ISPR Presence News

Monthly Archives: August 2021

Job: Lecturer / Senior Lecturer post in Games and HCI at University of Lincoln (UK)

Call for Applications

Lecturer/Senior Lecturer in Computer Science – Computer Games and HCI
School of Computer Science

Lincoln University
Lincoln, UK
Reference:  COS234B
https://jobs.lincoln.ac.uk/vacancy.aspx?ref=COS234B

Closing Date: Sunday 12 September 2021
Interview Date: Friday 01 October 2021

Hi everyone,

We are looking for a new colleague to join us at the University of Lincoln (UK) as a Lecturer/Senior Lecturer in Games and HCI (equivalent to Assistant Professor). The post is based in the School of Computer Science, and the postholder will also be part of our Interactive Technologies research group (www.intLab.co.uk) which encompasses related research themes such as player experience, games design, and virtual reality. Full details and online application are available at:

https://jobs.lincoln.ac.uk/vacancy.aspx?ref=COS234B

If you’d like an informal chat about the post, please do drop me a line at pdickinson@lincoln.ac.uk. Applications close on 12th September.

Thanks, Patrick Dickinson


Dr.… read more. “Job: Lecturer / Senior Lecturer post in Games and HCI at University of Lincoln (UK)”

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Are you ready for sentient Disney robots?

[This story from The New York Times describes Disney’s efforts to update its animatronic characters for a new media era. See the original version for many more images and short videos, and see often amusing reactions (e.g., referencing Westworld) in stories from HuffPost and Comic Sands. The San Jose Mercury News reports on a new 10-episode Disney+ series called “Behind the Attraction” and provides some interesting history from it about the early days of the Abraham Lincoln animatronic robot. –Matthew]

[Image: Testing silicon skin for elasticity. Credit: Coley Brown for The New York Times]

Are You Ready for Sentient Disney Robots?

Some of the animatronics at Disney’s parks have been doing their herky-jerky thing since the Nixon administration. The company knows that nostalgia won’t cut it with today’s children.

By Brooks Barnes
August 19, 2021

GLENDALE, Calif. — I was en route to meet Groot.… read more. “Are you ready for sentient Disney robots?”

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Call: Third Budapest Workshop on Philosophy of Technology

Call for Abstracts

The third Budapest Workshop on Philosophy of Technology
December 9-10, 2021
Budapest University of Technology and Economics
https://www.budpt.eu/

Deadline for submission of abstracts: 31 August 2021

Dear all,

The third Budapest Workshop on Philosophy of Technology will be held December 9-10, 2021, at Budapest University of Technology and Economics. Proposal abstracts are due by 31 August 2021. Instructions and details are online: https://www.budpt.eu/. There are no fees of any kind.

As in 2019, the presenters will be offered an opportunity to publish a full paper in the WoS SSCI-indexed InfTars (“Information Society”: inftars.infonia.hu) journal after the workshop. At budpt.eu you can browse a selection of the papers from BudPT19.

BudPT21 hopes to be an in-person conference. This displays our trust in medical technology as well as a certain amount of optimistic bias. However, should any accepted participants become unable to attend, they will still be able to submit a pre-recorded video and publish the full paper (but we will not transition to a hybrid conference).… read more. “Call: Third Budapest Workshop on Philosophy of Technology”

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Elon Musk unveils Tesla Bot, a humanoid robot “intended to be friendly”

[Some of the stories about Elon Musk’s announcement that his company is creating a humanoid robot (e.g., in The Washington Post and The Hill) just describe the Tesla AI Day presentation. Others focus on the potential of Tesla Bots to help us explore Mars (Business Insider) or revolutionize health care (Forbes). The CNET story below at least includes an acknowledgement of the ambitiousness of just producing the robot as described, while other stories are more skeptical (Ars Technica), analyze and refute each of Musk’s claims (IEEE Spectrum), or dismiss the whole effort as a strategic distraction from Tesla’s current problems (MarketWatch) or dangerous hype that raises our expectations for AI and robotics (The Verge). See the original version of the CNET story for more images and the 6:40 minute presentation video (also available on YouTube).… read more. “Elon Musk unveils Tesla Bot, a humanoid robot “intended to be friendly””

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Job: Asst. Prof. in Communication Studies (Comm. and Technology) at DePaul University

Call for Applications

Tenure Track Assistant Professor in Communication Studies (Communication and Technology)
College of Communication
DePaul University
Chicago, Illinois, USA
https://academics.depaul.edu/faculty-jobs/Pages/position-detail.aspx?dpusearchbyid=322923

Review of applications will begin October 15, 2021 and continue until the position is filled

The College of Communication at DePaul is seeking a tenure-track Assistant Professor in the area of Communication Studies with an emphasis in communication and technology in an intercultural context. Candidates should focus on social media and social networks, virtual reality and other emerging technologies, digital communication, and/or other technologies that link to intercultural communication.

The candidate will conduct research and teach graduate and undergraduate communication studies courses explicitly related to the use of technology in intercultural communication contexts. Candidates with research expertise and/or production experience in issues of identity and representation, social change and social justice, the construction of culture, and/or health communication contexts are especially encouraged to apply.… read more. “Job: Asst. Prof. in Communication Studies (Comm. and Technology) at DePaul University”

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First-person report: Facebook’s new VR meeting app Horizon Workrooms

[Facebook just hosted a press demonstration of its new virtual reality meeting app Horizon Workrooms; the report below from Engadget describes what it was like. Stories in The Verge, CNBC, CNET, VentureBeat, and to a lesser degree, Wired and CNN, provide more personal observations and assessments from the reporters who attended. The New York Times provides a nice summary of the last few decades of developments in VR and concludes with this:

“At the Workrooms event with reporters this week, Mr. Zuckerberg spoke but had to leave at one point and rejoin the room because his digital avatar’s mouth was not moving when he spoke. ’Technology that gives you this sense of presence is like the holy grail of social experiences, and what I think a company like ours was designed to do over time,’ Mr.… read more. “First-person report: Facebook’s new VR meeting app Horizon Workrooms”

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Call: Communication and Technology Interest Group at Central States Communication Association 2022

Call for Papers and Panels

Communication and Technology Interest Group
Central States Communication Association (CSCA)
CSCA 2022 Annual Convention
Madison, Wisconsin
March 30-April 3, 2022
Theme: Re-Connect
https://www.csca-net.org/aws/CSCA/pt/sd/news_article/379056/_PARENT/layout_details/false

Submission deadline: October 8, 2021

The Communication and Technology Interest Group invites submissions of competitive papers, extended abstracts, and panel proposals for the 2022 CSCA Convention. The purpose of the Communication and Technology Interest Group is to promote dialogues and scholarships on the role of technology in communication. In conjunction with the convention theme, we are seeking innovative and insightful research that explores how we communicate “through” and “with” technology and the ways that technological boundaries can shape how we communicate as well as how technology can inspire communicative breakthroughs as it pertains to all areas in our field.

We welcome submissions that deal with a variety of technology platforms/types (e.g., AI, robots, VR, AR, mobile phone, social media).… read more. “Call: Communication and Technology Interest Group at Central States Communication Association 2022”

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These scientists are using virtual reality (and presence) to develop COVID-19 treatments

[Fast Company reports on how scientists are using virtual reality, and both spatial and social presence, to collaborate in the work to identify effective drug treatments for COVID-19. See the original story for a 14:33 minute video and for coverage of related efforts see a November 2020 story in Drug Target Review and a June 2018 post in ISPR Presence News. –Matthew]

These scientists are using virtual reality to develop COVID-19 treatments

Looking at molecules in 3D arms scientists with important information that’s hard to glean from traditional 2D formats.

By Ruth Reader
August 3, 2021

Last year, when Italy was under siege from COVID-19, scientists at Exscalate4Cov, a public-private consortium of 18 institutions across Europe led by Italian pharmaceutical company Dompé farmaceutici, had just begun the hunt to find a therapeutic for COVID-19. Eight scientists, all located throughout Europe, met in a virtual room to discuss potential molecules.… read more. “These scientists are using virtual reality (and presence) to develop COVID-19 treatments”

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Call: IEEE AIVR 2021 Workshop on Modeling and Animating Realistic Crowds and Humans (MARCH)

Call for Papers

Workshop on Modeling and Animating Realistic Crowds and Humans (MARCH)
At IEEE AVIVR 2021, 4th IEEE International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality
November 15-17, 2021 (concrete date TBD)
Taichung, Taiwan and online [see LOCATION AND DATE below]
https://sites.google.com/view/ieee-aivr2021-march

Submission deadline: August 27, 2021

LOCATION AND DATE

The workshop IEEE-MARCH will take place during the 4th IEEE International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality (IEEE AIVR) that will be held on November 15-17, 2021 in Taichung, Taiwan. Due to the COVID-19 situation, the conference will be either online or hybrid, and the workshop will most likely be fully online.

IEEE-MARCH is a half-day workshop. For more information, please visit the workshop‘s website: https://sites.google.com/view/ieee-aivr2021-march

DESCRIPTION

Digital humans are key aspects of the rapidly evolving areas of virtual reality, augmented reality, virtual production, and gaming. They are becoming more and more commonly used for entertainment, education, health, security, and many other purposes.… read more. “Call: IEEE AIVR 2021 Workshop on Modeling and Animating Realistic Crowds and Humans (MARCH)”

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Warner Bros “Reminiscence” site uses deepfake tech to put you in the trailer

[A new website for the film Reminiscence lets users create and share a trailer that incorporates a deepfake of the viewer using only a single uploaded photograph. The first short story from SlashGear below describes the process and the film (which at this writing has a 7.8/10 rating at IMDb) and the second story from Protocol provides details about the technology and company behind the interactive, personalized trailer. –Matthew]

[Image: Source: DDay]

Warner Bros Reminiscence site uses deepfake tech to put you in the trailer

By Brittany A. Roston
August 14, 2021

The soon-to-be-released science fiction movie starring Huge Jackman, Reminiscence, has one of the most unique promotional websites in the industry — it uses ‘deepfake’ technology to put viewers or their loved ones in the trailer. The website also encourages viewers to engage with the content using interactive commands.… read more. “Warner Bros “Reminiscence” site uses deepfake tech to put you in the trailer”

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