Egyptian and American architecture students recently completed a course using the virtual world Second Life to facilitate long distance collaboration within an online, realtime 3D environment. With funding from the U.S. State Department, California-based architect David Denton, AIA Dr. Amr Attia from Cairo’s Ain Shams University, and Kara Bartelt from USC School of Architecture brought students into the virtual world, who shared and discussed design ideas throughout the semester.
The course, called ‘Kansas to Cairo,’ was originally inspired by a speech given by President Obama’s during a speech at Cairo University in Egypt last June, where he described a vision for an online learning environment where teachers and students from around the world – such that “a young person in Kansas can communicate instantly with a young person in Cairo.”
This month, Architectural Record’s David Sokol covered the project in their print and online editions). In it, David Denton describes the potential for Second Life to supplement real-world design, and even offer potential job opportunities,
“The American students, facing poor employment prospects, may consider seeking commissions directly in Second Life. As universities and companies hold classes and do business online, someone has to be hired to create virtual storefronts and conference centers.”
Congratulations to everyone involved with this project – I hope it will inspire more projects like it!
