[From The Hollywood Reporter] [Image: Atlantic Productions/Zoo] British TV Producer Creating Virtual Reality Narratives for Sony and Oculus Rift Atlantic Productions, the company behind the BAFTA-winning “Flying Monsters 3D,” is working on documentary, animated and dramatic pilots for Oculus Rift and Sony’s Project Morpheus. 4/25/2014 by Adrian Pennington British TV producer Atlantic Productions, the company behind natural-history documentaries fronted by Sir David Attenborough (Galapagos, Kingdom of Plants and the BAFTA-winning Flying Monsters 3D) is pioneering virtual-reality narrative content. It includes documentary, CG and drama pilots in development for Facebook’s virtual-reality headgear-maker Oculus Rift and for Sony’s Project Morpheus.…

[From Fast Company’s Co.Create, where the post includes a 1:01 minute video] This Interactive Site Gives You A Taste Of What It’s Like To Drown By Jeff Beer April 22, 2014 French marine clothing and safety brand Guy Cotten takes the scared straight approach to life jacket awareness. Summer is approaching and with it the migration of millions of people to the coast to enjoy the sun and the sea. Guy Cotten, a French marine clothing and safety equipment brand, is taking the opportunity to dramatically remind us that when it comes to boating, a life jacket is necessary no…

[From Fast Company’s Co.Create, where the story includes more pictures and two short videos, “Lucid Dreaming” and “Reality of the Virtual”] Dreaming With Your Eyes Open: How Humans Are Hardwired For Stories Brain Games host Jason Silva explains the transformation that occurs when we’re immersed in a story, and what makes an effective storyteller. By Joe Berkowitz April 23, 2014 Talking to Jason Silva might make your head spin. Perhaps not quite in the same manner as the possessed child at the center of The Exorcist, but something closer to the way the film itself does a number on audiences.…

[From The Rift Arcade, where the story includes a 12:54 minute video –  the last segment, beginning at 9:50, is particularly worth watching] How the Oculus Rift helped Roberta Firstenberg battle cancer 17 Apr, 2014 Tom Rudderham “I can’t believe it. I mean, you hear about things that like that, and you think you’re all prepared for it, and it’s like dropping into a mirage… into a new life… it’s beautiful… it’s awe-inspiring.” –Roberta Firstenberg By the end of 2013, Roberta Firstenberg was losing her battle with cancer. After several months of radiation therapy and chemotherapy, she was told that…

[From The Verge, where the story includes a 3:18 minute video; for a related story, see  “Oculus Rift Now Lets You Ride the ‘Back to the Future’ Hoverboard” at Mashable] Explore the bridge of ‘Star Trek: Voyager’ through Oculus Rift By Jacob Kastrenakes on April 21, 2014 The Oculus Rift has been used to transport people everywhere from Jerry Seinfeld’s fictional apartment to another human’s body, and over the weekend, one developer began taking gamers someplace even a bit further from reality: to the bridge of Star Trek: Voyager‘s famous ship. The new virtual reality demo lets you walk around a fairly accurate…

[From Wired, where the story includes more images and a video] [Image: Honda’s newest version of its advanced humanoid robot, ASIMO, signs with its hands during a demonstration for media outlets at the Westin Grand Central Hotel in Manhattan. Andrew White/WIRED] Watch the Astounding Dexterity of Honda’s Dancing Humanoid Robot By Tim Moynihan  04.19.14 Even in today’s rapidly evolving world of technology, there are few things that make your jaw drop when you see them in real life. Honda’s ASIMO is one of those things. When you witness this bipedal humanoid robot hopping in a circle on one foot, taking…

[From BBC News, where the story includes more images and a 0:22 minute video; a longer video is available on YouTube] Cyborg glasses save users the need to control emotions By Leo Kelion Technology desk editor 16 April 2014 As Google continues to stoke excitement for its Glass smart-eyewear, a Japanese researcher has developed a radical alternative. Rather than focus on what the owner sees, Prof Hirotaka Osawa’s kit shows computer-generated eye animations in place of the wearer’s real ones. Special lenses let the user see out or take a secret nap if they prefer. The professor said the glasses…

[From Robohub, where the story includes additional images] [Image: Chris Anderson interviews Edward Snowden, who appears at TED 2014 in Vancouver via BEAM telepresence robot from an unknown location in Russia.] Snowden BEAMs into TED: How robotic telepresence disrupts borders by Hallie Siegel and Andra Keay March 19, 2014 Travel in some parts of the world, or for some people, can be dangerous, but robots may soon change that. Yesterday former-NSA-contractor-turned-whistleblower Edward Snowden “walked” onto the TED stage in Vancouver via BEAM telepresence robot, while safely stationed out of the US government’s reach in Russia. It was the first time…

[From Gamespot, where the story includes a 1:40 minute video news report] Oculus creator: “If you can perfectly simulate reality, why do you need to actually go see people in real life?” Palmer Luckey says VR needs to incorporate touch-based feedback to further the feeling of immersion and wonders if some day we’ll think it’s wasteful to actually get on a plane to meet people in the real world. by Eddie Makuch on April 15, 2014 Virtual reality headsets like the Oculus Rift must expand beyond visuals and allow for touch-based human-to-human interaction, creator Palmer Luckey said in a new…

[From TechWeekEurope UK, where the story includes a 3:27 minute video] Research Team Uses Water Vapour Planes For Interactive Display Screens A Bristol University team has produced “touch-enabled” images that float in the air on a cloud of vapour On April 14, 2014 by Eric Doyle, ChannelBiz Technology that could bring R2D2’s projection of Princess Leia in Star Wars a step closer has been developed by a University of Bristol research team. The MisTable uses a set of vapour curtains as interactive projection screens to display computer images. The team will present their development at the prestigious ACM CHI 2014…

[From The Creators Project blog, where the post includes a 7:00 minute video and many more images] [Video] Leviathan: The Future Of Storytelling By The Creators Project — Apr 9 2014 Considering a future wherein cinematic experiences are participatory, audiences would interact with narratives as if they were concurrently films and video games. Enter: “Leviathan,” an experimental leap forward in cinematic technique that heralds such an evolution: This past January, in collaboration with Intel Labs, the USC School of Cinematic Arts World Building Media Lab unveiled “Leviathan,” at CES 2014’s Intel CEO Keynote speech. As the audience used Intel Ultrabooks…

[From E&T (Engineering and Technology Magazine); more coverage is available from Travolution; the first part of the Skyscanner report is available at skyscanner2024.com] [Image: Wearable technology could provide immediate translations for travellers and suggest holiday destinations] Virtual reality trials for future holiday makers Future holidaymakers will make virtual reality visits to potential destinations and take advantage of semantic search to choose holidays, according to a new report 10 April 2014 By Edd Gent The first of a three-part series of reports from travel comparison site Skyscanner called ‘The Future of Travel 2024’ was revealed at an event in London today,…