Virtual reality is often used to
mimic hazardous environments-cockpits of combat aircraft, burning oil rigs, the
treasure-strewn caves of irritable dragons and so on. Until now, though, it has
rarely been deployed to simulate that most hazardous environment of all-the
office. But if Sandra Testani of the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia has her
way, it will soon be possible to hone the black arts of office politics and
corporate survival on a computer before you employ them against your colleagues
in the real world. Or, from the boss's point of view, you will be able to
practise your skills at "co-operating" in virtual "team-building"
exercises. Dr. Testani's virtual world is called CIMBLE. The
acronym stands for CADETT which in turn stands for Consortium for Advanced
Education and Training Technologies Interactive Multi-user Business Learning
Environment. The idea behind CIMBLE is to let people who are unable or unwilling
to meet face to face practise collaborating with each other over a computer
network. To do this, CIMBLE's software creates a virtual world
for up to six participants. Each acts via an electronic representative known as
an avatar. A participant sees the world (including the other players' avatars,
which appear on screen as cartoon-like images of men and women) from his own
avatar's point of view. Any other characters that the avatars might interact
with are played by a moderator, who also acts as Big Brother, overseeing and
monitoring the activities of the group and steering things in a suitable
direction. The CIMBLE software allows the avatars to walk
around and manipulate objects in the virtual world (opening doors, for example)
at the click of a mouse. It also lets avatars (and hence the participants) talk
to one another. Most conversations are assumed to be in the open, and can be
heard by everybody. But true office Machiavellis will be pleased to learn that
private chats are also possible, since the software can work out who is within
earshot of whom, and will transmit sound only to those who should be able to
hear it. So far, Dr. Testani and her colleagues have devised
two exercises in their new electronic world. One simply brings the participants
together around a virtual conference table and lets them chew over an agenda
provided by the moderator. The second, however, is more sophisticated. The
participants are deemed to be working for a civil-engineering firm, and are sent
off to the proposed site of a new bridge to settle a dispute with local
residents and officials. After a long car ride and a night in a hotel (all
depicted in loving detail by CIMBLE's software), they meet the irate local and
try to mollify them. A successful outcome, allowing the bridge to go ahead, is
greeted by an onscreen display of virtual fireworks. Dr.
Testani of Franklin Institute designed a software called CIMBLE which {{U}}
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