Visitor Interactions in Microbiology: A New Genre of Science Museum Exhibits

该项目将研究并进一步开发一个互动平台，即微生物学参观者互动（VIM），使博物馆参观者能够影响和了解活微生物的行为。动手博物馆展品鼓励游客参与和操作科学内容。目前，博物馆参观者通过显微镜观察微生物、模型或模拟来体验微生物，这些都限制了互动性。在VIM平台上，参观者可以在屏幕上画画，或者使用Kinect运动传感器生成微观光图像。单细胞生物对这些图像实时做出反应。初步测试表明，该平台具有促进访问者长期参与和科学探究的巨大潜力。该项目将开发和研究额外的技术和设计考虑因素，以了解如何将VIM转化为有效的博物馆展品。该项目得到了推进非正式STEM学习（AISL）计划的支持，该计划为在各种环境中使用的研究和创新资源提供资金，作为其加强非正式环境学习总体战略的一部分。项目研究人员将首先将VIM与现有的微观展品进行比较，以调查该平台的优势和局限性。基于该研究，VIM原型的三次迭代和用户测试将探索VIM在访问者交互模式、生物类型和刺激类型方面的可能扩展。除了改进VIM平台之外，从本研究中获得的知识将为非正式科学学习提供一种新的方法——一种支持自我指导的探究、对微生物学的兴趣和对基础技术的兴趣的方法。该项目将产生：(1)关于VIM的潜力和各种有效使用该系统的交互模式的研究结果；(2)硬件、软件和协议指令的开源目录，使其他机构能够利用VIM的研究。项目研究成果和资源将通过会议和专业期刊广泛传播给从业人员。这项研究将为未来的工作奠定基础，包括设计一个永久性的展览。

The project will research and further develop an interactive platform, Visitor Interactions in Microbiology (VIM), that enables museum visitors to influence and learn about the behavior of live microorganisms. Hands-on museum exhibits encourage visitors to engage with, and manipulate, scientific content. Currently, museum visitors experience microbiology by observing microorganisms through a microscope, through models, or through simulations, all of which limit interactivity. With the VIM platform, visitors draw on a screen or use a Kinect motion sensor to generate microscopic light images. The single celled organisms respond to these images in real-time. Preliminary testing shows that the platform has significant potential to promote prolonged engagement and science inquiry by visitors. The project will develop and research additional technological and design considerations to understand how VIM can be translated into effective museum exhibits. This project is supported by the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program which funds research and innovative resources for use in a variety of settings as a part of its overall strategy to enhance learning in informal environments.Project researchers will first compare VIM to existing microscopic exhibits to investigate both advantages as well as limitations with the platform. Based on that research, three iterations of prototypes of VIM and user testing will explore possible extensions of VIM with respect to modes of visitor interactions, types of organisms and types of stimuli. In addition to improving the VIM platform, the knowledge gained from this study will inform a new approach to informal science learning -- an approach that supports self-directed inquiry, interest in microbiology, and interest in underlying technology. The project will produce: (1) research results concerning the potential of VIM and the variety of interaction modes that are effective using the system and (2) an open-source catalogue of hardware, software and protocol instructions that will enable other institutions to take advantage of the research on VIM. Project research findings and resources will be widely disseminated to practitioners via conferences and professional journals. The research will provide the foundation for future work that will include the design of a permanent exhibition.