Modeling, Simulation, and Visualization:  Research and Education at Old
Dominion University

R. Bowen Loftin

Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Professor of Computer Science

Director, Modeling & Simulation Graduate Programs

Executive Director, Virginia Modeling, Analysis & Simulation Center

Modeling and Simulation (M&S) has a long history.  Games such as go and
chess are clearly examples of M&S.  M&S was refined and successfully
applied by Europeans in the Nineteenth Century.  Computer-based
simulations were introduced in the 1950's and are now a regular staple in
many enterprises.  We will begin with an historical tour of M&S and then
briefly examine a cross-section of Modeling, Simulation, and Visualization
research that has been conducted or is being conducted at Old Dominion
University.  These research efforts have involved faculty and students
from ten academic departments and five colleges.  Research ranges from
the theoretical (developing a mathematical and computational theory of
composability) to the applied (simulating port operations).

In addition to research, an update on the multidisciplinary M&S graduate
degree programs will be included.  More information can be found at
http://www.vmasc.odu.edu"




Biographical Sketch

Professor R. (Richard) Bowen Loftin

R. (Richard) Bowen Loftin holds a B.S. in physics (with high honors)
from Texas A&M University and an M.A. and a Ph.D. from Rice University,
also in physics.  Since 1986, he has served as NASA/Johnson Space Center's
Principal Investigator for Advanced Training Technologies.  In his "other"
life, Prof. Loftin is Professor of Computer Science and Director of the
NASA Virtual Environments Research Institute at the University of Houston
and Professor of Physics at the University of Houston-Downtown.  He has
been a member of the University of Houston System faculty since 1977.

As of August 1, 2000, Prof. Loftin has become Professor of Electrical
and Computer Engineering and Professor of Computer Science at Old
Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia.  He is also Director of
Simulation Programs.  In this latter capacity, Prof. Loftin manages
the Virginia Modeling, Simulation and Analysis Center (VMASC) and
directs the university's graduate programs (M.S. and Ph.D. in Modeling
and Simulation.  VMASC is supported by Commonwealth of Virginia and 120
industrial, educational, and governmental partners.  VMASC is located
near the U.S. Joint Training, Analysis and Simulation Center and the
Joint Warfighting Center, allowing it to play a key role in supporting
joint military training and planning.

Prof. Loftin is a consultant to both industry and government in the
areas of advanced training technologies, modeling/simulation and
scientific/engineering data visualization.  He serves on numerous
government and professional organization committees and panels.
Prof. Loftin has been the recipient of many awards, including the
Service, the American Association of Artificial Intelligence Award for an
Innovative Application of Artificial Intelligence, NASA's Space Act Award,
the NASA Public Service Medal, and the 1995 NASA Invention of the Year
Award.  He is the author of more than one hundred technical publications.

In 1983 Prof. Loftin and his students, joined later by coworkers at
the NASA/Johnson Space Center (JSC), began exploring the application
of artificial intelligence, modeling/simulation, and virtual reality to
the development of training and mission planning systems.  Since 1995,
through a joint arrangement with JSC and the University of Houston
(UH), Prof. Loftin founded and has continued to direct the NASA Virtual
Environments Research Institute (VERI) which is housed at UH.

Among Prof. Loftin's current research projects are shared virtual
environments for training crews for the International Space Station
and for training military personnel in a variety of peacekeeping
operations (supported by the Office of Naval Research), environments
for collaborative engineering, a virtual design environment for NASA
extravehicular activity suits, and a reconfigurable simulator for the
design of vehicles for a mission to Mars.  Within the educational arena,
Dr. Loftin and his associates have developed, with support from the
National Science Foundation, virtual realities for science education for
students in middle school, high school, and college.  The application
of  advanced visualization techniques for hydrocarbon exploration
and production has led to the formation of an industry consortium to
support VERI.  Medical applications under development range from suturing
and surgical knot tying to training for complex medical procedures such
as reconstructive surgery. The common thread in all of these research
efforts is the use of advanced visualization and modeling/simulation
to enhance the ability of humans to master new skills and to increase
their "bandwidth" for comprehending and manipulating large quantities
of information.