[MUD-Dev2] [NEWS] NASA to explore strange, new virtual worlds

[Morris Cox]

NASA Goddard's MMO Game: http://ipp.gsfc.nasa.gov/MMO/

http://www.betanews.com/article/NASA_to_explore_strange_new_virtual_worlds/1200932898

NASA is interested in making a MMOG for education and learning. They
also have a presence in Second Life and have a meeting every Tuesday
at 1PM PST.

------ From NASA's website:


The NASA Learning Technologies (LT) project supports the development
of projects that deliver NASA content through innovative applications
of technologies to enhance education in the areas of science,
technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Research and
development are at the core of the LT mission. LT seeks to enhance
formal and informal education in STEM fields with the goal of
increasing the number of students in those fields of study and is
currently investigating the development of a NASA-based massively
multiplayer online educational game (MMO).

Persistent immersive synthetic environments in the form of massive
multiplayer online gaming and social virtual world, initially
popularized as gaming and social settings, are now finding growing
interest as education and training venues. There is increasing
recognition that these synthetic environments can serve as powerful
"hands-on" tools for teaching a range of complex subjects. Virtual
worlds with scientifically accurate simulations could permit learners
to tinker with chemical reactions in living cells, practice operating
and repairing expensive equipment, and experience microgravity, making
it easier to grasp complex concepts and transfer this understanding
quickly to practical problems. MMOs help players develop and exercise
a skill set closely matching the thinking, planning, learning, and
technical skills increasingly in demand by employers. These skills
include strategic thinking, interpretative analysis, problem solving,
plan formulation and execution, team-building and cooperation, and
adaptation to rapid change.

The power of games as educational tools is rapidly gaining
recognition. NASA is in a position to develop an online game that
functions as a persistent, synthetic environment supporting education
as a laboratory, a massive visualization tools and collaborative
workspace while simultaneously drawing users into a challenging,
game-play immersion.

-- Morris Cox