Grant Thomson and Megan McGurk from the University of Strathclyde on bringing research to life through digital storytelling.

The Images of Research competition has come on by leaps and bounds since its launch in 2012.

This is evidenced through its continuous adaptations each year, and new for 2015 is the use of augmented reality technology. The Images of Research competition of 2015 has been the biggest since previous years as we challenged our entrants to use new technology to develop their digital stories. Digital storytelling enhances the entrant’s image by providing engaging information to the viewer of the exhibition. Through the use of the app “Aurasma”, entrants were able to create and share a digital story which explained the importance and relevance of their work. With your smartphone or tablet, all you have to do is hold your device up to the image, using the “Aurasma” app, and the video created by the entrant will start to play. It is incredible to see these still images come to life with a fascinating story and visually effective video.

With the help of Chris Thomson from Jisc, entrants were able to attend digital story telling workshops in order to understand how to best develop and present their stories. You can watch the entries for the “Aurasma” videos here and see for yourself the quality of the entrant’s digital story.

The success of the stories has been greatly received. The University of Strathclyde has been shortlisted for the Herald Higher Education Awards under the Innovation Technology Excellence Award supported by Jisc. This is a great achievement and honour for Images of Research and the University of Strathclyde.

The awards evening will take place on Thursday, July 16th at the Grand Central Hotel. More information on the prize giving can be found here. The University of Strathclyde and the Images of Research team look forward to the results of the Herald Higher Education Awards and implores you to attend our touring exhibition in and around Glasgow.

Images and digital stories from the 2015 competition will be on display in:

  • the Glasgow Science Centre at the Riverside Panels from August 2015;
  • the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum from December 2015; and
  • the People’s Palace from January 2016.

Please go to our website for more information.

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