The Crazy VR Goggles in HBO’s ‘Silicon Valley’ Are Not a Prop but a Real Prototype
And while the prototype Glyph is not technically a VR headset—as the limited field of view makes it suitable only for non-immersive media—Avegant has lately shifted their focus to the immersive HMD space, and is presently developing “a new method to create light fields” for future headsets.
See the full story here: http://www.roadtovr.com/hbo-silicon-valley-avegant-glyph-vr-goggles-headset-keenan-feldspar/
Al Jazeera Debuts First VR Documentary ‘I Am Rohingya’
Al Jazeera’s Contrast VR is doing just that with the release of I Am Rohingya.Jamalida’s love for dancing, passion for life, and inspiring resilience in the face of unthinkable adversity is the focus of the studio’s first virtual reality documentary. Directed and produced by Contrast VR’s Zahra Rasool and co-produced by renowned filmmaker and journalist Aela Callan, the documentary uses a mix of captivating immersive content with journalistic style storytelling to bring Jamalida’s story to life.
The documentary takes viewers on a journey through the refugee camp and into Jamalida’s small living space. Along with live footage from the Kutupalong camp, the film features animated flashbacks artfully woven into the narrative as Jamalida recounts her harrowing escape out of Myanmar. Though Jamalida—a mother to two young boys—finds small moments of joy while dancing at weddings and local celebrations, she does not sugar coat the reality of life at Kutupalong.
See the full story here: https://vrscout.com/news/al-jazeera-contrast-vr-first-vr-documentary-rohingya/
Brooklyn – How Virtual Reality Is Redefining Storytelling at A/D/O
In the latest juxtaposition of VR and design, Brooklyn creative space A/D/O today announced that New Reality Co. will serve as its second artist-in-residence.
"Our goal is to inspire positive change through interdisciplinary and multisensory artistry," said Zec in a statement. "This residency will provide us with a vibrant and communal workspace, a home for Giant and Tree, and a network of artists and potential collaborators who understand and appreciate shared human experience." New Reality Co. plans to unveil Breathe in September of this year. We're waiting with bated breath.
See the full story here: http://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/how-virtual-reality-is-redefining-storytelling-at-ado-greenpoint
Pioneering a new dimension in virtual reality: The nanoscale
Nanome was co-founded by 2015 graduate Steven McCloskey, part of the first class to earn a degree in nanoengineering. Together with fellow 2016 management science graduate Keita Funakawa, he seized upon the idea to use virtual reality to help people grasp difficult engineering and math concepts.
The company, which has completed its first round of seed funding, is focused on building applications for drug manufacturers that will enable them to see in fine detail the surfaces of the molecules they are constructing.
Nanome incorporates detailed molecular information from scientific databases to build three-dimensional models of nanoscale materials so researchers can visualize the molecules and simulate how they will interact with target cells.
The information can help manufacturers work more quickly and with greater precision.
See the full story here: https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/pioneering-new-dimension-virtual-reality-nanoscale
Terracotta Warriors and Augmented Reality
The Franklin Institute [Philadelphia] will enhance the visitor experience of its upcoming exhibition, Terracotta Warriors of the First Emperor, with augmented reality (AR) technology that will bring to life 2,200-year-old artifacts from the burial site of China’s first emperor.
...through an app on their mobile devices. Terracotta Warriors includes 10 full-size ancient statues and nearly 150 artifacts, including Pre-Imperial Qin objects, Han pottery figurines, palace models, and painted warrior replicas. Dynamic computer-generated imagery will depict what the statues may have looked like when they were first built, and will help visitors more fully understand the science of how time and chemical processes affect artifacts. The exhibition, produced in partnership with the Pacific Science Center in Seattle, will open in the fall of 2017.
See the full story here: http://www.pcah.us/grant/enhancing-views-history-terracotta-warriors-and-augmented-reality
Google launches its AI-powered jobs search engine
Google today launched a new jobs search feature right on its search result pages that lets you search for jobs across virtually all of the major online job boards like LinkedIn, Monster, WayUp, DirectEmployers, CareerBuilder and Facebook and others. Google will also include job listings its finds on a company’s homepage.
The idea here is to give job seekers an easy way to see which jobs are available without having to go to multiple sites only to find duplicate postings and lots of irrelevant jobs.
It’s worth noting that Google doesn’t try to filter jobs based on what it already knows.
Google is very clear about the fact that it doesn’t want to directly compete with Monster, CareerBuilder and similar sites. It currently has no plans to let employers posts jobs directly to its jobs search engine for example (though that would surely be lucrative).
See the full story here: https://techcrunch.com/2017/06/20/google-launches-its-ai-powered-jobs-search-engine/
Sony Expands Scope of VR Innovation Program This Summer
By Phil Lelyveld
June 20, 2017
The ETC@USC helped Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sony Music Entertainment establish their summer 2016 VR Innovation Program. Over the course of 10 weeks, 14 USC student associates pitched, rapid-prototyped, and delivered seven proof-of-concept projects of interest to Sony executives. The students worked under the supervision of Sony execs and two advisors from the USC faculty. Sony generously supplied a presentation deck describing the program’s goals and process for distribution by the ETC. Building on their positive experience, Sony is currently running a 2017 summer program with the scope expanded to include AR and live action narrative VR.
See the original post here: http://www.etcentric.org/sony-expands-scope-of-vr-innovation-program-this-summer/
‘Moss’ uses virtual reality to bring a mouse to life on PS4
Players take control of Quill, a female mouse, who is looking for a family member. They can move her around with the DualShock 4’s analog stick. They use the X button to jump and square to slash with her sword.
But “Moss” gets interesting when players realize they also control a second character — The Reader. When they look down at themselves in a pond, players see that they’re spirit of some sort that only Quill can see. Staring down at their in-game reflection, The Reader look like No-Face from “Spirited Away.” Because the world is built to the scale of Quill, players is the size of a giant and they can interact with the environment.
A core element to that is the puzzle solving. As Quill and The Reader explore the world through static set-piece scenes, they come across obstacles that both have to figure out. It starts off with a simple problem. Quill falls into a pit with crablike enemies attacking her. After beating them, players have to figure out how to get the mouse out. By touching the environment, they discover they can lift out a spiral staircase and players can move Quill around it and jump across.
If players are lost and can’t figure out the puzzle, Quill acts as a hint system gesturing to different areas of the puzzle to help players along.
“Moss” has a charm that few VR games have. Players can expect to play it on PlayStation VR this holiday season.
See the full story here: http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/06/18/moss-uses-virtual-reality-to-bring-a-mouse-to-life-on-ps4/
