According to a recent Stanford University study, when children were asked one week afterward whether their VR experience really happened or was virtual, 50% said, “real.” Gulp. Let that sink in a moment. Then consider the reality of VR as the ultimate teaching tool. When our brain records a virtual experience as an actual remembered… Read more…
The Case For VR Theaters, Pt.1
Like virtual reality, the movie industry began as a novelty, relegated to arcades. Like HMDs (Head Mounted Displays) in VR, Mutoscopes were early single-person movie viewing devices which meant greatly reduced profitability. Eventually, anemic profits caused Edison and others to adapt magic lantern lamp and lens housings to primitive intermittent shutter devices resulting in projectors,… Read more…
Here We Go Again
Exactly 28 years ago, some nameless publicity seeking “journalist” fabricated and published an article with the outlandish claim that computer-generated actors were replacing human performers in the movie industry. His article went on to proclaim that a feature film had been produced which did just that. Unfortunately, while never reported or exposed as a hoax,… Read more…
HMDs On Parade
Today, there is a dizzying array of head mounted displays (HMDs). It wasn’t always like that. It was worse. Here’s a sampling of some earlier attempts at virtual reality devices. Emphasis was clearly on function over fashion. Still, it is fun to see how far we’ve come. Here’s a whacked-out assortment of vintage virtual reality headgear… Read more…
Empathic Immersion
After 30 years of false starts, near misses and broken promises, virtual reality has become a reality. Thanks to smartphone technology, blazing curiosity, brilliant ingenuity and a billion or so bucks from Facebook, virtual reality has suddenly emerged among the fastest growing techno-industries worldwide. This has given rise to a plethora of terribly exciting new… Read more…