Taking a Stroll through Virtual Dublin
From: Irish Times - 03/23/2007
By: Karlin Lillington

Researchers at Trinity College Dublin are constructing an immersive 3D
replica of the city, complete with pedestrians, stonework, and the ability to
pan upwards for a vertical view. The people who walk the streets of Virtual
Dublin wear various clothes that move separately from their bodies, and the
carvings on the side of buildings can be appreciated for their detail. "This
is much more realistic than [online virtual world] Second Life," says TCD
computer science professor Carol O'Sullivan. "It's a good framework for doing
studies into human perception." While the most obvious use for the technology
developed by the effort, known as Project Metropolis, would be video games,
the work could also contribute to health care and urban planning, as EU
regulations will require planners to provide citizens with simulations that
take into account road noise, pedestrian traffic, and the aesthetic effects
of new buildings. "This will improve our understanding of the human brain,"
explains TCD cognitive neuroscientist Fiona Newell. "A world like this could
be used to rehabilitate people who are socially disabled - who are
agoraphobic, perhaps, or autistic - because all the variables can be
controlled. You could also safely put people into otherwise dangerous
situations." So far, 2 square km of the planned 5 square km have been
completed in high detail, and there are currently 50,000 virtual people
walking the streets. Project Metropolis is part of a 2.5 million euro Science
Foundation Ireland (SFI) initiative. 

Publication Homepage
http://www.irishtimes.com/

Virtual Dublin R&D project
http://blog.siliconrepublic.com/2007/virtual-dublin-rd-project-gets-25m-sfi-grant/

Researchers Awarded Grant to Create Virtual Metropolis
http://www.tcd.ie/Communications/pressRelease.php?headerID=534&pressReleaseArchive=2007

IBM supports Trinity College Dublin to develop the next generation of animation
and movie graphics
http://www.ibm.com/news/ie/en/2006/12/ie_en_news_20061212.html

Dublin in Second Life
http://www.dublinsl.com/

Dublin in Second Life - Media Videos
http://www.dublinsl.com/media.html

Carol O'Sullivan
http://isg.cs.tcd.ie/cosulliv/