ISPR Presence News

Monthly Archives: May 2019

Call: ‘Would you kindly?’: Claiming Video Game Agency as Interdisciplinary Concept – G|A|M|E issue

Call For Papers

G|A|M|E – Games as Art, Media, Entertainment
‘Would you kindly?’: Claiming Video Game Agency as Interdisciplinary Concept
https://www.gamejournal.it/n-8-2019-would-you-kindly-claiming-video-game-agency-as-interdisciplinary-concept/

Deadline for extended abstracts: 19th July 2019

The new issue of G|A|M|E proposes a re-examination of the concept of agency in games. We welcome contributions that address the idea of agency from a variety of academic perspectives, taking into account its interdisciplinary history and application, in order to expand our critical understanding of the concept more broadly. We therefore invite scholars from all fields to reflect on different notions of agency, not only in relation to physical and digital games, but also to other media and art forms as they impact on games and game studies. At the end of the influential first-person shooter Bioshock (2K Games, 2007), its critique of the rhetoric of choice and freedom emerges from the dialogue between the protagonist Jack and the visionary despot of Rapture, Andrew Rayan.… read more. “Call: ‘Would you kindly?’: Claiming Video Game Agency as Interdisciplinary Concept – G|A|M|E issue”

Posted in Calls | Leave a comment

I watched the NBA Playoffs in VR, and it’s going to change how you watch sports

[Here’s an update and first person report on the evolution of how fans experience sports, in this case basketball via VR. See the original version of the Fast Company story for three different images and a 1:01 minute video; see coverage in USA Today for an interview with Jay Jenyagram of Intel Sports; and see the Intel True VR (“Be There From Anywhere”) website for more information.–Matthew]

I watched the NBA Playoffs in VR, and it’s going to change how you watch sports

Intel’s push into VR sports has shifted from a tech-first approach to now being driven by making the fan experience as cool as possible.

By Jeff Beer
May 30, 2019

Jurassic Park was just filling up. Two hours before game four of the Eastern Conference finals between the Toronto Raptors and Milwaukee Bucks, the line of Raptors fans snaked around Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena, waiting to flood the designated fan area outside the arena that’s become one of the biggest party zones in the NBA.… read more. “I watched the NBA Playoffs in VR, and it’s going to change how you watch sports”

Posted in Presence in the News | Leave a comment

Call: The Future of Location-based Gaming Research – DiGRA 2019 Workshop

Call for Participation

The Future of Location-based Gaming Research
A Workshop at DiGRA 2019: Digital Games Research Association Conference (digra2019.org/)
6 August, 09.00-15.50
Ritsumeikan University Kinugasa Campus
Kyoto, Japan

Submission deadline: 4th June 2019

We are seeking participants for a one-day workshop to be held during the pre-conference program of DiGRA 2019 in Kyoto, focusing on the future of location-based games research. Interested participants should send an approx. 400 word bio, including a description of their previous or current research on location-based games and their specific interest in attending the workshop. Participants will be selected on the basis of their contribution to the field of location-based gaming research, with an emphasis on those with diverse backgrounds and cultures, gender diversity, and a mix of established and early career/emerging scholars. We are particularly looking forward to including a diverse and mixed group of researchers from east and west.… read more. “Call: The Future of Location-based Gaming Research – DiGRA 2019 Workshop”

Posted in Calls | Leave a comment

Volvo and Varjo team up for on-the-road high-presence mixed reality

[This VentureBeat story describes how Volvo is using Varjo’s high-resolution HMDs to let car designers test drive real cars with virtual features: “With this kind of technology it will eventually be difficult for you to tell if you are sitting in a faux car in an office or in a real car in a parking lot or really driving a mountain road in the woods.” See the original version for more pictures. –Matthew]

[Image: For safety, a passenger in the back seat can warn a driver in the front seat during Varjo’s testing. Credit: Varjo.]

Varjo teams up with Volvo to enable safe driving with AR headsets

Dean Takahashi
May 29, 2019

Varjo has announced a partnership with Volvo to enable safe driving with an augmented reality headset that you could eventually wear while operating a vehicle. It can give you visual alerts, using computer graphics to highlight hazards on the road.… read more. “Volvo and Varjo team up for on-the-road high-presence mixed reality”

Posted in Presence in the News | Leave a comment

Job: RA/Post-doc at University of Kent: “PRoCEED: A Platform for Responsive Conversational Agents to Enhance Engagement and Disclosure”

Research Associate
University of Kent – School of Computing
Location: Canterbury
Project:
“PRoCEED: A Platform for Responsive Conversational Agents to Enhance Engagement and Disclosure”
https://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/BSC289/research-associate

Application deadline: 9th June 2019

THE OPPORTUNITY

We are looking for a Research Associate (RA/Post-doc) to join a new interdisciplinary UK EPSRC-funded project entitled “PRoCEED: A Platform for Responsive Conversational Agents to Enhance Engagement and Disclosure”. The RA will work as a part of the University of Kent team, led by Dr Jason R.C. Nurse, and be based in the School of Computing in Canterbury, UK. The RA will also be a part of the Kent Interdisciplinary Research Centre in Cyber Security (KirCCS), a cross-faculty and cross-discipline research centre at the university. The University of Kent is one of 17 UK government recognised Academic Centres of Excellence in Cyber Security Research (ACEs-CSR).

The post start date is 1st September 2019, it is fixed-term for 18 months, and the deadline for applications is 9th June 2019.… read more. “Job: RA/Post-doc at University of Kent: “PRoCEED: A Platform for Responsive Conversational Agents to Enhance Engagement and Disclosure””

Posted in Jobs | Leave a comment

Presence and the new long-distance relationship

[This long but very interesting story from The Atlantic doesn’t use the term presence but the concept and phenomenon is at its center – note some of the interesting ways people in long-distance relationships are said to use communication technologies to feel both physically together and psychologically connected over distance. See the last two sentences for a nicely put summary of some key points, and see the original version of the story for additional material not included here. –Matthew]

[Image: Credit: Alessandra De Cristofaro]

The New Long-Distance Relationship

The same technological and economic developments that are pulling couples apart are also making geographic separation less stressful and more enjoyable.

Joe Pinsker
May 14, 2019

The love life of Stanley Davidge, a 25-year-old network administrator for a national restaurant chain, is absolutely extraordinary.

Almost all day, Davidge, who lives in South Carolina, is in touch with his girlfriend, Angela Davila, who lives in Virginia and is job hunting.… read more. “Presence and the new long-distance relationship”

Posted in Presence in the News | Leave a comment

Call: UPA’19 – 4th International Workshop on Ubiquitous Personal Assistance

Call for Papers

UPA’19 – 4TH INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ON UBIQUITOUS PERSONAL ASSISTANCE
in conjunction with UbiComp 2019, London, UK
09 September 2019
https://upa19.weebly.com/
upa(at)tk.tu-darmstadt.de

Submission Deadline: 21 June 2019

The Fourth International Workshop on Ubiquitous Personal Assistance (UPA’19) aims to share experiences of current research endeavors on digital personal assistance. We invite submissions of papers focused on advancing towards digital assistants that provide a high level of personalization, through proactive and effective support of users’ activities, in an unobtrusive manner. In particular, we wish to put forward the discussion on how digital assistants can provide unobtrusive guidance and support for specific endeavors of people’s lives, such as those related to training/education, professional, and personal activities. Furthermore, this workshop seeks to find novel ways to exploit cognitive aspects, such as users’ intentions, motivations, and emotions, to build digital assistants that better fit each particular user.… read more. “Call: UPA’19 – 4th International Workshop on Ubiquitous Personal Assistance”

Posted in Calls | Leave a comment

Googly eyes on robots: Evolution, social cues and medium-as-social-actor presence

[The role of evolution in how we perceive and respond to subtle social cues, and the implications for the design of technologies that evoke medium-as-social-actor presence, are explored in this story from Engadget. See the original for four different images. –Matthew]

[Image: Source: MyRecordJournal]

Why putting googly eyes on robots makes them inherently less threatening

We can exploit our social nature to be nicer to AIs.

Andrew Tarantola
May 22, 2019

At the start of 2019, supermarket chain Giant Food Stores announced it would begin operating customer-assisting robots — collectively dubbed Marty — in 172 East Coast locations. These autonomous machines may navigate their respective store using a laser-based detection system, but they’re also outfitted with a pair of oversize googly eyes. This is to, “[make] it a bit more fun,” Giant President Nick Bertram told Adweek in January, and “celebrate the fact that there’s a robot.”… read more. “Googly eyes on robots: Evolution, social cues and medium-as-social-actor presence”

Posted in Presence in the News | Leave a comment

Call: The Society of Learning Algorithms, a Science and Art of Simulation (SAS) conference

Call for Papers

The Society of Learning Algorithms
Conference series: Science and Art of Simulation (SAS)
High-Performance Computing Center Stuttgart, Germany (HLRS)
November 11-13, 2019
https://philo.hlrs.de/openconf/openconf.php

Submission deadline: July 1, 2019

Debates about learning algorithms quickly get on one of two tracks: Either machine learning is regarded as a statistical procedure for data analysis, then questions arise as to the traceability and reliability of these procedures. Or machine learning is placed in the context of artificial intelligence, then questions arise as to the appropriateness of the claims and visions associated with it. The link between both debates, however, lies in the fact that learning machines affect sociality: from the concrete interaction between humans and machines to the learning machine inscribed designs of society, learning algorithms affect the social space. The conference aims to explore these social forms by bringing together philosophers, sociologists, historians, computer scientists, mathematicians, and users of learning algorithms.… read more. “Call: The Society of Learning Algorithms, a Science and Art of Simulation (SAS) conference”

Posted in Calls | Leave a comment

How war photographer Julia Leeb is using VR and art to let comfortable people experience the terror of conflict zones

[The creation of presence experiences can help people understand and hopefully prevent some of the war and suffering in our world. This story is from artnet News, where it includes five of Julia Leeb’s works; for more information see interviews in Deutschland.de and She’s Mercedes as well as julialeeb.com. –Matthew]

[Image: The photographer, VR filmmaker, and artist Julia Leeb. Photo courtesy of the artist.]

How War Photographer Julia Leeb Is Using Virtual Reality and Art to Let Comfortable People Experience the Terror of Conflict Zones

Can VR instill empathy for those suffering thousands of miles away?

Sophie Neuendorf
May 27, 2019

“Where are you traveling to next?” was my first question to the artist Julia Leeb. “I cannot tell you,” she replied, “as it would endanger my life. It’s a place where kidnapping and ransom demands are a primary source of income.”… read more. “How war photographer Julia Leeb is using VR and art to let comfortable people experience the terror of conflict zones”

Posted in Presence in the News | Leave a comment
  • Find Researchers

    Use the links below to find researchers listed alphabetically by the first letter of their last name.

    A | B | C | D | E | F| G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z