[This story from I Programmer isn’t technically news, but as someone with a medical condition that requires regular phlebotomies, I found it particularly thought-provoking. –Matthew ] A Robot With A Hypodermic Needle Written by Lucy Black 27 July 2013 Would you let a robot take your blood? The answer to this question illuminates our real relationship to machines that aspire to rise above the robot vac. Is there another sort of uncanny valley? Veebot is a very clever use of some basic image processing plus some very accurate positioning mechanisms. It first locates a good vein using infrared. Once it…

[From Hypergrid Business, where the column includes a 0:32 minute promotional video for Chuck E. Cheese’ “Virtual Ticket Blaster”] [Image: Belarus-based Amusement & Edutainment Technologies pairs an Oculus Rift with moving seats to create its 3D entertainment attraction. (Image courtesy AET.)] Virtual reality could find its first home outside the home by Kevin Williams · May 29, 2014 The arcade industry was decimated back in the mid-90’s by the advancements in consumer console games as well as a failure to adapt to changing player demographics. Virtual reality could bring it back. As a side benefit, virtual reality arcades could help…

[From Silicon Angle, where the story includes more pictures and a 16:47 minute video] [Image: Microsoft] Virtual Reality brings Big Data visualization to life Mike Wheatley | May 29th 2014 Data visualization tools have made it somewhat easier to glean intelligence from a mass of information. But today’s tools are still extremely inefficient, as they fail to incorporate the science of human visual perception into their data visualization techniques. This results in tools that deliver great “eye candy” but poor human comprehension of the data. Traditional tools also tend to visualize what we already know about the data, rather than…

[From a large and interesting feature in IEEE Spectrum, “Special Report: The Future We Deserve: The Next 50 Years,” where the story features more images and three videos] [Image: Digital Ira] Digital Actors Go Beyond the Uncanny Valley Computer-generated humans in movies and video games are paving the way for new forms of entertainment By Tekla S. Perry Posted 27 May 2014 Say hello to Ira. His head is visible on a screen as though he’s in a videoconference. He seems to be in his early 30s, with a shaved head, a pronounced nose, and thin eyebrows. Ira seems a…

[From VentureBeat, where the story includes more images and a 1:26 minute video] [Image: A 3D recreation of the Mulberry Harbor built after D-Day. Image Credit: Dassault Systemes.] Engineers build D-Day relics that you can view in virtual reality with Oculus Rift May 26, 2014 Dean Takahashi Engineers have rebuilt D-Day relics in virtual reality using blueprints for the devices that were used the storming of Normandy seventy years ago. History buffs will be able to view these 3D animated visuals with the Oculus Rift virtual reality goggles. D-Day veterans have seen it and been amazed by it, and Nova (a…

[From The Creators Project, where the story includes several more images and a 2:12 minute video; more coverage is available from Geek] New Augmented Reality Prototype Can Make Any Object A Touch-Sensitive Visual Display By DJ Pangburn — May 27 2014 From music apps to Oculus Rift developments, it’s no question that augmented reality is continuously forcing its way into popular consciousness. Yet one of the technological questions to be answered about the increasingly-omnipresent format is the range and scope of how humans will interact with the innovation. Whether it’s smart glasses or other tech products, voice command has proven…

[From Wired, where the story includes more images and two videos. Key quote: “Are our actions in a virtual world tantamount to imagining those things we could do in real life but never would? Or are we merely behaving as we would in real life if there were no consequences for our actions?”] [Image: Screenshot from Rust by Cat-Slaeder via Steam Community] Why Online Games Turn Players Into Psychopaths By Ryan Rigney 05.26.14 Three men stand on a deserted street, their hands in the air. One wears a green T-shirt and a motorcycle helmet. The others wear bright yellow down…

[From Gigaom, where the story includes several more images and a 1:52 minute video] [Image: Osmo’s camera mirror allows the iPad to recognize objects placed in front of it, extending game play into the real world.] The iPad’s next killer app: Osmo connects iOS kids’ games with the real world Summary: Osmo is combining simple but elegant hardware with clever computer vision technology to turn Tangram shapes, letter cards and everyday objects into iPad game controllers. By Janko Roettgers May 22, 2014 “Everything we are doing here is magic.” I’m not usually someone who embraces Silicon Valley’s tendency to paint…

[From The Verge, where the story includes an additional image] Inside High Fidelity, the virtual reality successor to ‘Second Life’ A crude hint of how physical connection could invade the online world By Adi Robertson on May 19, 2014 As virtual reality gains steam, the question of virtual worlds is never far behind. Philip Rosedale is best known for online community Second Life. But since last year, we’ve been watching for news on High Fidelity, a new project meant to blend his previous work with cutting-edge telepresence technology. The system, announced in 2013, was compared to the OASIS of Ready…

[From MIT Technology Review; see today’s second post for an update on and analysis of the Second Life founder’s High Fidelity project. –Matthew ] Why Virtual Reality Will Compete with the Real World Hardware like the headset made by Oculus VR will allow virtual worlds to offer person-to-person interactions that compete with real life. Philip Rosedale May 5, 2014 Recent weeks have been good ones for people interested in virtual reality. The Facebook acquisition of Oculus has galvanized the idea that “something wonderful” will happen if we put on these strange headsets and visually enter other worlds. Of course, most…

[From CNN, where the story includes a 1 minute video report and screenshots of several tweets; see the full performance on YouTube; more notable coverage includes: “Sorry everyone, but Michael Jackson is dead” (Technology Tell) “Lionel Richie: Michael Jackson hologram was ‘freaky’ (Xpose) “Holograms: How to give your brand the Michael Jackson effect” (MediaWeek) “Decoding Holograms: 100 Narendra Modis, 1 Michael Jackson Alive on Stage in 2014” (a collection of videos/links for other posthumous hologram creations) (iDIVA) –Matthew ] Michael Jackson’s hologram: Creepy or cool? By Lisa Respers France, CNN Mon May 19, 2014 (CNN) — The King of Pop…

[From Fast Company’s Co.Design, where the story includes a photo gallery and a 1:03 minute video] MIT iPhone App Makes You Intimate With A Stranger Over 20 days, MIT’s new app gives you a peek into someone’s life. Caveat: You never speak. Mark Wilson May 8, 2014 20 Day Stranger, an iPhone app by MIT Media Lab’s Playful Systems group, wants to burst the sociographic bubble of our “friend” network. Our social media world, after all, is highly curated–it’s filled with people just like us. This app, very thoughtfully, hopes to change that. For 20 days, the app pairs you…