Cloud Computing in Virtual Environments

In this paper we present the basis of a new middleware service that provisions clouds for virtual organizations (VOs).This service makes use of a virtual environment\u27s inherent ability to render objects to represent clouds with real clouds. These clouds are created on demand by avatars and tagged to provide a rudimentary semantic that can be used for searching. Clouds are then loaded with an inventory that contains objects and scripts used to access remote resources. Compute resources, sensor networks, and visualization services can be part of the cloud\u27s inventory. Second Life is used to implement this cloud computing service. The authorization mechanism of Second Life and an external database managed by our cloud service is used to restrict access to clouds based on avatar roles and group membership.We argue that this service can be used effectively by a VO to provide a very interactive experience for its members as well as potential collaboration between multiple VOs. Cloud computing takes a very figurative meaning in our work since we literally create clouds in the environment and manage their ownership, access and capabilities. We believe this innovative work brings together grid computing, social networking and virtual environments in a very attractive and understandable way

A Universal Language Translator: Is This the Future or the Doom of Language Learning?

Artificial Intelligence-based universal language translation system allows users in the Metaverse to better communicate with each other. Meta points to construct an all-inclusive dialect interpretation framework to permit clients to relate to others within the Metaverse without stressing almost dialect obstructions. Zuckerberg uncovered that Meta is working on building an AI-powered "all-inclusive discourse interpreter" for the Metaverse that will work for everybody within the advanced world. This venture points to streamline clients intelligent who speak distinctive dialects within the computerised universe with the assistance of AI. This paper will consider how virtual realities can affect and affect language learning. On the one hand, virtual realities could benefit people trying to learn second languages by providing virtual experiences that we could share with people who speak other languages. We could learn from other people, and they could learn from us, by "total immersion" in such shared experiences. On the other hand, virtual realities could remove the motivation from many people to learn second languages at all by providing nearly simultaneous. These two views will be argued further

Evaluating Students' Perception of a Three-Dimensional Virtual World Learning Environment

Three-dimensional virtual environments have gained wide popularity due to improvement in graphic rendering technology and networking infrastructure. Many education institutions have been trying to leverage the potential of 3D virtual environments in their application in education. In this research, we aim to evaluate the students’ perception of virtual environments in teaching and learning activities. We set up a virtual classroom, where a short presentation was delivered to students through virtual projectors in Second Life, the most widely adopted 3D virtual environment. The students filled in a questionnaire after the class. We found that the students gave a statistically higher evaluation to 3D virtual environments in terms of satisfaction and enjoyment, while comparable scores between 3D and traditional learning environment in terms of concentration, perceived usefulness, and learning and understanding were obtained. Our results show that virtual learning environment is of great potential in e-learning. Some recommendations in using the virtual environment for learning activities are given.published_or_final_versio

Metaverso como meio de aproximação ao cliente no setor bancário

Trabalho de projeto apresentado à Escola Superior de Comunicação Social como parte dos requisitos para obtenção de grau de mestre em Audiovisual e Multimédia.Hoje em dia temos à nossa disposição diversos canais de distribuição com os quais podemos interagir de maneira a acedermos ao nosso banco ou do nosso banco nos contactar. Através de telefonemas, ATMs, e-mails, página online, aplicações mobile ou deslocarmo-nos pessoalmente a uma filial, conseguimos aceder a todo o tipo de informação relacionada com a nossa conta bancária. O ano de 2021 viu a explosão do termo Metaverso. O Facebook mudou de nome para Meta e em Portugal a curiosidade sobre a tecnologia atingiu o seu pico. A utilização de realidade virtual e a capacidade de nos ligar-mos como nunca antes visto, criando o que podemos chamar de web 3.0 (Zuckerberg, 2021) tem vindo a mudar a maneira como interagimos com alguns dos serviços que usamos regularmente. A introdução do Metaverso no setor bancário já tem precedente em Portugal, como é o caso da experiência criada pelo BPI, o primeiro banco em Portugal a criar um balcão no Metaverso (BPI, 2023). Este trabalho tem como objetivo olhar para as definições do Metaverso, uma temática que tem uma discussão ativa e diversificada, de maneira a chegar a uma conclusão sobre a sua definição, bem como olhar para os canais de distribuição da banca e perceber de que maneira a introdução do Metaverso poderá afetar a banca. No final será desenvolvida uma pequena aplicação em realidade virtual utilizando a plataforma Unity para os óculos Meta Quest 2 de maneira a simular a experiência de utilizar o ambiente virtual para entrar em contacto com o setor bancário.ABSTRACT: Nowadays we have at our disposal a very diversified amount of delivery channels, with which we can access our bank account or even for our bank to contact us. Through phone calls, ATMs, e-mails, an online website, mobile applications or even by going there personally, we can access all kinds of information related to our bank account.In 2021, the term Metaverse had a big explosion in popularity, Facebook changed its name to Meta to better identify with the technology and in Portugal, curiosity surrounding the term reached an all-time high. The use of virtual reality and the ability of connecting with other people like never seen before, with some even calling it the web 3.0 (Zuckerberg, 2021), has changed the way we interact with some of our daily systems and services. The introduction of the Metaverse in the banking sector in Portugal already has precedent, with BPI being the first ever bank in Portugal to create a virtual counter in the Metaverse (BPI, 2023).This work aims to look at the definitions of the Metaverse, a theme that has quite a few different takes, to hopefully reach a concise conclusion about its definition, as well as take a small journey through the current banking delivery channels and see how the Metaverse can affect the space.In the end, we will develop a small virtual reality application using Unity and the Meta Quest 2 Platform, so that we can simulate the VR experience in virtual reality in the banking space.N/

Uso del mundo virtual Second Life en educación: una propuesta de formación para el profesorado

Si la sociedad del siglo XXVIII puede definirse como la Sociedad de la Industrialización, la de nuestro siglo será sin duda recordada como la sociedad de la Información y la Comunicación, una sociedad del Conocimiento, en palabras de Castells (2002), “una sociedad en la que las condiciones de generación de conocimiento y procesamiento de información han sido sustancialmente alteradas por una revolución tecnológica centrada en el procesamiento de información, la generación del conocimiento y las tecnologías de la información”. La educación es, sin lugar a dudas, uno de los principales motores que impulsa cualquier sociedad y, como no podía ser de otra forma, se ve directamente influida por este cambio en el paradigma social que acabamos de introducir. En este sentido, nuestra era nos brinda todo un mundo de posibilidades tecnológicas para explorar y reconcebir los modelos pedagógicos tradicionales, mejorando así los procesos de enseñanza y aprendizaje. No quiero con estas palabras transmitir la idea de que las tecnologías, por sí mismas, sean suficientes para llevar a cabo este cambio de manera satisfactoria. Nada más lejos de la realidad. De hecho, de nada sirve contar con las más avanzadas tecnologías si no existe una base pedagógica meditada y un conocimiento profundo o formación acerca de las posibilidades de estas herramientas en el seno educativo

Kriittinen katsaus näkökulmiin Metaversumista

In recent years, the concept of Metaverse has become a popular buzzword in the media and different communities. In 2021, the company behind Facebook rebranded itself into Meta Platforms, inc. in order to match their new vision of developing the Metaverse. The Metaverse is becoming reality as intersecting technologies, including head-mounted virtual reality displays (HMDs) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), have been developed. Different communities, such as media, researchers, consumers and companies have different perspectives on the Metaverse and its opportunities and problems. Metaverse technology has been researched thoroughly, while little to none research has been done on gray literature, i.e. non-scientific sources, to gain insight on the ongoing hype. The conducted research analyzed 44 sources in total, ranging from news articles to videos and forum discussions. The results show that people are seeing opportunities in Metaverse entrepreneurship in the changing career landscape. However, the visions of Meta Platforms, inc. also receive a fair amount of critique in the analyzed articles and threads. The results suggest that most of the consumers are only interested in a smaller subset of features than what is being marketed. The conducted research gives insight on how different sources are seeing the Metaverse and can therefore be used as a starting point for more comprehensive gray literature studies on the Metaverse. While making innovations to the underlying technology is important, studying people’s viewpoints is a requirement for the academia to understand the phenomenon and for the industry to produce a compelling product