Scent Messaging Tech Allows for Aromas to Be Shared Digitally
Vapor Communications seeks to eliminate expected issues such as scent muddling by allowing plastic pellets with scents to be activated with air flow over the pellets allowing each scent to be personal. All of the products depend on the pellets within the oChip (the “o” is short for olfactory), and are grouped into families of similar aromas. The company is seeking to create over 300,000 distinct scents, each lasting for 1,000 uses, and costing around $2.
The oPhone Duo is a tabletop device that emits aromas based on how photos are labeled.
The Scentee is the simplest of the products, and has been around for nearly two years. The $70 product plugs into the iPhone’s headphone jack, which then converts the liquid fragrance cartridge into an aerosol, and is good for 200 sprays.
See the ETC post here: http://www.etcentric.org/scent-messaging-tech-allows-for-aromas-to-be-shared-digitally/
and the source story here: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/09/technology/personaltech/scent-received-with-a-tap-of-a-smartphone.html?_r=1
The Last Starfighter’ TV Spinoff with Virtual Reality Scenes in the Works
“The Starfighter Chronicles” aims to be the first TV show to embrace virtual reality.
Instead, it’s a serialized story about alien law enforcement. “It’s about instilling a moral code,” said Betuel during a recent interview.
And while most of it is meant to be viewable on plain old TVs, it would also feature special scenes that break the frame, allowing viewers equipped with virtual reality (VR) headsets to look around and explore the inside of a spaceship or immerse themselves in an alien firefight. “It’s a very interesting blend,” said Betuel. “The otherworldiness of it lends itself to VR.”
Betuel’s partners in crime for this ambitious project are Andy Vick and Rick Rey, co-founders of Surreal.tv, a new virtual-reality entertainment company that aims to combine linear storytelling with VR.
Vick previously worked as head of development for Maker Studios, and is now Surreal’s chief content officer. Rey, now Surreal’s CEO, also hails from Maker, which he joined by the way of the Blip Networks acquisition. Both said that the virtual reality space right now reminds them of online video at the end of the last decade.
See the full story here: http://variety.com/2015/digital/news/the-last-starfighter-tv-reboot-with-virtual-reality-scenes-in-the-works-exclusive-1201539455/
Simulated reality is creating new possibilities for testing vision, capturing surgery and helping those with limited vision.
One of the most promising uses of virtual reality in medicine is creating performance tests that simulate real-life conditions. (Traditional tests may bear little relation to the visual challenges faced by patients every day.) Their study used the Oculus Rift device to test subjects’ balance response to vection—the sense of motion we feel when the environment around us moves (or appears to move).
Dr. Medeiros points out that virtual reality offers ophthalmology a chance to break free of the traditional constraints of in-office testing. “Studies have shown that tests like the standard visual field are not very predictive of how patients actually perform in the real world,” he says.
SoCal VR Conference: What Will It Take to Move Virtual Reality to the Mainstream?
“It’s not just sticking a camera on something and recording in 360 degrees,” said Jim Willson, director of immersive products/VR for Samsung. “There has to be a reason and rationale. The production needs to be thought out in a way that you take advantage of the 360-degree environment. Filmmakers are trying to figure out what does this mean. How do they control the narrative?”
Samsung’s app Milk VR, which streams VR content, now offers about 200 experiences, and Willson reports that “filmmakers and production companies that we are working with now have better understanding of camera placement, lighting and the post production quality is going up significantly.”
Sports is one possible answer, and Samsung’s Milk VR is testing the waters with the recent launch of a U.S. Olympic Committee Reality Experience, which will to offer a 360-degree view of beach volleyball, diving, gymnastics and polo vaulting. Featured athletes include women’s beach volleyball team members Lauren Fendrick and Brooke Sweat, diving gold medalist David Boudia, pole vaulter Mary Saxer and gymnast John Orozco.
Also during the SoCal VR conference, California Science Center board of trustees member David Knight gave a featured talk about the virtual reality shoot that he exec produced to give viewers access to the Space Shuttle Endeavour (which is housed at the center). This footage is available on Milk VR, and additional footage will be used for the permanent Endeavour display, which is scheduled to open in a new pavilion at the center during 2018.
See the full story here: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/behind-screen/socal-vr-conference-virtual-realitys-808226
‘Calming’ virtual reality helmets let you explore the cosmos
Exploring the disconnect between real and virtual and our constant quest for the “new”, the helmets are themed on male, female and androgynous adventurers, representing increasingly futuristic scenarios. The male transports the wearer to the outer atmosphere of the sun where motion is achieved through swimming-style arm movements, while the androgynous one allows you to manipulate and play with abstract, exploding shapes. The female helmet, meanwhile, places the wearer in an intergalactic space where a swoosh of the hand generates new galaxies and nebula. “It’s really calming and it’s a nice pleasant experience. There is no shooting involved,” says Wendt. “It’s more like going to a sauna or a spa.”
Virtual Reality Will Enable the Next Large Revival in the Global Church
This will enable persons who are homebound, sick, caregivers, without transportation, on vacation, or severely disabled to participate in worship with the larger community of faith without needing to leave the place where they are physically residing.
It will also allow them to participate virtually in ways that they may not be able to in their present reality. No longer will one's lack of physical ableness be a deterrent that keeps people from ushering or serving communion.
If this renewed sense of community is properly embraced, it is going to have the potential to create a revival in church participation that has never before been seen in the history of the global church.
It is also of significance that with the development of VR and AR will come moral and ethical temptations that have never before existed in the history of humanity. The church universal has a spiritual responsibility to model behavior when it comes to the uses of new technology. As such, the global church must not delay in charging its congregants who are, by vocation, scientists and technologists to actively engage in developing these new technologies in ways that will work towards advancing Christ's redemptive purposes for humanity and the world. Not to do so would be poor stewardship of the gifts that God has given us through technological advancement that can help to advance the global church in Christ's Kingdom purposes.
See the full story here: http://www.christianpost.com/news/virtual-reality-will-enable-the-next-large-revival-in-the-global-church-141393/
Wall Street analysts say virtual reality can’t go mainstream until these issues are fixed
‘The easy problems’
Among the easy problems to address are the need for better graphics and display resolution. While head-mounted displays currently use the same resolution as retina smartphone displays, these devices require even higher resolutions because they are much closer to the eye.
‘The hard problems’
Oppenheimer believes that the more difficult problems early entrants will have to address are those that relate to the user’s experience: human interface, ergonomics, and the social experience.
In terms of ergonomics, they say the major virtual reality systems set to be released next year will require the user to do the following:
- Wear a device that completely blocks their view of what’s around them
- Be tethered to an external device, such as a computer or gaming console
- Stay within a certain space for position monitoring
See the full story here: http://www.businessinsider.com.au/wall-street-sees-obstacles-to-virtual-reality-going-mainstream-2015-7