Current Projects for the EC/CSE

VRML representations of topographic and geologic layers on top of a GIS database.: In this project, we use a fragment of the GIS database on Thornapple TWP, Barry County, MI, which is used by Ilya Zaslavsky in teaching Geog 569 (see below). The VRML scenes created so far include: (1) a representation of topography of Thornapple TWP as elevation grid; (2) topography of the same area as exported from Arc/Info TIN representation, and (3) geologic layers for the same area which include Upper Sand, Clay, Limestone, Shale, Marshall Sandstone, as well as Static Water Level. A discussion of issues related to VRML representation of topographic data is also available.
The Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities (IATH): The NPACI All-Hands meeting (Jan. 8-9, 1998) was the beginning of the partnership between the EC/CSE and the IATH. Already cooperative work with Dr. Jack Logan, SDSU Music Professor has begun collaborating with the EC/CSE. We expect to extend the NPACI partner IATH's outreach from coast-to-coast (Virginia to San Diego). Additional links between SDSC's Dr. Mike Bailey, research into Phylogenetic Visualization and Dr. Logan's collaborator Dr. Kathleen Fisher's learning and knowledge representation tool, SemNet. A SemNet representation of of Biology Lessons for elementary teachers give a representative view of this tool.
Java and VRML resources for scientists and engineers (Xiangwei Li, Wai (Denny) Lee, Phil Deacon, Jason Tate, Amde Mitiku): This project will research the available Java applets and VRML scenes, describe and organize them by disciplines (biology, chemistry, mathematics and statistics, geology, etc.) The found resources will be discussed with appropriate faculty at SDSU and CSU. Student assistants will help in implementing these resources within the currently taught courses. A preliminary version (4/8/98) of this report is available.
Java-based instructional interface and analytical extension for the Protein Data Bank (PDB) developed at SDSC. (Phil Deacon): A Web-based extension allowing students to browse PDB and formulate simple queries, is being developed. The developed Java program will let students connect to the PDB Web site, download a sequence of proteins, and develop a series of rules explaining the occurrence of certain proteins based on information about their neighbors. The program will be implemented in biology classes at CSU and SDSU.
Testbed for distance learning collaboratory techniques. (X. Li): This project will experiment with and compare several collaboratory environments, including Tango, NetMeeting, Habanero, and SciVis (and perhaps, others), in the process of real distance teaching on the undergraduate level. As part of the project, all collaboratory environments will be installed at EC/CSE facilities, and at selected sites in California and Michigan, and compared based on a set of criteria which include: ease of use, applicability to different curricula, platform support, types of collaborations supported, etc. Additionally, teaching strategies utilizing video and audio archives, will be explored. A preliminary report (4/8/98) is available and is the basis for a SDSU campus workshop given April 23, 1998.
Virtual Professor (I. Zaslavsky): Ilya has taught two computationally-intensive geography courses, on GIS (Geog569) and Geographic Data Handling (Geog567) at Western Michigan University from the Ed.Center, using web-based collaborative environments (NetMeeting, experimenting with Tango)
Group learning in Supercomputing instruction: (K. Stewart): This project integrates a variety of traditional classroom techniques with group-based problem-solving in the study of high-performance computing. The experimental teaching within the SDSU CS575 class will focus on selected problems solvable on supercomputers and requiring the integration of academic backgrounds of students from various disciplines. Students' progress will be assessed with a series of questionnaire surveys and in-depth interviews. The sharable outcome of this course is a new instructional methodology for learning supercomputer applications, and a set of instructional modules centered around selected problems.
Problem-based learning in computational programming instruction. (K. Stewart): The "bridging environment" provided by MATLAB is explored to development computational problem-solving skills and programming skills in a first programming environment. This environment is cross-platform (Unix, PC, Mac), and provides visualization power that MATLAB is known for with the C language syntax to introduce programming. This project builds on the ET 644 Advanced Instructional Design at SDSU. The EC/CSE was a "client" for two graduate students taking Ed. Tech 644 in Fall 1997. This collaboration produced a framework for presenting CS 205 Introduction to Computational Programming and Visualization that is being used this semester.
HPC Biology resources for SDSU and other CSU campuses. (soon): This project will focus on MICE and Biology Workbench, and their potential use in undergraduate biology classes. A student assistant supported by EC/CSE, will work with a biology faculty at SDSU on learning modules involving both products, and prepare a comparison.