[From The Vancouver Sun] Butting out in virtual reality may have real-life results By Linda Nguyen, Canwest News Service October 28, 2009 Our actions in virtual reality may subconsciously lead to changes to real-life addictive behaviours, according to a group of Quebec researchers. A recent study by the GRAP Occupational Psychology Clinic and University of Quebec in Gatineau found that smokers who destroyed cigarettes in a virtual-reality environment many times over a period of months reported having less of a tobacco addiction than those who were assigned another virtual-reality task. The theory behind the study, published in the current issue…

[From the Pixels and Policy blog (“Uncovering the ways virtual worlds change our politics, policy, and culture”)] 10/26/2009 The Curious Case of Racism in Second Life The standard techno-optimist argument in favor of expanding the Metaverse goes something like this: Virtual worlds hold the promise of commuication without regard for distance, physical ability, gender, or race. Every aspect of the avatar is flexible, rendering prejudice obsolete. It appears such wishful thinking might be snagged on the heated issue of race. Pixels and Policy reports on a little-noticed study that says our racial biases are carrying over into the Metaverse. Bringing Race…

[From The Chronicle of Higher Education’s Wired Campus blog; more information is available here and at the EchoDamp web site] October 27, 2009, 02:00 PM ET Software Helps Music Students Collaborate Online With Crystal Clarity By Jeff Young Music schools have a tradition of bringing in famous musicians to hold master classes with a handful of students, but many of those visits have been cut this year because of tight budgets. Free software developed at the University of Southern California promises to make videoconferencing clear enough to hold such classes remotely over high-speed Internet connections. The software is called EchoDamp,…

[From MIT’s Technology Review Editors blog; watch the 2:44 minute video demonstration here] Tuesday, October 27, 2009 Using Google’s Phone to Make Virtual Reality Goggles Tired of waiting for mass market VR goggles? Here’s an easy way to make your own. By Kristina Grifantini Both virtual reality and augmented reality have been gaining attention with the growing popularity of powerful smart phones. And, as the technology inside these devices becomes better and smaller, it seems only a matter of time before someone invents cool-enough looking VR/AR glasses or goggles. In the meantime however, the folks over at Recombu.com have demonstrated…

[From Newlaunches.com; the project is on display at the Digital Contents Expo in Tokyo] Media Vehicle simulates a cocoon by gary, posted October 26, 2009 – 9:07 AM This cool Media Vehicle is capable of nesting you safely into its safe confines that make it look like a cocoon. Once you´re sealed inside it, you can monitor everything that´s happening outside with the help of a large spherical screen. This screen displays grabs from a camera that is located outside it. The four wheels provide stability and fluidity of motion. The Media Vehicle is described as a `personal virtual reality…

[From Reuters] America beats Guadalajara in first game shown in 3D Mon Oct 26, 2009 12:15pm EDT CO CITY (Reuters) – Excited Mexicans clutching buckets of popcorn and soft drinks in cinemas ducked whenever the ball was kicked toward them as they watched Sunday’s big game between America and Guadalajara in 3D. At the packed Azteca, thousands more had a more traditional view of the match between the country’s two most popular teams which finished with a 1-0 victory to America after an early goal by Colombian Aquivaldo Mosquera. “It was incredible,” said 25-year-old Claudia Fernandez. “I’d already seen films…

[From The Chronicle of Higher Education; a 1 minute video is available in the web version of this story] October 18, 2009 Beam Me to the Faculty Senate Videoconferencing proves useful on campusesBy Jeffrey R. Young The days of face-to-face faculty meetings might soon come to an end. Colleges with several campuses are embracing videoconferencing systems for a range of faculty and staff meetings, to save money and fuel by reducing trips. And more academic meetings now offer the option of attending virtually, using video streams. Anyone who has tried a videoconference or watched a lecture on a screen in…

[I’ve often enjoyed listening to church bells marking the current time and spreading music through a neighborhood but I didn’t realize they probably weren’t ‘real’ chimes – at least according to the company BRG Precision Products; there’s more information at this site); a related item about a ‘simulated’ grand piano follows below. –Matthew Lombard] BRG Electronic Carillon Church Bells and Chimes. Did you know that most church bells installed today are digital electronic chime systems? It’s true! Advanced electronic carillon (kare’ uh-lawn) bell systems include digital recordings of real cast bells, chimes and carillons. Even more important, digital electronic bells…

[From The Sunday Times; more information, including a video segment, is available in a post at GameSpot – an excerpt follows below] From The Sunday Times October 18, 2009 EyePet brings augmented reality into the home Alex Pell Parents, pay attention and spare yourself serious aggravation this Christmas. Every year there is a must-have video game. The one for this festive season goes on sale next week so you have time to avoid that dreaded late-December mission where you scour empty shelves like a wild-eyed lunatic. Why is it special? Well, prepare to cosy up with EyePet, the virtual pet.…

[From Network World (“the premier provider of information, intelligence and insight for Network and IT Executives”)] Cisco telepresence cuts near $1M in travel costs for law firm Conferencing gear pays for itself within five years, frees up attorneys’ time. By Tim Greene, Network World, 10/07/2009 Sprawling international law firm DLA Piper has upgraded from videoconferencing to telepresence that will save the firm nearly $1 million dollars per year in reduced travel costs and lost productivity. The conferencing gear that simulates across-the-table meetings has a provable and achievable return on investment over five years, and may actually pay for itself before…

[From Business Wire via Reuters] European Hospitals Test Anesthetists’ Skills On Computers, Not People, Using SensAble`s Haptic Devices Mon Oct 19, 2009 8:00am EDT Pan-European Clinical Trials Led by Cork University Hospital Assesses Whether Lumbar Puncture Skills Can Be Accurately Assessed on Computers, At Zero Risk to Patients WOBURN, Mass.–(Business Wire)– SensAble Technologies, Inc., announced that its customer, the Cork University Hospital, is leading clinical trials in two European hospitals using a haptically-enabled computer simulation system for testing physician competency in administering spinal anesthesia. SensAble is the leading manufacturer of haptic devices and toolkits, and its PHANTOM® force- feedback haptic devices…

[From BBC News; more information is available in a story in Wired, and a 1 minute video of a mouse performing in the study can be found here] Thursday, 15 October 2009 Virtual maze ‘maps’ mouse memory By Victoria Gill Science reporter, BBC News With the help of mice scampering through a virtual maze, scientists have taken recordings from inside individual brain cells, or neurons. The researchers report in the journal Nature how they recorded from cells in the brain’s memory centre. These neurons fired in a rhythmic pattern that could be related to the animal’s location. They hope their…