In cooperation with the Instructional Technology Group (ITG) and the Student Technology Collaborative (STC), the Yale University Library has added the futuristic eyewear, Google Glass—unofficially dubbed “Yale Bass Glass” – to its collection of media devices at the Bass Library. As the group plans for general use of the technology in the fall semester, faculty and student groups are encouraged to contact the collaborative during the spring semester with their ideas to explore the potential of Google Glass in enhancing classroom instruction and the research experience.
Google Glass is a wearable computer with an augmented reality visual display that is being developed by Google[x], Google’s experimental lab. Early last year, Google launched a search for early adopters to test Google Glass, asking the public to post a short message on Twitter or Google+ detailing what they’d do if they had access to the device. Tom Bruno, Associate Director for Resource Sharing and Reserves, along with Director of Access Services, Brad Warren, reached out to colleagues in the ITG and STC asking them if they’d be interested in a joint program to develop and use Glass in a library and classroom setting. In determining who to partner with, Warren stated, “with previous successes such as the class set iPad program, Bass Media Lab, and other initiatives, this partnership to explore the potential of Google Glass with ITG and STC is a good fit.”
Bruno and other Access Services staff will also be working with Library IT to help develop library-specific uses for the new technology, such as a “first-person scanner” Scan and Deliver application which would allow library staff to fulfill patron scanning requests directly from the library stacks, as well as using Google Glass to assist library patrons with disabilities.
For further information about the Google Glass project at the Library, please contact bassmedia@yale.edu