THE WORLD’S CUTEST ROBOT NOW TEACHES YOU TO CODE
Using the scripting language Python, researchers could program Cozmo to do pretty much anything. But Anki design Cozmo for kids, not roboticists. “What we figured out was there was no reason why we couldn’t make the exact same functionality available for our more core audience,” he says. “So not for a Carnegie Mellon researcher, but for an 8 year old.”
That required translating all that code from Python to Scratch, a simple programming language MIT developed developed for use in elementary and middle schools. Today, nearly all of Cozmo’s functionality is tidily wrapped up in graphical blocks of code that users drag and drop onto the app’s interface. That makes easy to make Cozmo do things like roll forward and then turn left. Repeat that block of code four times, and you’ve taught Cozmo to make a square on your kitchen table.
See the full story here: https://www.wired.com/story/anki-cozmo-robot/
A First Look at VRotica, a $220 Virtual Reality Headset Just for Watching Porn
Hologram is arguably playing in a league of its own: Its VRotica headset only plays porn, and nothing else.
The headset ships with six videos preloaded, and gives consumers the ability to buy additional content on a per-title basis. In the near future, Hologram aims to also sell content from other studios as well as user-generated uploads to VRotica users, with plans to have more than 1000 videos available before the end of the year. And eventually, the company plans to include live streaming as well as simple adult-themed games as well.
VRotica’s display comes with a resolution of 1920 by 1080 pixel, and a field-of view of 83 degrees. As a comparison, the latest Gear VR, when combined with a Samsung Galaxy S8, features a field-of-view of 101 degrees and a display resolution of 2960 by 1440 pixels.
In layman’s terms, this means that the image quality of Samsung’s Gear VR headset notably better than that of VRotica’s headset. Then again, the content playable on the VRotica device also doesn’t require a whole lot of bells and whistles.
Without getting into too many juicy details, most VR porn videos follow the same basic formula: One actor (typically but not always male) is filmed from the chest down, sitting or lying and initially not doing much else. Then another actor (typically but not always female) appears and initiates the undressing, and whatever else follows after. It’s what the industry calls point-of-view, or POV, and it is meant to give viewers the ability to imagine themselves as part of the action.
See the full story here; http://variety.com/2017/digital/news/virtual-reality-porn-vrotica-vr-headset-1202478721/
Everywhere But Nowhere, Virtual and Augmented Reality Art: Immersive Pop Up Experience
Just a few weeks ago, the immersive pop up Everywhere but Nowhere, Virtual and Augmented Reality Art took viewers quite literally into a new dimension. A project of District Gallery sponsored by the Los Angeles Downtown Arts District Space, virtual and augmented reality artists created new worlds of art and reality.
See the full story here: https://artandcakela.com/2017/06/24/everywhere-but-nowhere-virtual-and-augmented-reality-art-immersive-pop-up-experience/
Steam VR “Knuckles” controller has a lot of capacitive sensors
The “Knuckles”, Valve’s nickname for the next gen Steam VR controller, does this by having nearly a dozen capacitive sensors in it.
...And while Knuckles still has a stick yo need to grasp, it also comes with a strap that slides over your knuckles, hence the name. This will help give users the confidence to let go of the controller when needed or grasp it with individual fingers, and you’ll probably be doing a lot of that with this controller.
The controller has at least eight capacitive sensors marked in a newly revealed documentation for the device. Each of the top four interaction points, namely, the trackpad, inner face button, outer face button, and system button, are capacitive. The trigger underneath is also capacitive. This allows the system to detect not just actual presses but also whether a finger is simply resting on the surface or even how hard the user is pressing.
See the full story here: https://c.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/943495896_preview__cap_sense_2.png
Mysterious Augmented Reality Game Silent Streets Hits Mobile
Silent Streets is an interactive detective mystery that combines RPG elements like side quests, character ranks and reputations with a choose-your-own-adventure mechanic.
Your mission involves interrogating murder suspects with the ultimate goal of locating a missing girl named Viola. Thanks to its monochromatic palette, Silent Streets evokes the mood of a bygone Victorian era, which is truly at fascinating odds with its augmented reality enabled gameplay. And if you haven’t got yourself a fitbit yet, there’s no need; Silent Streets comes with an in-built pedometer that tracks your movement as you meander around the real world.
Interested players can download Streets Episode 1, The Boy with the Flower Skin is out now for iOS and Android devices.
See the full story here: http://gameranx.com/updates/id/110783/article/mysterious-augmented-reality-game-silent-streets-hits-mobile/
Google is trying to get people into virtual reality by chopping it in half
This makes it far easier to produce: Most normal videos could also be shot in VR180, using forthcoming camera built from companies including Lenovo, LG, and Yi are also working with Google that are slated to launch this winter.
The aim is that producers who might be intimidated or unwilling to produce proper 360-degree VR footage will be prepared to experiment with VR180.
For all the buzz, big companies aren't going to throw everything they have at VR until more ordinary people use it. But consumers are unlikely to adopt it at scale until more compelling media is available and it's easier and more accessible.
VR180 is an attempt to start to solve that impasse.
See the full story here: http://www.businessinsider.com/google-announces-vr180-180-degree-virtual-reality-cameras-youtube-2017-6