[Below are two stories about efforts to use presence-evoking technology to replace the experience of in-person graduation ceremonies (and other aspects of campus life) that have been displaced by the Coronavirus. The first story, about elementary students using Minecraft, is from Parentology; SoraNews24 adds these reactions from “Japanese netizens”:

“The kids are all right.”
“Parents are doing ‘telework’ and kids are doing ‘telegraduation.’”
“I’m so jealous of what awesome things kids have these day.”
“Those who say video games are bad, look at this!”
“This will probably be an even better memory than a regular graduation for them.”

NBC’s Today adds details about the student who started the effort, and all of these stories include more pictures and/or videos. The Parentology story alludes to Purdue University’s earlier plan to add a virtual component to their regular graduation ceremony; more details about that are available from Purdue’s website.… read more. “Virtual graduation ceremonies and campuses evoke presence”

[Here are two stories about how singers are creatively using technology to evoke a sense of being together when they have to be physically separated. More about virtual choirs can be found in stories in Kent Online and CNN and a 2:48 minute radio segment from ABC News in Australia. –Matthew]

[Image: The Sofa Singers. Credit: twitter.com/@swissmiss]

[From Positive News]

Online choir spreads joy and togetherness during coronavirus outbreak

When it became impossible to run his real-life choirs as normal this week, vocal leader James Sills launched The Sofa Singers. The virtual group invites people from all over the world to connect through the power of song – from the comfort of their sofas

Words by Lucy Purdy
March 17, 2020

At 7.30pm GMT on Tuesday, a choir met for its first ever rehearsal. Starting tentatively to the sound of a few throats being nervously cleared, its members soon warmed up, grinning at each other while belting out verse after verse, before chatting excitedly afterwards over cups of tea.… read more. “Virtual choirs connect people during social distancing”

[As this story from Wired notes, a device that lets people collect diagnostic data and video conference with a doctor from home is of great value in general and especially in the context of the Coronavirus pandemic. See the original story for two more pictures.

I hope you’re all staying safe and healthy in this strange and scary time.

–Matthew]

Review: TytoCare TytoHome Medical Kit

Soon, this easy, in-home diagnostic device will be standard home equipment for every family.

Rating:8/10

WIRED: Small and easily storable. Simple to operate. Accurate. Eliminates the need for doctor’s visits. Lets care providers monitor patients remotely.
TIRED: Expensive. Might not work with your insurance or preferred care provider.

March 19, 2020
By Adrienne So

In my past five years as a parent, I’ve called the doctor more times than I have in the 30 years before.… read more. “TytoHome telehealth diagnostic kit even more valuable during pandemic”

[This story from Ars Technica describes how an accidental simulation of an epidemic in the virtual World of Warcraft helped epidemiologists understand how people respond in similar real (nonmediated) crises. See the original story for a second image and a 1:23 minute video. –Matthew]

[Image: Players gathered in an in-game urban center during the epidemic. Infected individuals walk among the uninfected, the recently dead, and the skeletons of those who died earlier.]

What a WoW virtual outbreak taught us about how humans behave in epidemics

Revisiting a seminal 2007 paper modeling WoW‘s Corrupted Blood incident.

Jennifer Ouellette
March 16, 2020

When it comes to a global pandemic, human beings are the ultimate wild card. That makes it challenging to build accurate mathematical models to predict how the progress of the disease will play out. We’ve certainly seen plenty of all-too-human responses to coronavirus over the last two weeks, with some people panicking and hoarding food, toilet paper, and hand sanitizer.… read more. “What a WoW virtual outbreak taught us about how humans behave in epidemics”

[The Coronavirus pandemic is prompting many new efforts to create presence experiences; this link-filled story from Vogue Business (which explicitly refers to presence) describes some of these efforts in the fashion industry. See the original version for a second image and a short video. –Matthew]

[Image: Artwork hand printed by Hannah Cousins, exclusively for Vogue Business; see the original story for the uncropped, animated gif version.]

Forced cancellations jumpstart virtual fashion technology

Amid a moratorium on events and calls for more sustainable practices, tech that facilitates virtual fashion presentations is thrust into the spotlight.

By Maghan Mcdowell
17 March 2020

Eight China-based fashion designers were invited to Paris Fashion Week to present alongside several of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalists at Tomorrow Le Palais, a showroom for emerging designers. But when they could no longer travel to Paris from China due to coronavirus-related travel restrictions, Tomorrow chief development officer Julie Gilhart coordinated a backup plan: each designer would create an introductory video to discuss and display their work.… read more. “Forced cancellations jumpstart virtual fashion technology”