Project Research
Exploring Novelty and Discovery in Anatomical Learning via Interactive Models of the Celiac Trunk
This project was completed as part of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Biomedical Visualization in the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Chicago, 2020.
Research Committee
John Daugherty, Chair and Advisor | MS, CMI, FAMI
Leah Lebowicz, Committee Member | MS, CMI
Alison Doubleday, Committee Member & Content Expert | PhD, Dept. of Oral & Diagnostic Sciences & Associate Professor of Gross Human Anatomy
Research Problem
Gross anatomy students learn best in the cadaver lab, but the lab isn’t always available. At home, students can turn to interactive anatomy applications to aid their understanding of 3D structure— but these are typically designed as visual references, not as substitutes for an in-lab learning experience.
Two major elements of the dissection experience are discovery and novelty.
Discovery learning theory, first outlined by psychologist Jerome Bruner, refers to the practice of learning through self-structured experience with minimal guidance. He found that this method helped students create their own sense of meaning within educational material and develop more confidence in their professional skills.
Novelty has been extensively studied by decades of neuroscientists due to its effects on attention and memory. Elements that are new or unfamiliar tend to encourage faster responses to problems and stronger neural firing, helping to commit information to long-term memory.
This study therefore posed the following questions: how can discovery and novelty be integrated into a 3D interactive anatomy application, and what are the best practices for doing so?
Solution
To examine these questions, an 3D interactive application focusing on the structure and supply of the celiac trunk was planned and developed. The celiac trunk became the focus of study in response to content advisor Dr. Doubleday’s experience in her gross anatomy lab — she had observed students struggling with retention of content and spatial organization related to this region. Furthermore, the abundance of natural variation in the structure of the celiac trunk provided a means of introducing novelty into the application.
Discovery learning theory would be employed by limiting user guidance beyond giving students a set of structures to find and click on. The user interface would also be kept clean, simple, and unobtrusive. Labels and information would not be available to students unless they uncovered and clicked a particular structure.
Novelty would be introduced by randomly instantiating a unique variation of the celiac trunk upon startup of the application. Four variations (see below) were included in this first phase of iterative design.
An original graphic demonstrating the celiac trunk variations used in the application.
First iteration of user interface design.
Final iteration of user interface design.
Beginning the asset creation process in ZBrush. Arteries were carefully drawn out and refined using the Curve Tube brush.
ZSphere armatures were created to map out complex structures like ligaments and organs with more convoluted shapes.
Finished appearance of models.
Final application layout and interface in Unity.