When Katie Nabors (Nutrition, SOM; Dance, CAS) approached the IC about an idea for a new application, she had a few parallel goals: her primary focus in her nutrition class is to teach future healthcare professionals the basics of healthy food preparation so they can cook for themselves with confidence and also effectively advise patients on healthy food choices. At the same time, she also wanted to reduce the amount of food waste produced in a typical class, where most of the diced bell peppers and chopped carrots are chucked at the end. Third, as many of her students are completely new to cooking, she wanted to protect their fingertips from accidental nicks and cuts so that they can continue with the rest of their medical training unscathed.

The application that Nabors built with the IC during her fellowship year (Virtual Kitchen) is a sim experience where students build muscle memory working through a recipe, starting with a salad. A fully appointed holographic kitchen appears and a checklist hangs on the fridge door. As students set about collecting the tools and preparing the ingredients as listed, the to-dos are checked off automatically. This experience could easily be modified to apply to a number of site-specific protocols, such as setting up a chemistry lab or adhering to safety measures like correct PPE.