[This story from Mother Nature Network describes a new VR-generated presence experience that lets users experience the life, and death, of a tree (compare it to the recent installation We Live in an Ocean of Air from another ISPR Presence News post); the story, which includes a second image, a 1:46 minute video, and a link to an extended interview in Vive, ends with information about how you can visit actress Judi Dench’s private forest in Surrey, England via virtual reality. –Matthew]

[Image: Scene from the virtual reality experience ‘Tree’ from the MIT Media Lab. Credit: Screenshot from Vimeo/MIT Media Lab.]

New virtual reality experience transforms you into a majestic tree

Michael d’Estries
January 29, 2019

Ever gaze into the crowning branches of some massive tree and wonder what it might be like to hold silent court over the world below?… read more. “New virtual reality experience transforms you into a majestic tree”

[Anyone who questions the ability of film to evoke an intense and multi-faceted sense of presence should read this IndieWire review of (and go see) a new NASA documentary called “Apollo 11.” If nothing else read the fifth paragraph (“Honestly, …”) below. I missed seeing “First Man” in an IMAX theater but a group of us here at Temple University saw an extended preview scene that made us viscerally feel like we were there in the capsule during the countdown and take-off. “Apollo 11” uses newly discovered and restored high resolution footage and audio recordings of the event along with minimal graphics and no narration to produce what sounds like an inspiring illusion of presence as transportation, engagement and perceptual and social realism. For more information and to watch the trailer see Kottke.org and collectSPACE. –Matthew]

‘Apollo 11’ Review: Astonishing NASA Documentary Is One Giant Leap for Film Restoration — Sundance

With “Apollo 11,” Todd Douglas Miller compiles never-before-seen NASA footage into a staggeringly clear look at our trip to the moon.… read more. “Astonishing NASA documentary “Apollo 11” evokes intense, inspiring presence”

[This short story from the Orlando Weekly describes (and links to) a new patent application for a combination of form (a tether system) and content (virtual obstructions like gates and fog) to manage the paths of multiple VR and AR users at theme parks. See the original for more images. –Matthew]

Universal files patent to put guests on a virtual reality leash

By Seth Kubersky
January 28, 2019

Virtual reality has taken the location-based gaming industry by storm in recent years, with stand-alone VR attractions popping up all over Orlando. But one fundamental problem has kept the technology out of the big theme parks, or at least restricted it to roller coasters: how do you keep large numbers of helmet-wearing guests from bumping into each other?

Universal may have struck upon a solution in their new patent application for “Systems and Methods for Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality Path Management,” which basically boils down to harnessing guests like hyperactive toddlers on a leash and tethering them to an overhead track, allowing them to walk forward without straying across their neighbor’s path.… read more. “Universal files patent to put guests on a virtual reality leash”

[The images of the Instagram CGI character Imma (roughly, “now”) in this story from Inverse are compellingly realistic and raise intriguing questions about the impacts of the “virtual influencer” trend. For more examples see ITP Live, and for information about a potentially important factor in the impacts see the 2014 story in Motherboard titled “Lonely People Are More Likely to Think Inanimate Objects Are Alive.” –Matthew]

The Weirdest Trend on Instagram: Virtual Influencers Who Make Real Content

By Danny Paez
January 19, 2019

The sun may already be setting on the age of the ambiguously famous social media influencer. After all, why pay an actual human being to hawk nutrition concepts or multi-level-marketing schemes when you can create a virtual human who, being not a real person, is perfectly willing to strut, pose, and even make memes for free.

The latest virtual influencer to go viral is named Imma, a self-described “virtual model” who’s on the February 2019 cover of the Japanese computer graphics magazine, CGWorld.… read more. “Instagram’s increasingly realistic virtual influencers”

[The RealityVirtually Hackathon at MIT sounds like a fascinating, fun and valuable event where people gather to bring creative ideas for presence applications to life. This story from The Boston Globe (where it features a different image) describes many of the projects at this year’s event; for much more information about them see the Winners page on the RealityVirtually website. –Matthew]

These developers are trying to make virtual reality more useful

By Scott Kirsner, Globe Correspondent
January 24, 2019

If you’ve seen a set of virtual reality goggles — in person or otherwise — you may have jumped to a few conclusions. Maybe a useful gadget for hardcore gamers, but not me. Who wants to stand around swiveling his head and looking like an apprentice welder from the Planet Cybertron?

And how much more antisocial could people possibly get?

But over the Martin Luther King Jr.… read more. “RealityVirtually: These developers are trying to make virtual reality more useful”