CS 5754: Virtual Environments

 

Announcements & syllabus

Schedule

Projects

    Proposal

    Literature review

    IRB information

    List of current projects

    Presentations

    Final report

Participation

Discussions

Final Exam

 

IRB information

If a student project involves any sort of evaluation or experiment in which human subjects will be used (even a small user study), the project must be submitted to the Institutional Review Board (IRB) for approval. No exceptions will be made to this policy.

Teams should apply for an expedited review, or potentially an exemption from IRB review. Most of the evaluations in this class will be eligible for expedited review, but not exemption. If your study involves any type of immersive virtual environment technology (CAVE, HMD, workbench, etc.), then it fits under the expedited category (because the possible cybersickness is a minimal risk to the subjects). If your project involves any other type of risk to human subjects or involves a potential "at-risk" population (children, senior citizens, disabled, etc.), you will need to request an expedited review.

Projects that do not involve immersive VEs, any other type of risk, or at-risk populations, such as studies of adults using desktop computers, are eligible for exemption.

See this page for full IRB information. Download the appropriate form and fill it out. Dr. Bowman should be listed as the faculty advisor on all projects, and the form will also require Dr. Bowman's signature.

Documents you may need in addition to the forms from the IRB site:

  • Biographical sketches (here's Dr. Bowman's bio sketch in MS Word format)
  • Forms to be used in the experiment (instructions, questionnaires, surveys, etc.) (here's an example in MS Word format)
  • Advertisements you will use to recruit subjects
  • Informed consent form (needed for expedited projects, but not exempted projects) (here's an example in MS Word format)

You are encouraged to complete the submission process as early as possible in order to receive approval in time to run your study. Send any questions to bowman@vt.edu.