eXtended Realities and the Future of Communication

The course offers an introduction to and discussion of how immersive technologies transform communication and understanding. This course will provide students with the basics of what immersive technologies (XR) are and their history; it will connect XR to recent developments in 3D modeling and environmental sensing as two sides of the same coin. The course will teach content creation and realizing novel and exciting ways to interact with digital content. The course will theoretically address the critical features of XR and introduce students to core concepts such as immersion, presence, and reality-trade-off. Furthermore, the course will provide students with hands-on experiences to create their own XR experiences focusing on entry-level technologies such as 360 cameras, 3D modeling, photogrammetry techniques such as structure from motion mapping, and Unity. Unity is a powerful game engine that allows for creating engaging content for immersive and traditional media.

After successful completion of this course students are expected to be able to:

• Identify and explain what immersive technologies are and how they relate to addressing issues of communication and understanding
• Recognize and understand how immersive technologies improve/change communication and understanding
• Envision and propose use cases of using immersive technologies for student's own interest and how immersive technologies will improve/change the use cases
• Demonstrate comprehension of workflows of how to create content for immersive experiences
• Build different immersive applications utilizing immersive experience workflows
• Create and design immersive experiences through using computer software tools and technologies

Assumed Knowledge:

Students are expected to have an interest in and proficiency with one or more technologies used in creating content for immersive experiences. While there is no single required technology, some expertise in 3D modeling, or environmental sensing (e.g., photogrammetry), or game engines is expected. A background in any programming language would be advantageous. Given the project-based nature of the course, students should also have time and project management skills.