An Investigation into the use of the Virtual Reality Modelling Language (VRML) as a Means of Distribution Virtual Reality Tourist Information Across the World Wide Web

The purpose of the work described was to investigate the use of the Virtual Reality Modelling Language (VRML) as a tool to distribute tourist information across the web. This was done by the creation of a web site containing two Virtual Reality models of tourist interest. These were then valuated using a number of techniques both online and offline. This paper describes the methods used to create and evaluate these models as well as giving a overview of some of the results obtained

Using the Crytek Game Engine in the Technological University Dublin

It is envisaged that within the next 10 years. the Technological University Dublin (DIT), Ireland’s largest third level university, will move to a new campus in Grangegorman, located in the north inner city of Dublin This site is currently being used as a hospital. It has twelve listed buildings and is located in a densely populated urban community. This paper describes how the Crytek 3D Game engine is being used to create a game MOD (modification) of the current hospital site, how it will be used in the construction and public consultation process of the new campus and how students in the DIT are learning computer science in an new way

The master builders : a record of the construction of the world's highest commercial structure /

Includes index.Mode of access: Internet

Learning games programming with Dalek World.

From September 2005 the School of Computing in the DIT will offer an elective in computer games programming to final year computer science students. This paper demonstrates how students will learn games programming by developing a 3D FPS (First Person Shooter) called Dalek World. Dalek World is developed using Microsoft Visual Studio in C++ and was originally developed by the authors to learn games programming techniques themselves. In developing Dalek World, students will learn Euclidian geometry, 3D graphics programming, object orientated game design, level loading, physics, collision detection, the A* algorithm, perception and enemy AI using finite state machines

Using the Crytek game engine in the Dublin Institute of Technology

It is envisaged that within the next 10 years. the Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT), Ireland’s largest third level university, will move to a new campus in Grangegorman, located in the north inner city of Dublin This site is currently being used as a hospital. It has twelve listed buildings and is located in a densely populated urban community. This paper describes how the Crytek 3D Game engine is being used to create a game MOD (modification) of the current hospital site, how it will be used in the construction and public consultation process of the new campus and how students in the DIT are learning computer science in an new way

Sex-biased gene and microRNA expression in the developing mouse brain is associated with neurodevelopmental functions and neurological phenotypes

Abstract Background Sex differences pose a challenge and an opportunity in biomedical research. Understanding how sex chromosomes and hormones affect disease-causing mechanisms will shed light on the mechanisms underlying predominantly idiopathic sex-biased neurodevelopmental disorders such as ADHD, schizophrenia, and autism. Gene expression is a crucial conduit for the influence of sex on developmental processes; therefore, this study focused on sex differences in gene expression and the regulation of gene expression. The increasing interest in microRNAs (miRNAs), small, non-coding RNAs, for their contribution to normal and pathological neurodevelopment prompted us to test how miRNA expression differs between the sexes in the developing brain. Methods High-throughput sequencing approaches were used to identify transcripts, including miRNAs, that showed significantly different expression between male and female brains on day 15.5 of development (E15.5). Results Robust sex differences were identified for some genes and miRNAs, confirming the influence of biological sex on RNA. Many miRNAs that exhibit the greatest differences between males and females have established roles in neurodevelopment, implying that sex-biased expression may drive sex differences in developmental processes. In addition to highlighting sex differences for individual miRNAs, gene ontology analysis suggested several broad categories in which sex-biased RNAs might act to establish sex differences in the embryonic mouse brain. Finally, mining publicly available SNP data indicated that some sex-biased miRNAs reside near the genomic regions associated with neurodevelopmental disorders. Conclusions Together, these findings reinforce the importance of cataloguing sex differences in molecular biology research and highlight genes, miRNAs, and pathways of interest that may be important for sexual differentiation in the mouse and possibly the human brain

SimPort: A multiplayer management game framework

The serious games industry needs game engines, or frameworks, that have been developed specifically with this sector in mind. This paper discusses the criteria that such engines need to adhere to in order to support viable solutions. These criteria are illustrated on the basis of SimPort, a novel multiplayer management game framework. SimPort has shown to be very powerful, functional and easy to use in the development of MV2, a game module simulating a major expansion project, the Maasvlakte 2 area, of the Port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands [8]. In addition, from MV2 real-life usage so far, players and tutors have concluded that this game is not only rather educational, but also a lot of fun to play