[This post from the Creative Review blog provides insights into the current and possible future status of VR music videos (it even mentions “sense of presence” in the last paragraph); you can experience the Stor Eiglass video with Samsung Gear VR headsets, Google Cardboard, on phones and tablets (I found it pretty compelling on an iPad), or via YouTube’s new 360º platform – the Android app is here; the iOS app is here; and the interactive video (and more information) is here. –Matthew] Squarepusher’s new music video guides viewers through a dystopic VR universe Posted by Rachael Steven, 13 May…

[A clever and powerful use of presence is described in this story from People; the 1:36 minute video is available via link below. –Matthew] Holograms Used to Spook Ignorant Drivers Who Illegally Park in Handicap Spots (VIDEO) By Jacqueline Andriakos @jandriakos 05/05/2015 If you’ve ever considered parking illegally in a handicap space, this message is for you. Russia-based nonprofit Dislife.Ru recently developed a powerful social experiment called More than a Sign to raise awareness of the rights of people with disabilities and to encourage drivers not to wrongfully take spaces reserved for them. The organization partnered with advertising agency Y&R…

[No mention of Cliff Nass, but this is CASA (Computers Are Social Actors) all the way; it’s from the University of Bath; the full paper is available from the Being There website. –Matthew] Why shaking hands matters (even when it’s virtual) 11 May 2015 Politicians and the public may have grown tired of shaking hands at the end of a long election campaign, but there’s new evidence that it really does matter when it comes to striking the best deal in negotiations. The process of shaking hands at the start of a conversation has already been shown to lead to…

[A demonstration of the wonders of (presence) technology… This story is from ZDNet; for more about Hawking’s appearance including video excerpts, see coverage by Business Insider Australia, and for a 5:34 minute video about the technical details of transmitting (but not projecting) the signal, see Lifehacker Australia. A video of the complete appearance is on YouTube. –Matthew] Hologram Stephen Hawking visits Australia with TelePresence Summary: A hologram of professor Stephen Hawking graced the stage of the Sydney Opera House over the weekend using Cisco’s TelePresence systems. By Josh Taylor | April 27, 2015 Professor Stephen Hawking gave his first live…

[As this story from MTV News notes, there’s reason for some skepticism about this project, but also for great excitement; the story includes many pictures and two videos including the impressive 2:16 minute ‘concept ad’; see VOID.com for more information –Matthew] Will This Virtual Reality Theme Park Replace Movie Theaters Someday? Meet the guy behind THE VOID, who’s betting a fortune that his high-tech wonderland will revolutionize your weekends. by Marty Beckerman May 7, 2015 Mark Zuckerberg wants the Oculus Rift to close the gap between virtual reality and mainstream entertainment, but he may have some surprise competition. Yesterday, a…

[Watch the 2:08 minute video of Han, the latest creation from Hanson Robotics, and see if we’ve reached Mori’s uncanny valley. The story from the International Business Times also includes another image. Coverage by Reuters includes another video and notes that Han’s female counterpart Eva is scheduled to soon interact with the public in various roles. –Matthew] Han the humanoid robot understands your facial expressions and can respond in kind [Video] By Mary-Ann Russon April 21, 2015 Hanson Robotics has debuted a humanoid robot that is able to recognise and understand people’s facial expressions, hold a conversation and respond appropriately…

[This description of an intriguing project refers to nearly every type of presence but never uses the term; The Creator’s Project story includes more pictures and a 2:41 minute video; more information can be found in coverage by The Irish Times, and a 5:41 minute interview with the artists is available on Vimeo. –Matthew] Virtual Reality Film Installation Puts a Disassociative Twist on Awkward Family Dinners By Beckett Mufson — May 3 2015 There may be two sides to every story, but in virtual reality film installation The Doghouse, which landed at the UK’s 2015 Flatpack Film Festival in March,…

[Drones provide a powerful tool for evoking presence; this Adweek story includes a 2:11 minute behind-the-scenes video about Patrón Tequila’s VR experience; a web-based version of the experience is available on the Patrón website and the press release is available at PR Newswire. –Matthew] Drones Are Filming Seriously Jaw-Dropping Virtual Reality Video for Brands Patrón goes inside the agave field By Lauren Johnson May 1, 2015 Ever since Twitter used drones to create buzzy six-second videos at Cannes last year, the remote-controlled devices have ditched their reputation as weird flying gizmos the military uses in favor of one as a…

[A thoughtful consideration of how and why the most effective and useful presence technology will evoke both social and spatial presence (with lots of interesting links); this is from Upload, where the article includes more images and a video. –Matthew] Will Mason April 15, 2015 We reported earlier that reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian made reference to a reddit VR platform on the GearVR. In that article, I tried to imagine what that app might look like, especially within the constraints of the device. That was all a vision of a translation of the site, a port if you will, for…

[Feelreal is raising funds for a series of products that add more senses to virtual experiences; the 2:49 minute video included with this story in Gizmag (which also includes a photo gallery) says the products “enhance personal presence in the virtual world”; for a (negative) hands-on review see coverage in The Verge. –Matthew] Feelreal VR Mask and Nirvana helmet let gamers smell and feel the action By Richard Moss April 30, 2015 In what could just as easily prove to be a very bad idea as it could a good one, a startup company called Feelreal has created a virtual…

[This VR technology, easier than most for content producers to adopt, makes the user “[f]eel like you’re in a luxury box with friends at your favorite sporting event”; the story is from Road to VR and includes more images. –Matthew] LiveLike Combines the Cameras of Today with the VR of Tomorrow By Ben Lang – Apr 29, 2015 While other companies are busy building 360 degree camera rigs and hoping for consumer adoption, VR startup LiveLike has a unique approach which uses existing broadcast camera tech in a surprisingly effective way to make you feel like you’re in a luxury…

[A promising expansion of telepresence robotic technology is described in this article from IEEE Spectrum, which includes another image and two videos; for much more information see the DORA website. –Matthew] DORA Telepresence Robot Gives You Fully Immersive Experience By Evan Ackerman Posted 28 Apr 2015 Remote presence robots, as the name implies, act as your stand-in at a distant location, letting you move around and see and hear through a robotic surrogate. Space agencies, researchers, and the military have developed high-end telepresence systems that offer an immersive experience, but these units can cost millions of dollars. Consumer telepresence robots…