philip lelyveld The world of entertainment technology

Anatomy students in Australia are using virtual and augmented reality to learn about the body

The pilot of the technology is being used to help boost spatial awareness, accessibility and explorative learning, La Trobe University said in an announcement Monday.
“Augmented reality allows students to visualize and manipulate anatomical structures and develop a deep understanding,” McDonald said. “You can superimpose anatomical structures over a peer who can perform movements along with the app, to better understand muscle function,” he added. “It is a great resource for both team work and self-directed learning.”

The university said that, in terms of cost, the use of AR technology amounted to 10 Australian dollars ($6.74) per student compared to over 100 Australian dollars for just one textbook.

See the full story here: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/08/anatomy-students-are-using-virtual-and-augmented-reality-to-learn.html

I tried Facebook’s vision for the social future of VR, and it’s full of question marks

Facebook, despite being a social media company, has never gotten social VR right. And this new iteration, which could very well be the social glue that holds all of Facebook's next-gen VR OS together, looks like…well, it looks like NintendoLand.

I've been down this road before: I remember connecting in chats with far-off people in Spaces, and playing board games and watching TV in Rooms, and joining people for live video streams in Venues. Facebook's still trying to figure out how to make VR social and creative. And this is the company's latest attempt to reboot its approach as previous social VR experiences, Spaces and Rooms, get shut down.

I'm reminded of so many things, playing with Horizon: cartoonish and ridiculous VR games like Vacation Simulator and Virtual Virtual Reality. NintendoLand and Nintendo's Miiverse. Disney Infinity. Social apps like Rec Room, VRChat, AltSpace, Sansar, and even the years-ago social demo Sony made (or tried to) on PlayStation VR.

I ask if hand tracking will work with Horizon next year; it's unclear, and probably not right away.

Both the island and the robot boxing spaces were built completely using the in-game creative tools. My final demo wasn't: it's a game Facebook's putting in Horizon, a dogfighting mini-plane sports game that's as fun as most VR games I'd pay for.

"You can imagine that as the user-generated content — the worlds that people build — expands, the proportion that's built directly by us vs built by creators is going to change the balance dramatically," says Facebook's AR/VR Experiences Director, Eric Romo, previously the founder and CEO of virtual social app AltspaceVR, now owned by Microsoft. "That style, and the perception that you get will be influenced by what other creators build."

Despite Facebook making strides in shockingly lifelike virtual avatars, Horizon goes the opposite direction with characters that seem whittled down to basic cartoons. The simplified, Nintendo-like look is intentional, to avoid any uncanny valley.

Facebook admits it hasn't solved social interaction in VR yet, or privacy concerns for that matter. The ways that Horizon solves for handling online behavior aren't apparent from the very pre-made demo I got to experience. Will that blue shield on my arm work for all instances? Will people feel safe?

See the full story here: https://www.cnet.com/news/i-tried-facebooks-vision-for-the-social-future-of-vr-full-of-question-marks/

New Microsoft patent shows off a floor mat for your virtual reality experiences

The patent, spotted by Variety, details a floor mat that marks out a boundary for a gaming space. Your VR or AR headset could use the boundaries of the mat to work out where you are, and provide haptic feedback under your feet to help you stay within those boundaries.

As well as keeping you from knocking the television over or standing on the cat, the mat could also buzz your feet to provide in-game feedback as well. There are all sorts of possibilities that developers could make use of.

Pressure sensors inside the mat could be used to help work out a user's position in three-dimensional space, the patent suggests, reducing the reliance on cameras and sensors on board the VR/AR device itself for tracking position.

One other idea floated by the patent is having a dedicated 'starting point' in the middle of the mat – once the user stands in this position, a particular game or experience (or whatever it is) could launch into action.

See the full story here: https://www.techradar.com/news/new-microsoft-patent-shows-off-a-floor-mat-for-your-virtual-reality-experiences

TicTok bans political advertising

Already under fire for advancing Chinese foreign policy by censoring topics like Hong Kong’s protests and pro-LGBT content, the Beijing-based video app TikTok is now further distancing itself from U.S. social media platforms, like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, with a ban on political ads on its app.

The company today says it will not allow political ads on TikTok, noting they don’t fit in with the experience the short-form video app aims to offer.

See the full story here: https://techcrunch.com/2019/10/03/tiktok-explains-its-ban-on-political-advertising/

Peter Thiel’s VC Fund to Host Conference for Ideological ‘Heretics,’ Maybe Summon a Ghost or Two

“Ideological outcasts” who have been “banned from other conferences”—surely the country’s most beleaguered minority—can soon find a home with other like-minded individuals at “Hereticon,” a three-day conference being planned by the Founders Fund venture capital firm.

Topics including but not limited to: biological self-determination (modification, design), geo-engineering, transhumanism, the abolition of college, transgressive media, sex, the softer side of doomsday prepping, the nature of conspiracy, the benefits of starvation, constitutional monarchy (what?!), revisionist demography, immortality, drag culture, and building nations. After dark, on the top floor of our hotel, in a hidden room plastered in newspaper clippings of sightings and secret bases, there may be a talk or two on UFOs and literally a séance.

“We believe dissent is essential to human progress and hope Hereticon will spark important conversations within our community and beyond—that’s really the only goal,” Founders Fund vice president Michael Solana told Business Insider.

https://medium.com/@foundersfund/hereticon-2bb9b23928d5 

See the full story here: https://gizmodo.com/peter-thiels-vc-fund-to-host-conference-for-ideological-1838685821

Predicting the future is now possible with powerful new AI simulations

The idea that the Trump campaign is planning to use MAAI is pure speculation. But in terms of technology, there is nothing to stop it. MAAIs are already being used to build digital societies that simulate real ones with uncanny accuracy.

See the full story here: https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24332500-800-predicting-the-future-is-now-possible-with-powerful-new-ai-simulations/

The Future Of Digital Is Analog: Art And Augmented Reality At Adobe’s Festival Of The Impossible

The 2019 Festival of the Impossible, organized in San Francisco by Adobe, provided a deeply fascinating exploration of art and creativity in the context of human-machine interaction.

In Collectors, by Gabe Barcia-Colombo, two human-looking avatars hang framed on the wall like works of art in a museum. But as you look at them, they look at you with a critical eye before deciding whether you are interesting enough for them to whip out their smartphones, take a picture of you and post it on social media—much the way we do in museums. Their AI weighs a host of aesthetic criteria before rendering its judgement. The role reversal is oddly unsettling, especially if they lose interest in you and turn away without snapping a photo.

“The future of digital is analog” posits Parasnis: new digital technologies will help us bring back the physicality of the experience, make us more present, more aware of our surroundings.

See the whole story here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/marcoannunziata/2019/10/02/the-future-of-digital-is-analog-art-and-augmented-reality-at-adobes-festival-of-the-impossible/#2d7f660d790a

Osmo and Disney create AI-based children’s drawing app for Frozen 2

Kids guide the story in Osmo Super Studio by creating real-world drawings that are “pulled” into the story’s digital world. It boosts kids’ creativity as they help to shape the storyline with whatever they imagine belongs in the tale. Kids can follow Anna, Elsa, and the whole Frozen crew through the story, adding their original art and immersing with the story.

The platform uses AI to discern what a child is drawing in front of the iPad’s camera. It can see colors and shapes, and that makes the interaction with the child seem more magical.

Osmo’s proprietary Reflective AI technology — which allows iPad or Fire Tablet cameras to “see” physical objects in front of it — is at the heart of this new drawing experience that gives kids a blank canvas to express themselves through story and by drawing their favorite Disney characters.

Osmo Super Studio is suggested for kids ages 5 and up and is available as an add-on to existing Osmo sets for $19. Target will carry an exclusive Super Studio Kit that includes an Osmo iPad Base for $59.

See the full story here: https://venturebeat.com/2019/10/04/osmo-and-disney-create-ai-based-childrens-drawing-app-for-frozen-2/

Post Malone to perform for fans in virtual reality

Is it possible to digitally flash someone?

Post Malone will soon find out. The boob-brained rapper will stream his upcoming Raleigh, NC, concert in virtual reality, he said Thursday. Fans can tune inOct. 17 at 11 p.m. ET using an “events” app called Oculus Venues which pairs with an Oculus Quest or Oculus Go headset.

The show is part of Malone’s tour for his third album, “Hollywood’s Bleeding.” Supersphere, a Los Angeles-based “immersive content” startup will be broadcasting the event.

See the full story here: https://nypost.com/2019/10/03/post-malone-to-perform-for-fans-in-virtual-reality/

Roll Up the Red Carpet: New Study Finds Billions of Dollars in State Entertainment Industry Tax Incentives Don’t Bring Promised Jobs

Brooklyn, USA - April 12, 2010: A film crew from Japan films on Brooklyn Heights Promenade overlooking downtown Manhattan in New York City.

The new study—Do State Corporate Tax Incentives Create Jobs? Quasi-Experimental Evidence from the Entertainment Industry—analyzed the employment impact of motion picture incentive (MPI) programs, a combination of corporate tax incentives and other services, for the five states that currently spend the most on MPI incentives.

“This new study should put to rest any notion that motion picture tax incentives may work in some states but not others,” said the study’s lead author Michael Thom, an associate professor at the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy who specializes in public finance. “The states investing the most in incentives are not getting the return on investment taxpayers deserve, pure and simple. These incentives cost taxpayers billions of dollars, at a time when that money could be directed to other much needed public services.”

See the full story here: https://priceschool.usc.edu/roll-up-the-red-carpet-new-study-finds-billions-of-dollars-in-state-entertainment-industry-tax-incentives-dont-bring-promised-jobs/