A Realtime Underwater Visualization

[mpan3]

I had been lucky enough to be a part of a very cool project taking place at the Fisheries Centre at the University of British Columbia. In a nut shell, we are trying to create a 3D underwater visualization using the Blender Game Engine to display scientific data in a more pleasing way. Basically translating a stream of mind-numbing data into something prettier:



The visualization data is coming from EwE6, a well-respected ecosystem modeling software. Blender uses inputs such as biomass, water turbidity and light level to create a realtime visualization that allows the user to 'swim' around in the ocean, watch the schools of fish interact, and see their population change over time.

To accomplish all this, the project consists of 3 layers:

The server core does all the heavy computation while the visualization layer does all the graphics, AI, as well as user interaction. To facilitate the communication across these two separate processes, a third layer is created, providing the bridge.

Being Blender artists, Dalai Felinto (dfelinto) and I (Mike Pan, mpan3)'s main focus on the visualization layer: the Blender Game Engine.

This thread will hopefully answer some of the questions regarding this project.

We presented this project at the 2008 BLender conference You can find some slides and source files there.

[theorighammer]

Hello This is ERIC
I have noticed that your simulation does not include most of the impacts that the United States, fisheries, and most of the other main important factors into your project which makes your project have a very low percentage of accuracy. These other most crucial factors are for instance the recent sonar pings set off by an American aircraft carrier in Canadian waters which disrupts the whole of the aquatic ecosystem in general.
chances are that you will not include such obvious material so you can continue to falsify the real aspect of conducting a scientific study I see this all the time so that the information produced can mislead the public PLEASE DO NOT DO THIS it is aggravating to the people who have common sense.
If you are individuals who are willing to not be cohersed into what I consider illegal activities and studies you need to take the following into your project:
(1) United States overfishing in the British Columbia region.
(2) Destruction of natural habitats by corporate fishing industries.
(3) Disposal and introduction of new species from ballast water from cargo carrying ships.(most important).
(4) Improperly biologically engineered fish escaping into rivers and streams.
(5) Re population factors contributed by fisheries controlled by Environment Canada.
(6) Research of falsified statistics that are implemented to insure the productivity of corporate fisheries.

As a University it is your obligation to take these matters into consideration and not doing so will prove as it had been proved many times before that university studies are just some kind of promotion for companies who probably sponsored the project in the first place so they could just get what they want in terms of revenue or what ever.

I really hope you can open your eyes and do a legitimate project and do not take the bribe or payoff!

[khimcole]

Hi Guys!
I just read about this. I like it very much. I'll introduce this innovation to the institution where I work. We have projects regarding biodiversity both in aquatic and terrestrial environments. This is very good. Thanks guys!