Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
(c)
(d)
FIGURE 4.6 (continued)
Geovisualisation in Second Life. (c) RSS feed running on a text board, and
(d) Digital Earth with real-time weather data.
There are many tools one can use for the creation of virtual worlds such as from pre-built func-
tions within say Second Life to the importation of data from Google SketchUp (and buildings and
objects from Google Warehouse). For example, Figure 4.7 shows the creation of a building from
floor plans from Google SketchUp into OpenSim. Also as noted earlier, we can import digital
elevation models into virtual worlds to act as realistic terrain on which buildings can be placed.
Additionally, virtual worlds and game engines (e.g. CityScape, Unity, Crysis) allow one to import
road networks as shown in Figure 4.8, which can then be used to simulate traffic dynamics.
Combining the digital models with simulation models in a virtual world gives us unprecedented
power to understand, simulate, explore and visualise cities (Batty, 2001; Crooks et al., 2011). This
has potentially great benefits for urban design. Take, for instance, planners and architects who are
