The pictorial track exemplifies how the field of interaction design research explores more designerly ways of communicating knowledge in an academic context. In this pictorial, we present the Interactive Dissertation project that explores how the design of a Ph.D. dissertation may embody the experiential qualities of interactive systems that are presented in its (textual) content by leveraging active perception. We report on the research-through-design process and present results from the project's first iteration. We conclude with a visual reflection on the potential of active perception in communicating interactive experiences in print as well as wider implications for the field.