Subject: 9/22 VisualizeR: Software Architecture for a VR-Based Learning Environment -- Margaret Murray, School of Medicine, University of California at San Diego

From: Florissa Colina <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 21 Sep 1999 10:34:13 -0700

Berkeley Multimedia, Graphics and Interfaces Seminar

VisualizeR: Software Architecture for a VR-Based Learning Environment

Wednesday September 22, 1999 
1:00-2:30 p.m. PDT
Fujitsu Seminar Room (405 Soda Hall) 

Margaret Murray 
School of Medicine, University of California at San Diego 

Synthesizing 3D Virtual Reality technologies with extant 2D Multimedia has
great educational potential, especially in learning domains where the
acquisition of spatial knowledge is both essential and difficult to teach.
One of these target domains has been addressed by the Learning Resources
Center at the UCSD School of Medicine, which has developed a VR-based
learning environment for teaching and learning human anatomy. Research has
resulted in the "Anatomic VisualizeR" application, which has been
successfully piloted in both medical school and high school anatomy
courses. A formal study of the effects of different VR technologies on 3D
task performance has also been completed. The VisualizeR software
architecture underlying "Anatomic VisualizeR" encompasses an overarching
event manager responsible for handling various VR displays and user
interaction with VR interaction devices, and includes features that
facilitate change and extensibility. Application design has been driven by
educational goals while considering technical factors. 

Using VisualizeR, VR scenes may include 3D polygonal models, 2D digital
imagery, video clips, sounds, organized text, and 3D interaction widgets
and tools. Learning modules consist of sets of scripted scenes developed by
faculty mentors that load and place 3D and 2D content resources and then
suggest student exercises that use provided 3D tools. Following an
active-learning paradigm, students are given the ability to manipulate any
loaded content resource and may choose to search for and load additional
resources. Learning module scripts and content resources may reside on
network servers, and are accessed and loaded via database query. 

Software and learning module evolution will be discussed, with an eye
towards illuminating strategic development issues. Ways to apply VR
technologies to meet 21st century educational needs will also be presented.
---------------

The seminar is broadcast live on the Internet Mbone and as a Real
Networks G2 broadcast.

You can connect to the live RealNetworks broadcast at:

http://media2.bmrc.berkeley.edu/bibs/schedule.cfm 
You'll see a link to cs298-5/real networks/live programs.  

You can also directly put in this url into the Real Player:

rtsp://media2.bmrc.berkeley.edu/encoder/cs298-5.rm

To do so you will need to have the "Real Player G2" installed, which is
available from:
   http://www.real.com/products/player/downloadrealplayer.html

To tune into the Internet MBone broadcast, look for the announcement in
your MBone session directory program ('sdr').  If you are not receiving
the announcement you may be able to receive the session by manually
configuring the client programs ('vic', and 'vat') with the session
addresses:

low bit rate
	video: 233.0.25.1/22334
	audio: 233.0.25.2/22446

medium bit rate
	video: 233.0.25.129/22334
	audio: 233.0.25.2/22446

You can get further information about this seminar, and access to
replays of previous seminars at the MIG Seminar web page:

http://bmrc.berkeley.edu/298/index.html

Sponsored by the Berkeley Multimedia Research Center 

____________________________________________

Florissa Colina
Berkeley Multimedia Research Center (BMRC)
http://bmrc.berkeley.edu/
626 Soda Hall #1776
University of California
Berkeley, CA 94720-1776
Phone: (510) 643-0800   FAX: (510) 642-5615  
Email: [email-masked]