Background on the Exhibit Hall

Every year, over one hundred students present their research at our semiannual Undergraduate Research Festival. Staff realized that traditional poster presentations might not capture the sophistication of a student's research. That's exactly why we implemented an exhibit hall--adding physical components can tell a more compelling story about your research! 

Any student can register to present in this space. Listen to how Sabrina Vlk utilized the space for her research presentation.  

Meet Sabrina Vlk 

An EURA winner with aspirations to achieve a PhD, Sabrina Vlk uses research to capture her passions--literally. 

She participated in various labs across campus, such as the Driving Safety Research Institute, the Performing Arts Division's Virtual Reality and Motion Capture Studio, Applied Cognitive Engineering Lab, and Cooperative Autonomous Systems Lab. Her multidisciplinary research allowed her to seek out the exhibit hall for her presentation. 

My project was developing a virtual reality production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream where the audience would be wearing virtual reality headsets, and the actors would be wearing motion capture suits.

The exhibit hall allowed Vlk to create a virtual simulation for audience members. 

I utilized the exhibit hall to have a VR headset on display where I had one of my virtual scenes loaded up for people to try on and see what it would hypothetically look like to be an audience member. I think that since there are still a lot of people who haven't had a lot of experience with VR, it was very helpful to have a physical example present to better explain my project. 

The exhibit hall allowed Vlk to present a clearer image of her project, all while audience members could participate in the research. 

 

I don't have any tips specific to the exhibit hall, any tips that can apply towards FURF apply towards the exhibit hall as well. In general having a physical representation of your project will lead to more questions being asked so I   guess people should have that expectation!

Does participating in the exhibit hall sound exciting to you? Talk to an ambassador or staff member of what participating in an OUR research festival can look like. 

Follow our socials (@uiowaour) for updates on upcoming festivals and more.