Absorbing the Big Picture: Immersion and Interactivity in Science Education

I'm reposting an announcement my friend David sent to the MAP list yesterday about a webcast presentation he's giving today at NASA that I think is of interest to the HASTAC community.

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Some of you may be interested in the presentation I'm giving at NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center about collaborations between media artists, scientists, and educators to use visualization tools for encouraging big picture thinking. It will be webcast at noon on Wednesday:

http://esdepo.gsfc.nasa.gov/calendar/view.php?id=121&year=2007&month=08&...

Education and Outreach Colloquium, David McConville

Affiliation: The Elumenati
Event Date: Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Location: NASA GSFC, Building 33, Room H114
Time: 12:00 PM

Absorbing the Big Picture: Immersion and Interactivity in Science Education

Rapid advancements in communication technologies are enabling unprecedented opportunities for science outreach and education. High-speed networks, video game engines, scientific visualization toolkits, geospatial viewers, innovative input devices, and immersive digital displays are increasingly at the disposal of both formal and informal education specialists. However, new technologies too often provide little more than temporary novelty if they're not thoughtfully integrated with other pedagogical elements to create meaningful and compelling experiences.

In this lecture/presentation, David McConville will illustrate the ways in which new interactive technologies and spatially immersive displays can be utilized to more fully engage students and the public in the science education process. Applying findings from cognitive psychology, gaming theory, and experiential education research, he will demonstrate how new collaborative and socially-oriented visualization tools have the potential to enable more intuitive and self-directed learning for students, scientists, policy makers, and the public.

About Our Speaker
David McConville is a media artist and researcher focused on the development of the most compelling uses of immersive virtual environment displays. He is the co-founder and Director of Noospheric Research of The Elumenati, a full service design and engineering firm specializing in the development and deployment of immersive visualization experiences. The Elumenati provides systems integration, real-time software design, immersive content research, custom fabrication, and optical engineering for broad range of clientele. David holds a BSc in Music and Audio Engineering from the University of North Carolina Asheville, and he is currently a PhD candidate through the Planetary Collegium (http://www.planetary-collegium.net) at the University of Plymouth.

Off Site Access
This talk will be Webcast at:
http://mediaman.gsfc.nasa.gov/asx/Public/Live/Building33Live.asx

NOTE: You will need to have Microsoft MediaPlayer installed to view this Webcast. Alternatively, folks may tune in via telephone for audio only by dialing 1-866-819-9680; passcode = 990261.