The University of Missouri and AT&T are opening a 5G millimeter wavelength research and teaching lab in the school’s Cornell Hall.
The University of Missouri (commonly referred to as Mizzou) and AT&T have an ongoing relationship. The two partnered on a course called “Connectivity and 5G,” which was taught in the spring of 2020. It brought AT&T representatives and students and faculty together from five colleges to discuss potential 5G innovations.
The lab is an initiative of the University of Missouri Institute for Experiential Education, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. One course in development will explore creation of kiosks around the campus using immersive technologies to “reduce anxiety and improve mental health.” Mizzou students and faculty already are using 5G and its capabilities to bring computing to the edge in remote surgeries and to create immersive journalism.
“The innovation catalyzed by the intersection of education and technology is what makes our future so bright,” Anne Chow, CEO of AT&T Business, said in the press release about the AT&T 5G lab. “We saw with last year’s 5G course, students were able to create new solutions around healthcare and campus security. Bringing 5G to Mizzou’s emerging technology lab and campus will further enable students to explore new experiences, solve complex problems and create new ideas to change the world.”
The potent combination of 5G and edge computing is leading carriers to research advanced applications. Some of this research is occurring in partnership with colleges and universities.
In December, AT&T and the Purdue College of Engineering created a 5G research and development testbed. The focus is on a new type of security that uses 5G mmWave and quantum cryptography. The testbed, which is located in the Indiana 5G zone, uses multi-access edge computing (MEC) in addition to 5G mmWave to enable near real-time data collection and analysis.
