CWRU

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The Interactive Commons (IC) at Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) was established in 2014 as a center to connect individuals from across our campus and our region through advanced visualization to further research and education.

We believe that interdisciplinary engagement is the force that compels unique and transformative solutions to our society’s most challenging problems. With a team of developers, artists, professors and business leaders, we are working together to define the future of our university by anticipating changes in the broader world.

BUILDING A BRAIN
WITH HOLOGRAMS

LATEST PRESS & MEDIA

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Exploring the History of Medical Education in Florence, Italy

As a medical illustrator turned 3D biomedical artist, the anatomical wax collections at La Specola in Florence, Italy, were a true inspiration to see in person. Starting at the Interactive Commons only six months before our visit, I was fresh out of school and had a limited knowledge of the history of medical education.  Leonardo…

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HoloLens can be so boring sometimes, and that’s okay!

Below you can see a brief mixed-reality capture video taken by Galen Tingle. It shows IC artist, Lisa Tan, working with Dr. Jon Kiechle on some of our new pelvic anatomy. In the IC, this is a run-of-the-mill review session between our artistic staff and our anatomy experts. Despite the fact that Jon was at relative’s…

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The Fourth Industrial Revolution and Microsoft HoloLens

New York Times columnist and non-fiction author, Thomas L. Friedman, writes in his new book –  “The three largest forces on the planet—technology, globalization, and climate change—are all accelerating at once. As a result, so many aspects of our societies, workplaces, and geopolitics are being reshaped and need to be reimagined.” The main topic of…

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Finding Bill Gates Without Even Trying

My life has been a bit surreal since I joined the Interactive Commons  (IC) as lead 3D artist.  Well, truth be known, it was a bit surreal before the IC, but that’s another story.  The IC is a new team of artists and coders working together to help revolutionize the way anatomy is taught (and…

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Thoughts and Recollections from the World Economic Forum

Travel Getting from Cleveland to Davos was pretty straight forward: Flight from Cleveland to Dulles, Dulles to Zurich and then hop a couple of trains until you end up at Davos Dorf high in the mountains.  It certainly sounds easy enough, but I was sure glad to be in a group.  Especially, since that group…

Atlantic VR

Interactive Commons Featured in The Possibility Report Sponsored by The Atlantic and VMWare

The IC was featured in a new article in The Possibility Report from The Atlantic and VMWare on how VR/AR technology has the potential to change education. The IC’s Faculty Director, Mark Griswold, is quoted saying, “The opportunities for additional education applications are, quite literally, limitless.” Read More.

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HoloAnatomy App Featured in Microsoft Winter Olympics Commercial

A very fast clip of the IC’s HoloAnatomy® App is featured in a new Microsoft advertisement that aired during the Winter Olympic Games. The piece is narrated by recording artist, actor, poet, and film producer Common. The message of the spot is very much aligned with the mission of the IC – we have access…

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Holographic Anatomy Seen on ABC’s The Good Doctor

In a scene that looked much like our presentation at Build in 2015, ABC’s “The Good Doctor” showed Dr. Neil Melendez and Dr. Shaun Murphy practicing a surgery using HoloLens.

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The IC Collaborates with CWRU Dance Legend Gary Galbraith

The IC has partnered with CWRU dance faculty member, Gary Galbraith, to stage the first dance performance using Microsoft HoloLens. In this performance, the entire audience of over 80 people will wear a HoloLens. On stage they are able to see animated holographic set pieces, as well as visually stunning “digital costumes”, including particles and…

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The IC and Boulevard Arts Launch HoloLens App

The new partnership between the Interactive Commons and Boulevard has launched a new HoloLens app focused on bringing arts and cultural artifacts from the world’s best museums into your living room. This particular app includes impressionist paintings from the Courtauld Gallery and ancient artifacts from The British Museum. The app includes narration from author Neil…