Web-based Poster Display and Archival Tool for Broad Dissemination of Research Advances

目前，在技术会议、研讨会和会议上分享研究海报的能力有限。这极大地限制了研究进展的快速分享和传播。 然而，使用互联网，与当前的同步和异步技术，以虚拟现实的形式共享海报，使更广泛的观众不仅仅是那些在出席观看，评论，并与研究人员互动。为了使这一更广泛的研究合作和传播，在这个奖项下，教育，推广和培训发展小组在普渡总部的国家科学基金会支持的乔治E。小布朗地震工程模拟网络（NEES）将开发一个名为虚拟海报会议的网络应用程序。这种虚拟海报会议技术将在2012年7月8日至12日在马萨诸塞州波士顿举行的国家科学基金会土木、机械和制造创新部（CMMI）受资助者会议上演示。这个基于网络的工具旨在利用将归档和显示CMMI受资助者研究海报的网络应用程序和手持设备来增强CMMI会议与会者的海报体验。此外，这些海报将在http://www.nees.org网站上存档至少一年，从而使这些海报可供会议与会者以外的更广泛受众观看和互动。用于查看数字化海报的虚拟现实概念使小组协作、评论功能和讨论机会不受地理位置的限制。使用开源虚拟现实软件扩展海报会议功能，为扩大教育机会以及来自多个相关方的研究审查和评论创造了机会。创建虚拟海报计划将扩大CMMI支持的研究活动的可见度，消除分享和讨论研究进展的地理限制，并扩大继续研究的机会。

Currently, there is limited ability to share research posters presented at technical conferences, workshops, and meetings beyond the attendees. This greatly limits the rapid sharing and dissemination of research advances. However, using the Internet, with current synchronous and asynchronous technology, to share posters in a form of virtual reality enables a much broader audience than just those in attendance to view, comment, and interact with researchers. To enable this broader research collaboration and dissemination, under this award, the education, outreach, and training development team at the Purdue headquarters for the NSF-supported George E. Brown, Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES) operations will develop a web application called the virtual poster session. This virtual poster session technology will be demonstrated at the National Science Foundation, Division of Civil, Mechanical, and Manufacturing Innovation (CMMI,) grantees conference in Boston, Massachusetts, during July 8-12, 2012. This web-based tool aims to enhance the poster experience for CMMI conference attendees by taking advantage of web applications and handheld devices that will archive and display CMMI grantee research posters. In addition, the posters will be archived on the http://www.nees.org web site for at least one year, thus making the posters available for viewing and interactions by a broader audience beyond the attendees at the conference. Virtual reality concepts for viewing digitized posters enable group collaborations, comment capabilities, and discussion opportunities not constrained by geographical location. The expansion of poster session capabilities using virtual reality software from an open source creates opportunities to expand educational access, as well as research review and comment from multiple interested parties. Creating a virtual poster program will expand the visibility of CMMI-supported research activities, eliminate the geographical constraints to sharing and discussing research advances, and broaden access to continuing research.