Researchers

Maria Cristina Barba graduated in Information Engineering at the University of Salento, Lecce in 2003. Her past research interests include the management of biomedical data and images in Grid computing environment. She worked for some years in Noemalife, an International Group in the clinical and hospital information systems market.

Actually she is working as a research fellow in AVRLab by developing virtual and augmented reality applications and geo-location based games. Her current research interest covers Virtual and Augmented Reality for medical applications.

Giorgia De Giuseppe, after earning a bachelor’s degree in Cultural Heritage, graduated with a master’s degree in Digital Humanities at the University of Salento in a.y. 2023/2024. 

She is now a researcher at AVR Lab (Augmented and Virtuale Reality Laboratory) of the Department of Engineering for Innovation of University of Salento. Her current research interests include the development of Virtual Restoration techniques, the use of immersive technologies for the study and dissemination of cultural heritage and the exploration of new tools and methodologies to enhance immersive technology applications in this field.

She is currently Postdoc at Augmented and Virtual Reality Laboratory (AVR Lab), of Department of Innovation Engineering, University of Salento. She graduated magna cum laude with a master’s degree in European Heritage, Digital Media and the Information Society at the University of Salento in A.Y. 2017/2018. After graduation, she spent one year as a research fellow at AVR Lab (Augmented and Virtual Reality Laboratory) of the Department of Engineering for Innovation of the University of Salento, during which she has been involved in some Italian and international projects.

In 2023, she received a PhD in Cultural Heritage Sciences from the University of Salento.

The research project focused on digital curation and transformation in the museum field, with a focus on Augmented and Virtual Reality technologies for the enhancement and enjoyment of cultural heritage, and the relationship between well-being and museums.
Title of the thesis: "The museum and the challenges of the present: from digital curation to the assessment of the impact on well-being. The case study of the Messapian collection of the Sigismondo Castromediano Museum". 

She is the author of several scientific publications. She is part of the Italian working group “Multimedia and Emerging Technologies” of ICOM. She is currently coordinator of the Young researchers group at the Digital Humanities Centre of the University of Salento.

Ileana Riera Panaro, after a bachelor’s degree in Arts and Cultural Events at IULM University, graduated with a master's degree in European Heritage, Digital Media and the Information Society at the University of Salento in a.y. 2020/2021.

She is now a researcher at AVR Lab (Augmented and Virtual Reality Laboratory) of the Department of Engineering for Innovation of University of Salento.

Her current research interests concern the development of Virtual Restoration techniques, Virtual and Augmented Reality applications and 3D modeling for the enhancement and the fruition of Cultural Heritage.

Rocco Rizzo is a research fellow at the AVR Lab (Augmented and Virtual Reality Laboratory) within the Department of Innovation Engineering at the University of Salento. He earned a Master's degree in Physics from the Department of Mathematics and Physics "Ennio De Giorgi" at the same university, with a thesis focused on applying machine learning to the medical field.

His research interests include artificial intelligence applied to medicine, with a particular focus on machine learning and deep learning for medical image analysis and diagnostic classification.