Photo by Curtis Ashley
By Curtis Ashley
City College students are feeling the pressure of final papers and exams now that there are two weeks left to the semester. With that in mind, the Entrepreneurship Club decided to treat their fellow classmates to a vacation — one that didn’t cost a single penny — with the power of virtual reality.
“They wanted all the students at City College to try virtual reality because it’s the new thing. I’m sure they’re aware of it, but they may have never experienced it,” Chelsi Ampang, Vice President of Events for the club, stated. “We just wanted to demo it, and let the students understand that this thing is cool, this thing is happening, and we want people to learn more about it.”
“Virtual reality is really an emerging field right now,”Mahmoud Khedr, Co-President of the club, said. “When you look at tech, entertainment, and education, VR is having a big impact on all of them.”
The event, which took place in the NAC Ballroom, featured three different virtual reality brands: Motoraux, Google Cardboard, and Concept VR. Attendees were played virtual reality games with the Motoraux, and Google Cardboard gave them the opportunity to look at virtual landscapes. The Entrepreneurship Club has different ideas in mind regarding the use of advanced technology for virtual reality.
“For education, you can use VR as a tool to help understand the human body. You can simulate that environment in the human body, and then people can learn more,” Ampang added.
“VR is going to take over education. It currently is. There are classes in more underprivileged communities getting a lot of support from Google Cardboard,” Khedr also shared.
Though the club is enthusiastic about the new technology, it’s going to take a while to get the rest of the school, along with the rest of the world, to follow suit. That said, they look to continue to raise awareness of virtual technology in the future.
“We’re planning for something much, much bigger in the fall. Hopefully Oculus will come here, an d many more firms,” Khedr said.
While finals are the only thing on the minds of most CCNY students at the moment, a virtual reality event at the school ought to be something that returning students can look forward to this upcoming school year.