[In addition to describing the company’s new brain-controlled VR game, in this interview from IEEE Spectrum the CEO of Neurable argues that the brain-computer interface will “be the interaction method that allows for ubiquitous VR and AR”; the original story includes four different pictures and a 0:42 minute video. –Matthew] [Image: From Diorama, where coverage includes a 2:08 minute demonstration video] Startup Neurable Unveils the World’s First Brain-Controlled VR Game By Eliza Strickland Posted 7 Aug 2017 Imagine putting on a VR headset, seeing the virtual world take shape around you, and then navigating through that world without waving any…

[The tools available to creators allow increasingly sophisticated manipulations of mediated reality; this story from the UC Santa Barbara Current describes an interesting new one; follow the links at the end for more information, examples and a 5:18 minute video, and see coverage in DIY Photography for an explanation of how this new tool compares to others. –Matthew] Picture Perfect UCSB and NVIDIA researchers develop a new technique that enables photographers to adjust image compositions after capture By James Badham Monday, July 31, 2017 When taking a picture, a photographer must typically commit to a composition that cannot be changed…

[From Roomba to Kuri to sophisticated and adorable future companion robots that take care of us, we can’t help perceiving machines as independent, sentient social actors – i.e., experiencing media-as-social-actor presence. This interesting story from Wired considers some key design choices and ethical challenges. See the original for a 5:12 minute video. –Matthew] Companion Robots Are Here. Just Don’t Fall In Love With Them Matt Simon August 2, 20.17 “Hey, Kuri,” I say. “I love you.” Pause. I brace for rejection, but then the robot lets out a balooop and shimmies back and forth. This, I am to presume, means…

[I always enjoy visiting attractions that provide views from high above (e.g., Philadelphia’s One Liberty Observation Deck) but The Shard in London has taken things further, as reported in this story from the Evening Standard (where it includes several more pictures). For more information, Business Insider has a 1:31 minute summary video and Londonist has a story featuring a 2:30 minute viral video of a woman on the Slide attraction. Details and tickets are available directly from The View From The Shard’s website. Information about an earlier VR experience of the same building is available from Visualise. –Matthew] You can…

[This story from Gizmodo is as interesting for the presence result it reports – “The performance of [Facebook researchers’] best negotiation agent… matched that of human negotiators” – as for what it says about our fears of technology-based social actors. See the original story for an animated graphic and the Facebook Artificial Intelligence Research blog post for a detailed explanation of the research (a key quote: “Interestingly, in the FAIR experiments, most people did not realize they were talking to a bot rather than another person”). –Matthew] No, Facebook Did Not Panic and Shut Down an AI Program That Was…

[As the author of this intriguing article notes, it’ll be fascinating to see, and we should work to shape, how the uses of in-home telepresence robots evolve. The article is from IEEE Spectrum., where it includes links to related stories. –Matthew] [Image: The Beam remote presence system, from Suitable Technologies, allows you to “beam in” and visit family members from anywhere. Social roboticist Heather Knight argues that such technology could become a valuable co-parenting tool. Credit: Suitable Technologies] Why Co-Parenting With Telepresence Robots Could Be a Fantastic Idea By Heather Knight Posted 31 Jul 2017 There’s always something heart-wrenching when…

[Here’s a clever use of VR and presence to replace the boring blackenss of the windows during train trips under the English Channel. The press release is from Eurostar and “brand experience agency” AKQA, and more information including two videos can be found on the Eurostar website. –Matthew] Eurostar unveils world’s first onboard virtual reality experience: ‘Eurostar Odyssey’ Taking travellers on an adventure to the depths of the sea bed, with immersive smartphone headsets available throughout the summer 12 July 2017 Eurostar today announces ‘Eurostar Odyssey’, the first virtual reality experience designed to enhance a journey through an immersive onboard…

[An extremely positive use, and the limitations, of presence are described in this story from CNET, where the original includes a 3:52 minute video and a photo gallery. –Matthew]   [Image: A grandmother in Iztapalapa, Mexico, used a Samsung Gear VR to spend the afternoon with relatives in the US she hasn’t seen in almost two decades. Credit: Family Reunions Project] VR’s new mission: Reunite immigrants with family back home The Family Reunions Project uses 360-degree videos and VR headsets to reunite families separated by borders they cannot cross –except in virtual reality. by Laura Martínez July 27, 2017 Marleny,…

[The “Magic Bench” is another intriguing presence-evoking technology from Disney Research; this story is from New Atlas, where it includes the 3:39 minute video that is also available along with more information via the links at the bottom of the story. –Matthew] Disney’s Magic Bench makes augmented reality a group activity Michael Irving July 26, 2017 Some day, even stopping for a rest on a bench at Disneyland might be an attraction in itself. You could find yourself seated beside a grumpy frog or a snoring elephant, thanks to a mixed reality prototype Disney Research calls the Magic Bench. Designed…

[This widely-cited story from The Daily Mail highlights part of a new Lancet Commission report regarding the use of several technologies, including those designed to evoke different types of presence, for the treatment of dementia patients. For more information see The Lancet as well as a related story, “Assisted living tries virtual reality to help seniors with dementia,” in The Journal Times. –Matthew] [Image: Source: The Daily Mail] Robots could soon care for dementia patients but experts warn it’s ‘not a replacement for human contact’ Tech advancements mean gadgets and apps are already being introduced But there may be some…

[Here’s a short, middle-of-summer presence story from People, where the original includes more images and a 1:05 minute video. See the Madame Tussauds Hollywood website for more. –Matthew] Kylie Jenner Says She ‘Fooled Her Whole Family’ During FaceTime Call with Her $350,000 Wax Figure By Karen Mizoguchi Posted On July 19, 2017 Kylie Jenner put one over on her famous family during a recent prank call with a little help from her newly-created Madame Tussauds wax figure. “I made her FaceTime my whole family … fooled everyone,” the Life of Kylie star, 19, shared on Instagram Tuesday, along with a…

[The use of virtual reality (and presence) recently gave a team of doctors the insights they needed to save the lives of conjoined twins; the story is from The Washington Post, where it includes more images and a 3:12 minute video, and more details are available from the University of Minnesota. –Matthew] How doctors used virtual reality to save the lives of conjoined twin sisters By Peter Holley July 23, 2017 During an 18-year career in medicine, Daniel Saltzman — the chief of pediatric surgery at University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital — has grown accustomed to looking at X-rays…