[The airlines are finding interesting applications of presence-evoking technology. This story from MRO (“Maintenance, Repair & Overhaul”) Network is about new immersive tech Emirates Airlines is adopting for seat booking and other previews of the inside of its planes (more details, images and a 1 minute video are available from Emirates). APEX (“Airline Passenger Experience Association”) has a related story about a passenger survey supporting the addition of VR-based experiences in airlines’ airport pre-flight lounges. –Matthew] Virtual Reality Informs Passengers Booking Airline Seats Emirates helps make seat selection a more accurate experience for its passengers via an immersive, 3D, online process…

[This story from VentureBeat is about valuable applications of aerial telepresence; more details are on the Cape website and in coverage in Aviation Today, which includes this: “The U.S. government launched the [drone integration pilot program] because drones are a quickly expanding industry. Civilians and companies alike are embracing them and finding new uses every day. [Cape CEO] Rittler is confident that we’re on the cusp of a broader integration into the fabric of society. ‘I really think we’re at that point, kind of like when the smartphone first came out, everybody said ‘This will never be used in enterprise,’ he…

[The creators of a new Cinematic VR film are testing the limits and learning best production practices for transitioning the VR medium from short-form demos and games to long-form engaging narratives. This story is from Variety, where the original includes more images. –Matthew] Venice: Secret Location’s ‘The Great C’ Takes an Ambitious Stab at Long-Form VR By Janko Roettgers August 28, 2018 When the Venice Film Festival opens its doors this week, audiences will once again get to see a number of virtual reality (VR) titles. And anyone who has followed VR might notice a trend: Cinematic VR, as non-gaming…

[As the fall semester begins it’s a good time to read about how The University of North Carolina System is using VR and presence to “promote and facilitate college access” across all of its campuses. It notes their plans for the use of chatbots and expansion to all colleges in the state. Most of the press coverage is drawn from this more detailed press release from UNC. –Matthew] [Image: This still shot from a new virtual reality video compiled by the UNC System shows a class at N.C. State University. Source: News & Record.] UNC SYSTEM LAUNCHES FIRST-IN-NATION VIRTUAL REALITY…

[This case study report from the Virtual Engineering Centre (VEC) at the University of Liverpool describes a unique and potentially valuable application of presence-evoking technology to help people learn the warning signs that a dog is likely to bite them. The link at the end leads to a 1:19 minute video of a first-person interaction with a virtual dog. –Matthew] CASE STUDY: THE DOGS TRUST The Virtual Engineering Centre, in collaboration with Dogs Trust,  the University of Liverpool’s Institute of Infection and Global Health and Institute of Psychology, Health and Society, have created an immersive 3D environment to demonstrate the…

[Arizona State University is using virtual reality to teach biology lab courses, and considering expanding the use of the presence-evoking technology to other fields and eventually incorporating AI for individualized teaching. This story from azcentral has the details and highlights some of the advantages; more information is available in ASU Now and the Google AR & VR blog. –Matthew] [Image: Biological sciences student Victoria Quintana tries out a headset for a virtual-reality biology lab class during a trial run with Labster on the Tempe campus in June. Credit: Photo by Charlie Leight; Source:  ASU Now.] ASU online biology course allows…