philip lelyveld The world of entertainment technology

INSIDE THE UNITED NATIONS’ EFFORT TO REGULATE AUTONOMOUS KILLER ROBOTS

The four agenda items are first, the characterization issue — how do you define lethal autonomous weapons systems? Second, what should be the nature of the human element in the use of force through such systems? What should be the human-machine interface when such systems are deployed or developed? The third item is, what are the various options for dealing with the international humanitarian law and the international security-related concerns coming from the potential deployment of such weapons systems?

When I say “options,” I mean whether it should be a legally binding instrument, another protocol to the convention, or whether it should be a political declaration, a politically binding set of rules and principles, or whether it should center on the applicability of the existing rules, such as weapons reviews.

The fourth point is about technology review. In this field, more than any other today, technology is evolving very rapidly. So you want your policy responses to be tech-neutral. They should not have to be fundamentally revised when technology changes. At the same time, you want to make sure that the implementation stays in step with technical developments. … In the August meeting, it is my hope that we come up at the end of the meeting with a good report that captures some building blocks in these four areas.

See the full story here: https://www.theverge.com/2018/8/27/17786080/united-nations-un-autonomous-killer-robots-regulation-conference

ASC and ARRI Break Ground on Planned Educational Center

According to Kennel, ARRI, which celebrated its own centennial last year, has its own emphasis on education, which led the company to begin sponsoring the ASC’s International Master Classes two years ago. So far, these classes, in which up-and-coming professional cinematographers deepen their knowledge and craft through master classes with ASC cinematographers, have taken place in Toronto, Beijing and Sao Paulo; two more are scheduled for Colombia and Tokyo. ARRI will continue its sponsorship of these International Master Classes for the next decade, as well as host various Los Angeles-based Master Classes beginning in 2019.

See the full story here: http://www.etcentric.org/asc-and-arri-break-ground-on-planned-educational-centerasc-arri-break-ground-on-cinematography-educational-center/#more-131585

Cinemark Brings The VOID’s Virtual Reality Experience to North Texas Theatre

 [PhilNote: 11 locations and counting!  https://www.thevoid.com ]

Cinemark Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CNK), one of the world’s largest motion picture exhibitors, announced that Sept. 22 will be the opening date of its in-theatre, hyper-reality experience in partnership with The VOID, the critically acclaimed global leader of fully immersive location-based experiences, and ILMxLAB. Tickets for Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire are on sale at the Cinemark West Plano theatre at 3800 Dallas Parkway, Plano, Texas, and online at www.cinemark.com/thevoid.

See the full story here: https://www.dailyprogress.com/entertainment/wire/cinemark-brings-the-void-s-virtual-reality-experience-to-north/article_03fee49e-c183-54e0-8c96-b885e96a6c8a.html

WeWork’s Flatiron School Acquires Chicago Design School

WeWork's educational coding bootcamp, Flatiron School, has acquired the Chicago-based, for-profit design education school Designation. Founded in 2014, Designation offers online and in-person classes in user experience and user interface design and has been located in WeWork's State Street offices in the Windy City since January of this year.

Founded in 2012, the Flatiron School initially offered courses in software engineering, computer programming, and data science out of its New York City office. Since WeWork acquired the platform last October, the school has opened campuses in Washington, D.C., Brooklyn, London, and Houston, with special discounts available to WeWork employees and members. Currently, WeWork employees are only charged half of the $3,500 fee for a 10-week on-campus Flatiron School course, according to Reuters article. In time, Designation will also provide courses to the WeWork community.

See the full story here: https://www.architectmagazine.com/practice/weworks-flatiron-school-acquires-chicago-design-school_o

Avegant’s Future Looks Bright as It Lands $12 Million in Funding for Augmented Reality Displays

Avegant's new funding comes as particularly good news for its team given the relatively tumultuous year for the company. In February, Avegant cut its staff down to about 20 employees in research and development and brought back founder Ed Tang to serve as CEO.

Now, instead of pushing its display technology via development kits the company introduced in Nov. 2017, the company is focusing on developing retinal display technology for the consumer segment.

"The consumer AR industry faces significant challenges developing displays that are high resolution, small form factor, large field-of-view, light field, and low power," said Tang in a statement. "The industry is excited about our unique solutions to these technical challenges, which will enable previously impossible AR experiences."

See the full story here: https://next.reality.news/news/avegants-future-looks-bright-as-lands-12-million-funding-for-augmented-reality-displays-0186780/

Epson lets you pilot drones with its Moverio augmented reality glasses

Epson’s Moverio AR smart eyewear platform works with the Epson Drone Soar app for DJI drone pilots using the Epson Moverio AR smart glasses platform. It provides AR content, flight telemetry data, and video feed monitoring. I was able to use wear the glasses and see both the drone and an overlay on the screen at the same time. Werner von Stein, founder of the SF Drone School on Treasure Island, gave me a few pointers on how to fly. He got the drone up in the air, and then he handed the controls over to me. (Out on Treasure Island, you can fly drones freely, whereas most other urban areas there are restrictions.)

The app also has In-flight Camera Setting Editing, which lets users edit camera settings of the drone while in flight or when connected to select optimal settings for shooting conditions.

See the full story here: https://venturebeat.com/2018/08/29/cheetah-mobile-and-orionstar-release-greetbot-ai-receptionist-robots/

Amazon has a second Go at cashierless convenience store in downtown Seattle

Customers, who need to have the Amazon Go smartphone app installed, swipe a code on their device on the way in. At that point, Amazon’s system of cameras and sensors tracks them through the aisles, charging a credit card for items they take after they leave.

That system, which relies on hundreds of cameras mounted in the ceiling, as well as human employees who check in when prompted by the system, is essentially unchanged in the new facility, Amazon says.

See the full story here: https://www.seattletimes.com/business/amazon/amazon-has-a-second-go-at-cashierless-convenience-store-in-downtown-seattle/

Venus Williams Joins Her Sister in AR via American Express Installation at the US Open

As part of the US Open American Express Fan Experience, located at the East Gate of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, the American Express Super Rally consists of eight bays with transparent monitors, where Williams walks players through the game via a video tutorial. The object of the game is to score as many points as possible by hitting virtual tennis balls at real-life targets using 3D-printed tennis racket controllers.

The AR game is part an experiential marketing effort by American Express to promote its Amex Band contactless payment product, which card members can pick up in the Fan Experience area.

See the full story here: https://next.reality.news/news/venus-williams-joins-her-sister-ar-via-american-express-installation-us-open-0186746/

U Buffalo incorporates VR into MOOCs

UB and its partners recently demonstrated how to integrate virtual reality (VR) into a massive open online course (MOOC) focusing on collaborative robot safety.

Organizers say the successful experiment — launched in July at the Serious Play conference in Buffalo using the Open edX platform — could be a blueprint for colleges and universities looking to implement VR and other innovations into their online course offerings.

The UB team is working to deliver virtual reality on a massive scale that includes built-in feedback for students and faculty, says Lisa Stephens, PhD, assistant dean of digital education in UB’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

“This offers a new take on the old saying, ‘see one, do one, teach one.’ A student can point and click to manipulate virtual elements and practice applied learning, which is particularly useful for high-risk environments. With this educational innovation, learners can practice in a safe environment, and the Docola system can harvest data from the virtual reality experience to help faculty assess whether they are properly and productively engaging with the VR-enabled tasks,” she says.

See the full story here: http://www.buffalo.edu/ubnow/stories/2018/08/mooc-vr.html

Video: William Uricchio on Virtual Reality and the Myth of Total Cinema

See the full story here: https://cmsw.mit.edu/william-uricchio-on-virtual-reality-and-the-myth-of-total-cinema/