# VRChem: A Virtual Reality Molecular Builder
### Virtual Reality as an Educational Tool  
Interest in the educational use of VR in based mainly on the lifelike three-dimensional appearance and manipulation of a virtual environment the technology can enable. The capability can be harnessed to visualize phenomena and do exercises that are impractical or impossible with physical models or two-dimensional visualization aids [4]. The technology is being used to train, e.g., vehicle maintenance and product assembly personnel [5; 6] and medical personnel [7], and could be beneficial in education universally. This benefit could be more prominent in subjects such as chemistry, where the three-dimensional intricacies of molecule symmetry, chirality and solid-state structures are difficult to display on paper or computer screens and can be unclear for those students who find three-dimensional visualization difficult. Students could benefit from access to a lifelike virtual reality representation where the three-dimensionality of the structure is clear and can be interacted with and examined from any angle. The novelty of VR might also engage pupils and students more than current alternatives. Educational use of VR could thus have a motivational impact on learning. It should be noted that while educational and scientific VR software do have different requirements, well designed and functional VR chemical modeling software can fulfill both roles to an extent. The educational use of VR has been studied to some degree. The studies involving the largest test groups focused on the effects of VR training on improving general spatial thinking and spatial abilities of 15-17 year old students. The studies measured success in solving two-dimensional spatial thinking tests before and after undergoing VR training. A study by [PERSON] [8] involved 192 students, of which 104 used VR to train general spatial thinking, and concluded that VR provided a moderate and clear benefit to learning, as shown by the higher spatial ability test results over the control groups. Another large-scale study by [PERSON] et al. [9], however, only saw a small positive effect among the 215 students tested, and could not claim a clear relationship between VR training and enhanced spatial thinking. [PERSON] et al. did speculate that three-dimensional training using VR might not translate to solving two-dimensional test problems, and therefore the tests selected for the study might not accurately measure skills gained from the VR training. In chemistry education, adequate spatial reasoning skills enhance students' success in learning [10; 11; 12], and training of said general spatial skills both with traditional methods [13] and in VR [8] is expected to be beneficial for chemistry learning. A number of studies have also examined the use of VR for teaching chemistry specifically. For example, [PERSON] et al. used a CAVE virtual reality room to display animations of chemical reactions to a group of students (N = 14, age 16-18) who after using VR reportedly understood the three-dimensionality of molecules better, achieved improved scores in a questionnaire and were \"enthusiastic with the CAVE presentations\" [14]. [PERSON] et al. developed an augmented reality (AR) application for life science and biochemistry education that was used alongside the written material by a small student group (N = 7, age 19-24) undertaking a biochemistry course. While learning gains were not measured, all of the students agreed or strongly agreed that AR motivated them to understand the processes displayed and that AR was entertaining and fun; 58% agreed or strongly agreed that AR enhanced their learning; and 86% wanted AR to be used more in education [15]. [PERSON] et al. used the Narupa [16] VR software to visualize the rearrangement of the chorismate enzyme to third-year university students (N = 22) and compared the experience with using a combination of traditional desktop applications CHARMM [17] and VMD [18].