. Given an image, the retrieval module can search for similar images quickly. Our proposed verification network will then compare the input image and the candidate images by contrasting those local details and give a similarity score. An innovative ranking strategy is also introduced to take a good balance between retrieval and verification results. Comprehensive experiments are conducted to show the effectiveness of our framework and its capability in improving the state-of-the-art methods remarkably on both synthetic and realistic datasets.

Isidro Butaslac, Yota Nagaya, Almira Princess Redoble et al.

In everyday life, physical effort is often minimized and convenience is prioritized, making it difficult for many people to sustain light exercise and stretching despite well-known long-term benefits. This challenge often arises not from objective movement limitations, but from whether an action feels doable in the moment and, therefore worth continuing. This position paper argues that subtle VR hand redirection (HR) can be reframed as a form of cross-sensory support for sustained practice by targeting perceived doability: a moment-to-moment cognitive appraisal that an action is within one's capability while requiring manageable effort. We propose that conservative HR, applied within known perceptual limits, can create repeated micro-success experiences (e.g., reaching a virtual goal earlier with similar physical movement). These micro-successes may increase continuation intention and early re-engagement without relying on overt pressure or intensive coaching. At the same time, such support raises questions about autonomy and authenticity. We therefore articulate two research questions: (RQ1) how HR shifts perceived doability to support sustained practice and positive behavior change; and (RQ2) when HR functions as acceptable support versus becoming counterproductive by undermining authenticity, agency, trust, or fostering dependence. We present an initial sit-and-reach VR prototype, outline a research plan, and identify key design tensions to spark community discussions on autonomy-preserving cross-sensory futures in HCI.

Feiyang Yin, Isidro Butaslac, Patrick Gebhard et al.

Micro-expressions are brief and subtle facial movements that convey nuanced affective information but often remain imperceptible during natural social interaction. Although prior research has primarily focused on computational recognition and spotting of micro-expressions, their application in human-centered contexts remains limited. From the perspective of social augmentation, this work proposes a conceptual framework for micro-expression visualization that transforms otherwise imperceptible micro-expressions into perceptible affective cues, with the aim of exploring their potential influence on empathic experience. Furthermore, we outline a planned pilot study to preliminarily assess the feasibility of this framework under controlled conditions.

Nuwan T. Attygalle, Matjaž Kljun, Aaron Quigley et al.

The 'keyword method' is an effective technique for learning vocabulary of a foreign language. It involves creating a memorable visual link between what a word means and what its pronunciation in a foreign language sounds like in the learner's native language. However, these memorable visual links remain implicit in the people's mind and are not easy to remember for a large set of words. To enhance the memorisation and recall of the vocabulary, we developed an application that combines the keyword method with text-to-image generators to externalise the memorable visual links into visuals. These visuals represent additional stimuli during the memorisation process. To explore the effectiveness of this approach we first run a pilot study to investigate how difficult it is to externalise the descriptions of mental visualisations of memorable links, by asking participants to write them down. We used these descriptions as prompts for text-to-image generator (DALL-E2) to convert them into images and asked participants to select their favourites. Next, we compared different text-to-image generators (DALL-E2, Midjourney, Stable and Latent Diffusion) to evaluate the perceived quality of the generated images by each. Despite heterogeneous results, participants mostly preferred images generated by DALL-E2, which was used also for the final study. In this study, we investigated whether providing such images enhances the retention of vocabulary being learned, compared to the keyword method only. Our results indicate that people did not encounter difficulties describing their visualisations of memorable links and that providing corresponding images significantly improves memory retention.