[The overall message from this new consumer study is that there’s great interest in trying and purchasing presence-evoking VR technology for a variety of activities (though apparently not communication/social VR); there are also some concerns (see the last paragraph). The story is from Fast Company, where it features more (full-size) infographics. –Matthew] What Americans Really Think About Virtual Reality A new consumer study finds that minorities are more interested in VR, and Oculus is not No. 1. By Daniel Terdiman November 6, 2015 Minorities are more likely than whites to be passionate about virtual reality. And despite the attention paid…

[This is a first person report and thoughtful consideration of the value and likely future of telepresence and telerobotics; it’s from TechCrunch, where the post includes additional images. –Matthew] How Telerobotics Can Reshape Our Workspace Posted Oct 8, 2015 by Peter Hirst, Executive Director of Executive Education at MIT Sloan School of Management At a conference last October, I encountered a fascinating “creature” named AVA that I mentioned in a blog post shortly afterwards. Though extraordinarily helpful in keeping a conversation going with another conference attendee, AVA was not a person. She (or perhaps I should say “it”) was a…

[Envelop VR has an intriguing new approach to working in VR, and the founder talks about it and related issues in the 14:37 podcast episode in this story from Road to VR; among other things, he talks (starting at 10:37) about the distinctions among VR, AR, MR, etc.: “I call them immersive technologies – anything that helps you achieve presence.” –Matthew] Work All Day in Virtual Reality with Envelop VR Voices of VR Podcast – Episode #236 By Kent Bye – Nov 3, 2015 Envelop VR is a productivity tool that provides a virtual shell to allow users to use…

[Facebook is revealing more about its plan to refine “you are there” virtual experiences; the story is from Business Insider. –Matthew] [Image: Crave] How Facebook plans to more or less build a teleporter Jillian D’Onfro Nov. 3, 2015 Facebook’s chief technical officer, Mike Schroepfer, says that when the company thinks about where it wants to be by 2025, it aims to “effectively build a teleporter.” “Facebook wants to build a device that allows you to be anywhere you want, with anyone, regardless of geographic boundaries,” Schroepfer added at a press event on Tuesday morning before his appearance at the Dublin…

[Coinciding with the announcement that a new Star Trek television series is going into production, this Daily Mail story describes an ambitious project to create a complete, navigable virtual version of the U.S.S. Enterprise-D from Star Trek: The Next Generation. The story includes more images and a video about an effort to build a real Enterprise (!). The 12:10 minute demo video for the Enterprise 3D Construction Project is available on YouTube and see the project’s website for much more information. –Matthew] Take a tour of Star Trek’s USS Enterprise: Video lets you walk through the ship’s maze of corridors…

[The advertising and marketing industries will have to make some important decisions about how to use, or abuse, VR and presence. This is from Advertising Age; the image is from an earlier related article in Forbes. –Matthew] [Image: Forbes] How to Avoid the Potential Horrors of Virtual Reality Marketing Don’t Let Virtual Reality Ads Become Virtual Prisons for Consumers By Nicholas Manluccia October 30, 2015 If the free-flowing venture capital and multi-billion dollar industry valuation are any indication, the advent of virtual reality is upon us. VR is poised to change the way consumers interface with media, entertainment, even politics.…