About the HIVE

ON THIS PAGE:

What We Do

The HIVE is a collaborative Hackspace for Innovation and Visualization in Education. Originally founded in 2017 by Dr. Claudia Krebs in the UBC Faculty of Medicine, the HIVE was created to explore new ways of enhancing teaching and learning through interactive media and engaging visualization techniques.

The HIVE is a problem-solving lab which brings together students, faculty, staff, and global collaborators to design, prototype, and test solutions that transform learning environments. By integrating 2D and 3D media, extended reality (xR) technologies, and interactive storytelling, we create engaging, accessible, and pedagogically sound learning experiences.

Our Projects

Illustration of two skeletons sitting on red armchairs in conversation, holding mugs of tea. Text above says, "bodybanter.ca - anatomy is for everybody and every body". Interactive link to Body Banter Podcast Instagram account.

Body Banter Podcast

Close-up illustration of a smiling robot. Text above says, "Cerebro - The Virtual Lab". Interactive link to Apple App Store for Cerebro mobile game download.

Cerebro: Neuroanatomy Mobile Game

Close-up design of a Venn diagram of three circles. Text says, "BMVC" in the centre of the overlapping circles. Interactive link to BMVC program website.

Certificate in Biomedical Visualization and Communication

HoloBrain

Illustration of a cute monitor on wheels with a smiling face. Text below says, "improvbot.ca". Interactive link to ImproBot project overview.

ImprovBot: AI Empathy Chatbot

It's All In Your Head

A woman wearing an augmented reality headset kneeling next to and practicing an assessment of a first-aid mannikin. Interactive link to MR Mannikin project overview.

MR Mannikin

Close-up of a dissected human brain specimen with a woman in a white lab coat in the background. Interactive link to YouTube video.

Neuroanatomy YouTube Series

Grid of green and blue squares containing anatomical images. Text above says, "Clinical Anatomy". Interactive link to overview of project.

Online Learning Ecosystems

Pocket Pelvis

3D-generated environment showing the view through a glass wall into a laboratory. Text displayed on the glass wall says, "The Hive UBC Virtual Anatomy Lab". Interactive link to VanVR project overview.

VanVR: Virtual Anatomy Lab

From Medicine to Arts: Expanding our Scope

While the HIVE was originally founded to support teaching and learning in anatomy and healthcare education, its approach has always extended beyond a single field. As our projects expanded, so did our partnerships with collaborators from a wide variety of disciplines.

Recognizing this growing interdisciplinary potential, the HIVE transitioned into the Faculty of Arts in 2024, where it continues to build on its strengths as a space for collaborative innovation. Here in Arts, the HIVE remains committed to its research-driven approach, bringing together diverse perspectives to develop and test new ideas that enhance learning across disciplines.

A Research-Driven Approach

What sets the HIVE apart is our commitment to research and evidence-based design. Our projects are created to be tested in situ—whether in classrooms, simulation labs, or other learning environments—so that we can gather real-time feedback from students, educators, and stakeholders. This rapid iteration process allows us to refine our designs in direct response to user needs, ensuring that our solutions are not only technologically innovative but also effective in practice.

To substantiate the impact of our work, we integrate research methodologies into our prototyping process. PhD students, undergraduate directed study students, faculty, and staff collaborate to conduct studies, analyze findings, and contribute to the growing field of educational technology research. By grounding our projects in pedagogy and user-centred design, we ensure that every solution we develop is not only creative and experimental but also evidence-based and scalable.

Click here to see some of our publications:

Cornwall, J., Krebs, C., Hildebrandt, S., Gregory, J., & Pennefather, P. (2023). Considerations on the use of artificial intelligene in generating anatomical images: Comment on "Evalutating AI-powered text-to-image generators for anatomical illustration: A comparative study". Anatomical Sciences Education, 17(5), 1097-1099. https://doi.org/10.1002/ase.2347

Dixit, I., Kennedy, S., Piemontesi, J., Kennedy, B., & Krebs, C. (2019). Which tool is best: 3D scanning or photogrammetry – It depends on the task. In Rea, P. (Ed.) Biomedical visualisation: Advances in experimental medicine and biology (Vol. 1120, pp. 107-119). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-06070-1_9

Ho, S., Liu, P., Palombo, D. J., Handy, T. C., & Krebs, C. (2021). The role of spatial ability in mixed reality learning with the HoloLens. Anatomical Sciences Education, 15(6), 1074-1085. https://doi.org/10.1002/ase.2146

Krebs, C., & Agur, A. (2023). The role of women in the teaching-research of anatomy in medicine in Canada. Revista Argentina de Anatomía Clínica, 15(1), 32-33. https://doi.org/10.31051/1852.8023.v15.n1.40460

Krebs, C., Quiroga-Garza, A., Pennefather, P., and Elizondo Omaña, R. E. (2021). Ethis behind technology-enhanced medical education and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. European Journal of Anatomy, 25(4), 515-522. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353556283_Ethics_behind_technology-enhanced_medical_education_and_the_effects_of_the_COVID-19_pandemic

Krebs, C., Schwab, K., Kahlon, M., Bratanovic, I., Greenwood, A., Rosenblum, S., & Hildebrandt, S. (2024). Pernkopf was not alone: The Nazi origins of the Spalteholz-Spanner atlas. The Lancet, 404(10466). https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(24)02314-6

Muñoz-Leija, M. A., Paul, B., Shi, G., Dixit, I., Quiroga-Garza, A., Elizondo Omaña, R. E., & Krebs, C. (2021). The HIVE: A multidiscipliary approach to medical education. European Journal of Anatomy, 25(S1), 101-106. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353556315_THE_HIVE_a_multidisciplinary_approach_to_medical_education

Pennefather, P., & Krebs, C. (2019). Exploring the role of xR in visualisations for use in medical education. In Rea, P. (Ed.), Biomedical visualisation: Advances in in experimental medicine and biology (Vol. 1171, pp.15-23). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-24281-7_2

Pennefather, P., Krebs, C., & Saroyan, J. (2020). Reimagining the audience-dancer relationship through mobile augmented reality. In Soares, C., & Simão (Eds.), Multidisciplinary perspectives on new media art (pp. 119-141). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-3669-8

Schaurich, C., Saraco, A., Oruganti, M. H., Tamber, M. S., Haetinger, R. G., Dixit, I., Lo, B. S. Y., Krebs, C., & Steinbok, P. (2024). Allometry of human calvaria bones during development from birth to 8 years of age shows nonlinear growth pattern. Nature Scientific Reports, 14(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-77315-8

Core Values

The HIVE's core value is Embodied Transdisciplinary Collaboration, which we cultivate through the following guiding principles:

Vulnerability and compassion inform the way we show up in teams, fostering trust and openness to collaborate effectively.

Inclusive and brave spaces nurture the freedom to explore new ideas, take risks, and drive academic excellence through experimentation.

We embrace an expansive and diverse understanding of scholarship, recognizing that knowledge takes many forms and grows through open, interdisciplinary exchange.

A responsive and accountable ethical framework guides our work, ensuring that collaboration, innovation, and research are meaningful and community-centred.

We believe that technology is a tool for human connection, not just creation. Our development of new media is always purpose-driven, addressing real-world, community-defined problems.

Mindsets & Frameworks

At the HIVE, our work is guided by key mindsets and frameworks that help us stay open, adaptable, and iterative in our approach to collaboration and design:

An illustration of an anatomical heart made up of a collage of hands. Artwork by Qingyue Guo, BMVC Student 2022.

Stylized text saying, "It's a prototype!"

Open Hearts, Open Minds

We listen deeply, challenge assumptions, and stay open to unexpected ideas.

Artwork by Qingyue Guo, BMVC 2022

It's A Prototype!

Everything we create is a work in progress. We reject perfectionism in favour of continuous, lifelong learning.

Stylized text saying, "KFC! Keep-Fix-Change"

Work Out Loud

We make our thinking visible and share our process—including challenges, big & small wins, and external influences—to support a culture of transparency and collective problem-solving.