Shreek Mandayam to discuss virtual reality during Alpha Chi Distinguished Lecture

Shreek Mandayam, professor of electrical and computer engineering at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey, will deliver the seventh annual Alpha Chi Distinguished Lecture at Texas State University Monday, Feb. 28.

Mandayam will present, "Virtual Reality: Gateway to the Metaverse," at noon in the Performing Arts Center Recital Hall. The event is free and open to the public.

A convergence of affordable hardware, current events and decades of research have advanced virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) from the research lab into the commercial marketplace. With VR now accessible in the home and the isolationist lifestyle adopted due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, VR is now viewed as a potential tool to enhance remote education. Drawing upon more than 25 years of experience across numerous VR applications, this presentation examines the how VR and AR technologies have transformed engineering, design, education, art and entertainment.

Mandayam, who will join Texas State on July 1 as the university's chief research officer, is the founder and lead investigator of Rowan University’s Virtual Reality Center. He has held previous appointments at the institution as the vice president for research and executive director of the South Jersey Technology Park. He has also served as senior research associate at NASA's Stennis Space Center and a research consultant at GE Global Research. Mandayam holds a bachelor of engineering degree with a major in electronics engineering from Bangalore University in India, along with his M.S. and Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Iowa State University.

The event is sponsored by Alpha Chi Honor Society, TXST IDEA Center and TXST Generación STEM.

For more information, email gen_stem@txstate.edu or call (512) 245-7353.