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Continuing my theme of visiting virtual versions of Bay Area museums, I really enjoyed the virtual Exploratorium. In flatland, the Exploratorium is famous for their hands-on displays. It is very kid-friendly, and is a fun place to visit for all ages. I was interested to see how they would transfer this hands-on approach to learning into Second Life. I was not disappointed. The exhibits are very original and very interactive, and I had a lot of fun exploring. I will definitely be returning to the virtual Exploratorium. A previous Diigo post talks about the virtual Exploratorium, so I found this great video that shows off a number of the exhibits. Hopefully it will inspire you to visit it yourself!

Information and description of Abyss Explorium in Second Life. (Oceanic museum project)

Eric Hackathorn, better known in Second Life and virtual world circles as the person behind the impressive Second Life incarnation of NOAA -- the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, has just unveiled his newest effort: The US Department of Energy in Second Life. The educational and experiential potential of this build is exciting and mind-expanding. From a trip through a super collider to life as a sub-atomic particle. Eric suggests, "Try smashing into each other as sub-atomic particles, take a tour of a super collider."

You can reportedly smashing into your friends as sub-atomic particles, take a tour of a super collider, or look at a variety of DOE informational resources.  I like how lush and verdant the island is, a reminder of how our energy consumption effects the ecosystem around us.

Example of high school student rapid prototyping - Senior project

This website lists virtual campuses, science and health, and Second Life skills.

This award-winning website allows children to: * Interact with dozens of famous historical and fictional characters from the arts, literature and sciences. * Submit creative writings for others to read and comment upon. * Explore famous works of art and play art related games. * Undertake challenging quests that take kids into the world of classic literature, the arts and humanities. * Practice typing with typing-tutor games. * Learn best practices for staying safe on the Internet. The website is not free, and they have a Teachers Console for class management. They recently partnered with the San Francisco Opera to bring classical music to young adults.

I definitely would push for the use of Second Life in teaching Geometry.

With the message of Earth Day freshly in my mind, I decided to investigate Etopia. I found this location to be informative and fun. Compared to other landmarks, this island is relatively small which allows the visitor to experience everything it has to offer in under an hour. I could see this site being useful for an educator attempting to spread the "green" message. With all the island had to offer, it would be a great tool for any level learner. Some interesting things that I experienced in my time on Etopia include: farmers market (free food), e-train and gondola rides across and above the island provide a quick overview of the island, wind turbine farm that you can tour, water recycling plant, opportunity to build a sail boat and see the island from the water, a drum circle in the middle of a forest (reminded me of a Grateful Dead concert scene), a green house growing flowers, fruit and vegetables, several compost bins, and a co-housing community built w/ eco-friendly materials to name a few. If you are interested in the environment or are looking to get students interested, Etopia would be a good location to experience a wide variety of "green" topics.

Awesome sight visually! You HAVE to find the docks and then rent a free jetski. You can cruise all through the canyons, rivers, etc. Tons to see, super fun! You feel like you're really there!

This is one of the worlds that the Happy Hour Group encountered. It is basically one big interactive space museum. It even has a tram tour. There is a lot of historical information here along with quizzes and games to test the knowledge of the visitor.

This site has a list of virtual campuses and a list of Science and Health SLURL's.

Thothica Community is a place where people come together to discuss philosophy, poetry, psychology, culture, mathematics, computer science, physics, cosmology, artificial life, education, and second life. When I first arrived there was a nice schedule of times with topics that would be discussed. Some of the topics included evolutionary psychology and quantum economics, all presented by community sponsors and members. Also listed were poetry readings and philosophy games. This might be a good way for students to join in a discussion or share their own writing.

Here is an interesting letter from an associate professor of physics at Elon University about his experience with using Second Life in his courses. He seems to really enjoy using new creative tools in his courses and is constantly looking for new ways to do things. He has tried many different representations of virtual reality. In general, he had assumed that all of his students would be fairly technically competent, especially in building in Second Life, but found that most of them fumbled around at first. Once they got on to it, they did quite well. He also took part in the Second Life Planetarium that has already been mentioned by one of the other students.

This is an excellent video which could be used in Edtec700. It elucidates the seven sensibilities of virtual worlds, convincing the viewer of the value of these environments. I am ready to take the red pill. (You'll see what that means if you watch the video.)

I explored Vito's Dogland Dog Park and you can interact with various dogs. The dogs sniff and make other sounds and you are able to pet them as well as a polar bear which you're able to hug. There is also an underwater area where you can walk your dog. If you touch a floating ball, your avatar begins swimming. There are a few things here that are a little different from what I experienced in SL. I can see how this could be a therapy for victims of TBI.