Demystifying and Analysing Metaverse Towards Education 4.0

The word Metaverse has influenced many sectors such as healthcare, education, retail and manufacturing and few more industries are there which will be impacted by 2026 as per the research conducted by Gartner. The word 'Metaverse' especially in education sector came into existence after the COVID-19 epidemic when the humanity were forced to think about the new methodology of educating and teaching. This ecosphere is the combination of technologies which enables multimodal interactions with artificial environment, electronic library and people such as Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR). It is believed that metaverse will improve collaboration, training process will be enhanced and most importantly it will create a happier workplace. This is only the reason that many corporate giants like Nvidia, facebook, apple, epic Games and companies has shifted towards this pedagogical ecosystem. This technology has the potential which enables absolute incorporating user conversation in actual-time and compelling interactivity with digital artifact. In this paper, we are addressing metaverse in education along with a detailed framework of metaverse in education. It includes a comparative study of conventional education, online education and metaverse education based on parameters like place of learning, resources used, teaching methodology, learning experience, learning target and learning assessment. Competency based education, energize student and positive attitude towards learning. The various challenges of the metaverse in educational sector are also debated. This paper will help the researcher's fraternity to get a deeper insight along with a clear perception of this ecosystem in education. © 2023 IEEE.

Towards User2Machine Model for Higher Education - Enforced by Covid19 Pandemic

The Covid19 pandemic hit the higher education system hard. Suddenly, universities around the world are obliged to offer online educational instructions to students. Innovative technologies made this transition possible, and new technologies have opened prospects, connected societies, and created new ways of communication based on the three models in which humans initially communicated: user2user, user2society, and user2society2user. Now, fostered by the covid19 pandemic and with advancements in technological innovations, "User2Machine”-interaction, as a model, has been introduced to online education. This model is helping in creating different methods of communication channels regardless of the time and location of the user. Eventually, this has resulted in forming new interaction modes in the virtual social space. In this paper the User2Machine-interaction model is proposed, focusing on technologies and functionalities affecting this model and contributing to changes in the way users interact with systems. Technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Virtual Reality (VR) and Chatbots are described to see where do they fit in the new innovative model, and how they affected online education and the ecology of higher education during and post covid19 pandemic. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Teaching psychology in virtual reality

Virtual reality (VR) technology has been applied to instruction in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine and dentistry, but less to teaching of psychology. The objective of this study was to pilot VR as a medium for inducing a satisfying, immersive experience of spatiotemporal presence during asynchronous online teaching of psychology using prerecorded 360degree videos during the COVID-19 pandemic period. Forty students watched psychology lectures on the topics of meditation and psychobiology that had been recorded using a 360degree camera either while wearing or not wearing a VR headset and reported on their satisfaction, sense of spatiotemporal presence, and understanding of the learning activity. As hypothesized, students experienced greater satisfaction with psychology teaching while wearing the VR headset than when not wearing it, an effect that was correlated with their greater experience of spatiotemporal presence in the teaching environments depicted by the videos, whereas there were no prominent differences for content learning. This pilot study suggests that delivering direct instruction in psychology using VR headsets can increase students' satisfaction partly through increasing their felt sense of presence with the instructor in space and time. These pilot results suggest the potential for VR applications to provide satisfying experiences of psychology teaching in the context of remote e-learning. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Using Virtual Reality Technology in Biology Education: Satisfaction & Learning Outcomes of High School Students

The use of virtual reality (VR) as a medium for education can contribute to the learning efficiency of students. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of VR application in advanced biology courses, specifically in enhancing the comprehension and understanding of high school students toward the topic of human organs and other related systems. Four high school teachers and 138 high school students selected from three separate classes participated in this study. To determine the impact of VR education from both teachers' and students' perspectives, learning satisfaction and the effectiveness of instructional material were assessed with questionnaires. We found that from teachers' perspective, VR was an efficient teaching tool that enhanced students' attention and contributed to the improvement of learning outcomes. From the students' perspective, they were willing to use VR instructional material and were satisfied with this learning method. Applying VR technology in the classroom should be encouraged. However, some students identified dizziness as a concern when VR glasses were used for longer periods of time. Therefore, we suggest that VR glasses be limited to 30 minutes of use at a time. © 2023 National Association of Biology Teachers, Inc. All rights reserved.

Design and Implementation of Two Immersive Audio and Video Communication Systems Based on Virtual Reality

Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in recent years, remote communication has become increasingly common, which has also spawned many online solutions. Compared with an in-person scenario, the feeling of immersion and participation is lacking in these solutions, and the effect is thus not ideal. In this study, we focus on two typical virtual reality (VR) application scenarios with immersive audio and video experience: VR conferencing and panoramic live broadcast. We begin by introducing the core principles of traditional video conferencing, followed by the existing research results of VR conferencing along with the similarities, differences, pros, and cons of each solution. Then, we outline our view about what elements a virtual conferencing room should have. After that, a simple implementation scheme for VR conferencing is provided. Regarding panoramic video, we introduce the steps to produce and transmit a panoramic live broadcast and analyze several current mainstream encoding optimization schemes. By comparing traditional video streams, the various development bottlenecks of panoramic live broadcast are identified and summarized. A simple implementation of a panoramic live broadcast is presented in this paper. To conclude, the main points are illustrated along with the possible future directions of the two systems. The simple implementation of two immersive systems provides a research and application reference for VR audio and video transmission, which can guide subsequent relevant research studies. © 2023 by the authors.

Chulalongkorn Interactive Virtual Memorial Hall (Museum)

Chulalongkorn University Memorial Hall is an important historic landmark in Thailand that collects and displays valuable and interesting documents and items from the history of the Chulalongkorn University, which is the first university established by the Thai dynasty. Many notable historical relics from Chulalongkorn University have been displayed for visitors inside the museum, including a miniature of King Chulalongkorn's equestrian statue, a coronet (Phra Kiew), and a graduation gown. Over the past two years, due to the COVID-19 situation, the number of visitors to the museum has been restricted. Therefore, we propose to solve this problem by introducing a virtual tour using virtual reality to cope with this challenging situation. This paper presents a description related to the Chulalongkorn University memorial hall in terms of 3D models through interactions in a virtual reality world, in which users gain in-depth experience and knowledge about the history of the Thai Royal and the Chulalongkorn University. Both the internal and external of the Chulalongkorn University Memorial Hall building are reproduced in 3D models, including furniture and belongings in the hall, for simulating the entire Chulalongkorn University Memorial Hall building. In addition to visiting the historical objects in the virtual museum, these objects are interactable with multimedia descriptions which are text, images, videos, and audio commentary. It makes visitors enjoy the ambiance while visiting the virtual Chulalongkorn University Memorial Hall. In addition, it is also the preservation of valuable cultural and historical knowledge resources. © 2022 ACM.

Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality in Anatomy Education During COVID-19 Pandemic.

The pandemic of COVID-19 has radically changed the anatomy education approaches. This happens because medical students, due to the necessity of remote education, didn't have access to cadavers, which was the principal method of dissection training. Circumstances like these encouraged the health care providers to innovate new teaching methods with the help of virtual and augmented reality to outdistance the restrictions. This review aims to examine the pioneer technological and educational tools and their usage in the future. Detailed research was performed via the PubMed database using the following keywords "Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), Anatomy Education, and COVID-19". No further filters were used. All the existing evidence suggests that the vast majority was negatively affected by the COVID-19 era. Using new technological methods in anatomy training could not effectively replace the absence of the traditionally used teaching methods like dissection, prosection, and lectures by physical presence. Although the new digital anatomy teaching approaches seem to be very promising, it is not clear if they can fully replace the traditional anatomy education methods.

Investigating the impact of a virtual reality mobile application on learners' interpreting competence

Background Objectives Methods Results and Conclusions This research is inspired by the challenges encountered in interpreter training, changes in learning needs in the technological era, the educational paradigm shift caused by the COVID‐19 pandemic, the lack of studies on combining virtual reality (VR)_and mobile technologies, and literature gaps in the field of the incorporation of technology in interpreter education.This research aims to develop a mobile‐based VR application for bi‐directional English‐Chinese and Chinese‐English interpreting learning named ‘Virtual Interpreting Practice' (VIP) based on an interpreting competence model and to investigate its impact on students' self‐rated language and interpreting proficiency levels as well as their declarative knowledge and operative skills as reflected in different interpreting modes (sight and consecutive) and language directions (English‐Chinese and Chinese‐English). The VIP app contains learning resources, including 13 learning modules covering both interpreting modes, practical topics and contexts, video lectures and demonstrations, fully immersive VR and non‐VR practice, glossary lists, source texts, translated texts and an online feedback platform.Thirty‐one native Chinese‐speaking English as a second/foreign (ESL/EFL) undergraduate students used the app for self‐directed learning. The data were collected by the pre‐study and post‐study questionnaires as well as the pre‐test and post‐test.The results indicate that the use of VIP significantly raised the students' self‐rated language and interpreting proficiency levels as well as their interpreting performance in both modes and language directions. While the students performed better in sight interpreting and Chinese‐English interpreting, they achieved a significantly higher improvement rate in consecutive interpreting and English‐Chinese interpreting. [ FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring the Suitability of Using Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality for Anatomy Training

Research on alternative ways to provide anatomy learning and training has increased over the past few years, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic. Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) represent two promising alternatives in this regard. For this reason, in this work, we analyze the suitability of applying VR and AR for anatomy training, comparing an optical-based AR setup and a semi-immersive setup based on a VR table, using the same anatomy training software and the same interaction system. The AR-based setup uses a Magic Leap One, whereas the VR table is configured through the use of stereoscopic TV displays and a motion-capture system. This experiment builds on a previous one (Vergel et al., 2020) on which we have improved the AR-based setup and increased the complexity of one of the two tasks. The goal of this new experiment is to confirm whether the changes made in the setups modify the previous conclusions. Our hypothesis is that the improved AR-based setup will be more suitable, for anatomy training, than the VR-based setup. For this reason, we conducted an experimental research with 45 participants, comparing the use of an anatomy training software. Objective and subjective data were collected. The results show that the AR-based setup is the preferred choice. The differences in measurable performance were small but also favorable to the AR setup. In addition, participants provided better subjective ratings for the AR-based setup, confirming our initial hypothesis. Nevertheless, both setups offer a similar overall performance and provide excellent results in the subjective measures, with both systems approaching the highest possible values. IEEE

Deserted studio: evaluating remote-learning practices for the post-pandemic era

To limit the spread of Coronavirus, educational institutions had to suddenly shift to remote learning during the Spring of 2020. This study aims to evaluate the adopted remote-learning practices among architectural students and their instructors. To this end, the authors implemented a descriptive cross-sectional approach to highlight the aligned and opposing perceptions, respectively. The work adopts the following four-step methodology: (1) Interviews;(2) identification of findings;(3) online surveys;and (4) comparative analysis. Results from 139 respondents were collected from 15 Egyptian universities and 6 non-Egyptian universities. Findings demonstrate the potential advantages of reduced commuting costs, besides going paperless. Nevertheless, a crucial need for a well-established infrastructure and increased self-motivation has been raised. Furthermore, the study sheds the light on the future potential of integrating hybrid-learning models, virtual reality, and other practices to embrace learning strategies. This research contributes to architectural education practices by providing guidelines for enhancing online-learning experiences. © 2022 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Building 360-degree VR Video for AquaFlux and Epsilon Research Instruments

The Virtual Reality (VR) technology is being utilised immensely in recent years for the purposes of demonstration and illustration a variety of prototypes and products especially on the world wide web platform. AquaFlux and Epsilon are two advanced research instruments that were developed by a research group at London South Bank University for medical and cosmetic purposes. These two medical tools have now been marketed in more than 200 organisations globally. However, for users to master and understand comprehensively how these two devices operate they often do require an intensive on-site training which is time-consuming, costly and in some cases like the current era of COVID-19 it becomes essential to offer clients the option of remote learning whether they were nationally or internationally based. Thus, the design of a VR environment that can simulate and envision all features and functionalities of AquaFlux and Epsilon is one of the ultimate solutions. 360-degree VR videos are going to empower users with the required knowledge and provide a broad essential feeling of how AquaFlux and Epsilon instruments function. © 2022 IEEE.

Teaching psychology in virtual reality

Virtual reality (VR) technology has been applied to instruction in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine and dentistry, but less to teaching of psychology. The objective of this study was to pilot VR as a medium for inducing a satisfying, immersive experience of spatiotemporal presence during asynchronous online teaching of psychology using prerecorded 360degree videos during the COVID-19 pandemic period. Forty students watched psychology lectures on the topics of meditation and psychobiology that had been recorded using a 360degree camera either while wearing or not wearing a VR headset and reported on their satisfaction, sense of spatiotemporal presence, and understanding of the learning activity. As hypothesized, students experienced greater satisfaction with psychology teaching while wearing the VR headset than when not wearing it, an effect that was correlated with their greater experience of spatiotemporal presence in the teaching environments depicted by the videos, whereas there were no prominent differences for content learning. This pilot study suggests that delivering direct instruction in psychology using VR headsets can increase students' satisfaction partly through increasing their felt sense of presence with the instructor in space and time. These pilot results suggest the potential for VR applications to provide satisfying experiences of psychology teaching in the context of remote e-learning. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

The influence of a virtual reality entertainment program on depressive symptoms and sedentary behaviour in inpatient stroke survivors: a research protocol for a pilot randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Sedentary behaviour among stroke inpatients may be due to high rates of depressive symptoms after stroke. Thus, efforts to address depressive symptoms among stroke inpatients are warranted to in turn lessen sedentary behaviour. Despite evidence that virtual reality (VR) is emerging as a method to help with depression, the use of VR to improve depression among inpatient stroke survivors has yet to be studied. In this paper, we report on the protocol investigating the feasibility of a VR entertainment system at improving depressive symptoms among stroke survivors receiving inpatient rehabilitation. METHODS: In this single-blind randomized controlled trial, 30 inpatient stroke survivors from the rehabilitation unit at Kelowna General Hospital will be randomized to either (1) intervention: 3 times per week of VR entertainment for duration of inpatient rehabilitation or (2) control: usual care. Individuals will be included if they have a confirmed diagnosis of stroke, are 19 years of age or older, able to provide informed consent, have physician clearance to participate in the study (medically stable or fit), or are able to understand English. Outcome measures to address depressive symptoms (primary outcome), sedentary behaviour, motivation, anxiety, stress, and happiness (secondary outcome) will be administered at two timepoints: (1) baseline (T1) and (2) post-intervention (T2). Study analyses will consider study feasibility indicators and clinical (statistical) outcomes. Means and standard deviations (for continuous variables) and frequencies and proportions (for categorical variables) will be used to summarize the variables. Feasibility indicators will be dichotomized into either 'success' if they meet the a priori criteria, or 'revise' if they do not meet the criteria. Intervention effects post-intervention (T2) for the primary and secondary clinical outcomes will be estimated using linear regression including baseline (T1) controlling for age and sex. DISCUSSION: The results of this trial will add to our understanding of depression and sedentary behaviour among individuals receiving inpatient stroke rehabilitation as well as the feasibility of a VR entertainment program to improve depressive symptoms, which will in turn may lessen sedentary behaviour in inpatient stroke survivors. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04011202 . First posted July 8, 2019 (study postponed from March 2020 to July 2021 due to COVID-19).

360-Degree Video Bandwidth Reduction: Technique and Approaches Comprehensive Review

Recently, the usage of 360-degree videos has prevailed in various sectors such as education, real estate, medical, entertainment and more. The development of the Virtual World “Metaverse” demanded a Virtual Reality (VR) environment with high immersion and a smooth user experience. However, various challenges are faced to provide real-time streaming due to the nature of high-resolution 360-degree videos such as high bandwidth requirement, high computing power and low delay tolerance. To overcome these challenges, streaming methods such as Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP (DASH), Tiling, Viewport-Adaptive and Machine Learning (ML) are discussed. Moreover, the superiorities of the development of 5G and 6G networks, Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) and Caching and the Information-Centric Network (ICN) approaches to optimize the 360-degree video streaming are elaborated. All of these methods strike to improve the Quality of Experience (QoE) and Quality of Service (QoS) of VR services. Next, the challenges faced in QoE modeling and the existing objective and subjective QoE assessment methods of 360-degree video are presented. Lastly, potential future research that utilizes and further improves the existing methods substantially is discussed. With the efforts of various research studies and industries and the gradual development of the network in recent years, a deep fake virtual world, “Metaverse” with high immersion and conducive for daily life working, learning and socializing are around the corner.

3D-Printed Microfluidics Potential in Combating Future and Current Pandemics (COVID-19).

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) emerged in China in December 2019. In March 2020, the WHO declared it a pandemic leading to worldwide lockdowns and travel restrictions. By May, it infected 4,789,205 and killed 318,789 people. This led to severe shortages in the medical sector besides devastating socio-economic effects. Many technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), microfluidics, 3D printing, and 3D scanning can step into contain the virus and hinder its extensive spread. This article aims to explore the potentials of 3D printing and microfluidic in accelerating the diagnosis and monitoring of the disease and fulfilling the shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) and medical equipment. It highlights the main applications of 3D printers and microfluidics in providing PPE (masks, respirators, face shields, goggles, and isolation chambers/hoods), supportive care (respiratory equipment) and diagnostic supplies (sampling swabs & lab-on-chip) to ease the COVID-19 pressures. Also, the cost of such technology and regulation considerations are addressed. We conclude that 3D printing provided reusable and low-cost solutions to mitigate the shortages. However, safety, sterility, and compatibility with environmental protection standards need to be guaranteed through standardization and assessment by regulatory bodies. Finally, lessons learned from this pandemic can also help the world prepare for upcoming outbreaks.

The Metaverse in Current Digital Medicine

The metaverse has entered people's horizons through virtual reality, digital twinning, the Internet of Things, blockchain technology, etc. In the current healthcare system, the management of chronic diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS), still faces challenges, such as uneven distribution of medical resources, and difficulty in follow-up, overburdening of specialists, and so on. However, metaverse medical platforms incorporating advanced AI technologies, such as industrial-scale digital twins, may address these issues. In this article, we discuss the application prospect of these technologies in digital medicine and the future of the medical metaverse.

Virtual Reality (VR) Applications in Cardiology: A Review

Virtual reality (VR) has applications in cardiology to create enhancement, thereby improving the quality of associated planning, treatment and surgery. The need is to study different applications of this technology in the field of cardiology. We have studied research papers on VR and its applications in cardiology through a detailed bibliometric analysis. The study identified five significant steps for proper implementation of this technology in cardiology. Some challenges are to be undertaken by using this technology, and they can provide some benefits;thus, authors contemplate extensive research and development. This study also identifies 10 major VR technology applications in cardiology and provided a brief description. This innovative technology helps a heart surgeon to perform complex heart surgery effectively. Thus, VR applications have the potential for improving decision-making, which helps save human life. VR plays a significant role in the development of a surgical procedure. This technology undertakes 3D heart model information in full colour, which helps to analyze the overall heart vane, blockage and blood flow. With the help of this digital technology, a surgeon can improve the accuracy of heart surgery, and he can simulate the surgery. A surgeon can undertake surgery in a virtual environment on a virtual patient. The unique purpose of this technology is to practice pre-operatively on the specific circumstance. A cardiologist can also check the proper status of inner and outer heart wall layer. Thus, by using this 3D information, the surgeon can now interact with heart data/information without any physical touch. This technology opens a new opportunity to improve the heart surgery and development in cardiovascular treatment to improve patient outcome.

COVI3D: Automatic COVID-19 CT Image-Based Classification and Visualization Platform Utilizing Virtual and Augmented Reality Technologies.

Recently many studies have shown the effectiveness of using augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) in biomedical image analysis. However, they are not automating the COVID level classification process. Additionally, even with the high potential of CT scan imagery to contribute to research and clinical use of COVID-19 (including two common tasks in lung image analysis: segmentation and classification of infection regions), publicly available data-sets are still a missing part in the system care for Algerian patients. This article proposes designing an automatic VR and AR platform for the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic data analysis, classification, and visualization to address the above-mentioned challenges including (1) utilizing a novel automatic CT image segmentation and localization system to deliver critical information about the shapes and volumes of infected lungs, (2) elaborating volume measurements and lung voxel-based classification procedure, and (3) developing an AR and VR user-friendly three-dimensional interface. It also centered on developing patient questionings and medical staff qualitative feedback, which led to advances in scalability and higher levels of engagement/evaluations. The extensive computer simulations on CT image classification show a better efficiency against the state-of-the-art methods using a COVID-19 dataset of 500 Algerian patients. The developed system has been used by medical professionals for better and faster diagnosis of the disease and providing an effective treatment plan more accurately by using real-time data and patient information.

Innovation in Gastroenterology-Can We Do Better?

The health system can reap significant benefits by adopting and implementing innovative measures, as was recently demonstrated and emphasized during the COVID-19 pandemic. Herein, we present our bird's eye view of gastroenterology's innovative technologies via utilizing a text-mining technique. We analyzed five research fields that comply with innovation: artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), telemedicine, the microbiome, and advanced endoscopy. According to gastroenterology literature, the two most innovative fields were the microbiome and advanced endoscopy. Though artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), and telemedicine trailed behind, the number of AI publications in gastroenterology has shown an exponential trend in the last couple of years. While VR and telemedicine are neglected compared to other fields, their implementation could improve physician and patient training, patient access to care, cost reduction, and patient outcomes.

Boosting the pre-purchase experience through virtual reality. Insights from the cruise industry

Purpose>This study aims to provide an exploratory analysis of the role of virtual reality (VR) in the cruise context as a contribution to the limited literature on this topic. In particular, the research investigates immersive VR as a critical touchpoint at the pre-purchase stage of the customer journey.Design/methodology/approach>To achieve the research aims, the authors use a case study approach by analysing the “immersive configurator” (essentially a virtual catalogue) implemented by the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC).Findings>Three innovative functions emerged from the study of the MSC’s virtual catalogue. First, it improves the customer experience and engagement through its interactivity. Second, it allows customization of the prospective cruise experience by selecting and changing types of ship, the level of service, the position of the cabin and much more. Third, it becomes a new digital marketing system endowed with large amounts of data.Research limitations/implications>This study advances the current state of knowledge by presenting an empirical case study on the role of immersive VR at the pre-purchase stage of the customer journey. Second, it offers interesting implications for managers who want to take advantage of the opportunities offered by VR.Originality/value>The present study analyses the pre-purchase stage in tourism marketing focused on the use of VR in the tourist experience at the time of service delivery. Second, it enriches the tourism literature by integrating supply-side and demand-side perspectives. Third, from a methodological point of view, this paper offers an in-depth qualitative study in a context where scholars have mostly applied quantitative methods.