[There are some intriguing developments in presence-evoking technologies from Apple; this highly cited story is from CNET, where the original includes a 1:35 minute video and two large image galleries. –Matthew] [Image: Credit: TECHSPOT] Apple’s working on a powerful, wireless headset for both AR, VR The headset, which would straddle the two technologies and tap into Apple’s own chips, is slated for 2020. It’s the biggest sign of Apple’s interest in virtual reality. By Shara Tibken April 27, 2018 Apple CEO Tim Cook has nothing but praise for augmented reality, saying it’s a technology that’s potentially as important as the…

[This news release from Queen’s University describes what could be an important advance in evoking social presence. Follow the links near the end for more information, images and a video. –Matthew] News Release – Move over Tupac! Life-size holograms set to revolutionize videoconferencing Professor Roel Vertegaal’s new light field displays effectively simulate teleportation Monday, April 23, 2018 KINGSTON – A Queen’s University researcher will soon unveil TeleHuman 2 – the world’s first truly holographic videoconferencing system. TeleHuman2 allows people in different locations to appear before one another in life-size 3D – as if they were in the same room. “People…

[Oh the places “you” will go… This story from Cointelegraph describes a new business that allows users to pay strangers to serve as their avatar anywhere in the world; it’s reminiscent of the “human Uber” idea featured in a February 2018 post in ISPR Presence News). –Matthew] Blockchain Project to Give Users ‘Telepresence’ Anywhere Via Live Streams They Can Control April 24, 2018 By Connor Blenkinsop A Blockchain-driven company plans to “give people the power to be instantly everywhere” by creating a marketplace where users can hire someone’s physical presence in order to see and hear the world as they…

[Another very practical application of presence is described in this story from WTTV CBS4. For more information see the FLAIM Trainer website. –Matthew] Virtual reality training on display at downtown firefighters convention April 25, 2018 By Zach Myers INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Firefighters attending this year’s Fire Department Instructor’s Conference in downtown Indianapolis are getting their first look at a new, virtual reality training system. The technology, designed by “Flame Systems,” is engineered to give a realistic simulation of various fire emergencies in a virtual environment. “We’ve just launched here at the show today, and this is the first time the…

[I’ve always been intrigued by fictional portrayals of presence and what they can tell us about ourselves and the possible roles and effects of technologies (see the Telepresence in Media Environments website); this opinion column from The New York Times uses “Westworld” and its portrayal of medium-as-social-actor presence to raise important philosophical questions. See also the current series “Humans,” and for a classic portrayal see the climactic courtroom scene (via YouTube) of the 1989 “Measure of a Man” episode of “Star Trek: The Next Generation.” –Matthew] [Image: “Westworld” opened its second season Sunday night.…

[This story from Breaking Defense outlines the U.S. Army’s current efforts to create effective presence illusions to train soldiers. Note especially the “Four Parts” section. –Matthew] [Image: Army aviators train in a CH-47 Chinook simulator.] War Games: Army Deletes Bureaucracy To Get Sims Fast There is real uncertainty whether such things as robotic tanks and high-speed scout helicopters are possible on the Army’s timeline. But if there’s one area where a high-speed approach can work, it’s training simulations, where the Army can piggyback on the rapid development in commercial gaming. By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr. April 20, 2018 FORT BELVOIR:…

[This first-person report on research conducted by Microsoft and the California Institute of Technology on haptic illusions and how to use them to create presence illusions is from Scientific American’s Observations blog, where it includes more images, a 1:14 minute video, and author bios. –Matthew] If (Virtual) Reality Feels Almost Right, It’s Exactly Wrong How adding touch to VR can lead to an “uncanny valley” of sensations—and what we can do about it By Mar Gonzalez-Franco, Christopher C Berger and Ken Hinckley April 19, 2018 We can all remember the crisply beveled edges of our cheery-yellow No. 2 pencil, the…

[This story from SoraNews24 describes an unusual example of presence; see the original version for more images and seven videos. For more information see the Leo Palace 21 website. –Matthew] Japanese company makes virtual shadow boyfriends to help protect women who live alone Silhouettes of karate fighters, bodybuilders, and domestically dedicated dudes make would-be criminals think you’ve got a live-in boyfriend. Casey Baseel March 31, 2018 Not only is Tokyo Japan’s largest city in terms of population, it’s also where you’ll find, by far, the most educational, economic, and artistic opportunities. Because of that, many young people head to Tokyo…

[All kinds of interesting presence experiences are available in Tribeca Immersive programming at the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival. This overview is from The Villager, where the story includes more images. –Matthew] [Image: The Tribeca Film Festival will have an early look at the recently announced “Shadow of the Tomb Raider” game. Image courtesy of Tribeca Film Festival] Tangible and social: Virtual reality at Tribeca Immersive April 18, 2018 By Charles Battersby The stereotype of Virtual Reality (VR) is an isolated person sitting alone in a room, their head sealed within a helmet, master of a lonesome utopia. Early efforts at…

[This interesting story reinforces the importance of medium-as-social-actor presence today and into the future. It’s from Politico and unlike a lot of the coverage of the issue isn’t sensationalized or simplistic; see the original version for more images. –Matthew] Europe divided over robot ‘personhood’ In letter to Commission, 156 experts from 14 countries warn against adopting EU Parliament proposal. By Janosch Delcker April 11, 2018; Updated April 13, 2018 BERLIN — Think lawsuits involving humans are tricky? Try taking an intelligent robot to court. While autonomous robots with humanlike, all-encompassing capabilities are still decades away, European lawmakers, legal experts and…

[The ambitious project described in this story from The Verge uses technology to preserve historical sites so that we’ll be able to experience them via presence in the future. The original story includes more pictures . –Matthew] Google will help preserve endangered historical sites in virtual reality Google is partnering with 3D laser-scanning nonprofit CyArk to build VR representations of world wonders By Nick Statt Apr 16, 2018 Google has partnered with 3D laser scanning nonprofit CyArk to help preserve historical sites around the world that are at risk of irreversible damage or total erasure due to human conflict and…

[The combination of biometric technologies, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and multi-view screen technology could lead to seamless, personalized signs, essentially augmented reality without glasses or goggles. This story from Computerworld is by consistently interesting author Mike Elgan. –Matthew] When every public screen is your personal screen Augmented reality without glasses or goggles? It’s called ‘parallel reality,’ and it’s coming soon. By Mike Elgan, Contributing Columnist, Computerworld April 14, 2018 One screen, one user. But what happens when any screen can serve hundreds of users? In Steven Spielberg’s 2002 sci-fi movie, Minority Report, billboards could display customized ads that addressed each…