[From BGR] How to make a Star Trek-style Holodeck with an Oculus Rift and 3 Kinect sensors By Brad Reed on May 14, 2014 All proper sci-fi nerds have long dreamed of being able to take a trip in the Holodeck, a virtual reality chamber located on Star Trek’s USS Enterprise where you can simulate any time, place and situation you want to be in. Oliver Kreylos, a computer science professor and researcher at the University of California, Davis, has come the closest we’ve seen yet to creating a working Holodeck and he’s done it using an Oculus Rift virtual…

[From Fast Company’s Co.Design, where the post includes animated gifs and the 2:56 minute video (also available on Vimeo] Disney’s 12 Principles Of Animation, In A Cartoon Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, the “old men” of Walt Disney, made laws of physics just for cartoons. John Brownlee May 6, 2014 In the real world, the basic laws of physics were first described by Sir Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein. In the world of animation, however, we owe the laws of physics to Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston. Working for the Walt Disney Company in its heyday of the 1930s, these…

[From Motherboard, where the story includes a 54:59 minute video] To Reach 800 Million Voters, This Candidate Is Campaigning as a Hologram Written by DJ Pangburn May 7, 2014 Indian prime minister hopeful Narendra Modi is both real and a hologram. Over the course of his campaign, according to The Independent, Modi has appeared in holographic form before audiences at some 900 rallies. When it’s all said and done, Modi will have made over 1,000 holographic appearances before Indian voters. On May 6th, for instance, Modi’s holographic doppelgangers appeared at 100 3D Bharat Vijay rallies, organized by his political party,…

[From KFSN-TV, where the story includes a video news report; more information about this and a similar product is available at the web sites of Pet Chatz and IC Pooch] PetChatz allows you to keep an eye on pets Thursday, May 08, 2014 Christine Park FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — Pet parents know keeping tabs on their four-legged family members while they’re away from home is no easy task. We’ve all seen the videos of dogs caught on camera when their owners aren’t home. From stealing cupcakes, to tearing up the couch, and crying all day long. People have been doing…

[From The Rift Arcade, where the story includes more images and a 1:39 minute video] Birdly simulates flight with Oculus Rift and body suit 7 May, 2014  Tom Rudderham The Oculus Rift offers the ability to discover new experiences from the comfort of your own chair. Whether it’s flight, the terror of a haunted house or the thrills of a high speed race, the possibilities are endless. With full 3D imagery and head tracking, never before have we been able to immerse ourselves in quite this way. However, one team from the Institute for Design Research at the Zurich University…

[From CNET, where the story includes an additional image] [Image: Jaden Anderson snaps a prom selfie with Olivia Ledezma, who attended via telepresence robot. Mispagel Photography] Meet your prom date, a telepresence robot Two Kansas high school students who had to be out of state at prom time get to dance with their friends, from thousands of miles away, thanks to technology. by Leslie Katz April 21, 2014 On a Saturday night earlier this month, Olivia Ledezma got all dressed up for her high school prom. So did her telepresence robot, which donned a pink feather boa and tiara for…

[From Mashable, where the story includes a 3:02 minute video] Think Oculus Rift is Immersive? Try This Augmented Reality Experience By Samantha Murphy Kelly May 6, 2014 I recently visited Vancouver in 1948. The part of town I was in was a bit run down, which made sense since the Second World War was still fresh, and the city was undergoing a recession and a major housing crisis. I walked into homes, climbed stairs and listened in on conversations to learn more about the people who lived there. Over time, I pieced together character personalities and individual stories, while following…

[From Norwegian TV station TuTV; a subtitled 3:38 minute video story is available here] See the Norwegian Armed Forces driving with Oculus Rift The Norwegian Army is now trying Oculus Rift gaming glasses in Norwegian armoured vehicles. The effect can best be described as sitting in a transparent vehicle. Teknisk Ukeblad got to try out an early development version at the Rena test field with a prototype of Oculus Rift and the specially developed camera system. With cameras positioned on both sides of the vehicle and the special glasses, the tank operators have a 360 degree view from the driver‘s…

[From NBC Bay Area, where the story includes an impressive 2:07 minute video] Los Altos School District Tries Out Virtual Reality in the Classroom By Jessica Aguirre and Barb Kunz Friday, May 2, 2014 The STEM Lab (short for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) at Gardner Bullis Elementary School in Los Altos is the site of an unusual class project. “So my animal was a dolphin,” sixth grader Adam Mekay explains to a first grader. Adam and his classmates are among the first kids in the country to use a new 3D educational display. “These are some of the body…

[From Playstation Blog, where the post includes more pictures] First Look at Project CARS on PS] Posted by Andy Tudor on May 01, 2014 // Creative Director, Slightly Mad Studios If you haven’t heard about it already, Project CARS is a bit different. Different in the philosophy of freedom that runs throughout the entire game, and different in how it’s being created — by YOU, the gamers! Project CARS was conceived back in October 2011 (Wow, time flies!) as a natural continuation of our work on two of racing’s biggest franchises — Need For Speed and Test Drive — and…

[From Business Insider, where the story includes another image] [Image: A man tries the Oculus Rift headset at Facebook’s F8 conference. Credit: Kyle Russell/Business Insider] Oculus Rift Will Finally Go On Sale To Consumers Next Year Jim Edwards Apr. 30, 2014 An Oculus Rift virtual reality headset for consumers could go on sale next year, a company representative told Business Insider at Facebook’s F8 developer conference today. Management at Oculus VR, the Irvine, Calif.-company that Facebook bought for $2 billion earlier this year, will be “disappointed” if it doesn’t have a headset available at retail for ordinary people by 2016, according…

[From Gigaom, where the story includes more images and a 1:01 minute video; a 2:46 minute BBC News report is available here; both reports touch only briefly on how people respond to the robot] [Image: CEO William Santana Li with a K5. Photo by Signe Brewster.] The K5 security robot will begin patrolling one Silicon Valley campus this year By Signe Brewster Feb. 25, 2014 The Knightscope K5 robot’s 5-foot-tall bullet-shaped frame is impressive. Studded with cameras and sensors and colored Stormtrooper black and white, it really is imposing. But that’s the point: It’s a robot cop, and it doesn’t…