Nina Sakhnini


Making technology easier, more inclusive, and human-centered for older adults.

CS Ph.D. student, University of Illinois at Chicago

nsakhn2 [AT] uic.edu

Bio

I’m a Ph.D. student in Computer Science at UIC, passionate about technology work for older adults. I focus on age-inclusive UX design and tech support, helping users feel confident, capable, and empowered with digital tools. With experience in both research and industry — including UX/UI design at Caterpillar — I love turning insights from studies into practical, human-centered solutions. My goal is to create digital experiences that are intuitive, accessible, and truly meet people where they are, so technology feels less like a barrier and more like a helpful partner.

Research

Most recent publications on Google Scholar.

How Proficiency and Feelings impact the Preference and Perception of Mobile Technology Support in Older Adults

Sakhnini, N., Sharifi, H., & Chattopadhyay, D.

Proceedings of the 26th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility, 2024.

Paper Poster

A Review of Smartphone Fact-Checking Apps and their (Non) Use Among Older Adults

Sakhnini, N. & Chattopadhyay, D.

In Adjunct Publication of the 24th International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services (MobileHCI 22 Adjunct), 2022.

Paper Poster

Personal Air Pollution Monitoring Technologies: User Practices and Preferences

Sakhnini, N., Yu, J. E., Jones, R. M., & Chattopadhyay, D.

International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction. Springer, Cham. 2022.

Paper Slides

Towards Self-Tracking Personal Pollution Exposure using Wearables

Sakhnini, N.

Master's Thesis, University of Illinois at Chicago. 2019.

Paper Slides

myCityMeter: Helping Older Adults Manage the Environmental Risk Factors for Cognitive Impairment

Sakhnini, N., Yu, J. E., & Chattopadhyay, D.

UbiComp Adjunct. 2018.

Paper Poster

Visual (mis)information for older adults

Sakhnini, N.

Part of the Computer Science Ph.D. Qualifier Examination. 2021.

Slides

myCityMeter: Self-Tracking Personal Pollution Exposure using Wearables

Sakhnini, N. & Chattopadhyay, D.

CRA-W Grad Cohort Workshop. 2019.

myCityMeter Wearable: Measuring the Environmental Risk Factors for Cognitive Impairment in Older Adults

Sakhnini, N.

Ubicomp 2018 Broadening Participation Workshop. 2018.

myCityMeter: Helping Older Adults Manage the Environmental Risk Factors for Cognitive Impairment

Sakhnini, N.

2018 Chicago Biomedical Informatics Jam, Chicago, IL. 2018.

Slides

Walking the talk: Generating memory cues to help people with dementia in everyday conversations

Sakhnini, N. & Chattopadhyay, D.

Role/Play: Collaborative Creativity and Creative Collaborations Student Fellows Symposium. National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D. C., USA. 2018

Projects

Exploring Patient Portal Use in People with AlZheimer's Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD)
Exploring Gender Differences in Mobile Technology Support in Older Adults
Exploring Mobile Technology Support in Older Adults
Virtual Humans in Mental Health Evaluations & Interventions
The Design of Fact-Checking Smartphone Apps for Older Adults
Does a Social Robot help Older Adults learn using Mobile Applications?
Human Gait Visualization
D3 Visualization: Gun Violence Victims
User Preferences in Personal Pollution Monitoring Technologies
Trip Route Air Quality Visualizer
Human Interference with personal pollution monitoring wearables
Designing low-cost personal pollution exposure tracker
Conversation aid for people with Dementia

Vitæ

Resume

Full CV

  • Caterpillar Jan, 2022 - Dec, 2024
    Software Engineer
    UI Design and Engineering
  • University of Illinois at Chicago 2019 - 2021
    Teaching Assistant
    Undergraduate CS Courses
    Multiple Semesters
  • University of Illinois at Chicago Summer 2021
    Instructor
    Undergraduate CS Course on Computer Design
  • University of Illinois at Chicago Fall 2019
    Research Assistant
    UIC HCI Lab
  • University of Illinois at Chicago 2019 - now
    Ph.D. Student
    UIC HCI Lab
  • University of Illinois at Chicago 2017 - 2019
    Teaching Assistant
    Undergraduate and Graduate CS Courses
    Multiple Semesters
  • University of Illinois at Chicago 2016 - 2019
    M.Sc. Student
    Computer Science
    Thesis track, HCI focus
  • Texas Tech University Summer 2015
    Research Intern
    NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates
  • Jordan University of Science & Tech. 2011 – 2016
    B.Sc. Student
    Bachelors of Science in Computer Engineering
Credits
This website was built using the template by Martin Saveski.
Nina Sakhnini
nsakhn2 [AT] uic.edu