[A new fish tank virtual reality (FTVR) display provides spatial and social presence for multiple users; most press coverage draws on this press release from the University of British Columbia (via EurekAlert!), which includes a 0:37 minute video. Follow the links at the end below for more information. –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Clare Kiernan, UBC. Source: UBC on Flickr] Spherical display brings virtual collaboration closer to reality ‘Crystal ball’ supports two or more players working in VR University of British Columbia Public release: 19 February 2019 Virtual reality can often make a user feel isolated from the world, with only computer-generated…

[Marina Abramović is using mixed reality technology to transform her performance art into what sounds like an interesting presence experience. This story from Artnet describes the project, a review in iNews provides more details, and the press release is available from the Serpentine Galleries. –Matthew] The Artist Is Not Present: How Marina Abramović Used Mixed Reality to Create a Hyper-realistic Virtual Performance The artist is using cutting-edge technology to create her new project at the Serpentine Galleries in London. Naomi Rea February 18, 2019 Marina Abramović is perhaps most famous for “The Artist Is Present,” her landmark 2010 exhibition at…

[This detailed and balanced story from The Verge explains the potential – both positive and dangerous – of a new advancement in artificial intelligence that has received a lot of press coverage. See the original version for a different image and many examples of the new algorithm in action, and see the OpenAI blog for more information. –Matthew] OpenAI’s New Multitalented AI Writes, Translates, and Slanders A step forward in AI text-generation that also spells trouble By James Vincent February 14, 2019 OpenAI’s researchers knew they were on to something when their language modeling program wrote a convincing essay on…

[This Washington Post story uses vivid examples to highlight cultural differences in how people experience medium-as-social-actor presence with robots that provide different sets of social cues. See the original story for two short videos. –Matthew] [Image: Robots wearing nurse uniforms carry medical documents Wednesday at Mongkutwattana General Hospital in Bangkok. Credit: Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters).] Friendly nurse or nightmare-inducing machine? How culture programs our taste in robots. This is Thailand’s idea of an attractive robot. Americans might be terrified. By Peter Holley February 7, 2019 Slowly and silently, they glide across the floor wearing bright yellow dresses that look as though they…

[The startup company described in this TechCrunch story is working to combine the interactive immersion of virtual reality with miniature robots that can move within a human body, providing surgeons with an expanded version of remote “presence in the body” that has great potential for improving medical care. See the original story for an additional image. –Matthew] Bill Gates-backed Vicarious Surgical adds a virtual reality twist to robots in the operating room Jonathan Shieber February 13, 2019 In an operating room in rural Idaho, doctors prep a patient for surgery. They make a tiny, thumb-sized incision into the patient and…

[The UK’s Channel 4 will air a program featuring the use of holograms to create the illusion of presence after death, as reported in this story from The Scotsman. Other coverage notes a comparison to the anthology series Black Mirror and the fact that “the series is based on the A+E Networks format Voices From the Grave that is in development for A&E by Simon Andreae’s Naked TV” (Deadline Hollywood). For commentary about the new show see The Telegraph (subscription required). –Matthew] [Image: Credit: A+E Networks via Deadline Hollywood] New Channel 4 show to deliver hologram messages from the dead SCOTSMAN…