[This VentureBeat story describes how Volvo is using Varjo’s high-resolution HMDs to let car designers test drive real cars with virtual features: “With this kind of technology it will eventually be difficult for you to tell if you are sitting in a faux car in an office or in a real car in a parking lot or really driving a mountain road in the woods.” See the original version for more pictures. –Matthew] [Image: For safety, a passenger in the back seat can warn a driver in the front seat during Varjo’s testing. Credit: Varjo.] Varjo teams up with Volvo…

[This long but very interesting story from The Atlantic doesn’t use the term presence but the concept and phenomenon is at its center – note some of the interesting ways people in long-distance relationships are said to use communication technologies to feel both physically together and psychologically connected over distance. See the last two sentences for a nicely put summary of some key points, and see the original version of the story for additional material not included here. –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Alessandra De Cristofaro] The New Long-Distance Relationship The same technological and economic developments that are pulling couples apart are…

[The role of evolution in how we perceive and respond to subtle social cues, and the implications for the design of technologies that evoke medium-as-social-actor presence, are explored in this story from Engadget. See the original for four different images. –Matthew] [Image: Source: MyRecordJournal] Why putting googly eyes on robots makes them inherently less threatening We can exploit our social nature to be nicer to AIs. Andrew Tarantola May 22, 2019 At the start of 2019, supermarket chain Giant Food Stores announced it would begin operating customer-assisting robots — collectively dubbed Marty — in 172 East Coast locations.…

[The creation of presence experiences can help people understand and hopefully prevent some of the war and suffering in our world. This story is from artnet News, where it includes five of Julia Leeb’s works; for more information see interviews in Deutschland.de and She’s Mercedes as well as julialeeb.com. –Matthew] [Image: The photographer, VR filmmaker, and artist Julia Leeb. Photo courtesy of the artist.] How War Photographer Julia Leeb Is Using Virtual Reality and Art to Let Comfortable People Experience the Terror of Conflict Zones Can VR instill empathy for those suffering thousands of miles away? Sophie Neuendorf May 27,…

[A new UNESCO report describes how gender biases in our culture are being reinforced by the virtual assistants we create. The story below is from The New York Times and for more on how technology developers are addressing these and related ethical problems, see a recent story in Fast Company. –Matthew] [Image: From left: the Apple Homepod, Google Home and Amazon Alexa. Their voice-activated assistants reinforce problematic gender stereotypes, Unesco says in a new report. Credit: Jason Henry for The New York Times.] Siri and Alexa Reinforce Gender Bias, U.N. Finds By Megan Specia May 22, 2019 Why do most…

[This story from Variety suggests that the guardian system in the new Oculus Quest VR headset could be a useful model for how we’ll transition between virtual and augmented real environments in the future (while noting two key challenges). The explanation begins in the 7th paragraph, and see the original story for a 2:30 minute video demonstration of the guardian system (start at 0:30). –Matthew] What the Oculus Quest Can Teach Us About the Future of Mixed Reality By Janko Roettgers May 22, 2019 Facebook’s new Oculus Quest headset is a great gaming device that simplifies virtual reality (VR), doing…

[Nearly all aspects of human life can be experienced via media technology, evoking varying degrees of presence; this story from Polygon describes an interesting one. The original story includes both videos; for more information see coverage in the Daily Mail. –Matthew] Watch in awe as a real pastor baptizes an anime girl in a video game Modern faith is complex By Patricia Hernandez May 20, 2019 Syrmor, a YouTuber known for finding humane stories in VRChat, has documented one of the most fascinating phenomenons to come out of virtual reality. Not only do people go to church in a video…

[Media conglomerate Comcast has its headquarters in Philadelphia; this story from Philly.com describes a new presence-evoking, free-to-the-public feature in the company’s newly opened Comcast Tower. Demand for tickets is high but some of us are already planning a field trip and I’ll add our impressions in the comments. For more information, see coverage by NBC 10 (also owned by Comcast) and the Universal Sphere website. –Matthew] [Image: The mysterious Comcast “sphere” in the lobby of the new Comcast Technology Center is now open to the public.] That giant sphere in Comcast’s new tower? Watch a futuristic Spielberg short film there,…

[It’s short on details, but this story from the Robb Report is the first I’ve seen about the designing and building of dedicated VR (and presence) rooms in homes. Let’s hope it doesn’t lead to the kind of events portrayed in Ray Bradbury’s classic short story The Veldt. –Matthew] Virtual Reality Rooms are Home Design’s Next Big Thing, and They’re Hiding in Plain Sight You can make your dreams a (virtual) reality. By Helena Madden May 17, 2019 Splashy home theater? Check. Indoor lap pool? Check. How about a room where you can dive through coral reefs or summit Mount…

[French photographer Vincent Fournier’s “The Man Machine” explores medium-as-social-actor presence (without using the term). His description of the project is below (fittingly with all but the first two paragraphs translated to English via Google Translate); visit the website for 21 photos and a 2:10 minute video. See also 2013 coverage in Slate and new coverage in Fast Company. –Matthew] Vincent Fournier “The Man Machine” The Man Machine project is a reflection on how artificial creatures such as robots or other avatars can evolve in our day-to-day life. For this speculative fiction series I staged several humanoid robots in realistic reconstructions…

[Theme Park Insider reports on the fading enthusiasm in the industry for adding VR to rides; it doesn’t use the term presence, but several statements refer to it – e.g., “the trend is toward using media as one of many tools in creating fantastic environments, rather than something that feels like a scaled-up or moving version of what you can watch at home. In short, if you can tell it’s a screen, that’s a fail. If you don’t notice that the media is media because you are so taken in by the setting and story of an attraction, then that’s a…

[Mira Robotics is about to test a new application of presence: teleoperation of robotic butlers and maids. This story from The Verge describes the technology and both the potential benefits and dangers; see the original for a second image and a 0:59 minute video. –Matthew] [Image: Ugo the robot will be operated remotely by humans to help around the house. Credit: Mira Robotics.] Robot butlers operated by remote workers are coming to do your chores Japanese startup Mira Robotics will charge $225 a month for a remotely operated robot helper By James Vincent May 9, 2019 For pretty much as…