[From The Age] [Image: “Help me Obi Wan Kenobi”: Princess Leia leaves a 3D hologram message in Star Wars.] 3D video calls a step closer December 24, 2013 Drew Turney “Help me Obi Wan Kenobi … you’re my only hope,” might have been the first vision of a teleconferencing technology now in development at Iowa State University in the US. A human-computer interaction expert and a mechanical engineer have created a system to scan and record a subject in 3D, compress and transmit the video across a wired or wireless network in real time and have it displayed at the…

[From Slate’s design blog The Eye, where the post includes more pictures; follow the links for more information, including pictures and video. Best wishes for a happy, healthy, safe, productive, and otherwise very wonderful 2014 to everyone in the presence and ISPR community! ] The First-Ever Fireworks Show You Can Taste and Smell By Kristin Hohenadel Dec. 27 2013 3 It’s that time of year when every major city in the world vies to outdo the competition with an over-the-top fireworks display. This year Dubai is trying to break the Guinness World Record for the biggest fireworks show on the…

[From the UAB News, where the story includes a 2:50 minute video; a report that includes a 1:57 minute video is also available from CBS News] UAB does virtual surgery with VIPAAR and Google Glass By Bob Shepard October 29, 2013 A University of Alabama at Birmingham surgical team has performed one of the first surgeries using a virtual augmented reality technology from VIPAAR in conjunction with Google Glass, a wearable computer with an optical head-mounted display. The combination of the two technologies could be an important step toward the development of useful, practical telemedicine.…

[From The New York Times; for more on the film “Her,” which is earning high praise from critics, see the official web site, a detailed background article in Vulture, and “8 futuristic tech predictions from Spike Jonze’s new film ‘Her’” in Digital Trends. For more on the topic, see “Telepresence and Sexuality: A Review and a Call to Scholars” in Human Technology.] [Image: Joaquin Phoenix, as Theodore in “Her,” a love story about a man and a computer-operating system] ‘Interactive’ Gets a New Meaning By Alex Hawgood December 24, 2013 It may be the most memorable sex scene of the…

[From the Korea Herald] [Image: You Bum-jae, director of the Center of Human-Centered Interaction for Coexistence at KIST, and humanoid robot Mahru. (KIST] Robot scientist pushes limits of virtual reality Developer of Mahru calls for efforts to inspire students in science, promote innovative technologies Published : 2013-12-25 By Oh Kyu-wook In a remote hospital, a patient waits in bed for an operation. Standing bedside is not a surgeon but a human-faced machine, equipped with three-dimensional cameras, high-precision sensors and ultra-tiny instruments. A large screen projects the face of a doctor, who controls the procedure through the robotic surgeon to check…

[From the Village Voice; details about a new yule log video featuring purrrfect cat Lil Bub in front of the hearth are available from Time; information about where to watch various versions of yule log videos is available from the Los Angeles Times and Channel Guide Magazine; and you can read about and watch Yule Log 2.0, containing artistic reimaginings of the classic televised log fire, at Cool Hunting. ISPR and I personally wish you all a joyous holiday season! –Matthew Lombard ] The History of the Televised Yule Log, Which Was Invented in New York City By Tessa Stuart…

Jon Hyers’ projection DVDs bring Virtual Santa and other holiday figures into your home and neighborhood Filmmaker and special effects expert Jon Hyers’ Outrageous Media sells specially designed DVDs for projection in windows to create an apparently effective illusion (note: this is not a product endorsement). The description of the Virtual Santa DVD says “Santa walks around inside a house doing typical Santa tasks, from pulling present from a bag, to eating Milk and Cookies. Very realistic image and lighting that makes Santa appear to be lit by Moonlight as he leans towards the window.” See video examples of the…

[From the South Florida Sun-Sentinel; more information is available from Nova Southeastern University] [Image: This screen shot shows the avatars of the research team members in an area of the private Second Life island where amputees will be able to meet virtually as part of the study. (Photo courtesy Nova Southeastern) Amputees navigate virtual world in NSU study By Nicole Brochu, Staff writer December 19, 2013 A Nova Southeastern University researcher is studying whether the virtual reality world of ‘Second Life’ can help amputees adjust to their prosthetics. Video games don’t have to be just for fun. The hope is…

[From The Verge, where the story includes more pictures and a 3:26 minute video] Avegant Glyph: The virtual reality headset made for the mainstream Part Google Glass, part Oculus Rift — part Beats by Dre By David Pierce on December 18, 2013 Picture it: you’re sitting on the plane or in the doctor’s waiting room, listening to music on a large, good-looking set of headphones. You decide you’d rather catch up on Justified, or play a little Call of Duty. You tip your headphones forward until the broad white band is now in front of your face, and suddenly your show…

[From No Jitter] Is Telepresence Dead? Sales of telepresence have stagnated not because of lack of demand, but instead of because of lack of innovation. Zeus Kerravala | December 11, 2013 As a technology, telepresence (TP) has been mainstream for about a decade now. In the mid part of the last decade, TP came to life with a big bang that was comparable to what we saw with Tebow-mania. Like Tebow-mania, the momentum behind TP has cooled off over the past few years, and shipments of the once shining star of the collaboration industry have plateaued over the past few…

[From PlayStation Universe, where the post includes an additional image] Sony’s new virtual reality headset patent detects objects, simulates body posture, pupil movement, blinking Posted December 12th, 2013 by Kyle Prahl A new patent filed by Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. suggests the company is moving ever closer to completing its long-rumored virtual reality headset technology. The latest features, spotted in the patent by NeoGAF user Rösti, describes an “object avoidance apparatus” that detects obstacles in an image of the real-world, calculates their distance from you, and replaces them with different, virtual objects. The invention’s background describes a desire to more…

[From TIME] Meet the Robot Telemarketer Who Denies She’s A Robot Our encounter with an all-too-convincing robot By Zeke Miller and Denver Nicks With reporting by Michael Scherer, Christopher Wilson, and Jessica Roy [@jessicakroy] Follow @timenewsfeed Dec. 10, 2013 The phone call came from a charming woman with a bright, engaging voice to the cell phone of a TIME Washington Bureau Chief Michael Scherer. She wanted to offer a deal on health insurance, but something was fishy. When Scherer asked point blank if she was a real person, or a computer-operated robot voice, she replied enthusiastically that she was real,…