[According to The Hollywood Reporter, a classic presence-evoking technology is set to be the basis of a new live action film (!).  –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Fisher-Price via Getty Images] View-Master Movie In the Works at MGM and Mattel Films (Exclusive) The deal signifies the latest toy marked for development as part of Mattel’s new push into screen entertainment. February 27, 2019 By Borys Kit MGM and Mattel are partnering up to develop a live-action feature film based on the toy entertainment company’s classic View-Master toy line. Mattel Films, the feature arm launched late last year by the El Segundo-based toymaker,…

[Especially with everything going on in the political sphere today I think it’s wonderful that an organization is using presence to encourage people to recognize their unconscious biases and increase empathy and sensitivity in their interactions with others. The CEO Action for Diversity and Inclusion’s Check Your Blind Spots mobile exhibit is on a 100 city tour around the U.S., making stops at campuses and workplaces. The story below from CNET is from the recent stop at CES (the Consumer Electronics Show); a story from the Wake Forest University stop is available in the Old Gold & Black student paper;…

[Instead of “staging” an empty home with actual furnishings to make it more appealing to potential buyers, why not just alter photos of the empty spaces to create the illusion of a furnished home? The Houston Chronicle reports that the trend is on the rise, but also raising interesting ethical issues regarding its potential for deception. See the original story for five more images. If it’s not already widespread, I assume the next evolution of virtual staging will involve interactive photo-realistic versions of the staged spaces experienced via VR and AR. –Matthew] [Image: Emily Walling, a TK Images virtual stager…

[Our colleague Andrea Stevenson Won is one of the authors of a new study on the potential roles of VR in learning, as described in this story from the Cornell Chronicle (where the original version includes an additional picture). –Matthew] [Image: Jack Madden, doctoral candidate in the field of astronomy, watches as Andrea Stevenson Won, assistant professor of communication and director of the Virtual Embodiment Lab, uses a virtual reality simulator.] Study probes effect of virtual reality on learning By Linda B. Glaser February 5, 2019 Picture yourself in a virtual reality simulator, atop the spinning Earth, the moon and…

[CNET has comprehensive coverage of Microsoft’s new Hololens 2 and where it fits in the evolution of technology that creates mixed reality presence illusions; the overview story below includes links to the other coverage along with 3 extended videos and several more images. –Matthew] [Image: Credit: James Martin/CNET] HoloLens 2 announced for $3,500, available to preorder now, ships later this year Here’s everything you need to know about Microsoft’s next-generation mixed reality headsets. By Ian Sherr, Scott Stein February 25, 2019 Comfort, better visuals, easier to use with your hands. That’s the takeaway from HoloLens 2, Microsoft’s follow-up to the…

[Here’s an amusing story from the Daily Mail about a viral DIY presence challenge; the original version includes more examples and a 0:54 minute video, and another 0:58 minute video is available on YouTube. –Matthew] [Image: Source: New York Post] Viral challenge sees people using plastic bottles and toilet seats to pretend they are travelling on a plane and looking out the window ‘Fake plane ride’ challenge sees people using random objects to create illusion People use detergent bottles, teapots and toilet seats to mimic aircraft windows Thousands of hilarious clips began circulating online during the Lunar New Year By…

[GIBLIB is advancing the use of presence experiences for surgical education. The company‘s press release below announcing the first VR app for live OR experiences is followed by a Cedars-Sinai story about the medical center’s first accredited continuing medical education course filmed in VR. See Medgadget for an interview with the company’s CEO. –Matthew] [Image: Source: Medgadget] GIBLIB Launches First VR App for Live Operating Room Experiences through the Oculus Store Emulates Real Surgeries For Medical Students and Practicing Physicians To Learn the Latest Surgical Techniques in 360-degree Virtual Reality On January 29, 2018 – GIBLIB, the streaming media platform…

[A new fish tank virtual reality (FTVR) display provides spatial and social presence for multiple users; most press coverage draws on this press release from the University of British Columbia (via EurekAlert!), which includes a 0:37 minute video. Follow the links at the end below for more information. –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Clare Kiernan, UBC. Source: UBC on Flickr] Spherical display brings virtual collaboration closer to reality ‘Crystal ball’ supports two or more players working in VR University of British Columbia Public release: 19 February 2019 Virtual reality can often make a user feel isolated from the world, with only computer-generated…

[Marina Abramović is using mixed reality technology to transform her performance art into what sounds like an interesting presence experience. This story from Artnet describes the project, a review in iNews provides more details, and the press release is available from the Serpentine Galleries. –Matthew] The Artist Is Not Present: How Marina Abramović Used Mixed Reality to Create a Hyper-realistic Virtual Performance The artist is using cutting-edge technology to create her new project at the Serpentine Galleries in London. Naomi Rea February 18, 2019 Marina Abramović is perhaps most famous for “The Artist Is Present,” her landmark 2010 exhibition at…

[This detailed and balanced story from The Verge explains the potential – both positive and dangerous – of a new advancement in artificial intelligence that has received a lot of press coverage. See the original version for a different image and many examples of the new algorithm in action, and see the OpenAI blog for more information. –Matthew] OpenAI’s New Multitalented AI Writes, Translates, and Slanders A step forward in AI text-generation that also spells trouble By James Vincent February 14, 2019 OpenAI’s researchers knew they were on to something when their language modeling program wrote a convincing essay on…

[This Washington Post story uses vivid examples to highlight cultural differences in how people experience medium-as-social-actor presence with robots that provide different sets of social cues. See the original story for two short videos. –Matthew] [Image: Robots wearing nurse uniforms carry medical documents Wednesday at Mongkutwattana General Hospital in Bangkok. Credit: Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters).] Friendly nurse or nightmare-inducing machine? How culture programs our taste in robots. This is Thailand’s idea of an attractive robot. Americans might be terrified. By Peter Holley February 7, 2019 Slowly and silently, they glide across the floor wearing bright yellow dresses that look as though they…

[The startup company described in this TechCrunch story is working to combine the interactive immersion of virtual reality with miniature robots that can move within a human body, providing surgeons with an expanded version of remote “presence in the body” that has great potential for improving medical care. See the original story for an additional image. –Matthew] Bill Gates-backed Vicarious Surgical adds a virtual reality twist to robots in the operating room Jonathan Shieber February 13, 2019 In an operating room in rural Idaho, doctors prep a patient for surgery. They make a tiny, thumb-sized incision into the patient and…