[From Fast Company’s Co.Design, where the story includes another image. The much-missed Cliff Nass would have appreciated this.] The Psychology Of Anthropomorphic Robots Subtle anthropomorphic cues, such as faces or voices, increase robot humanity. Google’s self-driving car is onto something. Eric Jaffe June 16, 2014 By now we’ve all seen the prototype for Google’s self-driving car: a teeny little road bopper shaped like a gumdrop. What’s immediately striking is that the car seems to have a smiley face designed into the front. Headlights for eyes, a forward sensor for a nose, a bumper line for a mouth tilted slightly upward…

[From Newcastle University’s Institute of Neuroscience] [Image: Dr. Jeremy Parr, Paul Smith and Dr. Morag Maskey in the Blue Room. Source: The Journal] Children with autism overcome real-life fears in virtual world 3rd July 2014 Immersive reality can help children with autism spectrum disorder overcome their fears and phobias, new research has shown. In a study published today in PLOS ONE, experts at Newcastle University describe how, following treatment in an immersive virtual reality room, eight out of nine children were able to tackle the situation they feared. Four children were found to have completely overcome their phobias.…

[From CNET; a story about a Nashville entrepreneur who tried the same thing this year is available in The Tennessean] [Image: A look inside the lights. Joe Stiglingh/YouTube screenshot by Chris Matyszczyk/CNET] When you fly a drone into fireworks, it’s quite beautiful A YouTube video that’s currently inciting wonder shows a completely different perspective on a fireworks display. by Chris Matyszczyk July 5, 2014 The proliferation of controlled flying objects has incited many an imagination. Some believe drones should be used to deliver vacuum cleaners. Others might have more nefarious, prurient intentions. However, one man thought it might be entertaining…

[From the Daily Mail, where the story includes more images and two videos] [Image: Researchers have shown off their device called the revealing flashlight that can be used to digitally restore artefacts. Pictured is an artefact (1), while an input (in this case a finger at 2) is being used to manipulate a LeapMotion gesture device (3), which allows the user to ‘point’ where they want the projection to go] Shining a light on the past: ‘Virtual reality’ torch projects missing fragments on to ancient treasures, restoring them to their former glory Researchers led from Bordeaux have created an augmented…

[From Motherboard, where the story includes more pictures; for another perspective (!) and more examples, see “Flat design casts a long shadow” in WDD] [Image: An example of a long shadow in a flat design, from WDD] The Virtual Sun Is Finally Setting Written by Claire L. Evans, Futures Editor June 27, 2014 In 2006, I switched from PC to Mac in the midst of an aesthetic sea change called Web 2.0. Overnight, all my buttons and toggles became aqueous, squishy blobs. For my entire young life as a computer user, that place had been populated with beige file folders…

[From Road to VR, where the story includes more pictures and a 4:14 minute video] Kite & Lightning’s ‘Genesis’ is an Immersion-machine That Takes You on a Reality-bending Ride June 30, 2014 by Ben Lang When the Kite & Lightning developers told me they had something to show me that couldn’t physically be demonstrated anywhere else, I was intrigued. Little did I know, upon arriving at their office, that I would be stepping into a contraption that’s been presumed to be a torture device, a jungle gym, and yes, even a “sex machine.” Kite & Lightning is a creative development…

[From The Wrap, where the story includes other pictures. For more on the two 4D theaters that opened this weekend see The Hollywood Reporter and a 2:52 minute video new report from WEAR-TV] 4D Theaters Buck, Jerk, Spray and Hurtle Their Way Into America Bring a towel and witness what may be the future of film By Brent Lang on April 13, 2014 It bucks, it mists, it hurtles. It smells. No this is not an amusement park ride and yes, the smells part is accurate. It’s 4D, the latest effort by cinema owners to offer something on the big…

[From TechCrunch, where the story includes more images and a 2:52 minute video; see also the follow-up stories, How To Make Your Own #Cardboard VR Goggles, Buy A Google #Cardboard Clone For $20, and The Story Behind Google’s Cardboard Project] Hands On With Google’s Incredibly Clever Cardboard Virtual Reality Headset Posted June 25, 2014 by Greg Kumparak Each year at I/O, Google gives all of the developers in the audience a gift. Some years it’s a tablet. Some years it’s a laptop. This year? It was a piece of cardboard. Yeah, yeah, they gave attendees some other stuff, too —…

[From Phys.org, where the story includes a different picture and two videos. More information is available on the “Tell Me Dave” web site] Robot can be programmed by casually talking to it (w/ Video) Jun 23, 2014 Robots are getting smarter, but they still need step-by-step instructions for tasks they haven’t performed before. Before you can tell your household robot “Make me a bowl of ramen noodles,” you’ll have to teach it how to do that. Since we’re not all computer programmers, we’d prefer to give those instructions in English, just as we’d lay out a task for a child.…

[From CNET, where the story includes a different image and a 1:25 minute video] [Image: Vi Hart] eleVR: the first web video player for virtual reality Why should gaming get all the fun? eleVR is like YouTube for your virtual reality headset — and anyone can jump in and create videos. by Michelle Starr June 24, 2014 You may be able to control a quadcopter with an Oculus Rift — but what about just kicking back and watching some videos from your favourite creators? That’s what the newly launched eleVR is for. The website, a collaborative effort between ‘mathemusician’ Vi…

[From Fast Company’s Co.Exist, where the story includes more pictures and a 2:33 minute video; see also Behnaz Farahi’s web pages for this version and the earlier version of the project] ‘s When You Move Your Hand, This Room Changes Shape By covering walls in Spandex and using a motion sensing game controller, a designer has created a magical place that is an extension of the human mind and body. Adele Peters June 23, 2014 We’re used to using gestures like swiping and tapping to control smartphone apps. But could we use the same movements to change the physical world…

[From CNN, where the story includes a photo gallery; more coverage can be found at Wired and Fast Company (the latter includes a description of the just accomplished first transatlantic “Scent Message”] [Image: Courtesy Art Science] Forget text messaging, the ‘oPhone’ lets you send smells By Kieron Monks for CNN March 17, 2014 (CNN) — Holiday albums could be less forgettable when pictures of a Mediterranean meal carry the scent of olives; a selfie on the beach contains a trace of salt spray or a rainy London scene conveys the distinctive aroma of freshly wet concrete. If the digital age…