Local Tech Wire

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. – , one of the earliest pioneers in 3-D technology for the Internet and web, will be the guest speaker for Local Tech Wire’s Executive Exchange event on July 28.

Dr. Lombardi, a developer and creator of virtual worlds, will make an in-depth presentation about “The Immersive Internet.”

Dr. Lombardi is filling in for fellow Duke Professor Dr. Tony O’Driscoll, who is unable to speak due to an unexpected conflict.

“I can’t tell you how pleased I am to have Dr. Lombardi presenting about what certainly is the next big thing for the Internet – the blend of virtual worlds and 3-D technology in a truly immersive involvement,” said Rick Smith, editor and co-founder of Local Tech Wire.

“We regret that Tony can’t be with us, but he recommends Dr. Lombardi quite highly. ‘If there is one person in the Triangle I would want to hear talk about the Immersive Internet, it’s Julian,’” Tony told me when he said he could not speak on the 28th.

Dr. Lombardi founded and serviced as chief creative officer at VIOS, a venture-backed 3-D software technology firm. VIOS created one of the first online virtual worlds.

He currently is assistant vice president with Duke’s Office of Information Technology and is a research scholar with the Duke ISIS [Information Science plus Information Studies] program. Additionally, he is an adjunct faculty member in Duke’s Department of Computer Science.

In 2002-2005, Dr. Lombardi managed an educational software R&D program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

His current research is focused on the design of computational systems that support deep collaboration and resource sharing across very large numbers of users. The research program to develop open source tools for constructing, accessing, and sharing hyperlinked virtual workspaces for research and education has received major support from the Japanese National Institute of Communications Technology (NICT), the National Science Foundation, and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Dr. Lombardi also teaches about virtual worlds at Duke.

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