UPDATE 4/24/11: Phun is commercially available and now optimized for use on the newer multi-touch, multi-user SMARTboards. It is now known as Algodoo.
For those of you searching for interesting and engaging science activities for use on an interactive whiteboard or display, take a look at Phun. According to the website, "Phun is a playground for the creative mind where machines and toys can be easily created."
It was Emil Ernerfeldt's MSc Computer Science project, created at the Umeå University VR lab in Sweden, under the supervision of Kenneth Bodin.
The Phun application can be downloaded for free. The video provides a good overview of Phun's features, accompanied by soothing music that can you can download at no cost at http://phun.cs.umu.se/files/Phun_theme.mp3
From the creators of Phun: "Phun is an educational, entertaining and somewhat (!) addictive piece of software for designing and exploring 2D multi-physics simulations in a cartoony fashion. It is part of our long term mission to bring visual physics based simulation to the masses. The application is developed for Umevatoriet, Umeås new science center, where it will run on a large interactive display, but you can also download it and run it on your own pc."
The beauty of Phun is the social aspect. Physics 2.0. There is a YouTube Phun group, where people share videos of their Phun creations. The Phun wiki provides a tutorial, a forum, and links. Phun-makers can share and rate their creations in the Phun Box.
Note: Phun is now part of Algoryx Simulation AB, a spin-off from Umea University. Algoryx focuses on interactive 3D multiphysics simulation. The free version of Phun will continue to be updated and supported, according to Emil Ernerfeldt.
Every so often I come across a blog that has been around for a while, but is a new discovery to me. If you are interested in interactive multimedia and emerging technology, and you haven't heard of Richard Banks, you will probably be pleased with his vast array of interesting posts!
After browsing around Richard Bank's blogs, I found that he works for Microsoft Research. Like me, he maintains more than one blog, and he blogs about similar topics.
One of Richard's recent posts brought me back to my musings about interactive surfaces:
Via Richard Banks and Gizmodo: A Touch Screen Poker Table from Hard Gaming
If it is possible to program an application to handle the metrics that support poker, then it is possible to program a multi-user application for work or education, and have this application integrated into any type display, according to need. The form factor above would be useful for team meetings or collaborative project planning, especially during group decision-making or policy planning activities that involve data analysis or information visualization.
Could this concept be modified to fit the form of a kidney table for use in education? Think about it. We could combine the best features of surface computing with the best features of multi-user video games. Rationale? Video-game applications can handle the metrics of multi-user interaction, which would be ideal for tracking student progress and interaction. Touch interaction would enable young children with an easy way to access the application- or all of the information that will be available on the multi-touch web of the future, without learning first to type.
(Touch and gesture interaction could help us move towards the implementation of the Internet of Things)
Could this concept be transformed for use by two people collaborating on an electronic drafting table?
Note: I came up with the phrase, "multi-touch web of the future" as I was typing this post. I guess I didn't invent it - I looked it up and found Andrew Foote's post, "The Multi-Touch Web"
I'm in.
Somewhat Related....... More for the tech-curious:
Tag Galaxy is an application that uses Flickr and Papervision 3D. If you type in a tag, the tag is represented as the sun in the galaxy, and related tags are represented as planets. When you rotate and browse through the galaxy in 3D space, you can view the pictures according to the tag. Steven Wood created Tag Galaxy for his thesis project.
Separated at Birth? Vacation pictures on an interactive photo-globe - April 2007
Just over a year ago, I finished some class projects that were designed for touch screens or tables. At the time, I had no idea that Microsoft was working on the Surface. I was determined that I'd make my own table if I couldn't get my hands on one, and even joined the NUI Group to learn more about the open-source DYI approach to satisfying my fascination with this interactive technology.
The first day I learned about Microsoft Surface will be etched in my memory forever...
It is not because I'm a 100% Microsoft fan. It is because I'd been thinking about touch-screen interaction since my first encounter with an interactive whiteboard several years ago. At the time, I was involved with group counseling with middle school students, seated around a table.
What would happen if we took the whiteboard put it on a table?
As noted below, the demo projects worked best on a NextWindow Human Touch. Although the large display was only "single-touch", it provided excellent resolution and touch response. Since then, NextWindow has come out with a multi-touch display, which I've had a chance to see. It is not a table, but it has possibilities.
What would happen if we took a NextWindow multi-touch display and mounted it onto an adjustible drafting board? It could be used as a vertical display, a "surface" table, and a drafting board. The best thing is that this could support quite a bit of collaborative work between two or more people, as well as learning, creative-artistic, and gaming activities.
New things are on the horizon. Windows 7, will replace Vista in the future. Bill Gates has pronounced that "every surface will be a computer". Touch screen surfaces are finding homes on tablet PC's, cell phones, and the latest OLPC "$100.00" laptops for children.
I think there will be more possibilities for using touch-screen technology for education in the very near future.
Here is my post about Microsoft's Surface from last year, with some updates: Microsoft Surface multi touch screen table - I wish I had one for my projects last semester! Microsoft Research recently unveiled Microsoft Surface: http://microsoft.com/surface. This multi - touch table can be used for a variety of applications, as outlined in the video from CNET and YouTube below:
I'd like to work on applications for use on a touch-table to support students with special needs, especially those who have autism spectrum disorders.
.....Last semester, I worked on prototype applications for use on a touch-screen surface -here is a photo. We used a NextWindow Human Touch large-screen display, which provided great screen resolution and touch-response.
This application was part of a travel-planning prototype developed for a course in Human Computer Interaction. The application was demonstrated on a NextWindow Human Touch large screen display. Would it work on the iPhone?
Update: Examples from some of my other posts:
Below is another demo video-clip of a globe created in GoogleEarth using photo-overlays, with links to video clips that pop up on the screen. You can spin and rotate the globe at any size, and zoom into the pictures. The above photo and the video clip show the application on a NextWindow Human Touch large-screen display. This application would be great on a touch-table or touch-table set up on a drafting board. Although it was designed for a travel-planning application, it would work well in educational settings in subjects such as geography.
Poetry Picture Share This was my first attempt at a "poetry picture share" application. It was designed for eventual use on a multi-touch table. It was developed using JavaScript and Ajax. It could be accessed remotely so people in different places can move things around on the screen. The video shows how the application works on a large interactive touch-screen display. I am planning on adapting this application for use with students with special needs, such as those who have autism or other communication disorders. (Note: I've used it with several students, with success. It still is a work in progress!)
Update:
Link to Papervision 3D: Press the picture to enter a 3-D interactive underwater world...
If you have tried PaperVision 3D or Tag Galaxy on an interactive whiteboard or touch screen display, please leave a comment and share your impressions.
If you look closely, the data that relates from the various years is brushed to a fader shade. By clicking on various years, you can look at patterns and trends in the data, and see how Tiger did in the various areas.
A father and son team in my region create furniture, jewelry, and beautiful moving sand pictures. These aren't computer displays, they are the real thing!
Liquid mixes with the sand as you turn the display upside down. Take a look at the video to see it in action. For more information, visit Rosey's Unique Products.
