iBeacon is an interesting piece of technology that we’ve seen applied to a variety of scenarios, such as to help enhance the shopping experience and applied even for gaming. Now it seems that the use of iBeacon could be applied towards education where it will be used in the New Museum in New York City on the 4th of April.
This is in conjunction with the UN’s International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action. Basically through the use of iBeacons, it will allow the exhibit to simulate the dangers of a virtual minefield and give museum goers a chance to experience what it might be like to live in parts of the world where mines can be found.
For those interested in checking it out, they would have to download an app called Sweeper that will be required in order for them to experience what the exhibit has to offer. According to the description, “Using iBeacon, a low energy Bluetooth technology to find a phone’s location, the Sweeper app detects transmitters hidden throughout the exhibit. When a person comes too close to a transmitter, it acts as a landmine and detonates, filling the user’s headphones with a jarring, visceral explosion followed by an audio testimony of someone’s actual experience.”
Most of us probably have no idea what it would be like to live our lives in a country where landmines are commonly hidden. According to the numbers, countries like Egypt have about 23 million landmines which are old and hard to locate, meaning that it is possible that anyone wandering about the Egyptian desert has a chance of stepping onto one.
With this exhibition, the UN will be trying to raise awareness about the issue and will also be accepting $5 donations that will go towards their course, so if you have some time to spare between 11am to 3pm on the 4th of April, perhaps this is something worth checking out.
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