Challenge: While hands-on laboratory experiences are an important component of biomedical engineering curricula, many of the topics which would often benefit most from these experiences are often too time-, space-, and resource-intensive to incorporate into laboratory classes. One such topic is electrophysiology, where phenomena are hard to…

Purpose: As new technologies such as immersive and augmented platforms emerge, training approaches are also transforming. The virtual reality (VR) platform provides a completely immersive learning experience for simulated training. Despite increased prevalence of these technologies, the extent literature is lagging behind in terms of evaluating…

Cue reactivity assessments have been widely used to assess craving and attention to cues among cigarette smokers. Cue reactivity has the potential to offer insights into treatment decisions; however, the use of cue reactivity in treatment studies has been limited. This study assessed the feasibility of using a virtual reality-based cue reactivity…

The demonstration of patient-based cases using automated technology [virtual patients (VPs)] has been available to health science educators for a number of decades. Despite the promise of VPs as an easily accessible and moldable platform, their widespread acceptance and integration into medical curricula have been slow. Here, the authors review…

The present study investigated the effects of approach versus avoidance motivation on declarative learning. Human participants navigated a virtual reality version of the Morris water task, a classic spatial memory paradigm, adapted to permit the experimental manipulation of motivation during learning. During this task, participants were instructed…

The UCLA National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST) is under contract from the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) to conduct research on assessment models and tools designed to support Marine Corps rifle marksmanship. In this deliverable, we first review the literature on known-distance rifle marksmanship…

The present study evaluated whether virtual reality (VR) can enhance the realism of role plays designed to help college women resist sexual attacks. Sixty-two female undergraduate students were randomly assigned to either the Role Play (RP) or Virtual Role Play (VRP) conditions, which were differentiated only by the use of VR technology in the VRP…

An overall assessment of phobic fear requires not only a verbal self-report of fear but also an assessment of behavioral and physiological responses. Virtual reality can be used to simulate realistic (phobic) situations and therefore should be useful for inducing emotions in a controlled, standardized way. Verbal and physiological fear reactions…

One of the problems that we have found when teaching human physiology in a Spanish medical school is that the degree of understanding by the students of the integration between organs and systems is rather poor. We attempted to remedy this problem by using a case discussion method together with the Quantitative Circulatory Physiology (QCP)…

Growing science apathy at the K-12 education level represents an alarming development with potentially devastating consequences at individual, societal and economic levels. Technology has been incorporated in science education without fundamentally improving test scores or student attitudes. We claim the core of the problem is how technology is…

Describes an interactive computer program that simulates the physiological response to graded exercise in healthy individuals. The program presents high-resolution graphic data in a form comparable to that of a chart recorder display. Data are derived from an empirical model that allows users to select parameters to investigate. The program was…

At the introductory level, the computer provides an effective alternative to using animals for laboratory teaching. Computer software can simulate the operation of multiple organ systems. Advantages of software include alteration of variables that are not easily changed in vivo, repeated interventions, and cost-effective hands-on student access.…

Evaluates the effectiveness of an interactive computer-assisted learning program for undergraduate students that simulates experiments performed using isolated, everted sacs of rat small intestine. The program is designed to offer an alternative student-centered approach to traditional laboratory-based practical classes. Knowledge gain of students…

Describes the use of an interactive multimedia computer program in the study of cardiovascular physiology. Scores on tests given immediately after completion of a two-hour animation program on the Cardiac Cycle and Introduction to Electrocardiography were significantly higher than pretest scores. Students who used the computer program achieved…