{"id":1252,"date":"2019-07-01T08:00:24","date_gmt":"2019-07-01T07:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.exeter.ac.uk\/doctoralcollege\/?p=1252"},"modified":"2019-07-01T08:00:24","modified_gmt":"2019-07-01T07:00:24","slug":"abandoning-the-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.exeter.ac.uk\/doctoralcollege\/2019\/07\/01\/abandoning-the-plan\/","title":{"rendered":"Abandoning the plan"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Alex Smalley is a PhD Researcher at the University of Exeter. His research is exploring how immersive digital experiences of nature can impact wellbeing.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

My PhD is centred around asking \u201c<\/span>Can technologies like virtual reality bring the natural world to people in ways which benefit their mental health?<\/span><\/i>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

I think that\u2019s an important question to ask because whilst a decent body of evidence shows that spending time in nature can boost health and wellbeing, many people don\u2019t have access to the natural world when they might need it the most.<\/span><\/p>\n

For people in long term care, those recovering from major surgery, or workers in stressful jobs, contact with nature is often irregular, inadequate or impossible. And whilst immersive technologies give us a way to overcome these barriers, we understand very little about how to design and deliver truly restorative \u2018virtual nature\u2019 experiences.<\/span><\/p>\n

When I wrote my PhD proposal, I had a pretty tight plan for how it would unfold. I knew where the gaps in the literature were; which questions I wanted to ask; and the kinds of experiments I was likely to run.<\/span><\/p>\n

But 3 weeks before I was about to start, one meeting in Bristol changed everything.<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been <\/span>part of research<\/span><\/a> at the University of Exeter for several years, and had been collaborating with the BBC Natural History Unit on <\/span>another virtual reality project<\/span><\/a>. In September 2018 they began work with BBC Radio 4 to produce an ambitious new drama, and wanted to weave science and research throughout the programme.<\/span><\/p>\n

The new eco-thriller was going to explore our relationship with nature, and would focus on the sounds its protagonist encountered. It would also provide a unique \u20183 part offering\u2019, with each episode of the drama accompanied by a <\/span>science-based podcast<\/span><\/a> and an immersive soundscape; <\/span>Forest 404 was born<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The BBC wanted me to help with the science, but how could this fit with my research? Several creative discussions later, we decided to launch a national experiment alongside the drama, asking the British public to help us understand how people <\/span>respond to the sounds of nature<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n