[This story from Popular Science describes another way presence is being used to prepare athletes for competition, in this case for the triathlon at the Rio 2016 Olympics. –Matthew] [Image: Gwen Jorgesen, World Triathlon Series Champion. Original Photo by Charlie Crowhurst / Getty Images, Illustration by Graham Murdoch] Virtual Reality Training Turns Olympic Triathlon Course Into Motor Memory It helps to know the road before you go By Will Cockrell Posted June 21, 2016 Gwen Jorgensen’s secret training tool isn’t her $10,000 road bike—it’s her mind. As in when she kicks back and closes her eyes. “I use mental visualization…

[Could a mediated experience of our planet from space provide the same neurological and psychological effects as ‘being there’? This story from Wired suggests an interesting series of studies about presence, perception and human nature. For more on the Overview Effect, see the Overview Institute’s website. –Matthew] [Image: Getty Images] So You Think You Love Earth? Wait Until You See It in VR Sarah Scoles 06.21.16 In an ideal future, trips beyond the atmosphere are easy(ish) and cheap(ish). Humans will regularly slip the surly bonds of Earth, rocket up to inflatable space hotels, and stare out at space, up at…

[The creator of the robot Pepper (which some of us encountered during our ISPR-ICA conference trip in a Softbank store in Kyoto) is working on a new robot designed specifically to combat human loneliness; the story is from CNET, where it includes more images. A related story from The Wall Street Journal, “Too Cute for Their Own Good, Robots Get Self-Defense Instincts,” considers ways designers have to consider how people respond to robots in different contexts. –Matthew] [Image: Kaname Hayashi has observed that people tend to respond to Pepper by showing the robot physical affection. MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images] Man seeking…

[We’re back after a two-week break. Profound thanks to everyone who made the ISPR conference event “The Power of Presence: Using Telepresence Theory, Research and Applications to Enhance Mediated Communication Experiences in the 21st Century” in Kyoto, Japan a great success; information about how to access the official proceedings will appear here soon, as will information about our next conference event. For now, this story from Rolling Stone is a nice summary of ‘the story so far,’ including references to presence experiences in VR, that technology’s rocky history and its promise in several application areas, and a striking comment at…

[This story from Geek describes a novel presence experience that explores and demonstrates the complex interaction of the visual and aural senses. The story (lightly edited for typos here) includes more images, and the link at the end is to a New York Times story that includes a 12:09 minute video and more information. –Matthew] Virtual reality sim Notes on Blindness makes you feel like Daredevil By Charles Battersby Jun. 2, 2016 Superhero stories and urban legends say that blind people develop enhanced senses when they lose their vision. In the real world, it isn’t quite so simple. The subjective…

[Presence isn’t investigated directly but clearly plays a role in a study by an impressive Harvard senior about how much and why people trust robots; context obviously matters and it’ll be important to investigate how the results change as robots become more commonplace. The story from Harvard University News features more images and a 2:04 minute video. –Matthew] [Image: Serena Booth and her robot, Gaia, in its cookie-delivery disguise. (Photo by Adam Zewe/SEAS Communications.)] In automaton we trust Student examines the issue of over-trusting robotic systems By Adam Zewe May 25, 2016 If Hollywood is to be believed, there are…

[He doesn’t use the terms social presence, CASA or medium-as-social-actor presence, but this piece from the Shelly Palmer blog includes some interesting insights and questions about them (and some relevant science-fiction references). –Matthew] I’ve Talked to the Future and It Talked Back by Shelly Palmer May 21, 2016 I love Alexa, the Natural Language Processing (NLP) system in my Amazon Echo. She wakes me up every morning, she knows my schedule, she can control many of my z-wave and Zigbee compatible devices (switches, outlets, etc.), she can tell me the temperature and weather forecast, she can play any piece of…

[This story from SFGate describes what may become one of the most valued applications of presence technology, the recording of precious experiences and people; it also highlights the way applications are often discovered inadvertently. –Matthew] [Image: Ashley Scott and daughter Reese at the 8i studio.] Virtual reality archives memories By Benny Evangelista Friday, May 27, 2016 Virtual reality could become the archive of personal memories. From a new mom tearfully re-experiencing her infant daughter six months later, to Paul McCartney remembering what led him to write a hit song, virtual reality startups have uncovered how the new technology can store…

[This new telepresence robot – even though it’s just a torso and arms – is capable of impressively natural human movement and suggests another step toward rich social presence, including medium-as-social-actor presence. The video and images included with this story from Gizmag remind me of the interactions in the 2015 film Chappie, but of course those were created with special effects (see coverage in /Film). –Matthew] [Image: The hybrid robot playing patty cake (Credit: Disney Research)] New hybrid system gives robot arms human-like grace and precision David Szondy May 13, 2016 Disney Research has come up with a glockenspiel-playing robot…

[The legal justice system is another application area for presence; this story is from BBC News, where it features more images and a video. For more information see the Digital Forensic Archaeology Project page and coverage in The Wall Street Journal. –Matthew] [Image: Dr Caroline Sturdy Colls said jurors would be transported into a “virtual world”] Juries ‘could enter virtual crime scenes’ following research Virtual reality technology used in the gaming industry could be adapted to recreate crime scenes for juries, researchers have claimed. 24 May 2016 A Staffordshire University project has experimented with technology and techniques to “transport” jurors…

[Microsoft is working on a new ‘telepresence experience’ technology (will the use of the term ‘experience’ help clarify that presence is a property of the perceiver?). This story is from InAVate; the patent is available from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. –Matthew] Microsoft patents ‘telepresence experience’ Charlotte Ashley May 11, 2016 Microsoft continues to work on creating virtual environments that facilitate face-to-face communication with those who can’t make it to a meeting or gathering with it’s recently patented ‘telepresence experience.’ The patent details a system which appears to create the effect of talking through a glass to the other…

[This story from SVG Europe describes the many technologies being utilized to evoke presence for remote and in-person audience members for this year’s French Open tennis tournament; for more information about the Virtual Reality and the on-site RG Lab, see pages on the RolandGarros.com website. –Matthew] Virtual Reality at the heart of France Télévisions Roland-Garros 2016 set up By Catherine Wright Friday, May 20, 2016 As Roland-Garros organisers prepare for the French tennis tournament beginning May 21, France Télévisions is again showcasing the group’s latest technology developments at the RG Lab, under the supervision of its Head of Innovations Bernard…