In one of last week's posting I wrote about augmented reality. In that posting I referred to augmented reality apps like Google Goggles, Layar and Yelp, and as we move towards visual searches, which these tools enable, their should be efforts to incorporate visual literacy into curricula. This week as I continue researching augmented reality I came across an interesting video about using AR Marks developed by a company called ARSights.com. Essentially you can install ARSight's software into Google Earth as layer option and this plugin places markers on famous sights around the world. Google also has a 3D model website that allows you to create, publish and add your models to Google Earth. When you find a site marked in Google Earth, you can print the marker (to a physical piece of paper), and then using the ARsights software point your webcam at the marker and you create on your computer screen a 3D rendering of the object. Describing this with text may undervalue the potential of this idea, so here is a quick video to show you what is possible:
As you can see in the video, these markers can be manipulated and moved around to represent a 3D model. With this example, I do not think they tied into Google Earth, but used these markers to recreate a medieval town. This could be a new way to bring to life history where history becomes more interactive. Students could reenact historical events using these 3D models or create new stories with these models. Researchers who were trying to understand a historical event could recreate that event virtually and potentially find flaws in what we consider to be historical fact and rewrite history. Architecture students could create their designs using this modeling technology so that their buildings and homes come can be viewed in 3D from every vantage point and decide if changes to their proposed designs are needed.
This sort of technology could have great potential in the classroom. For visual and tactile learners, this technology could be especially helpful so that they can further synthesize what they have read; this technology would allow them to see and manipulate a virtual environment. This technology can be used with mobile devices with cameras just as it can be used with desktop computers with webcams. For schools that are investing in mobile devices, using these 3D modeling technologies could provide students with a significant level of flexibility to build these virtual worlds on their own. Students could build these world and tell their stories. Students have the capability to use existing models when creating their own stories and if technically adept, could create new models.
Another use for 3D modeling could be for training medical students. A 3D model of the heart could be exceedingly beneficial for students who are learning how to become heart surgeons. Having the ability to view detailed models of the heart and manipulate the view, which will give students insights into one of the most important muscles they would ever operate on will provide students with a level of preparation and training that can save lives. When teaching about cells in plants or the human body, which cannot be seen with the human eye, having 3D models in a biology course would allow students to explore cells at a much deeper and more engaging level.
I learned about this technology by reviewing this video: Augmented Reality in Your Classroom
As teachers and professors become more comfortable with these 3D modeling techniques, they will find ways to incorporate these technologies into their teaching and provide students with the opportunities to explore these virtual worlds in their learning.
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