[The technologies used to create Halloween attractions are increasingly capable of producing rich and intense presence experiences, as detailed in this story from Fast Company; see the original version for other pictures and videos. –Matthew] Virtual reality reimagines the haunted mansion–with eerily realistic effects The Void’s hyper-reality experiences allow you to do more than just enter a new world–you get to touch, feel, interact, and even smell truly terrifying environments. By Rina Raphael October 1, 2018 I am screaming so loudly–repeatedly–that it’s more of a piercing shrill echo. I fear it’s so disturbingly distracting that I can’t stop apologizing. “I…

[In addition to their features, most of the press coverage of Facebook’s new Portal devices emphasizes questions about the actual and perceived privacy the products will provide. This story is from Business Insider, where it includes other images. A 5:43 minute interview with Portal VP Rafa Camargo at Bloomberg includes the quote here about presence and several others including a specific reference to social and “video” presence. Wired has more details about the Portals including this: “Get up and walk around, and the camera follows you, staying zoomed in. If there’s more than one human in the room, Portal will…

[Researchers affiliated with Penn State University are designing not just individual VR simulations to teach industrial engineering but an integrated, thematic curriculum that incorporates VR and presence to serve both in person and remotely located students with “the potential to transform our concept of higher education and how we learn.” This story is from Penn State News, where it includes more pictures (see also related earlier coverage from Penn State News). –Matthew] [Image: Researchers at the Data-Driven Decisions lab at Penn State Behrend and the Design Analysis Technology Advancement lab at University Park are developing a virtual-reality simulation that will…

[This story from Wired highlights the power of (in this case, medium-as-social-actor) presence, and the tension between profits and ethics: “The danger is that robot makers, consciously or not, may exploit gender stereotypes to try to make their machines more effective [with consumers] … It doesn’t have to be this way.” –Matthew] [Image: Donat Sorokin/TASS/Getty Images] It’s Time To Talk About Robot Gender Stereotypes Matt Simon October 3, 2018 Robots are the most powerful blank slate humans have ever created. Want a helpful robot? No problem. Want a mean one? Sure, if that’s what you’re into. A robot is a…

[This story from Inverse describes a new study that demonstrates the power of VR and presence to alter perceptions and, in this case, enable more effective physical exercise (although as with many presence phenomena, I can envision negative consequences if it’s not used in moderation). See the original for two more images, and coverage from The University of Kent for more details. –Matthew] VR Boosts Workouts by Unexpectedly Reducing Pain During Exercise Meet your next performance-enhancing drug. By Emma Betuel October 4, 2018 If you walk in on someone exercising with a VR headset on, they might look pretty ridiculous.…

[A new study demonstrates the potential of medium-as-social-actor presence to help develop the social skills of children with autism (and possibly others). The story is from Yale News, where it includes a 2:14 minute video. –Matthew] Robots help children with autism improve social skills By William Weir August 22, 2018 A study led by Yale researchers found significant improvements in the social skills of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) after a month of working with robots. Modeling eye contact and other social behaviors, the robots guided the children of 12 participating families through storytelling and interactive games designed to…

[This story from The Guardian describes a bit of the history of dating simulations, the (nuanced) presence experiences of people who use them, the roles of the technology and the user’s imagination that contribute to those experiences, and a future when the simulations further blur the line between real and virtual. See the original story for more pictures. –Matthew] [Image: A picture of Jumin Han, one of the characters in Mystic Messenger, and his cat, Elizabeth III. Credit: Oscar Schwartz,] Love in the time of AI: Meet the people falling for scripted robots A crop of dating simulations where the…

[Presence field trip! I’d love to visit this cafe in Seoul… The short story is from Adweek, where it includes several pictures, and see Design You Trust for 30+ more. The idea of a presence-evoking restaurant isn’t new of course; for example My Modern Met compares Cafe Yeonnam-dong 239-20 to “an Instagram-worthy Wes Anderson-esque cafe in the Philippines [and] a coffee shop shaped like a Rolleiflex camera in South Korea.” –Matthew] [Image: Source: Design You Trust] This Popular ‘Drawing Cafe’ Transports Patrons Into a Quirky Cartoon World A designer’s dream in Seoul By Shannon Miller September 27, 2018 When was the last time…

[Stories about the use of technology to connect children undergoing medical treatment with their school classmates, and to connect the isolated elderly with family and friends, are relatively common. Aside from highlighting new products in this area, the story below from BBC News highlights ways that designers of these technologies are refining the presence experiences they produce, including the use of one-way rather than two-way video, emphasizing sound over image and maintaining novelty and surprise. See the original story for six more images, a 1:52 minute video and links to related stories. –Matthew] ‘My robot makes me feel like I…

[Only men appear on U.S. paper currency; a new augmented reality app superimposes the images of notable women over them. This story is from Next Reality, where it includes a second image and a 1:37 minute video. All of the women and information about them are on the Notable Women website. Nexus Studios adds a bit more detail: “The process of creating Notable Women required millimetric attention to detail in order to achieve seamless portrait transitions. Due to visual differences in each dollar bill denomination, 7 portraits needed to be made for each woman. This resulted in the creation of 700…

[This interesting link-filled piece from The Conversation examines the role and significance of a variety of medium-as-social-actor presence experiences for humans. The original version includes two more images. –Matthew] Why we love robotic dogs, puppets and dolls Brent Rodriguez-Plate, Visiting Associate Professor of Religious Studies, Hamilton College September 13, 2018 There’s a lot of hype around the release of Sony’s latest robotic dog. It’s called “aibo,” and is promoted as using artificial intelligence to respond to people looking at it, talking to it and touching it. Japanese customers have already bought over 20,000 units, and it is expected to come…

[This story from ABC News in Australia describes one of several efforts to use presence to provide patients and their family, friends and caregivers the experience of various health conditions. The original story includes four more pictures and the 1:50 minute 360 degree video (also available on YouTube). –Matthew] [Image: The VR experience was filmed at a Sydney school with students from Tyler’s class. Credit: ABC Radio Sydney: Harriet Tatham] Virtual reality experience replicates life as a child with hearing loss By Harriet Tatham September 24, 2018 For anybody with hearing loss, articulating the isolation it causes is almost impossible.…