Rome Reborn has teamed up with Google Earth – I haven’t downloaded the layer yet (go to earth.google.com/rome – and it looks great. I’d still like to do it embodied in an avatar, but swooping spirit-like through the empty streets of Rome is great too! So what’s in there? According to the Rome Reborn site,
To date, the Rome Reborn Project has modeled 32 buildings and monuments of the ca. 200 in Class I. These include the 22 buildings and monuments in the western part of the Roman Forum; the Tabularium, the Forum of Julius Caesar; the Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine; the Temple of Venus and Rome; the Arch of Titus; the Arch of Constantine; the Flavian Amphitheater; the Ludus Magnus; the Septizodium; and the Circus Maximus. These buildings have been created with the help of scientific advisory committees of experts.
A big project, for sure.
Finally, there’s a competition going on:
When in Rome…Teach!
While Google’s suite of geospatial tools–Earth, Maps, SketchUp, and Sky–are used daily around the world by educators hoping to bring a fresh perspective to lessons, every once in a while a new product feature comes along that we believe will knock the socks off teachers and students alike! We’re proud to announce the Ancient Rome 3D Curriculum Competition in conjunction with a brand new layer in Google Earth that models the ancient city of Rome in unbelievable detail.
For the first time ever, K-12 educators in the United States will have the chance to highlight their creativity and technical know-how by combining this brand new Google Earth content with classic classroom curricula.
We’re accepting curricula from all grade levels and K-12 subject areas including art history, math, social studies, physics, and philosophy, so whether you teach 5th grade art or high school engineering, there’s glory and a nice prize package waiting for you.
Teachers submitting the top 6 examples alone or in teams will be honored as rockstar Google educators online and will enjoy a prize package including:
- Apple MacBook laptop
- Digital classroom projector
- Digital camera
- 3D Navigation mouse
- $500 in gift cards to Target or Office Depot
- Engraved Google “Top Educator” plaque
Ready to get started?
- Explore the new Ancient Rome 3D layer
- Build your curriculum in any electronic format
- Register individually or as a team
- Upload your entry before February 9, 2009
Electric Archaeology 