UA’s Virtual Sandbox Lets Kids, Adults Learn about Hydrological Processes

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Dr. Sagy Cohen, an assistant professor of geography at The University of Alabama, who specializes in global hydrology, has completed the creation of an augmented reality sandbox, which is on exhibit at the Alabama Museum of Natural History on campus.

Through a National Science Foundation grant, Cohen built an educational tool that allows kids and adults to interactively create topographic features and generate “virtual” rain that flows downstream, teaching them about topographic mapping and hydrological processes.