Project Mobius is an ambitious project between the University’s Centre for the Study of Perceptual Experience and Glasgow-based company Sublime.

It is hoped the immersive virtual reality (VR) experience could revolutionise learning for students in higher education.

Martin McDonnell, CEO and Co-Founder of Sublime, said the project will create a “broader view of how these technologies will impact us socially, economically, and personally.”

Emerging Technology

The platform will allow students studying a host of subjects – including physics, chemistry, geology, philosophy or history – to explore topics in a virtual setting.

As part of a three-year pilot scheme, academics will also use immersive technology to create high-quality teaching apps or lectures which can then be used on the platform.

Ten VR teaching resources were picked to go forward to the pilot after being championed by lecturers from each respective subject area. These resources will now be developed and tested by lecturers and students.

Initially, the University intends to build two high-tech VR labs or classrooms, each with a capacity for 15 students at any time.

Dr Neil McDonnell, Lord Kelvin Adam Smith Research Fellow in VR and AR (Philosophy), said the project will enable researchers to “gain a deeper understanding” of how people learn and retain information.

Dr McDonnell also emphasised the project’s potential for students to gain a deeper insight into subjects or specific topics.

“This technology will allow university students to travel inside a human body or take a visit to an important geological area from their lecture,” he explained.

Establishing Partnerships

Academics will use the Innovate UK funding to establish test-bed partnerships with universities across the world. Within two years, partner institutions could benefit from the apps, as well as the Mobius platform – with the eventual aim to translate the VR resources into other languages.

Professor Fiona Macpherson, Principal Investigator on the project and Director of the Centre, said: “We believe that Project Mobius has huge and positive implications for educators and students.

“By harnessing the positives of immersive technology we will create a teaching experience that helps students gain insights and knowledge not currently open to them without VR.”

She added: “Project Mobius is an exciting new addition to those based in the Centre. It adds to our research on all aspects of virtual and augmented reality, including the nature of reality and perceptual experience, and the enormous impact that these technologies will have on our lives.”