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March 28, 2008
CNBC Europe World Business Video Segment on Enterprise Virtual Worlds Tonight!
We did an interview with CNBC Europe at the Serious Games Institute as well as in world using Forterra Systems OLIVE where we created photo realistic avatars of journalist Joanna Harrison and myself and gave her a tour in-world. She interviewed Claus Nehmzow and Serious Games Institute Director David Wortley as well, let's see what made the final cut!
Here are the details:
The segment is part of the World Business programme which is broadcast three times over the weekend at the following central European Times (one hour earlier if you are in London)
CNBC World Business 28 March: Friday 20:30 (CET) Saturday 22:30 (CET) Sunday 22:30 (CET)
After airing on CNBC, the show is then syndicated to Sky, TV New Zealand, Euronews, PBS-TV in the US and 17 other national broadcasters around the world. We don't have advance notice of when these stations plan to air the show but it will be within 7 days of premiering on CNBC.
Special thanks go out to the Forterra team whose virtual actors for the role playing scenarios shown were (are) great and for creating the photo realistic avatars so fast. Thanks also to Now Communications for helping faciliate the video shoot and to Alex Jevremovic for capturing additional video of us in world.
Posted by Ron Edwards at 04:42 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 17, 2008
Virtual World Training Effectiveness Studies
We often get asked for studies on effectiveness of virtual worlds based training.
Two studies we are aware of were done at SUMMIT (Stanford University Medical Media & Information Technologies) recently.
One was completed last year and shows that using virtual world (Forterra Systems OLIVE **Disclosure: Ambient is Forterra Systems' partner in Europe**) based training to teach high school students to perform CPR increased their confidence and ability to remember the correct procedures and found that 'While manikin-based training continues to be the most appropriate method for learning the basic psychomotor skills of CPR, this study demonstrates the potential added value of MMOS for situated learning in which laypersons are able to practice the sequence of actions necessary to respond appropriately to different medical emergencies.' Link to buy article ($20.00).
Link to SUMMIT page with videos and more information on the project is here.
The other big study at SUMMIT was published last month in the World Journal of Surgery. The abstract is below. They found that virtual world based training was effective in 'providing repeated practice opportnities in dispersed locations', and that it was adequately realistic to 'suspend belief', and easy to use.
The article can be purchased online here ($32.00).
A video clip showing the OLIVE platform in action is below.
Dr. LeRoy Heinrich presented this research at the Serious Virtual Worlds Conference in September 2007.
You can view an archive of his presentation (and the others) here.
The dates for Serious Virtual Worlds 2008 are September 11,12, again to be held in Coventry in partnership with the Serious Games Institute.
Abstract Individuals in clinical training programs concerned with critical medical care must learn to manage clinical cases effectively as a member of a team. However, practice on live patients is often unpredictable and frequently repetitive. The widely substituted alternative for real patients—high-fidelity, manikin-based simulators (human patient simulator)—are expensive and require trainees to be in the same place at the same time, whereas online computer-based simulations, or virtual worlds, allow simultaneous participation from different locations. Here we present three virtual world studies for team training and assessment in acute-care medicine: (1) training emergency department (ED) teams to manage individual trauma cases; (2) prehospital and in-hospital disaster preparedness training; (3) training ED and hospital staff to manage mass casualties after chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or explosive incidents. The research team created realistic virtual victims of trauma (6 cases), nerve toxin exposure (10 cases), and blast trauma (10 cases); the latter two groups were supported by rules-based, pathophysiologic models of asphyxia and hypovolemia. Evaluation of these virtual world simulation exercises shows that trainees find them to be adequately realistic to “suspend disbelief,” and they quickly learn to use Internet voice communication and user interface to navigate their online character/avatar to work effectively in a critical care team. Our findings demonstrate that these virtual ED environments fulfill their promise of providing repeated practice opportunities in dispersed locations with uncommon, life-threatening trauma cases in a safe, reproducible, flexible setting.
Posted by Ron Edwards at 02:34 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 10, 2008
John Burwell on Owning Your Own Virtual World (video)
Here's a video I just found of John Burwell, Forterra Systems VP discussing their OLIVE platform and benefits of having full control over development and performance, using the Emergency Response demo he gave at our Serious Virtual Worlds conference as an example which is based on the TATRC project at Stanford . (video archive of the conference is here - scoll to the bottom of the list past last weeks conference on Tourism, Heritage and technology or the SVW content).
Posted by Ron Edwards at 11:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 05, 2008
The Metaverse, Virtual Afghanistan and Video Journalism (video story)
I'm really impressed with David Dunkley Gyimahs ability to see an interesting story and pull it together with a few interviews and video clips and leave us wanting more at the end. He just published a new piece featuring the Forterra OLIVE platform and comments by virtual world journalist James Wagner and myself. You can check it out at his Viewmagazine.tv or directly here.
At the end of the video story he says he's excited to be one of the first video journalists to cover a live exercise in a virtual world, I am too!
David blogs here. I like how he's descibed our first residential week in the SMARTlab Phd Programme too.
Here's a video David shot of me at SMARTlab describing the platform which has an area of Afghanistan modeled for training purposes (I look a bit out of context wearing a suit there!)
Posted by Ron Edwards at 07:47 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 04, 2008
Update: Live Stream today
Hi! The live stream of today's overbooked summit on advanced tourism applications will only be streamed into second life - here's the slurl: http://slurl.com/secondlife/SGI%20THR33/99/107/27
Search on SGITHR33 or just SGI in the map to find it - it's the auditorium outside the sgi building if the slurl doesn't work.
I'll broadcast live from my mobile at lunchtime below, this feed may also be broadcast into Secondl Life if we have time.
Posted by Ron Edwards at 09:34 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 4 Free Live Stream - 3D, Mobile, AR, LBS for Tourism Projects
The overbooked event on leading and bleeding edge technologies for tourism and cultural heritage projects at the Serious Games Institute (where we've recently opened an office!) on March 4 will be streamed live over the web and into their Second Life island. I will try to stream interviews with participants and exhibitors live from my mobile phone into Second Life for fun at lunchtime.
I'll be speaking about mobile augmented reality applications, 3d visualisation and location based education and tourism services at 11:30 GMT.
An overveiw of the event is below.
The live webcast from 09:30 GMT will probably be at this link (not certain, will post new link if necessary).
Search in Second Life for the Serious Games Institute, associated with Coventry University to watch there.
Streaming by partners Datmedia.
Virtual World, Wireless, Mobile, Video, Sound, GIS and Augmented Reality Technology Showcase on March 4th 2008 at the SGI
Leading experts in a range of digital media and communications technologies will be showcasing the use of advanced and innovative technologies to enrich the culture, heritage and tourism experience and make it globally accessible to the widest audience.
The workshop will also feature demonstrations and innovative interactive displays from industry leaders. It is a unique opportunity to get a comprehensive overview of the potential benefits of a holistic and integrated approach to technology solutions for culture, heritage and tourism.
Posted by Ron Edwards at 12:05 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 03, 2008
8 Virtual Worlds in 8 Minutes
I met Sharon Burns, MacArthur Foundation CIO at the Virtual Worlds Salon in London last week. She told me how much fun she had creating the video below in which she gives us a tour of 8 virtual worlds. I like that she covered 8 virtual worlds other than Second Life first, inverting the usual 'virtual worlds such as second life' as usually described in the press and presentations ' without mentioning any of the others. They are funding a few very interesting virtual worlds projects, I look forward to learning more about them and the results soon.
Posted by Ron Edwards at 11:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack