Living Maps in Alaska

Maps can be a teaching tool, as well as a way to inform communities about the landscape they live on. But flat, 2-D maps also aren't a highly engaging tool in and of themselves for the general public. What if you could control and change the map with just the swipe of your hand? A project at the University of Alaska is using geological data visualization technology developed at UC-Davis to create an augmented reality map that can educate and bring a community together.

By projecting an interactive map over a sandbox, this new tool allows people to engage with the map by getting their hands dirty, literally. If a user pushes sand into a mound, the projected map registers the mound of sand as a mountain, and accordingly changes its graphics to reflect the change in landscape. One project using the augmented reality map is using it to look at and document how the changing environment and landscape can impact the community living within it. 

Learn more about the augmented reality sandbox at the University of Alaska.

Photo by davecito from Flickr under Creative Commons.

Big Tackles...and Even Greater Empathy? Augmented Reality in the NFL and Beyond

What would it be like to experience an NFL player tackle you, head-on - how would this change your experience with the sport? And more than that, could experiencing what another person does change your mind? In a recent TED talk, Chris Kluwe, NFL punter and avid gamer, discussed the ways augmented reality can not only enhance the game, but also increase empathy around the world.

Kluwe is clear that the enhancements that real-time, in-context data could make to the game are incredibly exciting. Using this AR on the field would allow players to use data to make snap decisions on the field, and make different judgements than they may be making now. The implications of AR's potential in football are impressive: by changing the players' focus, will some players flourish in the augmented world, while others, who may have thrived in the traditional game, struggle?

As a vocal activist against bullying, homophobia, and sexism, Kluwe also believes that augmented reality can do more than provide a stream of data. He believes it also can help people develop greater empathy, by putting their minds and emotions in the virtual shoes of the persecuted. In his view, the technology could have a massive impact on the health of human society.