Brazilian university USP to conduct academic research in the Metaverse

The University of Sao Paulo (USP), Brazil, will conduct research into the Metaverse in the coming months, according to its official website. The study will be led by parties among interested participants in 3D modeling, psychology and human behaviour, augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) devices. USP will ensure that these interests align with the technology concept to achieve full understanding on the effects on human interactions. The objective of the research is also to understand the potential of the Metaverse on education and how its potential can be unlocked to improve the effectiveness of education in the Metaverse. 

USP professor Marcos A. Simplicio Jr. said that this study is the first time USP received an NFT via partnership. The NFT is a rare piece of land in the United States of Mars (USM) Metaverse, which is being built alongside other prominent universities. 

‘USP is the first university in Latin America to have a partnership with USM to support the construction of its metaverse,’ said Simplicio.

The projects include studying how avatar customization can facilitate learning and used to teach complicated concepts. To start off, the partnership will feature a collaboration with researchers from a current agreement known as the University Blockchain Research Initiative (UBRI), which is funded by Ripple. 

The World Economic Forum (WEF) panelists voice support for the Metaverse

The partnership is in collaboration with different universities. In recent months, there has been a lot of excitement and buzz surrounding the Metaverse at the annual World Economic Forum. 

As reported by Cointelegraph, the opportunities in the Metaverse were discussed at ‘The possibilities of the Metaverse’ at WEF, which was concluded on Thursday. Panelists discussed important questions about how the Metaverse technologies can be used to improve children’s education and learning. The panelists included co-founder of High Fidelity, Phillip Rosedale; founder of Mindfire Foundation, Pascal Kaufmann; CEO of Magic Leap, Peggy Johnson;  assistant research professor at New York University, Abu Dhabi; and VP of Lego Group, Edward Lewin.

VP of Lego Group, Edward Lewin said, ‘One in three people using the internet are children and young adults, so I would want us to emphasize building from the perspective of kids, considering they’ll be the future users of the Metaverse and all other advanced technologies.’ 

He added that AR can change the way children gain knowledge in the present day, supporting his statement with an example of a volcano. He said that if children can learn about a volcano by reading a 2D book, they can see it in an AR environment to gain a clearer experience through two different experiences. 

‘It could be a brilliant way for learning for future generations,’ he said.

The University of Sao Paolo (USP) and the United States of Mars (USM), both rebranded from Radio Caca recently, announced a joint agreement that aims to promote research surrounding the technical, legal, and economic aspects of the Metaverse.

Photo: USP