[If you’ll be in London in August consider booking a ticket for the presence experience described in this story from Forbes (see the original version for two more images). For information about how British Air is using virtual reality for customers at check-in desks, see a story in World Airline News. –Matthew] [Image: How we travel, aircraft design and our relationship with air travel are the focus of a new exhibition at Saatchi’s Gallery. Credit: BA] What Is The Future Of Aviation? Bright, Young Minds Explore The Next 100 Years July 4, 2019 Nargess Banks, Contributor Our desire to explore…

[Fiction can often inspire and/or serve as a warning about the future; this story from Fast Company notes how quickly a short concept film about augmented reality had both effects, and describes a planned sequel. See the original story for three more images, the original film “Sight” and a behind-the-scenes video about the sequel, and see the project’s Kickstarter page for much more information. –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Robot Genius] This dystopian film was supposed to critique today’s tech. Instead, Silicon Valley loved it ‘Sight’ rocked the internet in 2012. Now its creators are back for a sequel. July 10, 2019…

[Several organizations have used different technologies to reproduce aspects of the July 1969 Apollo moon shot; the short story below from Space.com describes the Smithsonian’s “Apollo’s Moon Shot AR” app; more information about it, including a 2:00 minute video, is available from the Smithsonian website. Engadget has a story about Google’s celebrations, including an “AR in Search” feature that lets you “explore a 3D recreation of the [Apollo 11] command module… If you like, you can bring the module into your living room in AR too.” USA Today is offering “an eight-day live AR broadcast focusing on six historical events…

[In addition to describing the novel “cyberphysical sculptural installation” Cypher, this story from Interesting Engineering includes some intriguing observations about different forms of presence. See the original story for six more images and a 1:58 minute video that vividly presents the Cypher experience. –Matthew] [Image: Güvenç Özel and Cypher at Turkey Innovation Week in Istanbul. Credit: Tolga Uslu] Güvenç Özel Creates a Robotic Installation Controlled by Virtual Reality Architect Güvenç Özel creates a link between human and robot through a robotic installation controlled by Virtual Reality. By Susan Fourtané July 05th, 2019 Architect, technologist and researcher Güvenç Özel uses Artificial…

[Although it uses different terminology to frame it, this piece from The Conversation advocates needed scholarship on presence and sexuality (see Lombard & Jones); the original version includes a second image and the trailer for the film Her. –Matthew] Beyond sex robots: Erobotics explores erotic human-machine interactions July 9, 2019 Simon Dubé PhD student, Concordia University Dave Anctil Chercheur affilié à l’Observatoire international sur les impacts sociétaux de l’intelligence artificielle et du numérique (OIISAN), Université Laval Science fiction films such as Blade Runner (1982), Lars and the Real Girl (2007) and Her (2013) explore the advent of human-machine relationships. And…

[This first person report from Healthline, which includes links to supporting research, makes clear that even some typical limitations of presence-evoking technology can be advantages in the context of meditation. See the original version for links to more readings. –Matthew] How Virtual Reality Meditation Helps Me Control My Anxiety Health and wellness touch each of us differently. This is one person’s story. Written by Sarah Garone Medically reviewed by Timothy J. Legg, PhD, CRNP on July 2, 2019 If you had told me a year ago that my favorite relaxing activity would involve strapping a computer to my head to…

[This story from The New York Times about a new opera experienced through virtual reality contains some useful insights about how to effectively evoke presence. See the original story for a second image and two videos. –Matthew] [Image: A still from “Eight,” a so-called mixed reality work by the Dutch composer Michel van der Aa. Credit: doubleA Foundation] ‘Eight’ Is a Breakthrough for Virtual Reality in Classical Music In his latest work, the composer Michel van der Aa has fully integrated emerging technology with musical and theatrical ideas. By Joshua Barone July 5, 2019 AIX-EN-PROVENCE, France — The world of…

[The new “FaceTime Attention Correction” feature attempts to solve a long-standing impediment to social presence in video communication. This short summary is from The Verge; for more information and demonstration videos, see coverage in MacRumors and Apple Insider. Some authors explicitly note the benefits for presence: “[I]t really seems to make a huge difference in terms of providing a sense of ‘presence’ for FaceTime calls, which is one of the core values of the Apple chat feature overall.” (TechCrunch) “[I]t’s a safe bet this will be a well-received feature by the average FaceTime user out there. A feeling of connectedness…

[Escape your troubles at the new Esqapes Immersive Relaxation Center, opening Friday in Los Angeles. This short story is from TechTheLead, where it includes two more images; see the Esqapes website for much more information. –Matthew] Massage Center Uses Virtual Reality To Offer Customers ‘Immersive Relaxation’ By Betty Joita July 2, 2019 One of the reasons we’re so hooked on the idea of virtual reality is because it can take us places without us having to leave our living room and, since we can see the world from our armchair, it wouldn’t be a far-fetched idea to think that we…

[The saga of DeepNude is an unsettling example of the dangerous applications of the rapidly evolving technologies that evoke presence. This story from Motherboard describes the app and the stated reasons for its creation; as the update story linked at the beginning notes, the creator subsequently announced “that he’s killing the software, after viral backlash for the way it objectifies women,” but a second update story reports that “a small community of people is dedicated to reviving DeepNude.” Another example of the “Pandora’s Box” aspect of these developments is that the images mentioned in the editor’s note at the end…

[It doesn’t use the term entertainment-education but that’s the basis for the positive application of presence in this story from the Calgary Sun. More coverage is available from The Star, CityNews has a 1:58 minute video report, Oculus Go has a 0:30 trailer  and more information and images are available from the Thunder website. –Matthew] [Image: About 100 guests test out a new Blackfoot language and storytelling game created by MAMMOTH, a local augmented and virtual reality company. The guests attended the USAYÕs Thunder VR launch party on Monday, June 17. The virtual reality game teaches users Blackfoot language through…

[A new exhibit uses vehicles, props, and augmented reality to “bring to life”40 vehicles from fiction; a few of the details (and a 2:15 minute video) are in this short story from Next Reality and for more information see Microsoft’s website. A story in VR Focus describes an earlier exhibit that also incorporated the HoloLens. –Matthew] [Image: Source: Microsoft] Hollywood Exhibit Uses HoloLens to Transport Fans into the Worlds of ‘Back to the Future’ & Halo By Adario Strange May 24, 2019 The potential of augmented reality is often shown in science fiction movies, but a new exhibit marries the…