This Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) planning grant from the University of New Mexico seeks to address three issues in conjunction with a partnership proposed for development of the fulldome medium as a technology and as an innovative venue for STEM education: 1) the limited availability and expense of fulldome venues; 2) the need to identify more avenues for commercialization of the technologies developed in conjunction with the fulldome medium; and 3) the need to elaborate upon a career path for students from the University of New Mexico and its primary academic partner, the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA). A special professionally facilitated workshop will combine the diverse talents of university researchers and industry representatives to solve new challenges and develop applications using the collaborative space of the fulldome. Specifically, the development of new dome tools and technologies will stimulate new research in user interfaces, image-based rendering, and new software Application Programming Interfaces (API)
The proposed workshop will generate fresh ideas to enhance the potential impact of deployment of full dome technology for education and workforce development. This technology can serve as a medium for a wide range of applications in scientific visualization, education games, and entertainment. Establishing this consortium has the potential to help create a new high tech industry within the state of New Mexico and add to the growing digital media industry in the state. The University of New Mexico will join the IAIA and industry partners to share the facilities and expertise developed as part of this consortium
