Odin Lab is part of the Ambient and Pervasive Intelligence Group (API) within the School of Systems Engineering at the University of Reading.

We have taken our name from Odin the Norse god of wisdom who has immense knowledge. The name seems appropriate as our group has interests in: ontologies, distributed systems, information and knowledge, intelligence, social networks, new and emerging technologies, particularly related to eLearning, competencies and virtual worlds.

Odin is also sometimes known as: Othinn, Wodan or Wotan, with the day of the week Wednesday named after him.

Current projects include:
TRACE (EU)

The TRACE project aims at increasing the transparency of competencies and skills among EU countries, regions and sectors, and to foster the uptake and adoption of eLearning through a better understanding of the competencies-related challenges that still exist in the eLearning sector.

MeAggregator™ (JISC)

The aim of this project is to develop an open source application that can be web based or on the desktop, that will serve as a MeAggregator™. The MeAggregator™ will configure the total set of technologies that an individual is using at a specific point of time. The technologies will include centrally supported technologies (for example university owned VLE and student records system) and user preferred technologies (for example MSN Messenger and Live
Journal).

MUVEnation (EU)

Based on the potential and opportunities afforded by active learning approaches combined with Massive Multi-Users Virtual Environments (MUVEs) as effective solutions to inspire and engage learners and foster motivation, the MUVEnation project's general aim is to contribute to explore, analyse, develop and evaluate within context the effectiveness of this innovative way of teaching and learning with regard to some of the problems of the educational system such as pupils motivation and participation. MUVEnation is founded on the so called 'teachers' effect on educational innovation and its approach is to explore the promising potential of active learning approaches integrated to MUVEs by starting from the analysis of some major educational problems such as the lack of motivation and find how their integration in education can effectively foster pupils' motivation and participation.

LLL3D (EU)

Possibilities for using 3D virtual worlds for learning and teaching purposes are immense as they enable to set up online learning based on all didactical and methodological approaches used in traditional and distance learning settings and allow to implement multiple combinations of approaches within one single platform.

LLL3D project plans :-
(A) to develop, implement and test learning scenarios for five different target groups within the field of Lifelong Learning by analyzing case studies of best practice, developing scenario models structured in a target group- and methodology-related grid, and implementing a LLL3D project space in Second Life (“European Lifelong Learning Island”),
(B) to establish a community of researchers, teachers and practitioners interested in using MUVEs in Lifelong Learning and to link existing communities from different target groups, and
(C) to promote, disseminate, rise awareness and increase acceptance for educational use of MUVEs among researchers, trainers, practitioners and multipliers in Europe.

MobiBlog (EU)

The main aim of Mobiblog is to provide a new service for European mobile students with following main objectives and activities:

(A) To provide a multi-institutional, web-based, bottom-up but well-structured and multi-lingual service on European level for peer-to-peer exchange of experiences of individual mobile students in a weblog area containing all aspects of mobile studies like motivation, social issues, communication and cultural issues apart from organisational and administrative problems and how students overcame these obstacles and barriers.
(B) To develop a structured and comprehensive online guide for the target topic which will be connected in both directions by multiple hyperlinks with the weblog area.
(C) To build up a network of universities in Europe to adopt the service developed into their portfolio of services for mobile students, to encourage them to use the Mobiblog service within their portfolio of services for mobile students, to replace existing single-institutional and paper-based services and to integrate Mobiblog to existing virtual campuses.

RedGloo (CCMS)

An ELGG based community, supporting students and staff, from the School of Systems Engineering, in achieving their goals and ambitions.

Learning Landscape (CCMS)

Preparing students for their future careers and lifelong-learning in the digital-world is central to this project.
This project will use the User and Innovation Development Model to produce the design of a Learning Landscape for the whole university, concentrating on functionality related to career skills. The Learning Landscape will provide an environment for informal-learning that will help prepare our students for their future careers and lifelong-learning; students will be given the opportunity to develop skill and competencies that they will need to function in the digital world of the coming decades.
The project will engage all stakeholders in the design process to ensure what is produced complements existing provision and is fit-for-purpose. We will identify stakeholders from staff and students from all Faculties and from beyond the university through traditional channels and social networking channels. The project will build on the work of an earlier CCMS fellowship (RedGloo) and will complement the work of the JISC-funded MeAggregator project.

Image Farm (KTP)

Developing an integrated Management Information System (MIS) to facilitate business forecasting, stock control, quality control and production planning.

CoP3D (TLDF)

A University of Reading based Community of Practice to Explore the Potential of Multi User Virtual Environments (3D Web).

Current Group Members are:
Shirley Williams
Richard Connor
Richard Hussey
Mike Evans
Sarah Fleming
Patrick Hathway
Karsten Lundqvist
Pat Parslow
Edwin Porter-Daniels

Odin Lab