Research Guides: Open Educational Resources: Virtual Labs, Simulations, and Experiences

Virtual Labs, Simulations, and Experiences

This resource list is not exhaustive. If you want help looking for a particular resource for your course, contact Heather Crane, Hunt Library Open Education Librarian, (craneh1@erau.edu) for assistance, or explore the Finding OER tab.

For images, videos, music, and 3D models to create your own virtual experience or enhance online teaching, see the Images, Media, and Supplements tab.

Aviation, Aerospace, and Atmosphere

NCAR & UCAR Educational Videos
A Youtube channel of educational videos focused on atmospheric sciences, climatology, space weather, and more.
WXWise Simluations
An extensive list of weather simulation applets, updated to HTML5 format. Sims include atmospheric conditions, temperature effects on flying altitude, and climatology.
UND Interactive Trainers
Flight and aviation simulators and virtual trainers collected by the University of North Dakota's John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences.
Foil Sim
NASA simulation to test airflow over various types of airfoils. Multiple versions are available, including a downloadable app.

Business

Case Centre Free Business Cases
A list of free or open access business cases curated by Case Centre.
LearningEdge Case Studies and Simulations
Free case studies and business simulations for individual and classroom use. Content created by the MIT Sloan School of Management.
Markkula Center for Applied Ethics Case Studies
Markkula Center Ethics cases span a wide range of ethical concerns including business, leadership, technology, and engineering ethics. Cases often tackle recent events, such as the Wells Fargo banking issues and gender issues in Silicon Valley.
Wolfram Demonstrations Project: Business & Social Systems
A growing collection of expert reviewed simulations that can be downloaded, viewed online, or embedded from Wolfram Alpha with credit. Topics include economics, finance, law, and more.

Humanities

Ultimate Guide to Virtual Museums and Online Collections
An extensive list of free online museums, exhibits, collections, archives, and historical sites.
Museum of the World
A joint project of Google and the British Museum, this giant timeline puts artifacts from around the world in context with each other. Resources can be searched by time, area, or topics.
Digital Pedagogy in the Humanities
A peer-reviewed collection of pedagogical artifacts related to topics and concepts across the humanities. All artifacts are based on digital and open teaching practices. Instructors can create an account to make their own collection of resources.

Math and Sciences

LabXChange
LabXchange is a global science classroom open to every curious mind.
Created at Harvard University with support from the Amgen Foundation, this powerful digital tool makes high-quality science education accessible and gives learners and educators, everywhere, the courage to chart a meaningful path in science—for free.

507 Mechanical Movements
An online catalog of all the images from the classical technical reference Five Hundred and Seven Mechanical Movements by Henry T. Brown. The still images are public domain for any use. The updated animations are under copyright, but freely available online.
Animated Engines
An online resource for simplified, animated engine diagrams. The animations are not openly licensed, but educational use is encouraged. For more information see the copyright policy on the site.
Engineering Technology: Simulations for Learning
Designed for instructors and students, these simulations are openly licensed and can be embedded into Canvas. Choose from over a dozen topics using the drop down in the upper right of the website.
Engineering Technology Simulation Learning Videos 
Over 100 engineering technology videos covering many different topics, and aimed at a wide audience. Related to the simulations above, these are stand-alone videos.
Wolfram Demonstrations Project: Engineering & Technology
A growing collection of expert reviewed simulations that can be downloaded, viewed online, or embedded from Wolfram Alpha with credit. Topics include fluid mechanics, robotics, mechanical engineering, civil engineering, and more.

GeoGebra Apps
GeoGebra provides free graphing calculators, 3D calculators, geometric graphing tools, and more. Apps are available in browser, or as downloads for mobile platforms.
PhET Simulations: Math
Web based simulations for various topics related to math concepts and applications. Licensed under CC-BY, these can be embedded into Canvas, and downloaded for offline use.
Wolfram Demonstrations Project: Mathematics
A growing collection of expert reviewed simulations that can be downloaded, viewed online, or embedded from Wolfram Alpha with credit. Topics include pure and applied mathematics, geometry, statistics, number theory, and many more.

PhET Simulations: Biology
Web based simulations for various topics related to biology. Licensed under CC-BY, these can be embedded into Canvas, and downloaded for offline use.
Virtual Fetal Pig Dissection
Whitman College's virtual dissection lab walks students through the process of a pig dissection incision-by-incision with abundant photographs.

PhET Simulations: Physics
Web based simulations for various topics related to physics. Licensed under CC-BY, these can be embedded into Canvas, and downloaded for offline use.
Open Source Physics
Simulation tools and models designed to help teach physics and related skills such as mathematics. The majority of the material is free and available to all, but some may pair with for-cost materials.
HTML5 Physics Simulations
A list of HTML5 physics simulations covering a range of topics including thermodynamics, optics, gravitation, and more. Provided by Boston University Physics Department.
Labs on the Physics Aviary
Dozens of easy-to-use physics simulation labs including traditional physics experiments, space simulations, drone simulations, and more. Most labs come with additional resources for classroom use.

ChemReaX
A chemical reaction modeling simulation from Science by Simulation. This web-based app includes a user guide, FAQ, tutorials, and model exercises and labs for the classroom.
GasSim
A web-based gas law simulator from Science by Simulation that would be useful for both chemistry and physics courses. Includes a User Guide with examples.
Interactive Periodic Table
From the Royal Society of Chemistry, this periodic table provides in depth information, podcasts, videos, and more related to each element.
PhET Simulations: Chemistry
Web based simulations for various topics related to general and quantum chemistry. Licensed under CC-BY, these can be embedded into Canvas, and downloaded for offline use.
Synthesis Explorer
Plan synthetic routes and study key organic chemistry reactions interactively with this resource. Choose from a wide range of starting compounds and react them to reveal details of the reaction (conditions, reagents used and classification). [Description from site]

Nebraska Astronomy
Online astronomy simulations designed for introductory courses. Labs includes student and instructor resources.
SDSS SkyServer Projects
Labs and classroom activities for a variety of skill levels with included instructor guides. These are provided by, and build off the work of, the Sloan Digital Sky Survey project.
UNL Astronomy Simulations and Animations
A collection of simulations and animations related to modern and historical astronomy. Topics include scientific tools and foundational knowledge as well.

eSkeletons
Created and maintained by the University of Texas, this resources offers in depth explorations of the human skeletal structure with close-up photographs, 3D models, and explanatory text. Similar information is available for multiple other primates to provide comparative information.
Get Body Smart
Being developed by Scott Sheffield, a university teacher of anatomy, as an online anatomy textbook. Includes high quality diagrams of major systems and basic quizzes for free.

Open Educational Resources

Virtual Labs, Simulations, and Experiences

Aviation, Aerospace, and Atmosphere

Business

Humanities

Math and Sciences

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