Working Group: New Ideas for Spring ’18

On October 5 an energetic and diverse group of people came together and focused on two key questions:

1. What PennImmersive-related things have happened since the fall semester began?

2. What could we do in 2018 that would add value and “kick things up a notch”?

While this blog catalogs some activities underway, we know there is so much more! A few new examples that emerged from the group include:

• Penn students formed a Film Aid club
• Behind the Scenes at Penn Museum 360 photos in progress
• Theme year course and students using immersive techs: Material Past in a Digital World
• There are two dedicated VR spaces in Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center for use of Oculus Rift & HTC Vive

See the full list we generated.

How can we add value in Spring 2018?

We will continue to pursue our original goals:

1. Spotlight specific Penn use cases across disciplines and technologies
2. Provide opportunities for the Penn community to experience immersive techs and to create immersive content
3. Learn from and interview people at peer institutions and industry who are using immersive technologies
4. Research the scholarship on educational efficacy

New Ideas!

Match-making Service: Researchers and faculty need help using technologies to support their current research or teaching. Students and staff would like opportunities to develop technical skills related to 3D, VR, and AR. How can we help connect people?

Immersive Project Sprints: Similar to the ideas outlined at the Keystone DH Conference presentation, Running Further Together, we’d like to get an interdisciplinary team together for a few concentrated days to produce a rapid prototype of an immersive project concept.

Showcases & Digital Exhibits:  Many of us are new to these technologies and benefit from more concrete examples. We need to expand our thinking and imagine ways of creating physical and digital exhibits to engage more people asynchronously.

See all ideas the group generated.

We welcome more ideas, contacts, and suggestions!

Featured photo by Kyle Cassidy. Icons courtesy of iconmonstr.