ISPR Presence News

Monthly Archives: February 2024

Call: “Programmed to Love: Players and Virtual Lovers” issue of International Journal of Games and Social Impact

Call for Papers

“Programmed to Love: Players and Virtual Lovers”
Special issue of International Journal of Games and Social Impact
https://revistas.ulusofona.pt/index.php/ijgsi/announcement/view/195

Guest Editor: Renata Ntelia (School of Computer Science, University of Lincoln)

Submission deadline: June 1, 2024

Games often offer their players strong emotional experiences. Love is a profound human experience that affects all aspects of our lives. Indeed, many games include love as part of their narrative and/or gameplay. Nevertheless, is this truly love? Unlike other media, in which the audience reads about or watches a love story unfold, in games players take on an active role in the execution of the love story. This raises concerns as to the ability of games to simulate love. Can a player love a (virtual) character? If not, what does this mean for the capacity of games to afford love? If yes, how does this change our understanding of love?… read more. “Call: “Programmed to Love: Players and Virtual Lovers” issue of International Journal of Games and Social Impact”

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AI platorm Groq reduces presence-breaking lags

[One of the many aspects of interactions with media technologies that can ‘break’ presence is lag, the delay between the user’s action and the technology’s response. In a February 20, 2024 essay in Stratechery, Matthew Ball explains the need for reducing lag in interactions with AI:

“[T]he closer an AI comes to being human, the more grating and ultimately gating are the little inconveniences that get in the way of actually interacting with said AI. It is one thing to have to walk to your desk to use a PC, or even reach into your pocket for a smartphone: you are, at all times, clearly interacting with a device. Having to open an app or wait for text in the context of a human-like AI is far more painful: it breaks the illusion in a much more profound, and ultimately disappointing, way.… read more. “AI platorm Groq reduces presence-breaking lags”

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Call: ISMAR 2024 – IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality

Call for Papers

ISMAR 2024: IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality
October 21 to 25, 2024
Greater Seattle Area, USA [and online]
https://ieeeismar.org/cfp/

Abstract submission deadline: March 7, 2024
Paper submission deadline: March 14, 2024

OVERVIEW

As initiated in 2021, ISMAR 2024 will have two different calls for papers. ISMAR is responding to the recent explosion of commercial and research activities related to AR, MR and VR by continuing the expansion of its scope over the past several years. ISMAR 2024 will cover the full range of technologies, from interfaces in the real world to fully immersive experiences. This range goes far beyond the traditional published work in AR, such as precise 3D tracking, visual display, and real-time performance. We specifically invite contributions that advance all aspects of AR / MR / VR technology and user experiences.… read more. “Call: ISMAR 2024 – IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality”

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International Conference on Holodecks: Five key takeaways

[The story below from the University of Southern California’s Viterbi School of Engineering reports on the latest efforts to make arguably the ultimate presence-evoking technology, Star Trek’s holodecks, a reality; see the original version of the story for three more pictures and three videos. –Matthew]

[Image: USC researchers led by Shahram Ghandeharizadeh and Heather Culbertson (Center) are inching closer to creating a real-world holodeck, using swarms of tiny drones to create 3D objects. Credit: Cooper Brown.]

International Conference on Holodecks: Five Key Takeaways

Immersive technology researchers at USC and beyond are bringing us one step closer to making Star Trek-like holodecks a reality.

By Anna Hsu and Caitlin Dawson with additional reporting from Bryce Tobiano
February 1, 2024

Shaking hands with a character from the Fortnite video game. Visualizing a patient’s heart in 3D—and “feeling” it beat. Touching the walls of the Roman Coliseum—from your sofa in Los Angeles.… read more. “International Conference on Holodecks: Five key takeaways”

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Call: HCSE 2024 – 10th International Conference on Human-Centered Software Engineering

Call for Papers

HCSE 2024
10th International Working Conference on Human-Centered Software Engineering
July 8-10, 2024
Reykjavik, Iceland
http://www.hcse-conference.org

Submission deadlines:
Technical full papers, late breaking results: Monday, February 26th, 2024
Demos, posters and Discussion Forum short papers: Friday, April 5th, 2024

HCSE is a bi-annual, single-track, working conference organized by the IFIP Working Group 13.2 on Methodology for User-Centred System Design. We aim at bringing together researchers and practitioners interested in strengthening the scientific foundations of user interface design, examining the relationship between software engineering and human-computer interaction and on how to strengthen human-centered design as an essential part of software engineering processes – more info on the topics on: https://hcse-conference.org/

A novelty of HCSE 2024 is the Discussion Forum for PhD students who want to present and intensively discuss with established researchers their research ideas and get feedback and/or guidance for the continuation of their work in a friendly and constructive atmosphere.… read more. “Call: HCSE 2024 – 10th International Conference on Human-Centered Software Engineering”

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Radical empathy through virtual reality: Tech has power to transform the patient experience

[I’ve read, and posted, several encouraging stories over the years about how individuals have discovered, and formed organizations to utilize, the power of presence-evoking technologies to create new empathy and understanding, and hopefully behavior change, that counters harmful biases. The story below about Equity Commons is from Davidson College in North Carolina; the original version contains three more pictures, and there’s more information on the Equity Commons website. –Matthew]

[Image: Aubrey J. Grant ’10, M.D.]

Radical Empathy Through Virtual Reality: Tech Has Power to Transform the Patient Experience

By Jay Pfeifer
February 19, 2024

You are Tracy. You are a transgender woman. You are a patient at a cardiologist’s office. You know the statistics. You know that transgender persons have a higher incidence of cardiovascular disease, but the doctor’s office has never felt comfortable to you. You are sitting in a sterile examination room.… read more. “Radical empathy through virtual reality: Tech has power to transform the patient experience”

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Call: Serious Play 2024

Call for Speakers

Serious Play 2024
August 12-14, 2024
University of Toronto, Mississauga
Toronto, Canada
https://seriousplayconf.com/

Submission deadline: April 15, 2024

Our call for speakers is open for Serious Play 2024, which will be held at the University of Toronto, Mississauga on August 12 – 14. Our game awards are also open, which include student categories.

A brief description:

For the past 18 years, the Serious Play Conference has established itself as a premier platform for discussing the impactful use of games and play in education, training, skill development, and knowledge dissemination. This unique conference brings together a community of scholars, experts, and practitioners from various sectors, all united by their interest in innovative game and play applications. Highlighting the latest in interactive play, simulations, gamification, game-based learning, immersive experiences, and research, the conference demonstrates how these tools can create effective learning environments and tackle complex issues.… read more. “Call: Serious Play 2024”

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The Seeing Eye Dog V2.0 (the robot) is shaping up as a gamechanger

[This story from New Atlas makes a detailed and compelling case for the use of robots to serve in the valuable role of seeing eye dogs, with characteristics of the robots likely evoking medium-as-social-actor presence for their blind or sight-limited users. See the original version of the story for eight more images and three videos. –Matthew]

[Image: The University of Glasgow has been working with the Unitree G01 platform for quite some time now, specifically to develop guide dogs for blind and partially sighted people. Credit: Glasgow University]

The Seeing Eye Dog V2.0 is shaping up as a gamechanger

By Mike Hanlon
February 16, 2024

An important new iteration of the robotic seeing eye dog was shown to the world this week, when Glasgow University showed off RoboGuide, an AI-powered quadruped for visually impaired people. The future for robotic canine assistants looks not just commercially huge, but also massively empowering for the world’s one-third of billion visually impaired people.… read more. “The Seeing Eye Dog V2.0 (the robot) is shaping up as a gamechanger”

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Call: Academic Esports Seminar at the University of Agder in Norway

Call for Abstracts

Academic Esports Seminar
May 21-24, 2024
University of Agder in Norway
https://www.academicesports.net

Abstract submission deadline: March 6, 2024

Dear fellow Game Researchers,

We at the University of Agder in Norway are planning to do a conference on the topic of Academic Esports, please find below the call for abstracts and if you have any questions, please let me know!

Kind regards,
Tobi

ACADEMIC ESPORTS SEMINAR

In an era where digital landscapes are continually reshaping the way we learn, teach, and engage, the advent of academic esports stands at the forefront of educational innovation. Distinct from the realms of casual gaming and competitive esports, academic esports emerges as a disciplined approach that harnesses the immersive power of video games to cultivate a wide array of skills and competencies in learners. This nuanced field not only challenges the traditional paradigms of education but also opens new avenues for research, pedagogy, and learner engagement.… read more. “Call: Academic Esports Seminar at the University of Agder in Norway”

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‘Ibelin’ is a unique documentary that illustrates the power of presence via World of Warcraft

[The new innovative documentary Ibelin explores the rich relationships formed solely in World of Warcraft by a quadriplegic gamer. The very positive review from Variety below provides a vivid description of the film, which at this writing has a 100% rating from reviewers at Rotten Tomatoes (note that not all reviews are as glowing; Hollywood Reporter’s reviewer writes that “if you’re already aware that the virtual spaces created by networked gaming are, indeed, valid and even valuable ways of forging social relationships, there isn’t much additional insight”). –Matthew]

[Image: Source: The Wrap]

‘Ibelin’ Review: A Shattering Documentary About a Gamer’s Secret Life

Acquired by Netflix at Sundance, Benjamin Ree’s unique documentary blends video games and real life to unearth hidden stories.

By Siddhant Adlakha

Between fascist propaganda, harassment campaigns, AI-generated Google results, and the collapse of digital publishing, it’s hard not to think of the internet as a wasteland.… read more. “‘Ibelin’ is a unique documentary that illustrates the power of presence via World of Warcraft”

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