I just had a great experience participating in a group discussion that was based on a TED video talk with Philip Rosedale titled “Second Life, where anything is possible.”  I find the Second Life phenomena very interesting.  It is one of the few topic areas where the smartest people I know, hold very different opinions from each other.   Not that all of my reference group ever agrees on any particular topic, but opinion about the value of Second Life seems to bring out the extremes.

In any event, the video and facilitation activity got me thinking a bit.  Personally, I have a lot of time for Second Life.  Not that I actually spend all that much time in my remarkably buff avatar, but I am very willing to spend a lot of time listening to what other folks have to say about it.  And, after listening attentively and watching people react to what we at the World Campus are doing with Second Life, I am quite convinced that the idea has a tremendous amount of potential for extending the range of learning experiences.  (This is when I know some of my colleagues roll their eyes and others smile.)

I would like to share a thought that has been hibernating for a while, and just started stirring  (actually transforming) again.  About a year ago I read an article that reference the Graphic Turing Test, which is basically the application of Alan Turing’s test for machine based artificial intelligence to virtual graphical environments.  Simply, the basic Turing test…

… proceeds as follows: a human judge engages in a natural language conversation with one human and one machine, each of which try to appear human. All participants are placed in isolated locations. If the judge cannot reliably tell the machine from the human, the machine is said to have passed the test. In order to test the machine’s intelligence rather than its ability to render words into audio, the conversation is limited to a text-only channel such as a computer keyboard and screen.

The “Graphic Turing” test is basically the same thing, but not only removes the limitation placed on conversation to include just text, but also expands the challenge to include graphical representations of actors.  One of the actors will be a representation of a human (biological programs), while other avatar is a representation of an “artificial” nature (computer programs).  Now this test has some pretty high standards.  For example to pass the test, the artificially generated simulation would have to at least exhibit:

• comprehensive communication with the judge and other “intelligent” actors,
• realistic biomechanical movement (including reaction times, expressions of curiosity, etc.),
• awareness of its environment (spatial awareness and awareness of the characteristics typically possessed by objects), and
• empathy.

As an aside, and not surprisingly, apparently there has been some progress on the graphical Turing test, which was reviewed in the eeTimes AI researchers think ‘Rascals’ can pass Turing test article published last year.

This is all good, and on my first reading it got me pretty excited, then I watched the TED video talk with Philip Rosedale and realized that the Turing Test that I have been fixated on does not get me where I want to go.  That is, from my perspective, the Turing test might not hit the mark.  In his talk, Rosedale talked about how as a child he wanted his bedroom door to recede into his ceiling instead of operating like a typical swinging door.  Apparently he performed some basic carpentry and cut a hole through his bedroom ceiling and rigged a garage door opener in the attic to pull the door through the ceiling.  I suppose the he got into a bit of trouble from his parents, but Rosedale’s point was that it would have been great to have had a virtual bedroom that allows for alternative door design.  It would have quicker, caused him less tension with his parents, and he would have had the opportunity to try various designs.

For this to be satisfying, Rosedale would have had to be emotionally attached enough to his Second Life bedroom so success or failure met his original needs to experiment and create.  If it did not, he would have to resort to cutting holes in his parent’s house anyway.  This means that he would have to personally care about his virtual self and his virtual bedroom to the same degree as he cared about his “real” self and his real bedroom (at least for the purposes being considered).  The environment would have to behave in such a way that it allows for a sense of satisfaction on the accomplishment, which brings me back to my revelation.  The Graphical Touring test sets the bar too high.  If we needed Second Life and other virtual worlds to meet that test, little boys and girls would be performing amateur carpentry on their parent’s houses for decades to come. Right now, at least relative to Second Life, I am more interested in a test that…

“… proceeds as follows: a learner engages in an interaction in a virtual space with another human actor or object, and for specific educational purposes, they care as much about the experience that they have based on what they witness and the impact of their actions on the their environment and themselves as they would have in a traditional non-virtual environment, to achieve the pedagogical intent of the experience.”

I am not sure if this test exists, and if so, what it is called, but I think that for educational applications in environment like Second Life, it is relevant.  The virtual and non-virtual experiences do not have to be absolutely indistinguishable, as they would be in a Touring Test, they just have to elicit indistinguishable emotional responses in the actor for the educational purposes desired.

Yesterday, after watching the TED video talk with Philip Rosedale, a facilitated discussion was opened.  The facilitator was Shannon Ritter, who serves as the World Campus Community Development Advisor and is responsible for much of the World Campus Second Life Island and is quite experienced with Second Life.  The first question that was asked after the video was “Is it safe to talk to strangers in Second Life?” to which Shannon responded, “Well it depends on how you define safe.”  The exchange continued in a way that made it clear that the individual was concerned for the safety of both her virtual and real self, which I think opens all sorts of potential for educational experiences.

As you saw in a previous post, last Wednesday was the official opening of the Penn State World Campus space in the virtual world of Second Life.  We spent the day chatting with students from around the world, other World Campus staff, and colleagues from other universities.  Over the course of twelve hours, we saw 78 unique visitors, 139 visits and the average time spent in the space was 52 minutes.

Spending time chatting with our students and getting to know a little  more about them was such a wonderful experience.  We had students from the USA, France, and Spain chatting with us in addition to World Campus staff members that work in locations outside the Outreach Building.  We brainstormed about ideas for student meetings in Second Life and listened to students talk about what’s important to them and what they like and dislike about their courses.  We met colleagues from other institutions curious to see our space, and discussed their projects in Second Life as well.  It was a wonderful day.

Our opening was followed on Thursday by two amazing events - the launch of the Penn State Outreach intranet and a live music concert in Second Life to benefit the Penn State Dance Marathon.  The intranet launch was amazingly successful and it was so exciting to be part of it and watch people from all across Outreach connecting with each other and learning more about each other - just like we had done with colleagues and students the day before in Second Life.  The live music benefit concert for THON was held on our PSU World Campus space in Second Life and attracted over 60 people who enjoyed the music, danced, and donated to THON to help us fight pediatric cancer.  The Penn State Dance Marathon (THON) is the largest student-run philanthropic event in the world and for the first time, Penn State World Campus is an official fundraising organization for THON.  Using things like Second Life and Facebook to raise awareness and support for this cause are just a few of the ways that World Campus can take advantage of technology and social networking to make a difference.

Last week was an exciting week at Penn State Outreach and Penn State World Campus.  With the launch of the Second Life space, the connections we’re making with co-workers and students, and the exciting ways we’re using technology to meet and learn more about each other, we’re making a difference in lives every day.

If you’re in Second Life, stop and see us - we’d love to meet and connect with you too!

Next week, on January 28, the Penn State World Campus island in Second Life will officially open.  Our space in Second Life has already allowed us to connect with students, staff and faculty from World Campus and other Penn State campuses.  We have hosted a virtual tailgate during All University Day at Penn State, we’ve gathered together to watch a live webcast of the Penn State homecoming parade, and we’ve listened to amazing live musicians at benefit concerts for the Penn State Dance Marathon - and we haven’t even officially opened yet!

Providing this virtual space for our campus allows us an additional opportunity to build community among our students, faculty, and staff. Just as students gather together in student centers on our residential campuses, they can now do the same on our virtual campus.  I’ve met prospective students, graduate students, undergraduate students and alumni on our Second Life island.  Each and every time I meet someone new, I’m reminded just how powerful meeting and connecting with others can be in this sort of environment.

Our goal in creating this space in Second Life is to connect our students outside the classroom so that we can begin to build a community of engaged, active learners who feel connected not only to the experience, but to the university.  Distance education students can feel disconnected and at times less a part of the university than their counterparts who may be studying on a residential campus, but using tools like Second Life, Facebook, Flickr, Twitter, and YouTube, we can begin to give them different ways to connect with us, and with each other.

If you are in Second Life and available next Wednesday, January 28, please come and say hello! We’ll be at “PSU World Campus” in Second Life and we’d love to meet you.

Penn State University recently celebrated “All University Day”.  This day brings together students from all of Penn State’s campuses and recognizes those students and campuses during the halftime celebration of a Penn State football game.  Penn State World Campus participated in this event and ten of our amazing students traveled from their homes in Texas, California, South Carolina, Virginia and Pennsylvania to spend the weekend with us here at Penn State’s University Park campus.

Our students arrived on Friday afternoon and evening and we welcomed them with a tailgate featuring local BBQ, great conversation, and the opportunity to mingle and meet World Campus staff members and the Nittany Lion himself.  Saturday’s events consisted of a rehearsal for the halftime celebration, a tailgate for all the participants, and a fantastic football game between Penn State and Illinois that evening.

This year’s event also featured something else - a virtual component. For the first time, All University Day was also celebrated in a virtual world.  Penn State World Campus now has a private area in the virtual world of Second Life and the All University Day celebration there consisted of a virtual tailgate, guided tours, a live musical performance from a former World Campus student, and the opportunity for students, staff and faculty to meet and mingle with each other.  Throughout the course of the day, visitors included Penn State faculty members, staff members, World Campus students, prospective students who were considering attending Penn State, and Penn State graduates. It was truly an amazing day and wonderful experience.  Hours after the “official” event concluded in Second Life, several staff members and students remained watching the Penn State vs. Illinois football game online while discussing the game with others in Second Life.

Second Life and education have been hand-in-hand for years and this environment certainly provides us with the opportunity to experience our learning in ways not possible in the physical world.  These virtual spaces are not limited to classes, however, and Penn State World Campus plans to use Second Life as a way to provide our students with a way to connect with their education in a very different way.  Online students face different challenges than resident students not the least of which is developing a sense of belonging and pride in their campus experience.  Creating a virtual campus space for our students is the first step in personalizing online education, unlocking the power of informal learning and connections, and building a community of learners.  We’re looking forward to meeting you there.

-Shannon