[It’s early days, but this story from Government Technology describes a potentially life-saving approach to training firefighters and other disaster first responders using presence-evoking augmented reality and artificial intelligence. See the original version of the story (or YouTube) for the mentioned 4:16 minute video. –Matthew] [Image: A man practices extinguishing a fire through AI-augmented training. Credit: George Mason University] Could Augmented Reality Paired With AI Save First Responder Lives? Training poses deadly risks for firefighters. Researchers are experimenting with new augmented and virtual reality technologies to allow first responders to learn life-saving skills without risking their own. By Nikki DavidsonJuly…

[CNN provides this cautiously optimistic link-filled assessment about the long-expected mainstreaming of presence-evoking virtual, augmented and mixed reality technologies for entertainment. See the original version of this story for four more images. –Matthew] [Image: A woman plays a video game with the Oculus Rift VR headset at a video arcade dedicated to virtual reality in Paris, France on December 5, 2016. Credit: Benoit Tessier/Reuters] Tech promised virtual reality would revolutionize entertainment. That moment might finally be closer than we think. By Liam Reilly, CNNJuly 12, 2025 Virtual reality was supposed to transform entertainment. At least, that was the expectation roughly…

[This story from Virginia Tech describes how a professor teaching a computer science course there is using a Global Learning Course Grant to take her students to Egyptian (and soon other) heritage sites via virtual reality and then build databases for real-world clients to use as they work to preserve endangered monuments at those sites. See the original version of the story for six more images and the five mentioned videos. –Matthew] [Image: Students in Sally Hamouda’s database course were able to “tour” endangered Egyptian monuments from their Blacksburg classroom by using virtual reality headsets, purchased through a Global Education…

[This short press release from the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Germany (also available via EurekAlert!) provides an update on work exploring the potential positive impacts of using media technologies to evoke a sense of being present in natural settings, in this case a forest. See ISPR Presence News posts from June 2023 and April 2020 for more on this topic. –Matthew] Virtual forest bathing alleviates stress Multisensory vs. unisensory nature experiences in Virtual Reality increase sense of wellbeing and connectedness to nature July 2, 2025 A team of researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Human Development…

[In this blog post by from Telehealth.org, a psychologist describes her experience using – and useful insights about when and how to use- shared and playful immersive experiences to enhance family therapy. See the original version for a second image. –Matthew] How VR Games Help Heal Family Dysfunction By Jessica Stone, Ph.D., RPT-S [Bio at end below]July 7, 2025 There’s shouting, laughter, strategy, and the occasional squeal of triumph. “I’ve got the acorn – block me!” one yells, while another calls out, “Distract the tree!” The tree–often me, the therapist–is swinging wildly, trying to block the squirrels as they work…

[Interesting Engineering carried this story about a new development in teleoperation, the use of a humanoid robot to cook food from over a thousand miles away. The story is followed by additional details from coverage by Tech In Asia. The Interesting Engineering story includes a 1:54 minute video about the robot but neither source features or links to the full version of the recent demonstration video directly; instead, you can see parts of the demonstration in videos on YouTube from PEARL (also known as Cultural Lingnan) and South Korea’s ETNews (Electronic Times News), and there are many more related videos…