You had to be there: Landscape archaeology using

GIS and VR

L. Jesse Rouse

Dept of Geology and Geography

West Virginia University

Introduction

• “Being in the moment”, to take in one’s surroundings

• Objective goals of science?

• Subjective approaches more representative?

• Phenomenology– Husserl, early 1900s– Monte-Perleau, Heidegger

Phenomenology

• Understanding based on individual experience

• Change in understanding as experience grows

• Move beyond an impartial observer to an active participant (emic vs etic)

GIS

• Shift back towards objective, empirical

• Mostly due to underlying framework and methodology

• GIScience pushes for a more critical approach

Phenomenology, GIS, and VR

• Attempts to join in landscape research– Mostly implicit

• Difficult to ‘experience’ through 2D/Static

• Extend GIS interface through Virtual Reality– Immersive and dynamic interface

• Heidegger’s “Being-in-the-world”

Gillings and Goodrick, 1996 “Sensuous and Reflexive GIS”• Use GIS to understand place and contextualization

of data• Use the senses to better interpret information

– Visualization– Audio, Haptics, Smell, Taste

• Linked issues– Multiple realities– Link qualitative and quantitative information– Retain reflexivity based on senses

Experiential

• Reconstruction/recreation of ‘life-like’ virtual world– Create a prehistoric setting to view a relict

landscape

• React and interact with virtual landscape– View different perspectives/change

perspectives

Templewood Kilmartin Valley

Immersive

• VR can place the user “in” the landscape– Can step ‘through the looking glass’

• Offers the opportunity to experience and move through the landscape– Individual can control navigation, just as in

‘real’ world

Conclusion

• Integration of GIS and VR to support subjective research

• Phenomenology offers a subjective approach– Less detached, experiential

• Immersive technologies can insinuate the researchers within the research– “Being-in-the-world”

Thanks go to:

• WV Tech Center Staff

• Dept of Geology and Geography

• Eberly College of Arts & Science

• WVView.org

• Laboratory of Geographic Information Science

• Natural Resource Analysis Center

Special thanks go to:

• Dr. Keith Clarke

• Dr. Duane Nellis

• Dr. Greg Elmes

• Nichole Edwards

• Tuesday’s events will begin at 8:15AM in Room G21, White Hall

• Free parking on Tuesday only in Lot 1 – Directly across the street from White Hall

• Please take a moment to fill out the survey located in your folder

• Thank you all for coming! We hope you enjoyed today’s sessions.