Examples of Virtual Reality Field Trips
and other information of interest to some
Lets begin our journey discovering the ecosystems of the Rocky Mountains! The ecosystems are listed in order of elevation starting at the summit and ending in the plains. Take time to read the objectives and answer the study questions for each community.
These virtual field trips are an on going project by Dr. Woodmansee. They are still under construction, so they might not all look the same and some are more complete than others.
Have fun! If you have
questions you can reach me at Robert.Woodmansee@colostate.edu.
Welcome LTER Network and AGRI 632 visitors
DESS and NREL Visitors
DESS and NREL visitors need to make sure you have a recent, free copy of an Adobe Flash Player installed on your computer. With that, you can view the Adobe Captivate movies below. The links are to narrated portions of the presentation/demonstration I gave on 3/5/2012. I suggest viewing the modules in the order presented. The material is somewhat awkward because this is the first time I've done such an extensive Captivate production. Potential issues: 1) The files are large and take a while to load; 2) If you don't hear sound, adjust your "sound" settings in your system preferences; 3) scroll to the bottom of each movie page to expose the control bar - use the controls if needed; 4) In the ESS Blackboard Demonstration presentation, you will need the advance some of the slides by clicking the play button in the control bar. Good luck! If you have questions, call me or send an e-mail or call me at 970-736-8153. Bob Woodmansee.
1) View the ESS Blackboard Demonstration presentation here.
2) View RamCT _AGRI632 demo here.
3) View RamCT ESS 311 prototype here.
4) View RamCT Blackboard 9.1 migrated AGRI 632 here.
5) View RamCT Blackboard 9.1 ESS 580 here.
Examples of Virtual Field Trips are linked to this page. Click on the blue underlined links to go to the example web pages. You can use the Table in the upper left corner of each VFT to navigate through the VFT except for launching the Quick Time Virtual Reality movies. The link to the movie and the instructions for viewing them are usually under the image in the right frame or in "Navigation Aids" in the Table in the upper left hand corner of each home page. The exception is the Cerro Grande Fire Overview which launches from the table in the upper left corner. Also, the Cerro Grande Fire Close Up automatically launches and you need to navigate it using the same instructions as in the other VFT's. The most complete VFT's are Alpine Tundra, Spruce/fir Forest or Subalpine, Mountain Shrub Ecosystem and the "Under Construction" Maxwell Ranch. The Quincy Creek Farm and Maxwell Ranch VFT's have some enhanced mapping displays and descriptions of stuff like soils, climate, NRCS Ecological Site Descriptions, etc.
Three types of VFT’s are demonstrated here:
The first type are ecosystems that show examples vegetation typical of the major life zones of the Colorado Front Range. These examples are in varying states of development which show stages of experimentation with different approaches and formats for presentation. The next step in development will be to seize on a uniform presentation format, apply that format to all existing and future VFT’s, and write a set of navigation aides that will work for all VFT’s.
The second type illustrate ecological phenomena such as the mitigation of the effects of the current Mountain Pine Beetle epidemic in western Colorado (Hunter Forest). This example depicts views of a lodgepole pine clearcut where the tree boles were removed and the crowns lopped and scattered across the cut over area. The Pine Squirrel Feeding Ecology (Lodgepole Pine) example shows a lodgepole pine stand that contains a squirrel midden (feeding station) where the little beasts haul and shuck their pine cones and eat or stash the seeds.
The third type of VFT is event oriented, e. g., wildfire. The example used here is the aftermath of the 2000 Cerro Grande Fire in and near Los Alamos, NM. Use the Contents Table in the upper left frame to launch the panoramic movies.
All of the pages below contain Quick Time Virtual Reality movies that require Apple Quick Time for viewing. You can download a free copy of it from http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/. In all are links to the QTVR Panorama movies. The three most advanced Virtual Field Trips, the Spruce/fir forest or Subalpine and the Mountain Shrub Ecosystem and the "Under Construction" Maxwell Ranch,also require Adobe Flash Viewer, free from http://www.adobe.com/products/flashplayer/ . It is used to play the Adobe Captivate movies.
For the Quick Time Virtual Reality movies, after clicking the appropriate link look for the instructions explaining how to navigate the movie and launch the embedded "Hot Spots". Navigation within some these QTVR's is primitive. Use the Table in the upper left hand corner of each home page to get back to the beginning point (HOME) and to other links to various pages containing important information. Don't hesitate to use the back button to get out of blind holes, if necessary. I also recommend Bookmaking the LandCenter homepage to get back out to other Virtual Field Trips.
Be sure to read the Navigation Aids in the table in the upper lefthand frame of each completed Virtual Field Trip!
Also, some of the Quicktime Virtual Reality panoramas or movies may be slow to load depending on what kind of computer you have and the speed of your Internet connection.
Colorado Life Zones - A fundamental concept in classical ecology is that of life zones or the recognizable elevational strafication of major vegetation and soil types. Colorado Life Zones is a PowePoint presentation prepared by the staff of an NSF funded project whose goals are to promote environmental literacy in K-12 students. It is not a Virtual Field Trip as are the other VFT's on this page. I have converted the PowerPoint presentation into an Adobe Presenter presentation for more convenient Web display and the presentation does not yet contain audio. Even though the presentation is targeted for young learners and teachers of those youngsters, many of the concepts valuable for all ages of learners. The notes in the presentation are intended for teachers to help guide younger students through presented material. Navigation Aids for Adobe Presenter.
Alpine Tundra in Rocky Mountain National Park (includes QTVR) (Installed 7/20/00, updated 3/17/09). Key concepts to explore in this Virtual Field Trip are spatial scaling, plant community structure, and the influence of very harsh environments on ecosystem development. This VFT is the prototype and template for the other VFT's that follow. This VFT does not contain advances of Adobe Captivate and it's animation and audio files.
Use for Demo Spruce/fir forest or Subalpine near Pingree Park, Colorado (includes QTVR) (Installed 6/18/00, updated 7/8/09). This VFR is 95% or more complete. The Adobe Captivate movies work and contain audio and hotspots (Look carefully for colored rectangles with thin borders and then drag your mouse over the boxes to display different images). Go to this link - Navigation Aids for Adobe Captivate - to get both voice and some written instructions for using the Adobe Captivate playback. I will continue to upload a revised VFT for this important Rocky Mountain life zone. It's importance is primarily water production for the entire southwest region of the United States. Skiers will argue it is also important for their favorite sport.
Lodgepole Pine on Crown Point Road (Includes QTVR) (Installed 4/9/01)
Ponderosa Pine/Mountain Grassland on Crown Point Road (includes QTVR) (Installed 8/01/00)
Use for Demo Mountain Shrub Ecosystem Near Rustic, Colorado (includes QTVR) (Installed 6/22/00, updated 4/15/2009) This truly experimental VFT is a work in progress. I am learning Adobe Captivate which is remarkable software but, it's complicated. Watch for audio, rollover images, and timed messages. Go to this link - Navigation Aids for Adobe Captivate - to get both voice and some written instructions for using the Adobe Captivate playback. Not all images linked to the Mountain Shrub panorama behave the same because I have been experimenting with how to best create these VFT stops - I haven't settled on a "best" way, yet. Be patient with file loading.
NEW (under construction) - Use for Demo Maxwell Ranch Near Virginia Dale, Colorado. (Installed 9/08/09) This is the beginning of Version 1 of the maxwell Ranch VFT. It contains numerous links to descriptive data, a first attempt at directly linking to Goggle Maps, and a crude link to NRCS Ecological Site Descriptions. Only one of the panorama "hot spots" (Upland Swale) is linked to an Adobe Captivate movie at this time but, it is pretty neat if I do say so myself. Go to this link - Navigation Aids for Adobe Captivate - to get both voice and some written instructions for using the Adobe Captivate playback.
Shortgrass
Steppe Central Plains Experimental Range (includes QuickTime VR)
Cerro Grande Fire Overview -FYI, not on test 4 (includes QTVR) (Installed 6/18/00) Launch the QTVR- Las Alamos movie from the Table in the upper left corner.
Cerro Grande Fire Close Up - Within stand view
Hunter Forest - Test of high resolution imagery embedded in an alpine tundra template. It does show a lodgepole pine clearcut, however.
Quincy Creek Farm - This was my families farm for 20 years before I retired and moved to the Steamboat Springs area (paradise).