[From The Daily Mail] [Image: Inspiration? Elizabeth Behm-Morawitz said having a fit avatar on a game such as Second Life could help someone to visualise their weight-loss goal] Imagine yourself thin! How having a slim alter-ego online could help you lose weight By Daily Mail Reporter 7 November 2012 Fans of virtual reality games are often stereotyped as geeky introverts. But scientists say having an electronic doppelganger could actually improve a person’s health and appearance. Harnessing the power of the virtual world could even lead to new forms of obesity treatment, according to the team from the University of Missouri.…

[From TechNewsDaily] [Image: Users can control the display of these data glasses with their eye movements. Credit: Fraunhofer COMEDD] Your Eyes Can Control Augmented Reality Glasses TechNewsDaily Staff November 06 2012 The simple act of turning a page has begun to look outdated with iPads replacing books and manuals for many working professionals. But an augmented reality display similar to Google Glasses frees up wearers’ hands by allowing them to turn virtual pages using their eyes alone. Such a display comes in the form of futuristic glasses that allow wearers to see virtual maps, drawings or other images — up…

[From AnnArbor.com, where the story includes additional photos] [Image: Ted Hall, an advanced visualization specialist at the University of Michigan 3D Lab, demonstrates how MIDEN (Michigan Immersive Digital Experience Nexus) works. Courtney Sacco I AnnArbor.com] Tech Beat/With Gallery and Video: University of Michigan 3D Lab blurs line between virtual and reality By Ben Freed Business Reporter Posted on Fri, Nov 2, 2012 There’s a powerful room at the University of Michigan tucked away in the unassuming Duderstadt Center on North Campus. The “room” — three white walls and a floor — opens doors that could allow to you to fly…

[From UCL News] [Image: Virtual reality scene showing the participant’s and the rat’s virtual avatars.] Virtual reality ‘beaming’ technology transforms human-animal interaction 1 November 2012 Using cutting-edge virtual reality technology, researchers have ‘beamed’ a person into a rat facility allowing the rat and human to interact with each other on the same scale. Published today in PLOS ONE, the research enables the rat to interact with a rat-sized robot controlled by a human participant in a different location. At the same time, the human participant (who is in a virtual environment) interacts with a human-sized avatar that is controlled by…

[From The Age] [Image: Surreal experience … researchers are rapidly uncovering the tricks required to fool our brains into semi-believing a virtual world is real.] A glimpse of reality in the unreal world The line between fact and fiction is increasingly being distorted October 25, 2012 Graham Phillips I’ve glimpsed the future – and it’s disturbing. My insight came while giving a lecture to a group of students. I had their full attention for 100 per cent of the time. Indeed these eager young people never broke eye contact with me; they were hanging on my every word. It felt…

[From Iowa State University] SciEthics Interactive project to release free simulation, mid-November October 25, 2012 AMES, Iowa — More than ever before, scientists and engineers are faced with complex moral and ethical dilemmas. Unfortunately, university course offerings centered on ethical issues are not commonplace. To help educators address this curriculum shortcoming, researchers at Iowa State University and West Chester University of Pennsylvania are creating a virtual world where science and engineering students can confront ethical issues in an engaging and safe environment. Join educators from across the country as the first of these National Science Foundation-supported simulations is released to…

[Happy Halloween… This is from Know Your Mobile; a 1:54 minute video review is available on YouTube] Zombie Booth review We review Zombie Booth, an Android app that lets you see what you’d look like as a member of the shambling undead Damien McFerran Aug 1, 2011 For some of us, getting up early in the morning for a long day at work can make you feel like you’re a member of the undead, but if you need to add that additional layer of authenticity then you can do a lot worse than download Zombie Booth for your Android phone.…

[From Stuff in New Zealand] [Image: A new teleconferencing system from Telecom will allow cancer specialists to more easily interact over large distances.] Advanced telepresence for cancer specialists Tom Pullar-Strecker October 25, 2012 Cancer specialists across the central and lower North Island will be able to use a secure video-conferencing system to consult with one another and other medical staff from next month. Phyllis Meier, project manager for the Central Cancer Network which is overseeing the initiative, said the Telecom-supplied system would be used by eight district health boards, from New Plymouth to Hawke’s Bay, and south, including Capital &…

[From Ontario’s The Record] [Image: Jeff Botham, vice-president of RealityCave, sits in the 3D virtual-reality environment in the Tannery building in downtown Kitchener. Peter Lee/Record staff] A 3D virtual tour, even before construction is finished Oct 27 2012 Rose Simone, Record staff KITCHENER — A hospital is embarking on a major fundraising campaign for a new wing, with construction set to start next year. But potential donors have invitations for a “tour” right now. A new restaurant is being built in Waterloo. Long before walls go up, the restaurant staff gets a walk-through to make sure the space is functional…

[From VentureBeat] Utherverse nabs a patent on scalable virtual worlds that can host unlimited users October 25, 2012 Dean Takahashi Utherverse is announcing today that it has won a patent to build a “scalable” virtual world, or one that can support an unlimited number of players in a single region of an online place. That could allow virtual worlds to achieve a critical mass for events like a convention or a concert. In the past, you couldn’t do something like hold a concert in a 3D simulated world. A band like U2 could put on a “live” concert inside the world…

[From The Orlando Sentinel] [Image: Recently-completed fake body parts wait in bins at Simetri, Inc. in Winter Park on Wednesday, September 26, 2012. Simetri creates “vitrual wounds” used in training combat medics in war games. (Stephen M. Dowell, Orlando Sentinel] Simulated ‘wounds’ prepare combat medics for real thing By Richard Burnett, Orlando Sentinel October 4, 2012 Torn from a soldier’s body by an improvised explosive device, the bloody, severed leg lay on the floor — a sight far too familiar for many of the Americans who have fought in wars during the past decade in Iraq and Afghanistan. But this…

[From The Free Press] [Image: Students in Jean Humphries’ nursing research class are virtually in two places at once, connected through life-size and life-like high-definition video and audio technology.] MSU connects classrooms with cutting-edge technology By Amanda Dyslin Free Press Staff Writer September 23, 2012 MANKATO – When adjunct nursing professor Jean Humphries shows up to her Friday morning class in Edina, 11 of her students are there and waiting. The other 29 show up a moment later, all at the same time, when Humphries touches a screen and connects over the new Cisco TelePresence TX9200 system with a classroom…