Iowa Magazine - Vitality

>> Announcer: THE FOLLOWING PROGRAM IS A SPECIAL PRESENTATION OF THE BIG TEN NETWORK, PRODUCED IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA. COMING UP IN THIS EPISODE -- A WORLD-CLASS QUARTET CELEBRATES 10 YEARS AT IOWA. TURNING INFORMATION INTO KNOWLEDGE -- INFORMATICS AT IOWA. PREDICTING THE FUTURE IN THE IOWA ELECTRONIC MARKETS. AND THE FUTURE OF FLIGHT TRAINING AT THE OPERATOR PERFORMANCE LAB. NEXT, ON "IOWA MAGAZINE." THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA HAS A STRONG TRADITION IN PERFORMING ARTS, WITH WIDELY RESPECTED PROGRAMS IN THEATER, MUSIC, OPERA, AND DANCE. AT THE HEART OF U.I.'s THRIVING CLASSICAL MUSIC SCENE IS THE MAIA QUARTET. IN THE LAST DECADE, THE MAIA QUARTET HAS RECEIVED WIDE ACCLAIM -- RECORDING, PERFORMING AROUND THE WORLD, AND SERVING ON THE FACULTY OF THE U.I. SCHOOL OF MUSIC. >> WHEN I JOINED, INITIALLY I WAS KIND OF BLOWN AWAY BY THE BEAUTY OF THE SOUND. IT'S INTENSE AND DIFFICULT AND WONDERFUL ENOUGH TO BE ABLE TO PLAY INDIVIDUALLY. WHEN YOU STEP INTO A STRING QUARTET, THERE'S A WHOLE NEW SITUATION. >> I THINK FROM THE MOMENT WE ALL PLAYED TOGETHER, WE KIND OF KNEW -- WE WERE LIKE, "OH, THIS FEELS REALLY GOOD." IT WAS VERY EXCITING. >> Announcer: IN 10 YEARS AT IOWA, THE MAIA QUARTET HAS BEEN WIDELY RECOGNIZED FOR ITS INNOVATION AND VERSATILITY. >> WE'RE FOUR VERY DIFFERENT PERSONALITIES, AND THAT, I THINK, BRINGS A CERTAIN KIND OF FIRE AND INTEREST TO THE GROUP, AND ALSO FOR ANYBODY IN THE AUDIENCE, THERE'S PROBABLY SOMEBODY UP ONSTAGE THEY CAN RELATE TO. >> Announcer: ONE OF THE FOUNDING MEMBERS OF THE MAIA QUARTET, ELIZABETH HAS SEEN HER AUDIENCE GROW THROUGH THE YEARS. >> YOU KNOW, THE QUARTET IS ACTUALLY A VERY VISUALLY INTERESTING THING TO WATCH. THERE'S A LOT OF MOVEMENT. >> YOU SEE THE BEAUTY. THIS IS BEAUTIFUL -- TO WATCH THEM, TO FEEL THAT ENERGY, TO SEE THEM PLAY. THEY'RE DANCING. THEY'RE DANCING. THEY'RE MOVING. >> Announcer: INTERDISCIPLINARY WORKS ARE HELPING THE QUARTET CONNECT WITH NEW AUDIENCES. >> WE TRY TO REACH A WIDE ARRAY OF PEOPLE. I FEEL THAT SORT OF COMBINING MUSIC WITH DIFFERENT GENRES GIVES AN ENTRY POINT FOR A LOT OF DIFFERENT MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY. >> YOU KIND OF HAVE A BUILT-IN AUDIENCE OF PEOPLE THAT NORMALLY GO TO CONCERTS AND STUFF, AND THAT'S WHY IT WAS SO FUN FOR US TO DO THE DANCE GALA, BECAUSE I THINK A LOT MORE PEOPLE HEARD US THAN WOULD NORMALLY COME TO A MAIA QUARTET CONCERT. >> WE'RE ALSO VERY INTERESTED IN BUILDING YOUNGER AUDIENCES, SO WE GO INTO PLACES WHERE YOU WOULDN'T NORMALLY HEAR CLASSICAL MUSIC AND YOU CERTAINLY WOULDN'T HEAR STRING-QUARTET MUSIC. IT TEACHES US VERY DIRECTLY WHAT WE ALREADY KNOW, WHICH IS MUSIC IS A VERY UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE. >> Announcer: CONNECTING WITH YOUTH THROUGH MUSIC EDUCATION IS PART OF THE QUARTET'S MISSION AT IOWA. AT AN AFTERNOON LESSON, ZORAN COACHES A YOUNG ENSEMBLE. >> I LOVE TO TEACH IN THE AFTERNOON. PLAYING IN A STRING QUARTET, YOU ARE DEALING WITH HUMANITY ON THE MOST BASIC LEVEL. AND THE CHILDREN REPRESENT HUMANITY ON A VERY BASIC LEVEL. >> I THINK THE MORE YOU CAN KIND OF ARTICULATE SOMETHING AND TRY TO EXPLAIN IT, I THINK THAT JUST HELPS YOUR OWN PERFORMANCE AND BEING ABLE TO ANALYZE YOURSELF AND HOW THINGS WORK. >> Announcer: WITHIN THE QUARTET, EACH INSTRUMENTALIST HAS A DIFFERENT BUT EQUALLY IMPORTANT ROLE. >> THE VIOLA IS NOT THE MOST PROMINENT INSTRUMENT WHEN YOU GO TO A QUARTET CONCERT. IT'S MORE THE BEHIND-THE-SCENES PERSON THAT REALLY, IF THE JOB IS DONE WELL, HELPS MAKE THE MUSIC ALL THAT MUCH MORE COMPELLING AND INTERESTING. >> ALL THE INTRICATE PARTS THAT ARE SO IMPORTANT IN A STRING QUARTET HELPING THE INNER VOICES. >> Announcer: AS FIRST VIOLIN IN HIS PREVIOUS GROUP, ZORAN APPRECIATES THE CHALLENGES OF EACH ROLE. >> THE FIRST-VIOLIN PART IS DEFINITELY EXTREMELY DEMANDING. BECAUSE OF THAT, THEY CONCENTRATE A LOT MORE ON THEMSELVES, AND THEY NEED ALL THE HELP THEY CAN GET FROM UNDERNEATH. >> I FEEL LIKE A LOT OF THE KIND OF DRIVE AND ENERGY COMES FROM THE BOTTOM. WE KIND OF THINK OF OURSELVES LIKE RUSSIAN DOLLS A LITTLE BIT. LIKE, YOU HAVE TO KIND OF EACH ONE GET INSIDE THE BIGGER SOUND. >> Announcer: IN 2009, THE QUARTET CELEBRATES 10 YEARS IN RESIDENCE AT IOWA. WHILE THE FLOOD OF 2008 LEFT THE FUTURE OF U.I.'s PERFORMING ARTS FACILITIES UNCERTAIN, THE MAIA QUARTET AND ALL OF IOWA'S PERFORMING ARTISTS ARE FORGING AHEAD. >> YOU KNOW, WE'VE HAD TO BE VERY CREATIVE IN TERMS OF WHAT WE'RE DOING SPACE-WISE, PERFORMANCE-WISE. YOU KNOW, WE DON'T HAVE A VENUE. IT'S MADE ME, I GUESS, APPRECIATE WHAT PERFORMING HAS TAUGHT ME. YOU KNOW, WE CAN PLAY A CONCERT IN PRETTY MUCH ANY SPACE WE NEED TO. >> IN THIS SMALL, CONTAINED WAY, I LEARNED HOW TO BE A BETTER PERSON AND HOW TO BE A BETTER HUMAN BEING, HOW TO RELATE TO MY INSTRUMENT AND HOW TO RELATE TO OTHERS. >> YOU KNOW, FOR ME, PERSONALLY, THE JOY OF LIFE IS TO BE IN A SITUATION WHERE YOU'RE CONSTANTLY CHALLENGED TO LEARN AND TO GROW. >> Announcer: TO LEARN MORE ABOUT IOWA'S QUARTET IN RESIDENCE, VISIT maiaquartet.com. COMING UP... >> INFORMATION IS ONLY VALUABLE IF YOU CAN FIND IT. >> Announcer: ...INFORMATICS AT IOWA. >> Announcer: WE LIVE IN A WORLD OF INFORMATION. COMPUTERS, THE WEB, SEARCH ENGINES HAVE ALL BECOME AN INDISPENSABLE PART OF OUR DAILY LIVES AND HAVE TRANSFORMED THE WAY WE CREATE AND SHARE KNOWLEDGE -- IN EVERYTHING FROM EDUCATION, HEALTHCARE, AND BUSINESS TO MEDIA AND COMMUNICATIONS. INFORMATICS IS A FIELD OF STUDY AROUND THE ISSUES OF PEOPLE AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY. AND THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA'S GRADUATE PROGRAM IN INFORMATICS FOCUSES RESEARCH ON TRANSFORMING INFORMATION INTO KNOWLEDGE. >> INFORMATICS IS DRAMATICALLY IMPORTANT IN HOW WE APPROACH VERY COMPLEX PROBLEMS THAT FACE THE WORLD THESE DAYS. THE GENERATION OF NEW INFORMATION IN ALMOST EVERY DISCIPLINE IS SO VAST THAT WE NEED THE SKILLS AND THE EXPERTISE AND THE TECHNIQUES THAT INFORMATICS CAN BRING TO BEAR. >> Announcer: INFORMATICS IS ESSENTIALLY THE STUDY OF INFORMATION, TECHNOLOGY, AND PEOPLE. IN CONTRAST TO INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, INFORMATICS FOCUSES LESS ON THE TECHNOLOGY AND MORE ON INFORMATION. WORKING FROM A MULTITUDE OF DISCIPLINES, INFORMATICISTS APPLY I.T. AND COMPUTING TO REAL-WORLD PROBLEMS AND ISSUES. >> IT'S APPLIED COMPUTING. THAT'S BASICALLY IT. THE IDEA BEING THAT WE HAVE THIS INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF DATA WHICH IS EASY TO COLLECT, CHEAP, BUT PEOPLE DON'T NECESSARILY DO ANYTHING USEFUL WITH IT. TURNING THAT INTO ACTUAL KNOWLEDGE THAT YOU CAN DO SOMETHING WITH IS THE PART WHERE WE COME IN. >> Announcer: INFORMATICS COVERS A WIDE VARIETY OF RESEARCH, FROM PROGRAMMING AND DATABASE WORK TO INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE. >> INFORMATION IS ONLY VALUABLE IF YOU CAN FIND IT. IF GOOGLE GIVES YOU 75 MILLION RESULTS FOR SOMETHING, YOU'RE NOT GONNA LOOK AT 75 MILLION. YOU MIGHT LOOK AT THE FIRST 20, WHICH IS WHAT RESEARCH SHOWS, BUT THERE IS AN UNBELIEVABLE AMOUNT OF INFORMATION THERE. AND IT'S VERY VALUABLE INFORMATION. WHAT MY MAIN CONCERN IS, IS HOW TO MAKE THESE FINDING AIDS MORE USABLE. >> Announcer: INFORMATICS ALSO EXAMINES THE ALGORITHMS BEHIND FAMILIAR TOOLS LIKE SEARCH ENGINES. >> IN THE SETTING OF LIBRARY, YOU HAVE A LOT OF ACCESS POINTS. YOU CAN SEARCH BY AUTHOR. YOU CAN SEARCH BY SUBJECT. YOU CAN SEARCH BY PUBLISHER. SO THESE ARE THE INFORMATION THAT PEOPLE WILL SEARCH FOR, SO THAT'S ALSO PART OF THE INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE -- HOW YOU ORGANIZE THE INFORMATION SO THAT YOU CAN ACCESS IN AN EASIER WAY. >> YOU COLLECT A LOT OF SOURCE INFORMATION -- WHETHER IT'S POPULATION STUDIES, WHETHER IT'S JUST LARGE NUMBERS OF BLOOD-PRESSURE READINGS -- AND THEN YOU START USING MACHINE-LEARNING AND DATA-MINING TECHNIQUES TO JUST SEE IF YOU CAN DISCERN PATTERNS OUT OF THAT. >> Announcer: THE ABILITY TO EXTRACT USEFUL INFORMATION FROM VAST AMOUNTS OF DATA IS ESPECIALLY RELEVANT IN HEALTHCARE. >> THERE WAS A DRUG WHOSE CORRELATION TO MIDDLE-AGED MEN HAVING HEART ATTACKS SIX MONTHS LATER WAS ONLY DISCERNABLE BY ANALYZING LARGE AMOUNTS OF DATA. THE IDEA HERE IS THAT SOME OF THIS INFORMATION IS ONLY IDENTIFIABLE AS, EFFECTIVELY, AN INFORMATION-MINING EXERCISE. >> Announcer: BECAUSE OF IOWA'S STRENGTH IN THE MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES, THE INFORMATICS PROGRAM IS WELL SUITED FOR HEALTH INFORMATICS RESEARCH. >> MUCH OF MY WORK IS ABOUT STUDYING THE PROCESS AND OUTCOME OF HEALTHCARE. SO ON THIS MODEL OF MOVING DATA TO INFORMATION TO KNOWLEDGE, A LOT OF WHAT I PRODUCE FROM HEALTHCARE RECORDS FOR INSURANCE CLAIMS ARE USED TO INFORM CLINICIANS ABOUT WHAT ARE BETTER WAYS TO PRACTICE MEDICINE. >> Announcer: DESPITE RISING HEALTHCARE COSTS, THE U.S. STILL LEADS IN MEDICAL INNOVATION, AND WITH A NEW ADMINISTRATION INTENT ON MODERNIZING HEALTHCARE, IOWA'S INFORMATICS STUDENTS WILL PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN TOMORROW'S INFORMATION-CENTRIC WORLD. >> TO CREATE SYSTEMS THAT ALLOW US TO POOL DATA TOGETHER TO MAKE MORE INTELLIGENT DECISIONS -- THAT'S THE KIND OF PROBLEM THAT A HEALTH INFORMATICIST COMING THROUGH THIS PROGRAM CAN APPROACH AND HELP PEOPLE SOLVE. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT WORK. >> WE SPEND A LOT OF TIME, YOU KNOW -- "BRING IN YOUR OWN DATA SET. TELL ME WHAT YOU'RE INTERESTED IN, AND WE'LL SPEND THE SEMESTER ATTACKING IT AND PULLING KNOWLEDGE OUT OF IT." >> Announcer: IN ADDITION TO HEALTH INFORMATICS, IOWA'S COMMITMENT TO INTERDISCIPLINARY WORK MAKES THE U.I. AN IDEAL PLACE FOR MEANINGFUL RESEARCH IN THE FAST-GROWING FIELD. >> ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE ARE PARTICULARLY STRONG AT THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA IS OUR INTERDISCIPLINARY WORK. SO WE USE THAT SORT OF PERSPECTIVE TO BRING TOGETHER THE STRENGTHS OF INDIVIDUALS WITH A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT EXPERIENCES, TECHNIQUES, SKILLS, EXPERTISE, DISCIPLINARY INTERESTS TO ADDRESS VARIOUS QUESTIONS THAT ARE OF CURRENT INTEREST IN THE WORLD. >> SCIENCE THESE DAYS IS NOT REALLY SILOED. SCIENCE IS DRAMATICALLY INTERDISCIPLINARY, AND BECAUSE OF THAT, I THINK THE IOWA GRADUATE PROGRAM IN INFORMATICS IS TRULY WELL POSITIONED TO BECOME A LEADER IN THIS AREA. >> Announcer: TO LEARN MORE ABOUT INFORMATICS AT IOWA, VISIT grad.uiowa.edu. COMING UP -- PREDICTING THE FUTURE WITH THE IOWA ELECTRONIC MARKETS. >> WE'RE SORT OF AT THE CUTTING EDGE OF FORECASTING. >> WE ARE THE FORECASTING WORLD. >> Announcer: PREDICTING THE FUTURE IS A DIFFICULT TASK, BUT IN THE BUSINESS WORLD WE TRY WITH A MARKET KNOWN AS THE FUTURES EXCHANGE -- ESSENTIALLY FORECASTING WHAT THE PRICES OF VALUABLE COMMODITIES WILL BE IN THE FUTURE. BUT WHAT IF THE FUTURES-MARKET CONCEPT WAS APPLIED TO REAL-LIFE EVENTS? AT THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA, RESEARCHERS HAVE DONE EXACTLY THAT WITH AN INNOVATIVE PROJECT CALLED THE IOWA ELECTRONIC MARKETS. THE IEM, AS IT IS KNOWN, IS A GROUP OF ONLINE FUTURES MARKETS OPERATED BY THE TIPPIE COLLEGE OF BUSINESS. LIKE AN ACTUAL EXCHANGE, THE IEM ALLOWS PARTICIPANTS TO TRADE STANDARDIZED FUTURES CONTRACTS -- AGREEMENTS TO BUY OR SELL A COMMODITY AT A POINT IN THE FUTURE FOR A SET PRICE. INSTEAD OF COMMODITIES, CONTRACTS IN THE IEM ARE BASED ON REAL-WORLD EVENTS LIKE CORPORATE EARNINGS, STOCK-PRICE RETURNS, AND, OF COURSE, ELECTIONS. PROFESSOR TOM RIETZ IS ONE OF THE RESEARCHERS OPERATING THE IOWA ELECTRONIC MARKETS. >> THE WAY WE STRUCTURE THE FUTURES MARKETS IN THE IEM IS WE SAY, "WELL, IN NOVEMBER, THERE'LL BE AN ELECTION. AND THAT ELECTION WILL RESULT IN A WINNER, AND THERE WILL BE A POPULAR VOTE SPLIT BETWEEN THE TWO." SO WE JUST TRADE A CONTRACT THAT PAYS OFF IN NOVEMBER, JUST LIKE A CORN-FUTURES CONTRACT WILL PAY OFF IN NOVEMBER, EXCEPT OURS ARE TIED TO THE ELECTION OUTCOME. >> Announcer: IN THE 2008 ELECTION, THE IEM PREDICTED THE FINAL VOTE COUNT TO WITHIN HALF A PERCENTAGE POINT. IN COMPARISON TO MORE THAN 900 POLLS OVER THE LAST TWO DECADES, THE IEM HAS BEEN CLOSER TO THE ACTUAL OUTCOME 74% OF THE TIME. IOWA'S POLITICAL SCIENCE DEPARTMENT, WHICH PIONEERED ELECTION FORECASTING, ACKNOWLEDGES THE ACCURACY OF THE IEM. >> IT'S A MARKET STRATEGY. IT'S A TRADING MARKET. NOW THERE'S MORE THAN ONE. THE IEM WAS THE FIRST. IT'S THE BEST. YOU TAKE THE FINAL IEM FORECAST, THE FINAL GALLUP FORECAST -- THE IEM IS BETTER. >> Announcer: WHILE THE IEM WOULD APPEAR MORE ACCURATE THAN POLLS, IOWA SCHOLARS BELIEVE POLLS CAN BE MISINTERPRETED. >> POLLSTERS ARE TRYING TO MEASURE CURRENT OPINION AND THE EBB AND FLOW OF CURRENT OPINION THROUGH TIME. THEY'RE NOT NECESSARILY TRYING TO FORECAST THE ELECTION. >> POLLS ARE REALLY VOLATILE. AND THAT VOLATILITY IS ARTIFACTUAL. IT'S NOT REAL. IT'S REALLY NOT PUBLIC OPINION IS CHANGING THAT MUCH EVERY DAY. >> Announcer: RESEARCHERS POINT TO THE WAY THE PREDICTION MARKETS AGGREGATE TRADER INFORMATION AS ONE REASON FOR THEIR ACCURACY. >> THE NICE THING ABOUT THE ELECTION MARKET THAT WE RUN IS THAT THERE'S SORT OF AN AUTOMATIC MECHANISM FOR GETTING RID OF BIASES. IF A TRADER COMES INTO OUR MARKET AND THEY'RE HEAVILY BIASED, WHAT THEY TYPICALLY DO IS THEY COME IN AND THEY SPEND THEIR ENTIRE BUDGET ON THAT CANDIDATE'S CONTRACTS, AND THEN THEY HOLD THEM UNTIL THE ELECTION. SINCE THEY'VE STOPPED TRADING, THEY'VE STOPPED SETTING THE MARKET PRICES THAT WE USE AS OUR FORECAST. WHAT WE'VE NOTICED IS THAT THE PEOPLE THAT BUY AND SELL CONTINUOUSLY, THAT ARE ALWAYS SETTING BIDS AND ASKS, THAT ARE TRADING BACK AND FORTH TEND TO BE UNBIASED. >> Announcer: CURT HUNTER, DEAN OF THE TIPPIE COLLEGE OF BUSINESS AT IOWA, SAYS THE PROMISE OF THE IEM GOES FAR BEYOND POLITICAL FORECASTING. >> THESE MARKETS ARE REALLY INTERESTING BECAUSE THEY ELICIT INFORMATION THAT YOU WOULD NOT NORMALLY GET BY JUST TAKING A POLL. WE'RE NOT EVEN AWARE OF ALL THE APPLICATIONS THAT THESE MARKETS COULD HAVE. >> WE'RE WORKING IN A VARIETY OF AREAS -- REVENUES OF NEW PRODUCTS, THE FLU, ELECTIONS. WE'VE EVEN RUN MARKETS ON WHERE HURRICANES WILL STRIKE. WE'RE SORT OF AT THE CUTTING EDGE OF FORECASTING. >> Announcer: WITH A 20-YEAR HISTORY, THE IEM IS AN ENDURING SYMBOL OF IOWA'S STRENGTHS IN FINANCE, ECONOMICS, AND POLITICAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES. >> IT WAS A NATURAL THING FOR US. I MEAN, THIS IS WHERE GALLUP DID HIS TRAINING. THIS IS SORT OF THE ORIGIN OF SCIENTIFIC POLLING. >> WE ARE THE FORECASTING WORLD. IF YOU WANT TO STUDY THIS, THIS IS THE PLACE TO COME. >> Announcer: TODAY THE IEM CONTINUES TO BE A VALUABLE TEACHING AND RESEARCH TOOL. >> AT A BASIC LEVEL, THIS REALLY ENGAGES THE STUDENTS. >> IT ALLOWS US TO USE IT AS A TEACHING TOOL, WHERE WE CAN BRING TOGETHER OUR STUDENTS AND OUR FACULTY AROUND THESE DIFFERENT EVENTS TO TALK ABOUT HOW YOU MIGHT FORECAST IN A MORE INFORMATIVE AND ACCURATE WAY. SO THIS RELATES TO OUR MISSION AS A COLLEGE IN INTEGRITY, INNOVATION, AND IMPACT, AND I THINK THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF AN APPLICATION COMING OUT OF THE COLLEGE THAT HITS IT ON ALL THREE LEVELS. >> Announcer: TO LEARN MORE ABOUT TIPPIE COLLEGE OF BUSINESS AND THE IOWA ELECTRONIC MARKETS, VISIT biz.uiowa.edu/iem. COMING UP -- THE FUTURE OF FLIGHT SIMULATION. >> THE WORLD IS BECOMING MORE VIRTUAL. >> WE ARE TRYING TO MAKE AIRPLANES BECOME FLIGHT SIMULATORS. >> Announcer: FLIGHT TRAINING IS A COMPLICATED SCIENCE AND A FIELD THAT IS CONSTANTLY EVOLVING. YOU CAN TRAIN PILOTS IN A FLIGHT SIMULATOR, OR YOU CAN DO IT IN A REAL AIRPLANE. WHERE A FLIGHT SIMULATOR IS SAFE, FLEXIBLE, AND RELATIVELY INEXPENSIVE TO DEPLOY, IT LACKS REALISM. ON THE OTHER HAND, LIVE TRAINING, WHILE IDEAL FOR MANY REASONS, HAS GREATER RISK, IS EXPENSIVE, AND TIME-CONSUMING. FOR TOM SCHNELL'S TEAM AT THE OPERATOR PERFORMANCE LABORATORY, THE FUTURE OF FLIGHT TRAINING MAY LIE IN HARNESSING THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS. >> WE ACTUALLY DON'T TRY TO MAKE FLIGHT SIMULATORS BE MORE AND MORE LIKE THE AIRPLANE. IN FACT, WE ARE TRYING TO MAKE AIRPLANES BECOME, IN ADDITION TO BEING AIRPLANES, ALSO FLIGHT SIMULATORS. >> Announcer: THE SYSTEM TOM'S GROUP IS DEVELOPING USES A RELATIVELY NEW MODEL KNOWN AS LIVE-VIRTUAL-CONSTRUCTIVE. "LIVE" IN THAT IS A REAL AIRPLANE, "VIRTUAL" REFERRING TO THE SIMULATORS, AND "CONSTRUCTIVE" TO DESCRIBE THE GAME-LIKE ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH THESE COMPONENTS INTERACT. >> THIS AIRPLANE FLIES AROUND IN AIRSPACE HERE IN IOWA. IN THE BACKSEAT OF THAT AIRPLANE IS A COCKPIT, A CREW STATION, THAT IS ESSENTIALLY A SIMULATOR -- A FLIGHT SIMULATOR THAT FLIES ALONG WITH THE REAL AIRPLANE. >> Announcer: IN CONJUNCTION WITH THIS FLYING FLIGHT SIMULATOR, THE LAB HAS A CONTROL STATION AND SEVERAL GROUND-BASED FLIGHT SIMULATORS. ALL OF THE ASSETS ARE CONNECTED BY DATA LINK, ALLOWING THEM TO COLLABORATE IN UNISON IN A SIMULATED MISSION. >> WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH IS MIMIC EVERYTHING THAT YOU WOULD SEE IN A REAL AIRPLANE AS YOU WOULD FLY IT IN-THEATER. SO YOU MIGHT BE IN THE REAL AIRPLANE FLYING IN IOWA, BUT ACTUALLY, WHAT THE PILOT OPERATING THE BACKSEAT CONTROLS WOULD SEE WOULD BE A SCENARIO IN CALIFORNIA, FLYING THROUGH THE MOJAVE DESERT OR MOUNTAIN RANGES OUT THERE. >> Announcer: THE LIVE-VIRTUAL-CONSTRUCTIVE PROJECT IS SUPPORTED BY ROCKWELL COLLINS, WHO PARTNER WITH THE OPERATOR PERFORMANCE LAB FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT. >> WE NEED TO BALANCE HOW MUCH TRADITIONAL DEVELOPMENT WE DO, HOW MUCH TRADITIONAL SCIENCE WE DO, AND HOW MUCH DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGY WE INVESTIGATE. AND THAT MEANS THAT WE GO AND LOOK FOR SOMETHING VERY UNTRADITIONAL. >> Announcer: SCHNELL'S SIMULATION RESEARCH IS INNOVATIVE IN THAT IT FOCUSES QUALITY OF TRAINING USING VARIOUS HUMAN METRICS. >> WE'RE NOT JUST TRYING TO BUILD A FANCY SIMULATOR INVOLVING A REAL AIRPLANE, BUT WE'RE ACTUALLY UNIQUE IN THE SENSE THAT WE MEASURE PHYSIOLOGICAL AND NEUROCOGNITIVE SIGNALS ON THE PILOT WHILE THAT PILOT IS PERFORMING A SIMULATED MISSION IN THE REAL AIRPLANE. >> WITH THOSE, WE DEVELOP ALGORITHMS THAT TAKE THAT INFORMATION AND GIVES US A SENSE OF HOW HIGH THE PILOT'S WORKLOAD IS, HOW STRESSED, HOW FATIGUED THE PILOT IS. AND WITH THAT, WE HAVE A BETTER SENSE OF WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THE PILOT, AND WE'RE ABLE TO BETTER DESIGN THE MACHINE AROUND THAT TO BETTER SUIT THE PILOT'S NEEDS. >> Announcer: LIVE-VIRTUAL-CONSTRUCTIVE IS JUST ONE OF MANY INNOVATIVE PROJECTS AT THE OPERATOR PERFORMANCE LAB, WHICH APPLIES HUMAN-FACTORS RESEARCH TO DESIGN AND EVALUATE A WIDE ARRAY OF TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS. >> ACADEMICALLY, I THINK THIS IS A VERY UNIQUE PROGRAM IN THAT IT INVOLVES UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS, GRADUATE STUDENTS, AND STAFF ALL WORKING ON A RELATIVELY CHALLENGING GOAL. WE HAVE TO LEARN HOW TO WORK WITH SOME REAL SERIOUS CONSTRAINTS, AND STUDENTS WHO PERFORM WELL IN THIS TYPE OF ENVIRONMENT WILL HAVE NO PROBLEM FINDING POSITIONS THAT WILL SATISFY THEM FOR A LIFETIME OF ENGINEERING-RELATED WORK. >> Announcer: WHILE LIVE-VIRTUAL-CONSTRUCTIVE IS PROMISING, SCHNELL SAYS THEIR RESEARCH IS STILL EVOLVING. >> THERE'S A LOT OF WORK AHEAD OF US. CLEARLY THE SYSTEMS THAT WE HAVE ARE RESEARCH SYSTEMS. THEY ARE NOT NECESSARILY BASED ON REAL AVIONICS, AND AS WE START TO LEARN HOW YOU MAKE A FLYING FLIGHT SIMULATOR, IN ESSENCE, THAT WILL EVENTUALLY BE MIGRATED TO REAL AVIONICS THAT CAN BE INSTALLED IN REAL AIRPLANES, AND, OF COURSE, THAT'S WHY WE COLLABORATE WITH ROCKWELL COLLINS. >> THE WORLD IS BECOMING MORE VIRTUAL, AND OUR NEXT STEP IS TO CREATE THESE VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS, TO CREATE THESE GAME-LIKE ENVIRONMENTS NOT JUST FOR A SINGLE PILOT, BUT TO CREATE A COMPLETE SOLUTION SO YOU CAN TRAIN MULTIPLE PEOPLE. YOU CAN CLOSE THE GAP BETWEEN THE REAL WORLD AND THE SIMULATED WORLD. >> I WOULD SAY THAT WE ARE AT THE VERY BEGINNING OF AN EMERGING SUBJECT-MATTER AREA CALLED LIVE-VIRTUAL-CONSTRUCTIVE SIMULATION AND TRAINING. >> Announcer: WHILE THE OPERATOR PERFORMANCE LAB IS A HARDWORKING GROUP, IT'S CLEAR THESE ENGINEERS AND PILOTS ENJOY WHAT THEY DO. >> I REALLY ENJOY THE SCIENTIFIC ASPECT OF BEING ABLE TO DEVELOP SOMETHING NEW THAT HASN'T BEEN DONE BEFORE, SO I FIND THAT TO BE QUITE EXCITING. OBVIOUSLY, THE JET'S AN AWESOME PLATFORM. HOW MANY PEOPLE GET TO WORK ON SOMETHING LIKE THAT? WE HAVE MANY DIFFERENT AIRCRAFT THAT WE USE, SO IT'S BEEN A VERY EXCITING RESEARCH AREA FOR ME. >> AS MUCH AS IT'S A RESEARCH PLATFORM, IT'S ALSO A LOT OF FUN TO SIT IN THE BACK. GETTING TO GO FLY IN THIS JET IS A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY THAT YOU DON'T REALLY GET TO DO, THAT I CAN THINK OF, ANYWHERE ELSE. >> I'M A PILOT, SO TO ME, ANY TIME SPENT IN A COCKPIT IS SORT OF NOT DEDUCTED FROM YOUR LIFE-SPAN. -- Captions by VITAC -- www.vitac.com >> Announcer: THE PRECEDING PROGRAM WAS PRODUCED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE BIG TEN NETWORK.