Virtual reality…you know…that crazy looking device people
wear over their eyes…and we all laugh while they reach into space and spin in circles
looking silly?!
Well as it turns out, virtual reality is for more than just laughs...
Virtual reality is a computer technology that uses headsets to create an immersive, computer-generated simulation that allows users to truly feel like they are in the moment as if they were a real part of what is happening.
Virtual reality has been an important part of education in academic libraries as well as public libraries. Academic college libraries use virtual reality (VR) for science and medical courses, allowing their VR studios to be used by faculty and researchers to do things like analyze 3-D anatomical models or even simulate heart surgery! Some University libraries have professors using their VR equipment to help teach anthropology, structural biology, and biochemistry. When you open your mind to the world of VR, the opportunities are endless.
Public libraries have seen positive results as well. Currently, VR equipment is out the average consumer's price range but has come down enough for some libraries to warrant its expense. This makes for a wonderful opportunity for public libraries to take the initiative. I read a statement given by Matt Cook, emerging technologies librarian for Oklahoma University Library that I think best describes why VR could benefit libraries; "Libraries are known for providing access to information, instead of accessing text...you're visiting a historic site, you're viewing a fossil that's been 3-D scanned, or you're accessing architecture in Europe -- you're giving the public access to things that are far away, or too big or too small, or otherwise too hard to access."
Virtual reality is a computer technology that uses headsets to create an immersive, computer-generated simulation that allows users to truly feel like they are in the moment as if they were a real part of what is happening.
Virtual reality has been an important part of education in academic libraries as well as public libraries. Academic college libraries use virtual reality (VR) for science and medical courses, allowing their VR studios to be used by faculty and researchers to do things like analyze 3-D anatomical models or even simulate heart surgery! Some University libraries have professors using their VR equipment to help teach anthropology, structural biology, and biochemistry. When you open your mind to the world of VR, the opportunities are endless.
Public libraries have seen positive results as well. Currently, VR equipment is out the average consumer's price range but has come down enough for some libraries to warrant its expense. This makes for a wonderful opportunity for public libraries to take the initiative. I read a statement given by Matt Cook, emerging technologies librarian for Oklahoma University Library that I think best describes why VR could benefit libraries; "Libraries are known for providing access to information, instead of accessing text...you're visiting a historic site, you're viewing a fossil that's been 3-D scanned, or you're accessing architecture in Europe -- you're giving the public access to things that are far away, or too big or too small, or otherwise too hard to access."
Resources:
Enis, Matt. “VR
Meets the Real World.” Library Journal, vol. 143, no. 6, Apr. 2018,
pp. 22–25. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=128688061&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
Lessick, Susan,
and Michelle Kraft. “Facing Reality: The Growth of Virtual Reality and Health
Sciences Libraries.” Journal of the Medical Library Association,
vol. 105, no. 4, Oct. 2017, pp. 407–417. EBSCOhost,
doi:10.5195/jmla.2017.329.
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