International Society
for Presence Research

Author: Matthew Lombard

  • Call: Animex Research and Innovation Conference 2026

    Published:

    Call for Papers: Animex Research and Innovation ConferenceNovember 18, 2026, Teesside University, UK (in person)November 25, 2026, presentations onlinehttps://www.tees.ac.uk/minisites/animexconference/index.cfm Deadline for submissions: June 26, 2026 The fourth Animex Research and Innovation Conference invites submissions of short 3,000- word papers for presentation and publication. The conference brings together both emerging and established scholars and practitioners working across animation, VFX, and games to share, debate, and celebrate their current research disciplines. This year, it is again a part of the Animex programme, allowing delegates to enjoy the wider festival. The event features experts in animation, VFX and games from across the world.…

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  • A Mars simulation in the Arctic tests telepresence for future NASA missions

    Published:

    [Both the analog and digital simulations described in this story from The Aerospace Corporation are designed to help participants overlook the roles of technology, defined broadly, but the use of 3D scanning and holograms as they would operate in expeditions to distant moons and planets is of particular note. The headline of a similar story from Aerospace Testing International is “Engineer completes Mars-analog telepresence mission”; see the original version of either story for a 3:49 minute video (also available via YouTube). –Matthew] Aerospace Engineer Braves the Arctic to Support the Next Chapter of Space Exploration Analog missions conducted in extreme…

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  • Call: Crossing the Boundaries of Truth: Generative AI, Disinformation, and the Global Information Ecosystem

    Published:

    Call for Panelists: “Crossing the Boundaries of Truth: Generative AI, Disinformation, and the Global Information Ecosystem”A panel at ASIS&T 2026: 9th Annual Meeting of the Association for Information Science and TechnologyNovember 6-10, 2026Bangkok, Thailandhttp://listserv.aoir.org/pipermail/air-l-aoir.org/2026-March/195785.html Deadline for brief description of proposed contribution: Thursday, April 2, 2026 Dear colleagues, I am putting together a panel for the ASIS&T 2026 Annual Meeting (November 6–10 in Bangkok, Thailand) and am seeking 3–4 co-panelists to join the proposal. Panel Title: “Crossing the Boundaries of Truth: Generative AI, Disinformation, and the Global Information Ecosystem” Panel Overview: Aligned with the ASIS&T 2026 theme, “Crossing Boundaries: Advancing Global…

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  • AI-based virtual therapy strengthens social skills for people with autism

    Published:

    [Researchers at TU Graz (Graz University of Technology) in Austria have developed an AI-based interactive virtual environment to help people affected by autism learn social skills. The original version of the story below includes a second image. For more details, see the Scientific Reports article “Large language models for autism: Evaluating theory of mind tasks in a gamified environment.” For more about ETAP ((Early) detection and personalisation of autism spectrum disorder therapy for prevention), which is mentioned in the story, see the ETAP website. –Matthew] [Image: Re-enacting everyday situations is intended to prepare people for similar situations. Credit: HCC –…

    Read more: AI-based virtual therapy strengthens social skills for people with autism

  • Call: Listening to Possible Worlds: Sound and Music in Speculative Literature and Culture

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    Call for Papers: Listening to Possible Worlds: Sound and Music in Speculative Literature and CultureOctober 22-23, 2026Leiden University, the Netherlands (in-person)https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2026/02/09/cfp-listening-to-possible-worlds-sound-and-music-in-speculative-literature-and Confirmed keynote speakers are Anna Snaith (King’s College London) and Chris Tonelli (University of Groningen) Deadline for submissions: April 13, 2026 (extended) In her 1999 essay “Quantum Listening,” musicologist Pauline Oliveros called for new and speculative modes of listening that are not only attentive to but also active in the creation of possible future worlds. For Oliveros, this practice entails “listening in as many ways as possible simultaneously – changing and being changed by the listening.” The conceptualisation of…

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  • MASA presence: Diverse and thought-provoking reactions to delivery robots

    Published:

    [Although she doesn’t use the term, the author of this story from HuffPost explores her own and others’ medium-as-social-actor presence responses to the increasingly common delivery robots in our public spaces. The story features quotes from two of our colleagues and friends; see the original version for three more images. –Matthew] [Image: Josephine Rios, of Service Employees International Union — United Healthcare Workers West, asks a delivery robot if it wants to sign a petition to tax billionaires. She said since so many jobs are going to AI, why not ask a robot to sign. Credit: Myung J. Chun via…

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  • Call: Many, Many Machine Agencies (book chapters)

    Published:

    Call for Chapters: Many, Many Machine AgenciesAn unusual book involving many, many agencieshttps://machineagencies.milieux.ca/cfp-mma/  Edited by Ceyda Yolgormez, Bart Simon, and Fenwick McKelveyMade possible through the Hexagram Network Deadline for submissions: April 15, 2026 Where is the artificial intelligence? With AI included in every job talk, abstract commentary, or refrigerator, our edited book, Many, Many Machine Agencies, challenges contributors to present encounters with many kinds of artificial intelligences in a more curious fashion than the hyped search for the artificial intelligence so far has been able to amass. The book theoretically eschews the instrumentalizing language of artificial intelligence in favour of…

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  • Ex-footballer and University develop VR app to tackle harassment of women and girls

    Published:

    [A former footballer is leading a team developing a virtual reality app designed to use presence to help users understand what sexual harassment feels like and thereby prevent disturbing incidents of harassment, abuse and violence. Details are in the press release below from the University of Staffordshire; see also a story from BBC News. It’s interesting, and apparently unfortunate, that closely related projects on this and other topics develop independently (for example, see the May 2025 ISPR Presence News post “Step into her shoes: VR highlights sexual harassment on trains” and the January 2026 post “Men embodying women in VR…

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  • Call: BritCHI 2026, British Computer Society Interaction Specialist Group Conference

    Published:

    Call for Papers: BritCHI 2026, the British Computer Society’s Interaction Specialist Group’s 39th ConferenceBrunel UniversityLondon, UKNovember 1-3, 2026https://www.britchi.uk/authors/ Deadline for submission of full papers: May 21, 2026Deadline for submission of short papers: July 16, 2026 We are delighted to announce the Call for Submissions for BCS BritCHI 2026! The British Computer Society Conference on Human-Computer Interaction (BritCHI) is the UK’s leading annual conference in human-computer interaction, bringing together researchers, practitioners, designers, industry leaders, and doctoral students to share innovative research and practice in HCI. The conference is the home of British HCI: a place to meet, share ideas, network, build…

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  • Future presence: A hands-on evaluation of Google Beam and the HP Dimension

    Published:

    [While convenient and commonly used video conferencing systems such as Zoom, FaceTime, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet provide moderate levels of social presence, efforts continue to create and refine  technology that provides extremely convincing social presence illusions that cause users to feel like they’re together and interacting in real time in the same physical space. This story from India’s The Economic Times Panache Magazine provides a first-person report on a demonstration of the latest version of the high-end telepresence system Google Beam. The author of another participant from Australia’s TechGuide had a similar reaction (see that story for more pictures…

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  • Call: ACM GOODIT 2026 Conference on Information Technology for Social Good

    Published:

    Call for Papers: ACM GOODIT 20266th ACM International Conference on Information Technology for Social GoodSeptember 2-4, 2026Pisa, Italyhttps://goodit2026.di.unipi.it Deadline for submissions: May 17, 2026 The ACM 6th International Conference on Information Technology for Social Good (GoodIT 2026) is a premier international forum for researchers, practitioners, and educators to present and discuss the latest innovations, trends, and challenges in leveraging technology, data, and interdisciplinary approaches for Social Good and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The conference welcomes contributions that explore the intersection of technology with fields such as social sciences, healthcare, environmental studies, and public policy—highlighting the broader impact of digital…

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  • Interdisciplinary team develops and learns from World of Wonder VR app

    Published:

    [A diverse team of scholars, researchers, creators and students at the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee is creating a presence-evoking educational and prosocial virtual reality adventure game for young people. See the original version of this story for a second image, and follow the links for more information and to download the app from Meta; there’s also a 12:12 minute video on YouTube. For more about project lead Lindsay Persohn, visit her USF faculty page; her dissertation, which inspired the project, is available from USF’s Digital Commons. –Matthew] Step into a World of Wonder — curiosity leads the way in…

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