Universities use of SL

by Karine Joly

I wrote a piece for University Business including some examples in June:
http://www.universitybusiness.com/ViewArticle.aspx?articleid=797
Hope this helps.

SL + Wii remote

by Jeremy Kemp

See a Wired write-up today about an MIT prof talking
about connecting the Wiimote with SL for low-cost
training sims:
http://www.wired.com/gadgets/miscellaneous/news/2007/07/wiimote

---

Wii + Second Life = New Training Simulator
Steve Mollman Email 07.27.07 2:00 AM

Nintendo games have made the Wii controller a
satisfyingly realistic controller for pretend tennis,
golf and baseball. But how about using it to practice
doing surgery, applying pesticides or operating a
nuclear power plant?

Real-world simulations like these are perfectly suited
to Nintendo's Wiimote, says MIT research fellow David
E. Stone. In fact, he claims the motion-sensitive
controller is "one of the most significant technology
breakthroughs in the history of computer science." Say
what?

For Stone, the Wiimote is the key to building
realistic training simulators within the virtual world
of Second Life. He is helping companies and
universities do that through his WorldWired
consultancy. Clients include a company interested in
training workers for its power plants, a manufacturer
of medical devices and pest-control firm Orkin.

Videos/Slide Shows about SL and Education

by Alan and Phil

In response to a request for videos about SL...

There have been a number of presentations explaining Second Life posted to various places on the web. However, the specifics of what is going to make a compelling case for Charles Darwin University to enter this community are at least in part dependent on the local issues that address the goals and initiatives that your institution has already set forth in its strategic planning agenda.

Second Life for Education - Slides used in a short presentation for University of Alaska Fairbanks IT Day highlighting how 3D virtual worlds and SL specifically are being used in education
http://www.slideshare.net/iconolith/second-life-for-education

Second Life in 3600 Seconds - An overview of the strengths and weaknesses of Second Life, with particular reference to its use in education.
http://www.slideshare.net/eduservfoundation/second-life-in-3600-seconds

and of course, your Australian colleagues at Wollongong
An Introduction to Second Life - An Introduction to Second Life, it's basic characteristics and the educational possibilities it presents
http://www.slideshare.net/jokay/introduction-to-second-life/

These are just a few of those on the Slideshare.net site (search term = Second life) I'm sure others on the list have some suggestions for you but this might get you started, or get you through as source from which you can modify things to suit your local needs.

ALSO...

http://www.slideshare.net/nmc/second-life-at-mit/

and others from NMC 2007:
A View From Second Life Trenches: Are You A Pioneer or Settler (Cynthia Calongne)
http://www.slideshare.net/nmc/a-view-from-second-lifes-trenches-are-you-a-pioneer-or-a-settler

Building OneCleveland in Second Life
http://www.slideshare.net/shick06/building-onecleveland-in-second-life/

I'm not so sure a presenter-less presentation always gets the message- videos get the message across better - we've recently lobbed about 70 Sl related education videos into a YouTube playlist and others we track at:
http://sl.nmc.org/wiki/Intro_videos

NMC Sponsors SLCC edu track, registrations for 3 teachers

by Alan Levine

The NMC is sponsoring the Education track at the Second Life Community Convention conference next month in Chicago. As part of our sponsorship, we plan to support three registrations from educators active in Second Life who would like to attend the conference by covering their registration fee with an NMC Fellowship.

To take advantage of this — $185 value — send Larry Pixel a notecard in world explaining how attending SLCC will help you further your professional goals in the coming year, along with your institutional affiliation. Any practicing educator is eligible.

We will select the entries August 1 and announce the fellowships here. Come to SLCC in Chicago!

http://virtualworlds.nmc.org/2007/07/25/slcc07/

Instituto Cervantes in Second Life

by Giulio Prisco

The virtual headquarters of Instituto Cervantes in Second Life
recreate the representative building of calle Alcalá in Madrid. With
this initiative, Instituto Cervantes places itself at the forefront of
Spanish cultural institutions with own presence in Second Life, in
line with other prestigious international institutions and
organizations. The Cervantes Island has been designed and produced by
Metafuturing, S.L., a company based in Madrid and specialized in
Second Life, Virtual Reality and Internet services.

http://tendencias21.net/metaverso/index.php?action=article&numero=11

Instituto Cervantes is a worldwide non-profit organization created by
the Spanish government in 1991. It is the largest organization in the
world concerned with the teaching of Spanish, and it maintains a
presence in over twenty different countries throughout 54 centers
devoted to the Spanish and Hispanic American culture and Spanish
Language. The mission of Instituto Cervantes is to promote the
teaching, study, and use of Spanish as a second language and to
contribute to the advancement of the Spanish and Hispanic American
cultures throughout non-Spanish speaking countries. The Institute is
named after Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616), the most important figure
in the history of Spanish literature.

Fwd: [SLED] NMC Conference Posters - On the Screen At the Gonick

by Alan Levine

The poster presentations from the NMC 2007 Summer Conference will continue to be available this week on the Green at the Gonick Amphitheater on NMC Campus (NMC Campus 113,100,26 or http://tinyurl.com/nraap )

For a recap, see: http://sl.nmc.org/2007/07/20/2007-posters/ and listen to an audio interview we did using the voice client:

http://sl.nmc.org/2007/07/20/interview-with-umuc-on-simulations-for-online-learning/

Also, we are trying to rotate the content on the Gonick Amphitheater. Playing now is:

* Center Screen -University of British Columbia's Center of Excellence Video from the conference

* Audio channel and right screen- audio and slides from Anya Ixchel's presentation at the conference on "Please, Play, Participation, Promise"

A New and Improved SL Video Jukebox

by Alan Levine

I've tossed my YouTube playlist in lieu of a new web video collection of education oriented clips (now at 84) at:

http://nmc.vodpod.com/

Vodpod provides a browser tool that allows you to add new clips from almost any flash format web video site. It provides a slick embedded player:

http://sl.nmc.org/2007/07/24/vodpod/

But what I really like is others can "join" this pod and help add to the collection. Add yours today!

NMC Buzz Article

by Zak Carter

Hot off the press!

http://www.slnn.com/index.php/article/about/teachers-say/page/1.html