ISPR Presence News

Monthly Archives: July 2017

Call: Advances in Immersive Media for the Benefit of People: International Conference on the Human Aspects of Immersive Media

Call for Papers

New Horizons in VR: Advances in Immersive Media for the Benefit of People
International conference on the human aspects of immersive media
Berlin, Germany, 14/15 December 2017
Venue: Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Mitte

Jointly organized by:

  • ECREA (European Communication Research and Education Association) Section “Digital Games Research”
  • NCRC (NeuroCure Clinical Research Center) and CSB (Center for Stroke Research Berlin)

Immersive media (IM) such as virtual and augmented/mixed reality (V/A/MR) present new ways of experiencing and interacting with virtual, real and hybrid environments. With consumer VR having arrived and several major technology companies preparing AR/MR products and services, there is growing interest in the human aspects linked with these technologies.

While hopes are high for IM being a game changer, important questions regarding its opportunities still remain unanswered: Can we learn faster or deeper using IM? Can AR make the world one large interface and can MR facilitate automated training scenarios in the real-world?… read more. “Call: Advances in Immersive Media for the Benefit of People: International Conference on the Human Aspects of Immersive Media”

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Undersea world beyond Chunnel train revealed on ‘Eurostar Odyssey’ VR experience

[Here’s a clever use of VR and presence to replace the boring blackenss of the windows during train trips under the English Channel. The press release is from Eurostar and “brand experience agency” AKQA, and more information including two videos can be found on the Eurostar website. –Matthew]

Eurostar unveils world’s first onboard virtual reality experience: ‘Eurostar Odyssey’

Taking travellers on an adventure to the depths of the sea bed, with immersive smartphone headsets available throughout the summer

12 July 2017

Eurostar today announces ‘Eurostar Odyssey’, the first virtual reality experience designed to enhance a journey through an immersive onboard adventure, with specially designed headsets distributed throughout the summer at peak travel periods for families.

As travellers make their way at high-speed under the channel, they’ll enter the hidden depths of the sea bed for the first time, looking into a virtual world of sea creatures, sunken treasures and mysterious sea-scapes.… read more. “Undersea world beyond Chunnel train revealed on ‘Eurostar Odyssey’ VR experience”

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Call: AAMAS 2018, the International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems

AAMAS 2018, the International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems
July 10-15, 2018 in Stockholm
http://aamas18.ifaamas.org

Important Dates:
Abstract Submission: 10th of November 2017 (23:59 UTC-12)
Full Paper Submission: 14th of November 2017 (23:59 UTC-12)
Rebuttal Phase: 9th-10th of January 2018 (23:59 UTC-12)
Author Notification: 24th of January 2018 (23:59 UTC-12)

AAMAS, the International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems, is the leading scientific conference for research on autonomous agents and multiagent systems. It will be co-located with the International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence (IJCAI)/European Conference on Artificial Intelligence (ECAI) and the International Conference on Machine Learning (ICML).

AAMAS 2018, the seventeenth edition in the AAMAS series, seeks the submission of high-quality papers limited to 8 pages in length, with any additional pages containing only bibliographic references. Reviews will be double blind; authors must avoid including anything that can be used to identify them.… read more. “Call: AAMAS 2018, the International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems”

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VR’s new mission: Reunite immigrants with family back home

[An extremely positive use, and the limitations, of presence are described in this story from CNET, where the original includes a 3:52 minute video and a photo gallery. –Matthew]

 

[Image: A grandmother in Iztapalapa, Mexico, used a Samsung Gear VR to spend the afternoon with relatives in the US she hasn’t seen in almost two decades. Credit: Family Reunions Project]

VR’s new mission: Reunite immigrants with family back home

The Family Reunions Project uses 360-degree videos and VR headsets to reunite families separated by borders they cannot cross –except in virtual reality.

by Laura Martínez
July 27, 2017

Marleny, a Guatemalan immigrant in New York, hasn’t returned to her home country in over 15 years. But a few months ago she was able to tour her grandfather’s land in Valle del Rinconcito, Guatemala. She could see the palm trees swinging about and her mom inviting her to explore the estate, talking to her in a soft, familiar voice, welcoming her to see parts of the land that Marleny hadn’t seen before.… read more. “VR’s new mission: Reunite immigrants with family back home”

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Call: Chapters for “The Mind-Technology Problem – Investigating Minds, Selves and 21st Century Artifacts”

Call for Papers

The Mind-Technology Problem – Investigating Minds, Selves and 21st Century Artifacts

Deadline: 31st of January, 2018

We invite chapter contributions for the volume “The Mind-Technology Problem – Investigating Minds, Selves and 21st Century Artifacts” forthcoming in the book series Studies in Brain and Mind (Springer). This book explores the relation between philosophy of mind and emerging technologies. Technologies that only recently seemed to be science fiction are becoming part of everyday life. Our life is increasingly saturated with ‘smart’ artifacts. The ubiquitous and mobile Internet amounts to a radically new epistemic and cognitive environment which we already inhabit. This smart environment is saturated with artificial intelligence systems that not only guide us to information on the Internet, but are transforming the way we inhabit the non-virtual realm: the home, the urban environment and beyond.

In the process, these technologies may be viewed as a form of rapidly evolving cognitive enhancement (Schneider, 2016, Heersmink, 2015).… read more. “Call: Chapters for “The Mind-Technology Problem – Investigating Minds, Selves and 21st Century Artifacts””

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Disney’s Magic Bench makes augmented reality a group activity

[The “Magic Bench” is another intriguing presence-evoking technology from Disney Research; this story is from New Atlas, where it includes the 3:39 minute video that is also available along with more information via the links at the bottom of the story. –Matthew]

Disney’s Magic Bench makes augmented reality a group activity

Michael Irving
July 26, 2017

Some day, even stopping for a rest on a bench at Disneyland might be an attraction in itself. You could find yourself seated beside a grumpy frog or a snoring elephant, thanks to a mixed reality prototype Disney Research calls the Magic Bench. Designed to make AR experiences more of a group activity, the system allows people to interact with animated characters in 3D space, and even feel their “presence” through haptic feedback in the seat.

Virtual and augmented reality are immersive experiences, but usually only for one person in a headset.… read more. “Disney’s Magic Bench makes augmented reality a group activity”

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Call: Designing with and for Users on the Autism Spectrum – International Journal of HCI special issue

International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction

Special Issue Call for Papers:
Designing with and for Users on the Autism Spectrum

http://explore.tandfonline.com/cfp/est/designing-with-and-for-users-on-the-autism-spectrum

Submissions due: 3 September 2017

Autism is a lifelong developmental condition that affects how a person communicates with and relates to other people, and to the world around them. It is estimated that around 1 in 68 people are autistic. Autism is also a spectrum condition, which means that it affects different people in different ways. Some autistic people have communication impairments and some also have a learning disability. However, a substantial proportion is of average or advanced intellectual ability and generally leading an independent life.

When designing technology for this population, autistic characteristics have to be considered. Autistic people typically welcome structure, both in their daily routines and their social interactions. It has been argued that interactive systems and other products should equally be designed in a clear and uncluttered way, reducing complexity.… read more. “Call: Designing with and for Users on the Autism Spectrum – International Journal of HCI special issue”

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Robots could soon care for dementia patients

[This widely-cited story from The Daily Mail highlights part of a new Lancet Commission report regarding the use of several technologies, including those designed to evoke different types of presence, for the treatment of dementia patients. For more information see The Lancet as well as a related story, “Assisted living tries virtual reality to help seniors with dementia,” in The Journal Times. –Matthew]

[Image: Source: The Daily Mail]

Robots could soon care for dementia patients but experts warn it’s ‘not a replacement for human contact’

  • Tech advancements mean gadgets and apps are already being introduced
  • But there may be some potential in robots, researchers said in a new report
  • However, they worry that they may be used a substitute for face-to-face care

By Rosie Taylor for The Daily Mail
Published: 20 July 2017 | Updated: 21 July 2017

Robots could soon be caring for dementia patients, a report suggested.… read more. “Robots could soon care for dementia patients”

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Job: Assistant Professor, Media Theory, Culture, and Technology at Media School of Indiana University

Assistant Professor, Media Theory, Culture, and Technology at Media School of Indiana University

Initial application deadline: October 20, 2017

The Media School at Indiana University Bloomington invites applications for a tenure-track faculty position at the Assistant Professor level with an anticipated start date of August 1, 2018. Candidates for this position should have an established record of publication and teaching at the intersection of media theory, culture, and technology. Areas of specialization may include but are not limited to screen studies, emergent media, sound studies, software studies, media history, and technology studies. Digital humanities approaches are welcome. The successful candidate can expect to be working in an innovative, newly-created Media School that brings together cinema and media studies, journalism, communication science, and media production, offering curricular tracks in these areas as well as game design, media management, and media technologies and cultures.… read more. “Job: Assistant Professor, Media Theory, Culture, and Technology at Media School of Indiana University”

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Kylie Jenner fools her family with Madam Tussauds wax replica

[Here’s a short, middle-of-summer presence story from People, where the original includes more images and a 1:05 minute video. See the Madame Tussauds Hollywood website for more. –Matthew]

Kylie Jenner Says She ‘Fooled Her Whole Family’ During FaceTime Call with Her $350,000 Wax Figure

By Karen Mizoguchi
Posted On July 19, 2017

Kylie Jenner put one over on her famous family during a recent prank call with a little help from her newly-created Madame Tussauds wax figure.

“I made her FaceTime my whole family … fooled everyone,” the Life of Kylie star, 19, shared on Instagram Tuesday, along with a Snapchat selfie of the lookalike creation.

“My wax figure is here. This is so creepy,” Jenner said in a video shared on Snapchat. “I donated the actual dress I wore to the Met so you can come see it,” she explained in another short clip.… read more. “Kylie Jenner fools her family with Madam Tussauds wax replica”

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