[From DigInfo TV, where the story features a 2:31 minute video] Virtual Body Technology Uses 5 Senses 20 December 2012 Posted By Aki Tsukioka and Takuya Nakajima The Ikei Laboratory of Tokyo Metropolitan University Graduate School of System Design is developing virtual body technology that utilizes the five senses. In addition to using conventional audio and video footage, this technology can recreate smells as well as the feel of the wind and of stepping on the ground. “This exhibition of a virtual body is for the purpose of having a vicarious experience. This technology aims to enable various experiences as…

[From Mashable, where the story includes videos and more images] 7 Ways Augmented Reality Will Improve Your Life Lauren Drell December 190, 2012 You might think augmented reality is the way of the future, but really, it has its roots in the 20th century. Morton Heilig, the “Father of Virtual Reality,” patented the Sensorama Stimulator, which he called an “experience theater,” on Aug. 28, 1962. Over time, the idea of using technology to create a layer over the real world has been honed and refined and put in our palms, thanks to the proliferation of smartphones. Confused about what augmented…

[From WHDH-TV in Boston; the web story includes a 1:35 minute video version] Boy builds robot to stay connected with family December 18, 2012 Reported by: Brandon Gunnoe LEXINGTON, Mass. (WHDH) — A young boy in Lexington built a relationship with his grandparents using LEGO pieces and a little technology. Nine-year-old Ricky Kundu’s grandparents live in India and can’t visit very often, so block by block he put together a way for them to stay connected. Ricky named the robot Betabot — beta means “child” in Hindi, and “early prototype” in English.…

[From WVIR NBC 29, where the story includes a 2:01 minute video; for more information see NewsPlex and the UVA Health System] UVA Researchers Testing Virtual Driving Simulator at DMV December 17, 2012 The University of Virginia is looking for hundreds of volunteer drivers to get behind the virtual wheel. It’s part of a plan to see if the program can be used one day as an alternative to in-car driving tests. Researchers at UVA’s School of Medicine are tracking data from the virtual reality driving simulator. They want to see if it is effective and fair, as it could…

[From Chalmers University, where the press release includes an additional image] [Image: Max Ortiz Catalan demonstrates how the system works with the aid of electrodes, which capture bio-electric signals from the surface of the arm. Amputees will, however, have the electrodes implanted directly on the nerves and muscles inside the body, which will be permanently accessible through the Brånemark osseointegrated implant (OPRA Implant System). Photo: Oscar Mattsson] Thought-controlled prosthesis is changing the lives of amputees The world’s first implantable robotic arm controlled by thoughts is being developed by Chalmers researcher Max Ortiz Catalan. The first operations on patients will take…

[From NSF] [Image: Surgeons from the University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences Systems Neurosurgery Department view a simulation of the human brain vasculature and cortical tissue in the CAVE2 Hybrid Reality Environment. This project is a collaboration between the University of Illinois at Chicago’s (UIC) Electronic Visualization Laboratory (EVL) and Bioengineering Department’s Laboratory for Product and Process Design. EVL OmegaLib software is used to display the 3D model in the CAVE2 System. Credit: Lance Long for Electronic Visualization Laboratory, University of Illinois at Chicago.] State-of-the-Art Virtual Reality System Is Key to Medical Discovery For team of neurosurgeons and researchers,…

[From The University of Washington] [Image: The conical (red) surface shows the relationship between energy and momentum in special relativity, a fundamental theory concerning space and time developed by Albert Einstein, and is the expected result if our universe is not a simulation. The flat (blue) surface illustrates the relationship between energy and momentum that would be expected if the universe is a simulation with an underlying cubic lattice.] Do we live in a computer simulation? UW researchers say idea can be tested By Vince Stricherz December 10, 2012 A decade ago, a British philosopher put forth the notion that…

[From This is Plymouth] [Image: A virtual reality view of Wembury] Virtual reality scene of Plymouth path could be used to help patients Friday, December 07, 2012 By Mike Bramhall, Herald Reporter A virtual reality reconstruction of a picturesque coastal path near Plymouth could soon be helping patients at a hospital – which treats injured troops evacuated from Afghanistan – to recover from serious surgery. The digital rendering of Wembury Bay, from the Church of St Werburgh’s to Wembury Point and Great Mewstone island, has been developed by researchers from the University of Birmingham. They are set to demonstrate their…

[From NASDAQ] [Image: Google’s Project Glass and Star Trek’s Geordi LaForge. From Gizmodo] Four Technologies to Watch in 2013 Posted 12/8/2012 by Benzinga Over the past 12 months, tech companies have added touch screens to just about everything. This trend will surely continue in 2013, but what is the next big thing in technology? What can consumers and business professionals look forward to in the next 12 months?…

[From DigInfo TV, where the story includes a 2:44 minute video] See and feel virtual water with this immersive crossmodal perception system from Solidray 7 December 2012 Posted By Don Kennedy and Ryo Osuga Solidray, which is involved in virtual reality production, has released an immersive crossmodal system incorporating visual and tactile feedback, enabling the user to see and feel flowing water in a virtual space.…

[From Telepresence Options] Teledining: Then and Now December 5, 2012 | David S. Maldow, Esq. There is nothing like the business lunch. We feel an undeniable increased connection with someone after sharing a good meal with them. This can often serve to smooth the wheels of business. A good meal is like a good videoconferencing meeting; it is all about the experience. While we all [had] fun this year at Thanksgiving, passing around iPhones with Facetime sessions to remote family, we can’t really call that teledining. Proper teledining should (as much as possible) attempt to simulate a normal, across the…

[From James Iliff’s blog, where the post includes additional images and the blog features much interesting material] Three Fundamental Ways that Virtual Reality is Changing the Future of Game Design Most games are designed with a computer screen or television in mind – but what happens when the screen is attached to your face?  What happens when your body is being tracked?  There’s a lot of things that go into making virtual reality systems work, and they all fundamentally change how games are experienced and designed. Submitted by jimbo2go on December 2nd, 2012…