With 79 experiences, including performances, demonstrations, expo-style exhibits, and a panel discussion, ICAT Creativity and Innovation Day showcases Virginia Tech’s latest innovations combining science, engineering, arts, and design.

Presented by the Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology (ICAT), the event will be held April 30 throughout the Moss Arts Center at 190 Alumni Mall. All events are free and open to the public.

Now in its sixth iteration, the theme for this year’s celebration of technology and transdisciplinary research is “Trace,” which can involve discovery through investigation, traveling a particular path or route, or indicating the existence of something.

Meet the faculty and students who are crossing traditional boundaries to develop new possibilities for exploration, expression, and creativity and learn more about their work through interactive exhibits and demonstrations. Featuring research from faculty and students representing seven of Virginia Tech’s colleges and five of its research institutes, exhibits will be available from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Projects created by students who participated in the Virginia High School Creativity and Innovation Summit will be available from 11 a.m. to noon in the Balcony Lobby.

Experience immersive technologies in the Cube, a four-story, high-tech laboratory used for research, immersive environments, performance, and audio and visual installations. The Cube will be open to the public and feature opportunities for fossil digging, watching sideways 3-D printing, playing an interactive game, and experiencing the Cyclorama, a massive 360-degree cylindrical projection screen suspended from the ceiling that provides immersive experiences for large groups of people.

Panel discussion, “Traces of Human Connection”

A panel discussion, “Traces of Human Connection,” will be held at 10 a.m. on April 30, in the Moss Arts Center’s Anne and Ellen Fife Theatre, located in the Street and Davis Performance Hall. Transdisciplinary research and exploration are the core of ICAT’s work. For this discussion, researchers will reflect on the processes of building transdisciplinary teams and share their expertise on leveraging ICAT resources, using technology in the Cube, and discovering new ways to measure human connections.

Facilitated by Kari Zacharias, an ICAT graduate assistant and doctoral candidate in the Department of Science, Technology, and Society at Virginia Tech, the panel will feature Katie Biddle, a licensed professional counselor and registered expressive arts therapist who currently serves as coordinator of the Dr. Robert L. A. Keeley Healing Arts Program at Carilion Clinic; Robin Queen, an associate professor of biomedical engineering and mechanics at Virginia Tech and director of the Kevin P. Granata Biomechanics Laboratory; and Nicole Abaid, an assistant professor of bioengineering and mechanics at Virginia Tech.

Outdoor projection mapping show

In conjunction with ICAT Creativity and Innovation Day, a projection mapping show will be displayed on the side of the Moss Arts Center building (facing Pearson and Shanks Halls) on April 30 through May 2, from 7:45 until 10 p.m. each evening.

ICAT: Open (at the) Source exhibition

The latest exhibition in the ICAT: Open (at the) Source series, “Trace,” features three interdisciplinary sound-based projects by Virginia Tech faculty, researchers, and collaborators. The exhibition opens on ICAT Creativity and Innovation Day and will be on display until June 9 in the Moss Arts Center’s Francis T. Eck Exhibition Corridor.

Parking is available in the North End Parking Garage on Turner Street. Virginia Tech faculty and staff possessing a valid Virginia Tech parking permit can enter and exit the garage free of charge. Limited street parking is also available. Parking on Alumni Mall is free on weekdays after 5 p.m. and on weekends.

If you are an individual with a disability and desire an accommodation, please contact Kacy McAllister at 540-231-5300 or email kacy@vt.edu during regular business hours.

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