Virtual reality software used by scientists at the University of California, Davis, to study everything from earthquakes to molecular biology in a 3-D “cave” can now run on some off-the-shelf gaming VR headsets. Instructions and downloads are available online.
Since it launched 10 years ago, the KeckCAVES, an immersive 3-D environment located in the Earth and Physical Sciences building, has revealed surprising patterns in data from Earth and other planets.
When collective behavior emerges from individuals—be they insect swarms, traffic jams or Internet users—scientists call the resulting system a complex network. With some digging, researchers at UC Davis are discovering basic mathematical principles can help predict behavior in complex networks. The findings could lead to improvements in real-world human networks, including air traffic, the stock market and the U.S. power grid.
The Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at UC Davis provided one of its Augmented Reality, or AR, Sandboxes to sixth graders at Howard University Middle School of Mathematics and Science in Washington D.C. on April 28.
