Microsoft Research
Researching, Prototyping and Evaluating a Biological Computational Tool
While interning at Microsoft Research, I worked with the Biological Computation group and the Human Interaction group. I was one of the four interns working in the development and design of a computational biological tool. The other three members of the team integrated the tool with cloud services and worked on the backend. Meanwhile, I worked in research, design and the front-end development of this biological tool.
The tool ran in people’s browser and it was designed for the synthesis and analysis of biological programs. One of the most challenging aspects of this project was the learning curve associated with computational biology and how to simplify concepts for people with limited knowledge in the field.
Platform
Web Application for Biological Computation
Year
2017
Research Outline
In Depth User Interviews
Prototype Creation
Iterative Prototype Testing
Front End Development
Research Approach
In Depth User Interviews
Prior to designing the biological computational tool, I ran five in-depth user interviews with the members of the Biological Computation group. The objective of these interviews was to better understand the research scope, simplify key concepts and explore the issues that they come across in their field of expertise.
Prototype Creation
The interviews and subsequent analysis were followed by the creation of a prototype. I created a prototype based on the insights from the discovery research stage and feedback sessions with the members of the Biological Computation group.
Iterative Prototype Testing
The interns closely collaborated with the members of the Biological Computation group and the feedback sessions helped with the refinement process of the prototype.
Front End Development
In addition to conducting the research and designing the platform, I also worked as front-end developer. I was responsible for transforming the prototype into a working product able to respond to user interactions. During this phase of the project, I worked very closely with the other interns.