GausScape: Evaluating 3D Gaussian Splatting for Spatial Understanding in Greenhouse Environments
In greenhouse horticulture, operators have to monitor optimal growing conditions for crops. Together with two SMEs, Wageningen University & Research (WUR) focuses on the question: what desirable and undesirable effects does a specific 3D technique (Gaussian Splatting) have on operators' work process, perception and decision-making, as opposed to the current technique? In addition, the insights from this research may be relevant to other sectors.
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May I ask you a question? A large-scale experiment examining the effectiveness of a multimodal, conversational digital dietitian on nutritional knowledge in virtual reality
Dietitians play a key role in health care, but a shortage of well-trained professionals is looming. Wageningen University & Research is therefore exploring an immersive digital dietitian: in VR, patients learn about portions, energy density and food preparation by preparing virtual meals themselves. The central question is whether the virtual dietitian's conversational abilities and non-verbal communication - asking questions, gestures, facial expressions - further strengthen the learning effect.
Ethiek verbeelden: bruggen slaan tussen analoge en digitale immersieve ervaringen
Saxion, together with two SMEs and two foundations, investigates how human interaction, empathy and ethics are preserved when traditional role-play situations are combined with digital elements. A practical question that education professionals, live action role play (LARP) creators and IX designers answer jointly with students.
Futures of Listening
Futures of Listening has developed an R&D programme based on the principle of 'listening to a multivocal world'. The consortium researches and develops new forms of immersive creation, listening and experience through spatial sound, which deepen our understanding of the world and address societal challenges such as inclusivity and environmental challenges. At the same time, it aims to sustainably embed spatial sound as an artistic and technological discipline within the broader IX sector, improve the quality of spatial sound experiences, stimulate new forms of listening and knowledge transfer, and strengthen international positioning and accessibility. The activity programme consists of a series of activities, realised through a community-focused approach with makers and researchers. At its core is a residency programme in which makers - by invitation and through open calls - collaborate with researchers and developers. Within this, they work on developing prototypes of immersive creations, sensory storytelling, immersive listening, and weaving together the relationship between inclusivity, humans and non-humans. Four mutually reinforcing research areas are being developed ('message', 'perception', 'technology', and 'place & access'). This is supported by knowledge sharing and open-source tools, interfaces and instruments through symposia, an online platform and a concluding publication. Other activities include international events, workshops, education and mentorship.
Van ethische dilemma’s naar toekomstdenken: immersieve technologie als katalysator voor inclusieve besluitvorming
Technological innovations bring urgent ethical questions with them. These questions call not only for an assessment of what is desirable, but also for anticipating possible futures and the values that are central to them. A major barrier to inclusive decision-making is a lack of futures awareness and ethical capacity. Many people find it hard to imagine the implications of technology. Non-users in particular experience a knowledge gap and feel they cannot join the conversation, even though they do undergo technology's impact. This problem is reinforced because the future of a technology is often imagined by a handful of companies whose business models encourage polarisation and digital dependency, while environmental impact and social costs are externalised. This increases the likelihood of one-sided decision-making. The project applies ethics-by-design by involving a city's residents inclusively and actively in exploring ethical dilemmas around emerging technology. We use social friction as a source of innovation and connect technology development to values such as safety, power and inclusion. The research focuses on strengthening the imagination through two 'Moral Labs': 1 - a traditional presentation (image and text), followed by a conversation; 2 - an immersive presentation in Virtual Reality (VR), followed by a conversation. In both scenarios, several participants discuss the positions taken and the moral dilemmas together. The VR intervention uses multiplayer functionality to create social presence. By running a moderated split test on the two scenarios above, this research weighs the effectiveness of an immersive experience against the traditional presentation. The richness of both conversations is analysed using Ahvenharju's (2018) five dimensions of futures consciousness and the LIWC tool (Boyd, 2022). The results offer insight into how immersive technology can contribute to inclusive ethical dialogue and democratic decision-making.