International Society
for Presence Research

Author: Matthew Lombard

  • Call: “Creative Machines and Minds Without Life” Nordic Summer University (NSU) Symposium

    Published:

    Call for Abstracts and Artistic Submissions Creative Machines and Minds Without Life: Critical Detachment and Disengaged FuturesA Cybioses Study Circle/Symposium organized by the Nordic Summer University (NSU)March 5-8, 2025“Augmented Performance Lab” at Aalborg University CopenhagenCopenhagen, Denmarkhttps://www.nsuweb.org/study-circles/circle-2-cybioses-life-in-the-future-imperfect/ Deadline for submissions: January 15, 2025 As part of the study circle/symposium series Cybioses – life in the future imperfect, organized as part of the Nordic Summer University (NSU; https://www.nsuweb.org/), we are pleased to announce a call for abstracts and artistic submissions for our symposium on “Creative Machines and Minds Without Life”. Invitation We invite scholars, artists, students, technologists, and other professionals working or…

    Read more: Call: “Creative Machines and Minds Without Life” Nordic Summer University (NSU) Symposium

  • Meet the couples who met by dating in VR – which is only going to get more common

    Published:

    [This story from The Times provides insights into how and why people are increasingly using virtual reality (and presence) to meet and date romantic partners. See the original version for nine more (large, vivid) pictures. I particularly like this comment that suggests the ubiquity of presence in modern lives: “Hamilton and Harrison got engaged in Kyoto in June, and are now planning their wedding — maybe at Disney World, in real life, if Disney World counts as real life.” –Matthew] [Image: The British filmmaker Joe Hunting met his girlfriend, Jenny, while making the first commercially distributed feature film shot entirely…

    Read more: Meet the couples who met by dating in VR – which is only going to get more common

  • Call: LOVE & LOSS: Nostalgia Symposium and Research Creation Event

    Published:

    Call for Papers “LOVE & LOSS” – Third symposium by THE NOSTAGAIN NETWORKAn interdisciplinary symposium featuring creative and critical perspectives on nostalgia, longing, attachment, and griefFebruary 14, 2025Concordia University, Montreal, Canada (and online – see event website)http://www.nostagain.ca/cfp2025 Deadline for submission of abstracts and research creation works: January 12, 2025 The NOSTAGAIN NETWORK is looking for paper presentations and research creation projects for our symposium “LOVE & LOSS” on February 14, 2025. THE SYMPOSIUM: Nostalgia is a complex thing to talk about and pinpoint. Scholarly efforts to recognize the more positive and creative aspects of nostalgia have opened up insights for…

    Read more: Call: LOVE & LOSS: Nostalgia Symposium and Research Creation Event

  • This little desktop robot is helping sick children attend school

    Published:

    [While traditional “iPad on a stick” telepresence robots let the remote user “drive the robot around, see what [they] wish, and interact with people through video,” this story from CNN is about how schools are using a small, stationary, screenless desktop robot called the AV1 to allow children who can’t attend in person to feel present in their classrooms. See the original version of the story for two more images, and see the No Isolation website for much more information about the AV1 (interestingly they’re available for rental, but purchase prices are comparable to the traditional robots). –Matthew] [Image: The…

    Read more: This little desktop robot is helping sick children attend school

  • Call: Book chapters on Cyber-Ethics, Techno-Ethics and Digital Media

    Published:

    Call For Book Chapters Cyber-Ethics, Techno-Ethics and Digital MediaEmerald Publishinghttps://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/cyber-ethics-techno-ethics-and-digital-media-call-book-chapters Proposed book editors: Dr Adelina Mbinjama, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Dr Janelle Vermaak-Griessel, Nelson Mandela University, Prof Bianca Wright, Coventry University Deadline for submission of abstracts: November 30, 2024 The digital media space is not immune from rapid advances in technology and changes spawned across society.  The evolution of technology has occasioned notable ethical considerations that users should take into cognisance. This results in the rise of fields such as techno-ethics and cyber-ethics, which address the moral implications of digital technologies and media (Tavani, 2012). Techno-ethics is a field…

    Read more: Call: Book chapters on Cyber-Ethics, Techno-Ethics and Digital Media

  • I tried MR yoga on Meta’s $500 headset. It was a glimpse into the future of workouts

    Published:

    [The author of this story from Fortune provides a first-person report on a new app for the Meta Quest 3 that uses volumetric capture and mixed reality to provide spatial and social presence for home workouts. As usual, the discomfort of the headset is said to interfere with (but not negate) presence. See the original story for a second image. –Matthew] [Image: Alo Moves and Magnopus have developed these semi-lifelike conditions using volumetric capture, which uses synchronized cameras to capture a 3D view of a landscape or person. Credit: Alo] I tried virtual reality yoga on Meta’s $500 headset. It…

    Read more: I tried MR yoga on Meta’s $500 headset. It was a glimpse into the future of workouts

  • Call: IACAP/AISB 2025 Philosophy of Computing and AI Conference

    Published:

    Joint Call for Abstracts The International Association for Computing and Philosophy (IACAP)andThe Society for the Study of Artificial Intelligence and Simulation of Behaviour (AISB)Philosophy of Computing and AI ConferenceJuly 1-3, 2025University of TwenteEnschede, Netherlandshttps://pretalx.iacapconf.org/iacap-2025/cfp Deadline for submission of Symposia proposals: December 1, 2024Deadline for Extended Abstracts for individual Presentations, Posters, and Workshops: December 20, 2024 Keynote Speakers: AISB Keynote – Philip Brey IACAP Covey Award Address – To be announced. Nominations: https://www.iacap.org/2024/10/02/call-for-nominations-the-covey-award-2025/ IACAP Simon Award Address – To be announced. Nominations: https://www.iacap.org/2024/10/02/call-for-nominations-the-simon-award-2025/ The International Association for Computing and Philosophy (IACAP) and the Society for the Study of Artificial Intelligence and Simulation of Behaviour (AISB) will host…

    Read more: Call: IACAP/AISB 2025 Philosophy of Computing and AI Conference

  • Can an AI chatbot be your friend?

    Published:

    [According to a new set of studies, talking with an AI chatbot instructed to be “helpful, empathetic, friendly, and upbeat” makes people feel less lonely, an effect “on par with talking to another human being,” and presumably due to evoked medium-as-social-actor presence. The story below is from Knowledge at Wharton (a business journal of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania); follow the links for more information about the research and researchers. –Matthew] Can an AI Chatbot Be Your Friend? People reported feeling less lonely after interacting with AI chatbots programmed to be empathetic, according to a new study…

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  • Call: Book chapters on the Evolving Nature of Work in a Post-Pandemic Era

    Published:

    Call for Book Chapters Book title: Reimagining the Nature of Work: A Comprehensive Analysis of Interpersonal Communication, Generational Dynamics, and Leadership in the Post-Pandemic EraEditor: Leigh Maxwell, Edgewood CollegePublisher: Vernon Presshttps://telegra.ph/CALL-FOR-SUBMISSIONS-Call-for-Book-Chapters-on-the-Evolving-Nature-of-Work-in-a-Post-Pandemic-Era-10-07 Deadline for submissions of abstracts: December 1, 2024 We are inviting scholars, researchers, and practitioners to contribute chapters to an upcoming edited volume that explores the evolving nature of work in the post-pandemic era. This book will provide a comprehensive analysis of the critical issues surrounding interpersonal communication, generational dynamics, and leadership within a distributed workplace. We seek original, high-quality research that addresses the implications of these changes across…

    Read more: Call: Book chapters on the Evolving Nature of Work in a Post-Pandemic Era

  • Does Apple’s ‘Submerged,’ the first short film made for Vision Pro headset, sink or swim?

    Published:

    [Apple has just released its first scripted film made specifically for the Apple Vision Pro spatial computing headset capable of evoking high levels of presence. An early review from USA Today (via Aol) is below; see the original for more images and to watch the trailer, which is also available on YouTube). Coverage from MacStories adds these details: “With its 3D, 8K footage displayed in a 180-degree field of view combined with Spatial Audio, Apple Immersive Video is one of the highlights of the Vision Pro experience. Thus far, we’ve only seen it used in nonfictional contexts, including nature, travel,…

    Read more: Does Apple’s ‘Submerged,’ the first short film made for Vision Pro headset, sink or swim?

  • Call: Chapters for The De Gruyter Handbook of Digital Cultures

    Published:

    Call for Chapters The De Gruyter Handbook of Digital Cultureshttp://commlist.org/archive/all/2024-all/msg01481.html Edited by:Grant Bollmer (University of Maryland, College Park)Katherine Guinness (University of Maryland, College Park)Yigit Soncul (London College of Communication, University of the Arts London) Deadline for submissions: November 30, 2024 The De Gruyter Handbook of Digital Cultures seeks to provide a comprehensive reference for the varied methodologies, historical frames, and theoretical perspectives essential for the study of Digital Culture today. As Digital Culture moves from a general term for the changes wrought by digital media to an interdisciplinary intellectual subfield guiding many curricula at countless universities around the globe, drawing…

    Read more: Call: Chapters for The De Gruyter Handbook of Digital Cultures

  • “Horizon of Khufu” VR experience in NYC: See the Great Pyramids and sail on the Nile as if you were actually there

    Published:

    [A new virtual reality-based attraction is coming to New York. The brief description below from New Jersey Family is followed by extended excerpts from a Secret London review of the London edition of Horizon of Khufu”; another review, from blooloop, provides this: “Immersive experiences strive to achieve the suspension of disbelief and VR technology is heavily challenged in this area. Computer game-style visuals, the absence of body and symbolic identification, coupled with abrupt transitions and inevitable spatial glitches are the price to pay for employing VR in attractions.However, The Horizon of Khufu offers an impressive level of detail including weeds…

    Read more: “Horizon of Khufu” VR experience in NYC: See the Great Pyramids and sail on the Nile as if you were actually there

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