3D Visualization Tools For Enhancing Awareness, Understanding, And Stewardship Of Freshwater Ecosystems

加州大学戴维斯塔霍环境研究中心（TERC）、加州大学戴维斯分校W.M.凯克地球科学主动可视化中心（KeckCAVES）、回声湖水族馆和科学中心（ECHO）、加州大学伯克利分校劳伦斯科学馆（LHS）、学习创新研究所（ILI）将研究如何通过使用湖泊和流域过程的沉浸式三维可视化，辅以桌面科学活动站，最有效地利用三维可视化来提高公众对淡水湖生态系统和地球科学过程的理解。两个标志性的湖泊将成为这项研究的重点：加利福尼亚州和内华达州的太浩湖，佛蒙特州和纽约州的尚普兰湖，其产品很容易转移到其他淡水系统和教育场所。PI将收集和分享有关如何有效利用3-D技术和科学数据来支持沉浸式3-D可视化学习的知识，以及如何将其他动手材料结合起来，最有效地支持游客学习物理、生物和地球化学过程和系统。该项目将在并行和交错开发中进行迭代测试、设计和实现3-D可视化。公众将参与水质和生态系统健康背后的科学；湖的形成;湖foodwebs;天气和气候；以及人类对生态系统的作用和影响。将设计和开发一套关于淡水生态系统的公开学习资源，包括沉浸式3d可视化；可携式多媒体科学站；讲解员培训的引导员指南；以及开发人员手册，以允许未来的非正式科学教育场所。项目合作伙伴分为5个小组：1)内容准备和评审：内容准备和撰写，包括故事板、叙事、活动的撰写；2)三维科学可视化：利用空间数据创建可视化产品；3)科学站：规划、设计、制作动手材料；4)网站和多媒体：针对专业受众和公众受众制定传播策略；4)评价：对三维可视化和科学活动站进行前端评价、形成性评价和总结性评价。总结性评估将采用混合方法，使用定性和定量方法，并将包括焦点小组，半结构化访谈，网络调查和深度访谈。利用3d工具、高质量的视觉展示、动手活动和多媒体资源，大学科学家将与非正式的科学教育专业人员合作，将项目的覆盖范围和影响扩大到40万观众，包括家庭、青年、学校实地考察团体和游客。该项目将实施、评估和传播如何设计和配置3d可视化和技术的知识，以有效地支持游客参与和学习物理、生物和地球化学过程和系统，并将评估如何将这些技术更广泛地转移到其他非正式科学场所和学校，以促进这些关键STEM领域的未来职业和劳动力发展。

The University of California, Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center (TERC), UC Davis W.M. Keck Center for Active Visualization in the Earth Sciences (KeckCAVES), ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center (ECHO), UC Berkeley Lawrence Hall of Science (LHS), and the Institute for Learning Innovation (ILI) will study how 3-D visualizations can most effectively be used to improve general public understanding of freshwater lake ecosystems and Earth science processes through the use of immersive three-dimensional (3-D) visualizations of lake and watershed processes, supplemented by tabletop science activity stations. Two iconic lakes will be the focus of this study: Lake Tahoe in California and Nevada, and Lake Champlain in Vermont and New York, with products readily transferable to other freshwater systems and education venues. The PI will aggregate and share knowledge about how to effectively utilize 3-D technologies and scientific data to support learning from immersive 3-D visualizations, and how other hands-on materials can be combined to most effectively support visitor learning about physical, biological and geochemical processes and systems. The project will be structured to iteratively test, design, and implement 3-D visualizations in both concurrent and staggered development. The public will be engaged in the science behind water quality and ecosystem health; lake formation; lake foodwebs; weather and climate; and the role and impact of people on the ecosystem. A suite of publicly available learning resources will be designed and developed on freshwater ecosystems, including immersive 3-D visualizations; portable science stations with multimedia; a facilitator's guide for docent training; and a Developer's Manual to allow future informal science education venues. Project partners are organized into five teams: 1) Content Preparation and Review: prepare and author content including writing of storyboards, narratives, and activities; 2) 3-D Scientific Visualizations: create visualization products using spatial data; 3) Science Station: plan, design, and produce hands-on materials; 4) Website and Multimedia: produce a dissemination strategy for professional and public audiences; 4) Evaluation: conduct front-end, formative, and summative evaluation of both the 3-D visualizations and science activity stations. The summative evaluation will utilize a mixed methods approach, using both qualitative and quantitative methods, and will include focus groups, semi-structured interviews, web surveys, and in-depth interviews. Leveraging 3-D tools, high-quality visual displays, hands-on activities, and multimedia resources, university-based scientists will work collaboratively with informal science education professionals to extend the project's reach and impact to an audience of 400,000 visitors, including families, youth, school field trip groups, and tourists. The project will implement, evaluate, and disseminate knowledge of how 3-D visualizations and technologies can be designed and configured to effectively support visitor engagement and learning about physical, biological and geochemical processes and systems, and will evaluate how these technologies can be transferred more broadly to other informal science venues and schools for future career and workforce development in these critical STEM areas.