[VR is providing a new way to see what the Coronavirus does to a patient’s lungs, which in addition to helping the medical community could help the public understand the seriousness of the pandemic. See the original version of this story from WJLA in Washington, D.C. for four more images, a 1:47 minute news report and another 0:34 minute video. Surgical Theater has a 1:40 minute video showing the VR rendering on YouTube, which is taken from a 13:02 minute video and podcast available from George Washington University Hospital. –Matthew] A new perspective: Virtual reality shows exactly how COVID-19 can…

[This post in Medium provides an industry veteran’s thoughtful perspective on the requirements for successful telepresence experiences that replace attendance at in-person conferences and in other contexts. See the original version for a different image and follow the links for more information. –Matthew] [Image: Source: Liv Erickson blog] Coronavirus Exposes Our Need For True Telepresence Let’s meet nowhere Avi Bar-Zeev, Design and Technology Leader (fmr. HoloLens, Apple, Google Earth, Second Life, Disney VR) March 2, 2020 I’ve been convinced for 30 years that telepresence is the “killer app” for extended reality (XR). Now more than ever, it seems like it…

[Below are two stories about efforts to use presence-evoking technology to replace the experience of in-person graduation ceremonies (and other aspects of campus life) that have been displaced by the Coronavirus. The first story, about elementary students using Minecraft, is from Parentology; SoraNews24 adds these reactions from “Japanese netizens”: “The kids are all right.” “Parents are doing ‘telework’ and kids are doing ‘telegraduation.’” “I’m so jealous of what awesome things kids have these day.” “Those who say video games are bad, look at this!” “This will probably be an even better memory than a regular graduation for them.” NBC’s Today…

[Here are two stories about how singers are creatively using technology to evoke a sense of being together when they have to be physically separated. More about virtual choirs can be found in stories in Kent Online and CNN and a 2:48 minute radio segment from ABC News in Australia. –Matthew] [Image: The Sofa Singers. Credit: twitter.com/@swissmiss] [From Positive News] Online choir spreads joy and togetherness during coronavirus outbreak When it became impossible to run his real-life choirs as normal this week, vocal leader James Sills launched The Sofa Singers. The virtual group invites people from all over the world…

[As this story from Wired notes, a device that lets people collect diagnostic data and video conference with a doctor from home is of great value in general and especially in the context of the Coronavirus pandemic. See the original story for two more pictures. I hope you’re all staying safe and healthy in this strange and scary time. –Matthew] Review: TytoCare TytoHome Medical Kit Soon, this easy, in-home diagnostic device will be standard home equipment for every family. Rating:8/10 WIRED: Small and easily storable. Simple to operate. Accurate. Eliminates the need for doctor’s visits. Lets care providers monitor patients…

[This story from Ars Technica describes how an accidental simulation of an epidemic in the virtual World of Warcraft helped epidemiologists understand how people respond in similar real (nonmediated) crises. See the original story for a second image and a 1:23 minute video. –Matthew] [Image: Players gathered in an in-game urban center during the epidemic. Infected individuals walk among the uninfected, the recently dead, and the skeletons of those who died earlier.] What a WoW virtual outbreak taught us about how humans behave in epidemics Revisiting a seminal 2007 paper modeling WoW‘s Corrupted Blood incident. Jennifer Ouellette March 16, 2020…

[The Coronavirus pandemic is prompting many new efforts to create presence experiences; this link-filled story from Vogue Business (which explicitly refers to presence) describes some of these efforts in the fashion industry. See the original version for a second image and a short video. –Matthew]   [Image: Artwork hand printed by Hannah Cousins, exclusively for Vogue Business; see the original story for the uncropped, animated gif version.] Forced cancellations jumpstart virtual fashion technology Amid a moratorium on events and calls for more sustainable practices, tech that facilitates virtual fashion presentations is thrust into the spotlight. By Maghan Mcdowell 17 March…

[The short story below from Hackaday, and especially the 17:53 minute video within it, illustrates the power of presence-evoking technologies in the fight against viruses including COVID-19. The video is also available on YouTube, where the description includes links to a source publication, a description of the data used in the video, and details about the technology demonstrated. See also a related post in ISPR Presence News from May 2018. –Matthew] Augmented Reality aids in the fight against COVID-19 By Dan Maloney March 12, 2020 “Know your enemy” is the essence of one of the most famous quotes from [Sun…

[This story from Forbes describes new efforts to counter the effects of social distancing by using presence-evoking technologies to recreate the sense of connection and community we get from non-mediated informal social gatherings. The original version includes an 8:34 minute audio version and for a related story see NPR. –Matthew] The Coronavirus Has Brought The Dawn Of The Virtual Happy Hour Abram Brown, Forbes Staff March 15, 2020 Around 3 in the afternoon on Friday, things were starting to feel tense to Kris Nelson, the chief operating officer of Srax. The Los Angeles advertising company had instructed its employees to…

[The original version of this story from CNN includes four more images of artist KAWS’ Companion character hovering over different locations in the new “Companion (Expanded)” mixed reality art exhibit (the story also includes a 1:54 minute video featuring a large, inflatable Companion floating in Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong). For more information see the Acute Art website. –Matthew] [Image: Users can lease the AR ‘At This Time (Expanded)’ for 7 to 30 days, so they can choose their own backdrop for the floating KAWS design. Credit: Courtesy KAWS and Acute Art] Large augmented-reality figures hover over Times Square By…

[Robots may be a valuable resource in treating Coronavirus (and other) patients, protecting human caregivers while offering remote care and evoking medium-as-social-actor presence. The short story below is from BBC Newsround (where it features three different images); the Global Times adds this detail: “Medical assistant robots can even help patients with dancing or exercising. A medical assistant robot named Ginger was seen leading patients to dance in the hospital in a video sent to the Global Times by the robot’s developer, CloudMinds, a cloud intelligent robot operator headquartered in Beijing. Ginger can also offer information consultation and other services, which…

[The story below from the radio program Marketplace Tech examines current limitations in the use of virtual and augmented reality as tools for remote work; the original version includes the 7:46 minute audio segment and for two other useful considerations of the topic follow the links near the end to coverage in Wired and the Los Angeles Times. –Matthew] [Image: A Zoom webinar being accessed via laptop computer. Credit: Zoom.] In a world of remote work, virtual reality is still pretty much MIA If working from home is not a perk but a requirement, will VR become a useful job…