The MICA Experiment: Astrophysics in Virtual Worlds
@article{Djorgovski2013TheME, title={The MICA Experiment: Astrophysics in Virtual Worlds}, author={S. George Djorgovski and Piet Hut and Robert Knop and Giuseppe Longo and Stephen L. W. McMillan and Enrico Vesperini and Ciro Donalek and Matthew J. Graham and Asish Mahabal and Franz Sauer and Charles White and Crista Lopes}, journal={arXiv: Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics}, year={2013} }
We describe the work of the Meta-Institute for Computational Astrophysics (MICA), the first professional scientific organization based in virtual worlds. MICA was an experiment in the use of this technology for science and scholarship, lasting from the early 2008 to June 2012, mainly using the Second Life and OpenSimulator as platforms. We describe its goals and activities, and our future plans. We conducted scientific collaboration meetings, professional seminars, a workshop, classroom…
8 Citations
E0102-VR: Exploring the scientific potential of Virtual Reality for observational astrophysics
- PhysicsAstron. Comput.
- 2020
Exploring and interrogating astrophysical data in virtual reality
- Computer ScienceAstron. Comput.
- 2021
L-WiM: Collaborative Exploration in Immersive Environments
- Computer Science2022 IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality Adjunct (ISMAR-Adjunct)
- 2022
This work proposes L-WiM, a novel interactive user interface for collaborative astronom-ical data exploration that links multiple WiMs and can see their contextual information at a glance, such as the scales, spatial locations, view directions as well as the sur-rounding environment.
Immersive and collaborative data visualization using virtual reality platforms
- Computer Science2014 IEEE International Conference on Big Data (Big Data)
- 2014
Immersion provides benefits beyond the traditional “desktop” visualization tools: it leads to a demonstrably better perception of a datascape geometry, more intuitive data understanding, and a better retention of the perceived relationships in the data.
Optimizing Performance and Satisfaction in Matching and Movement Tasks in Virtual Reality with Interventions Using the Data Visualization Literacy Framework
- Computer ScienceFrontiers in Virtual Reality
- 2021
The ability to detect patterns and trends visually suggests the use of data visualization as a tool for users to identify strategies for improved performance in VR with data visualizations.
Improving Big Data visual analytics with interactive virtual reality
- Computer Science2015 IEEE High Performance Extreme Computing Conference (HPEC)
- 2015
A 3D tool visualizing Twitter on MIT's campus for analysis and the benefits of visualizing datasets in the original geospatial domain by utilizing a virtual reality platform is developed, focusing on both visualization and interaction.
Survey of Immersive Analytics
- Computer ScienceIEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics
- 2021
A survey of IA from the early nineties until the present day is proposed, describing how rendering technologies, data, sensory mapping, and interaction means have been used to build IA systems, as well as how these systems have been evaluated.
Virtual Engineering Sciences Learning Lab: Giving STEM Education a Second Life
- EducationIEEE Transactions on Learning Technologies
- 2016
The VESLL project contributes to the ongoing body of evidence suggesting that online delivery of course content has remarkable potential when properly deployed by STEM educators.
References
SHOWING 1-10 OF 15 REFERENCES
Exploring the Use of Virtual Worlds as a Scientific Research Platform: The Meta-Institute for Computational Astrophysics (MICA)
- PhysicsFaVE
- 2009
The Meta-Institute for Computational Astrophysics (MICA), the first professional scientific organization based exclusively in virtual worlds (VWs), is described and the current and planned activities and research directions of MICA are described.
Virtual Laboratories and Virtual Worlds
- PhysicsProceedings of the International Astronomical Union
- 2007
3D on-line technology, developed first for games but now deployed in virtual worlds like Second Life, is beginning to make it possible for astrophysicists to enter their virtual labs themselves, in virtual form as avatars, with several advantages, from new possibilities to explore the results of the simulations to a shared presence in a virtual lab with remote collaborators on different continents.
An Experiment in Using Virtual Worlds for Scientific Visualization of Self-Gravitating Systems
- Computer Science, Physics
- 2009
This work views this work as an experiment examining the suitability of virtual worlds for scientific visualization, and it reports on future work to enhance and expand the prototype the authors have built.
Virtual Observatory: From Concept to Implementation
- Physics, Computer ScienceArXiv
- 2005
VO is the response of the astronomical community to the challenges posed by the modern massive and complex data sets, and will become a complete, open, distributed, web-based framework for astronomy of the early 21st century.
Virtual Laboratories
- Computer Science
- 2006
A new approach is described here, Open Knowledge, as an extension of the notion of Open Source software, where an open knowledge project provides simulated dialogues between code developers, thus sharing not only the code, but also the motivations behind the code.
Immersive Virtual Reality Technologies as a New Platform for Science, Scholarship, and Education
- Art
- 2010
Immersive, interactive approach to visualization and exploration of highly-dimensional, complex data sets and Exploration, development and promotion of VWs and VR technologies for professional research in astrophysics and related fields.
AstroSim: Collaborative Visualization of an Astrophysics Simulation in Second Life
- PhysicsIEEE Computer Graphics and Applications
- 2009
Developed in the Second Life 3D online multiuser environment, AstroSim (astrophysics simulation) provides synchronous collaborative visualization for astronomers. Users can play, halt, and rewind…
Visualization of N-body Simulations in Virtual Worlds
- Physics
- 2010
A sample 3-body simulation: the simulation uses the 4th-order Runge-Kutte integrator, and commands stars to move around as the solution is being calculated, as LSL doesn't have arrays, all loops are unrolled.
The Scientific Research Potential of Virtual Worlds
- EconomicsScience
- 2007
This article uses Second Life and World of Warcraft as two very different examples of current virtual worlds that foreshadow future developments, introducing a number of research methodologies that scientists are now exploring, including formal experimentation, observational ethnography, and quantitative analysis of economic markets or social networks.
The Warcraft Civilization: Social Science in a Virtual World
- Art
- 2010
World of Warcraft is more than a game. There is no ultimate goal, no winning hand, no princess to be rescued. WoW contains more than 5,000 possible quests, games within the game, and encompasses…