Publication Details

Category Text Publication
Reference Category Journals
DOI 10.1007/s12665-024-11613-2
Licence creative commons licence
Title (Primary) VR-EX — An immersive virtual reality serious game for science communication about the electrical resistivity tomography measurements in the Mont Terri Rock Laboratory, Switzerland
Author Graebling, N.; Ziefle, G.; Furche, M.; Nicol, R.; Schefer, S.; Ziegler, M.; Jaeggi, D.; Nussbaum, C.; Annanias, Y.; Goldstein, S.; Rink, K.
Source Titel Environmental Earth Sciences
Year 2024
Department ENVINF
Volume 83
Issue 10
Page From art. 318
Language englisch
Topic T8 Georesources
Keywords Mont Terri; Virtual Reality; Science communication; Serious game; Virtual field trip; Electrical resistivity tomography
Abstract This paper presents the design, implementation, and evaluation of VR-EX, a combination of a virtual field trip and a serious game in immersive virtual reality. The application’s purpose is the communication of research conducted in the Mont Terri underground research laboratory in Switzerland. VR-EX enables users to actively attend electrical resistivity tomography measurements within a geological experiment, from planning to execution to analysis of the results, and in this way implements an active and playful learning approach. The work conducted in underground research laboratories has a high relevance for society as it contributes to research on the final disposal of nuclear waste. Therefore, the active communication of research methodology and results is crucial to increase understanding of scientific processes and boost interest. VR-EX was evaluated in a user study with 35 participants to measure its overall quality and its effectiveness of the knowledge transfer. Taking the evaluation’s qualitative results into account, the application was improved in an iterative process. Overall, the results prove the good quality of the application and its high effectiveness in terms of knowledge transfer. The reported high engagement, joy, and immersion indicate the benefits of employing immersive virtual reality for vivid science communication.
Persistent UFZ Identifier https://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=20939&ufzPublicationIdentifier=29160
Graebling, N., Ziefle, G., Furche, M., Nicol, R., Schefer, S., Ziegler, M., Jaeggi, D., Nussbaum, C., Annanias, Y., Goldstein, S., Rink, K. (2024):
VR-EX — An immersive virtual reality serious game for science communication about the electrical resistivity tomography measurements in the Mont Terri Rock Laboratory, Switzerland
Environ. Earth Sci. 83 (10), art. 318 10.1007/s12665-024-11613-2