A high tech teaching tool allows first year Engineering students at the University of Saskatchewan to collapse bridges and blow up trucks without the real-life devastation. They have been using a program called Truss VR for the last year. An Associate Professor says the virtual reality software means students can test out their calculations and specifications and test their corrected data within seconds. Dr. Sean Maw believes it takes the meticulous method of applying the math to a new holistic level. Truss VR was developed by the College of Engineering in partnership with local high tech company Sprockety and the Gwenna Moss Centre for Teaching and Learning. The funding was provided by Ron and Jane Graham who have donated about 24-million dollars to the university including a recent 1-million dollar pledge to the College of Education. Dr. Mah says their virtual lab has caught the attention of other departments. A Kinesiology course used it to look at neuro-anatomy while medical staff has explored how to teach anatomy in virtual reality. Mah also says the Geography department is interested in Google 3-D Earth where they can take virtual field trips anywhere in the world and other applications include Chemistry students reconstructing molecules and doing virtual testing. He says last year’s experiment in the engineering department has been expanded.