Ahlam Muhtaseb (media studies) was interviewed for a feature on the “Phoenix of Gaza XR” project, David Yaghoubian (history) was a guest on “The Adnan Husain Show” to discuss the modern history of Iran, and Brian Levin (criminal justice, emeritus) was interviewed about the latest hate crime statistics.
“The Phoenix of Gaza XR,” a virtual reality endeavor developed by Ahlam Muhtaseb, professor of communication and media studies, and her former student, was the topic of discussion on podcasts by Trevor Noah and WGBH’s “Culture Show.”
Ahlam Muhtaseb (media studies) discussed the work of CSUSB alumnus Naim Aburaddi, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Colorado, Mihaela Popescu (communication studies) was interviewed for a white paper on the impact of the metaverse, Stuart Sumida (biology) commented on the auctioning of dinosaur fossils, and Bob Miller (public administration, adjunct) is being considered for a vacancy on the Yucaipa City Council.
Ahlam Muhtaseb, professor of media studies at CSUSB, has been awarded the prestigious 2024 Ida B. Wells Just Data Lab Summer Fellowship from Princeton University’s Department of African American Studies.
Mihaela Popescu (communication studies) discussed privacy and ethical considerations for extended reality settings, and an article by Meredith Conroy (political science) was cited in a column on whether a majority of young men will vote for Donald Trump.
Presented by The Phoenix of Gaza XR Team, with support from the Extended REALity for Learning (xREAL) Lab at CSUSB, the virtual event will take place at the Santos Manuel Student Union North on Monday, Feb. 12, and at the Faculty Center for Excellence, Pfau Library, on Tuesday, Feb. 13.
The experiences of refugees who survived the devastating earthquake that struck Syria and Turkey will be shown in 360-degree immersive footage captured by the panelists at the April 18 event, which will be presented virtually.
The CSUSB xReal Lab team hopes to not only raise awareness, but also increase empathy with the refugees in an attempt to increase humanitarian aid.
The virtual reality environment was introduced as part of the event, titled “Yesterday's Future: The Centuries-Long Quest For Virtual Reality,” hosted by the Annenberg Virtual Reality ColLABorative.