Reimagining Search: Exploring the Past, Present, and Designing the Future

Abstract

Current search paradigms, while efficient for simple lookup tasks, fail to support the complex, contextual, and exploratory information-seeking behaviors that characterize human cognition. This thesis investigates how search interfaces might be redesigned to better align with natural human information-seeking patterns through spatial, social, and exploratory interaction paradigms.The research establishes three conceptual metaphors—library, marketplace, and Klondike—as a theoretical framework for understanding different dimensions of human search behavior. The library metaphor emphasizes spatial organization and adjacency relationships that enable serendipitous discovery. The marketplace metaphor highlights comparison processes and social dimensions of information evaluation. The Klondike metaphor addresses exploration of unknown territories where users cannot predict what they might find. Through iterative design exploration, these metaphors were integrated into NEXPLORE, an augmented reality search application that demonstrates spatial navigation through contextually-relevant information environments. NEXPLORE transforms search from keyword-based retrieval into environmental interaction, where users can look at objects and naturally inquire about them through voice, gesture, and spatial navigation. The system demonstrates this integration through a restaurant search experience that seamlessly transitions between marketplace-style comparison, library-style exploration, and frontier-style environmental awareness. The design employs a design-as-research methodology, treating prototyping as a form of inquiry that reveals insights about spatial search that could only emerge through experiencing alternative interaction paradigms. Key innovations include environmental context awareness that anticipates user needs, persistent spatial information organization that supports learning over time, and multimodal interaction that accommodates diverse cognitive styles. This research contributes both theoretical frameworks for understanding human information-seeking behavior and practical demonstrations of how search interfaces can leverage spatial intelligence, contextual awareness, and natural interaction to create more intuitive and effective information experiences. The work points toward a future where finding information feels less like interrogating a database and more like exploring a rich, responsive environment.