SST's Justin Keiser At Huge Tech Show

Justin Keiser, Support Services Librarian I, attended the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas in January to see what technological advances JPL might use.  He said, "The size of it was daunting: 50 football fields of exhibits where 170,000 people saw what future technologies will avail.  I went to a few education sessions and was reminded about an app called Elements4D.

"I looked at products and tried them out. I went to a few education sessions and was reminded about an app called Elements4D.
http://elements4d.daqri.com/
http://elements4d.daqri.com/documents/elements-blocks-all.pdf
It teaches chemistry using Augmented Reality. Print the six blocks and glue them together. The sides of the blocks correspond to an element. Put the app on a Smartphone or Tablet. It works with Apple or Android. Open the app and use the camera to "read" a side of the block. The block will turn into that element on the screen. Combine elements that react with one another like Hydrogen and Oxygen to make water.

"There is also an Anatomy4D app.  A trend I saw was 360 degree photography. The cameras are used for creating virtual reality. They are also what Google uses to create Street View in Google Maps. The library could create virtual tours using them with the click of a button. I purchased one of them. Take a look. https://theta360.com/s/gbS1r4nDw4lnJPOXwBmc2DBdg

"I used the 360 camera to upload library photos to Google Maps.  Folks all over the world can see inside the library.

"There were also lots and lots of drones. From what I've seen this is an area that libraries have not entered. If we had ad advanced model classes could be taught on flight, complying with the FAA, using it for photography, and I am sure, lots of other topics.

"If the library ever has a space for music creation, I saw a product that should be seriously considered. It was a company called Roli. https://roli.com/ First they have an app called noise. It is great by itself and there is a small keyboard that goes with the app called the Seaboard Rise. It is so much more than a keyboard though. The sounds that come from it are unlike anything that I had seen before. I was able to hear it played first hand and play it myself. It was a worthwhile experience.

"Ultimately, I went to the show with the mindset of trying out new technologies so we could get them for library customers to use. I came back with many ideas. If I had the opportunity to return, I would probably attend more conference sessions.

"As one can imagine, I was a bit overwhelmed as a first time attendee--with the size of the show, the enormity of exhibits, and the number of people at the show."