Paper No. 3
Presentation Time: 9:30 AM
UTILIZING LIDAR TO SIMULATE MAMMOTH CAVE NATIONAL PARK IN AN INTERACTIVE VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENT
ATCHISON, Christopher1, HITTLE, Bradley
2, STREDNEY, Don
2, IRVING, Karen E.
3, TOOMEY III, Rickard S.
4, PRICE, Alan
5 and KERWIN, Thomas
2, (1)Georgia State University, 455A Sparks Hall, Atlanta, GA 30302, (2)Ohio Supercomputer Center, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43212, (3)College of Education and Human Ecology, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, (4)Mammoth Cave International Center for Science and Learning, P.O. Box 7, Mammoth Cave, KY 42259, (5)The Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43212, catchison@gsu.edu
This digital poster presentation will provide an update to a current project that is addressing the problem of limited access to field-based learning experiences for persons with mobility limitations. The overall objective is to provide a rich virtual environment of a geological field site for students with mobility impairments through the integration of emerging simulation technologies and techniques. Employing a virtual environment that interchangeably uses two and three-dimensional representation of geoscience content, this synthetic field-based module will provide an opportunity to assess the effectiveness in engaging the student community and its efficacy in the curriculum when used as an alternative representation of field experience.
The expected outcome is that based on the level of interactivity, the simulated environment would preclude the need for physical presence within the traditional field site, and provide adequate pedagogical representation for content transfer. Additionally, creating such an environment will impact all able-bodied students by providing supplemental resources that can both precede a traditional field experience and allow for students to re-examine a field site long after a the field experience, in both current formal and informal educational settings.
Based on the identified need to accommodate students with mobility impairments in field-based instructional experiences, this digital poster session will provide an opportunity for those interested to visit the virtual site, while also learning about the educational objectives currently established within the simulation, and the potential for including all students in remote field studies, regardless of their physical abilities.
