Human-ComputerInteractioninVirtualReality
KatherineWiykovics
Abstract: Whenitcomestovirtualreality, theskyisbarelythelimit. Whilethetechnologymayhavehadarockystartinthepast, itcurrentlyhasafuturethatisfilledwithopportunitiesnevercapablebefore. Withuniqueinteractionsbetweenuserandcomputer, theopportunitiesfortheindustriesofentertainment, therapy, andtrainingallareonthevergeofbeingrevolutionizedwiththisgrowingtechnologyinComputerScience. Exploringtheadvantagesanddisadvantagesofthistechnologycangiveaglimpseofwhattoexpectinthenottoodistantfuture.
The concept of virtual reality has been along for some time, dating as far back as the late 1950s, when the Sensorama was created (Nelson, Yam). It was a simulation device that allowed people to not only see 3D simulations but smell and feel wind along with them (Nelson, Yam). Most of the development from that point onward was not for use by the public and mostly proof of concept ideas. However, despite all these developments in virtual reality the term itself did not become coined until 1987 by founder of VPL Research, Jaron Lanier who also created the Eyephone and the DataGlove (Nelson, Yam). It was then that virtual reality not only had a name, but started to become a concept known beyond research. As more depictions of the technology could be found in movies and television, soon everyone wanted to play in virtual worlds and the video gaming industry was about to deliver.
With the 1990s came virtual reality in the arcades (Nelson, Yam). Often these systems would be inside cabinets with Virtual Reality goggles for the player to use. As the decade progressed, virtual reality began to move into the home with minimal results with products like the Virtual Boy and the Sega VR glasses (Nelson, Yam). Neither of these products managed to take off and the Virtual Boy developed a rather sour reputation because of it. For nearly a decade, most gaming companies avoided virtual reality, but in technological research, it was still growing strong. It even started getting used in psychological research as part of new methods of treating disorders like Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (Nelson, Yam). In 2012, the Oculus Rift was announced with a Kickstarter for potential developers who wanted to have a developer kit to work with (Nelson, Yam). It became a huge success and the Oculus Rift was quickly advertised as the virtual reality that consumers were promised decades before. Now developers are scrambling to find ways to take advantage of this technology as it becomes more common in households and in higher demand by the public.
Withmostvirtualrealityequipment, themainsystemusedisaheadsetthatcoverstheeyeswhichmayormaynotincludeotherinteractiveequipmentsuchaskeyboard, mouse, headset, gloves, orinsomecases, treadmill. Thisallowsforamoreimmersiveenvironmentandgivestheplayerasenseofbeingnotinaroom, butinwhatevervirtualrealityenvironmentissetup. Dependingonthevirtualrealitysystemused, itmaybeevenpossibletoadjustthelensessothatthosewithpoorvisiondonothavetostrugglewithglassesandatightheadset. Thistechnologyoffersafewkeyuniqueinteractionsthatcannotbeofferedwithjustamonitor. Theseareofteninrelationtoturningtheheadinsomefashionorlookingatsomething, butIproposeotherideasaswell.
Headturningisamongthemostuniqueofthehumaninteractionsavailabletovirtualrealityequipment. Withanormalmonitorsetup, youoftencanonlylookatobjectsfromonedirectionatatime, andoftenifyouwishtochangetheangleofviewingonsay, anobjectina 3Denvironmentyouhavetousecontrolslikeamouseorarrowkeysonakeyboardtoturntheobjectortheviewingangle. Thisisdifferentwithvirtualrealityaswhenyouhaveanobjectinfrontofyou, youcanturnyourheadtolookaroundorawayfromit. Allcontrolofthedirectionyouareviewingistransferredovertothemotionofyourhead, oftentogreataffect. Itfeelsmuchmorenaturaltobeabletomoveyourheadtolookatthingsasopposedtousingamouseorkeyboardcontrol. Whilewithsomesetupsyoustillhavetomovewhereyouravatarisorthedirectionyouarefacingtheobjectinwithakeyboardormousecontrols, othermoreelaborateonesinvolveusingatreadmillthatmovesalongwiththepersonattheirpace.
Another gesture that can be used is pointing your gaze in a certain direction. In combination with head turning, it is often used to select an option or confirm something. Gaze has been used before in certain video games as a mechanic, a good example is the Endermen enemy in Minecraft who will only attack you if the center cross hair of your field of view, your gaze, is pointed directly at them. However, instead of depending on where your camera is centered, this would require you not to actually look directly at an enemy. There is also selecting a certain option by moving your head to the position where the “button” is and keeping your gaze there for a few moments as opposed to pressing a key on a keyboard or clicking a mouse. For more passive simulations this tends to be how the controls work as this allows the viewer to limit their interaction with the simulation as much as possible.
Therearevariousotherlessobviousinteractionsthatcouldbeimplementedascontrolsorotheruses. Oneinvolvesusingcertaingesturesforansweringquestions. Insteadofpressingabuttonorhittingakeycommand, onecouldanswerpopupquestionswithasimplenodorshakeofthehead. Suchreflexeswouldbefarmorenaturalthanthecurrentfunctionsofclickingabuttontoconfirmsomethingandopenupthepossibilitiesformoregamesthatrequirelesssecondarycontrolmethodswhichbringsupthenextidea.
Thereisagreatopportunity, especiallywithinentertainmentgenres, tocreatesoftwarethatonlyrequireheadmovement. Simpleideassuchasagamethatinordertoplay, youmustuseyourheadtododgeincomingthings (likepiesforinstance) beingthrownatyourface. Yourobjectivewouldbetolastaslongasyoucanwithoutanythinghittingyouintheface. ThereisawholepossiblegenreofgamingentertainmentthatwehaveonlyjustexploredbrieflywithitemssuchastheKinectandWiisystemsthatcouldbebroughtinwithsuchcontrols. Whileitwilltaketimetoexpandonsuchpossibilities, wecouldfindthatheadcontrolscouldbesomethingofinterestforgamedevelopersanddevelopersofothersoftwareaimedatvirtualreality.
Alastinteractiontobeconsideredasapossiblefutureforvirtualrealitywouldbeonethatinvolvesusingeyetrackingsoftwarealongwiththevirtualrealitysetup. See, whilethestandardvirtualrealitysystemcancontrolthedirectionyourheadisturnedin, itcannotdeterminewhereyoureyesarelookingatthescreen. Theabilitytohadsomesortofsmallsensorinthevirtualrealitydevicecouldcauseagreatimprovementtotheimmersionthatisalreadycapablefromthecurrentsetup. Itwouldhavetoberathertinytobeabletofitinsidemostvirtualrealitysetsastheytendtoberatherlargealreadybutthereisalwaysthepossibilitythatsomesortofdevicecouldbeimplemented. Then, youreallywouldknowwheretheuserislookingwhenitcomestotheirgaze, asopposedtoguessingwhereitisbasedonwherethey’refacing.
As with any technology that comes about, virtual reality has its own issues that make a possible grand endeavor also a potential failure. While some of these things are both familiar and innocuous, such as eye strain or just faulty software, some are rather unique to the environment that virtual reality creates or it enhances already known issues that are common with computer systems, such as issues of losing track of time or becoming distracted from the real world. As such, we must prepare for these eventual issues by making sure that the user is aware of such consequences before they are to put on the device. This seems rather standard but often, a simple warning can be overlooked. Below there are a few problems I have noted or in some cases, experienced first hand with my own uses of virtual reality systems.
Oneratherobviousproblemwithallvirtualrealitysystemsthataredoneasaheadsetisthefactthatonecannotseeanythingintherealworld. Thiscancauseissuesintherealworldforminuteandseriousreasons. Oftentheleastsevereisthefactthatifyouareusinganyothercontrols, youareunabletoseethemafteryouputthevirtualrealityseton. Imagineifyouwillthatyouplacedapendownonyourdesk, putyourhandsonyourheadandthenclosedyoureyesandproceededtotryandfindthatpenwithyoureyesclosed. Itwouldbedoable, certainly, butifyoucannotrememberexactlyonthedeskwhereyouputthepen, itbecomesaratherquickannoyance. Itisverymuchthesamewhenitcomestotryingtouseakeyboard, mouse, orothersecondaryinteractiondevicewithavirtualrealitysystem.
Anothermoresevereissueistheissueofnotbeingabletoseepeopleintheroomwithyouoryouractualsurroundings. Ifyoubecometooimmersedinwhatyouareviewing, youcanriskatleastbeingstartledbysomeoneintheroom, andthatiscompoundedifyouarealsowearingheadphonesasthenyouarenotonlyblindtotheworld, butyouaredeaftoitaswell. Yetwhilethiscanoccurwiththenormalmonitorsetup, thedifferencethereisthatyoucanseeusingperipheralvision. Youhavenosuchvisionwithavirtualrealityset, youareblindtotheworldaroundyou. Withthisinmind, itisbestthatthosewhowishtousesuchsystemsnotbedoinganyotheractivitiesthatrequireintensivevisualattentionsuchascooking, watchingchildren, orotherthingswemaymultitaskwhenweareonthecomputer. Itmayseemlikecommonsense, butasthesayinggoes: commonsenseisnotalwayscommon.
Many technologies often have various health risks that were not an issue before their introduction or less of a common malady. Carpal Tunnel system, while it did exist before the advent of computers becoming a daily thing in our lives, became a much more common diagnosis when typing on a keyboard or using a mouse became a regular task that people did frequently. This is also true of virtual reality, as it becomes more and more progressive, we will start seeing certain physical ailments more and more. Often these issues are due to the mind-body disconnect of your brain having visual input of moving while your body is stationary. If the software does not handle the motion blur correctly, as happened with the first developer version of the Oculus Rift, some people can be prone to motion sickness (aprilklazema). Indeed there are many anecdotal cases where people have vomited on their computers because motion sickness had suddenly hit them (aprilklazema). Often the recommendations to avoid this “simulator sickness” is to make sure that the device is properly acclimated to your eyes (as this is the main reason why this tends to happen) or to play at a bit slower of a rate and turn down the brightness (aprilklazema). While most developers have worked to make sure the camera speed does not cause it as much, it is still good to be mindful of such tricks.
Alongwithmotionsicknessthereisoftendizzinessingeneralthatcancomefromplayingsuchgames. Inabitofapersonalanecdote, myfirstmajorexperiencewiththeOculusRiftwasfineupuntilItooktheheadsetoffandstoodup. InearlycrashedonthefloorbecausemybrainhadtroublewithmybalancebecauseIhadbeensittingdownand “moving” inthegame. MysenseofbalancewasthrownoffbecauseofthisandIhadtoleanagainstatableforafewminutesbeforemyfeetcouldmanagenottofalloutfromunderme. Whilemycasewasabitextreme, itwasprobablyduetomesittingforsolongwiththedevicestrappedonmyhead. Likeridingarollercoasterrepeatedlywithoutgettingofftheride, suchsymptomscanonlygetworsethelongeryouuseit. Forpeoplewhoareusedtousingtechnologyforhoursatatime, thiscanbetroublesomebuttakingabreakeveryhourorsoisagoodideatominimizetheriskofmakingyourselfdizzyfromusingvirtualreality.
Otherhealthissuesthatcancomeaboutduetovirtualrealitysystemsoftenincludeonesthatarenormallycommonwithextensivecomputeruse. OnesystemthatexacerbatedsuchissueswastheVirtualBoy. AcreationfromNintendointheearlynineties, itisoneofthebiggestfailuresinNintendo’shistory. Themainreasonforthiswasthedisplay, thevisualswerenothingmorethanablackbackgroundwithbrightneonredlinestooutlinetheenvironmentandcharacters. Outsideofthefactmostofthegamesdesignedforitwerenotthatgood, itwaspronetogivingpeopleheadachesafternotmuchuseandextremeeyestrain. BothoftheseissuescanhappenwithcurrentvirtualrealitysystemsbuttheyarenowherenearasintensiveasissuestheVirtualBoycaused. Thereisalsothepsychologicalissuesthatcancomefromvirtualreality. Aswithanytechnology, itispossibletobecometooobsessedwithit, causingtheusertocaremoreaboutbeinginavirtualworldthantherealone. Theissueswiththisaregoingtobenodifferentthananyotherhabitrelatedaddiction, butitisstillgoingtocauseproblemsinthelongrun.
However, itisnotalldoomandgloomforthefutureofvirtualreality, foreverysingledownsidethereisalwaysanupside. Muchlikeothertechnologies, itcanbeusedtohelppeopleindifferentways, oftenasawaytohelpsimulatescenariosthatmayoccurintherealworld. Itcanalsobringanewdimensiontopiecesofart, whereyoucanexperiencethingsthattherewasnopossiblewayyoucouldexperienceotherwise. Suchthoughtsarejustscratchingthesurfaceofwhatcantrulybeoffered, forasproventimeandtimeagain, nomatterhowmuchwecantrytopredictthefuture, itfindsofwayofsurprisingusbutletusexploretheseideasinfurtherdetail.
Eversincewehavecreatedart, wehavealwaystriednewwaystomakeourcreationslifelike. Nomatterifitistryingtoturnmarbleintoasmooth, humanlikeformwithallthedetailseasilyshownorifitistherealismofapainting, welikeattemptingtorecreatenaturebyourownhands. Thisistruewithvirtualrealityaswellasduetothefactyouaretuningouttherealworldandreplacingitwithanother, makingitevenmorelifelikethanotherformsofart. Ascomputergraphicscontinuetoimprovewithtime, virtualrealitywillbecomesoreal, youcaneasilylosetrackofwhatistherealworld. WhilethishasitsowndangersthatIhaveoutlinedabove, thereisalsoaslightexcitementforwhatsuchafuturecouldholdforusasweescapeintodifferentworldsofourowncreation.
Probablythegreatestthingthatcanbeaccomplishedbyvirtualrealitystemsfromtakingthesaying “towalkamileinanotherperson’sshoes” ratherliteralinnature. Thereareplentyofthingsinlifewecannotexperienceatthistimeorevercouldandsurvivetheprocess. Virtualrealityallowsustoexploresituationsthatareasimpossibleasarepossible. OnesimulationthatIfindtobeamongthemostinterestingexampleofthisisasimulationdemofortheOculusRiftcalledDisunionthatallowsyoutoexperiencewhatitwouldbeliketohaveyourheadchoppedoffbyaguillotine, oratleastwhatyouwouldseeasyourheadwasabouttobetakenoff. Whiletheideaitselfisrathermorbidandsomepeoplearequicklyunnervedbythesimulation, thefactthatyoucouldexperienceatypeofexecutionwithoutactuallydyingisaratheramazingthing. Afarlessgruesometypeofsimulationthatallowsyoutoexperiencethingsyouhaven’tbeforeisvariouslysimulatorsthatallowyoutobeinspace. Beitotherplanetsorindeepspace, thesesimulationsletyouseespaceinawaythatisnotpossibleatthemoment. Thiscapabilityispossiblewithanormalmonitorortelevision, butnottotheextentthatvirtualrealitycanofferauser.
Themostobviousofalltheusesforvirtualrealityhastobeforentertainmentpurposesforindeedthatiswhatthepublicusessuchsystemsforthemost. Mostlyfromvideogames, virtualrealityhascaptivatedtheimaginationofmanychildrenandadultsalikebutwhilethefirstversionsofthetechnologywerenotconsideredthebestbyanymeans, thefieldhasgainedaleapforwardwithnewersystemsonthemarketwithbettergraphicsand, mostimportantly, cheaperlensesthatcandrivedownthepriceofthesystem. Theyhavealsogottenmuchlightersothesystemdoesnotweighdowntheheadasmuchsoyoucanusethemforlongerperiodsoftime. Thankstotheseadvances, virtualrealityisalreadystartingtobecomeacommonentertainmentproductforthehome, andgobeyondjustanoveltyintoaproductthatthewholefamilycanenjoy.
The biggest jump (sometimes quite literally) in video games and virtual reality has come in the boom of horror games that take advantage of the unique immersion that virtual reality gives the user. Often, these horror games require simple mechanics like walking or even just staying still. One good example of this is a game made for the Oculus Rift called simply Don’t Let Go. The objective of this game is to not let go of the control keys on the keyboard while the game attempts to startle and freak you out with buzzing noises and various creatures crawling near your body. It takes advantage of the immersion that both using the Oculus Rift and a pair of headphones can cause. Unlike normal scary games or movies where you can just look away from the screen if you are scared, you are in the scene with virtual reality systems and there is no way out, unless you take the system off. Needless to say, horror fans of all ages are enjoying what is coming out of virtual reality for their favorite genre.
Anothergenrethattakesadvantageofthismechanicfirstpersongamesthataremoreoftheactionandadventuretypesofgenres. FirstpersonshooterslikeCallofDutyorCounterstrikecanonlybenefitfromtheadditionofsuchimmersionthattheOculusRiftgivestheusernottomentiontheadditionalmechanicsthatareavailable. Asopposedtousingvariousbuttoncombinationstolookaroundcorners, onecanjusttilttheirheadtolooktoseeiftheenemyisjustaroundthebend. Thisbenefitsmorefirstpersongamesthanjustyourgenericshootinggamethough. OneofthemorepopulargamestohavegottenavirtualrealityversionisMinecraft, thegamewhereyoucanbuildwhateveryoudesirewithblocks. Duetotheperspectiveofthecharacterbeinginfirstperson, itwasrathereasytomakeaversionthatfitwiththeOculusRift. OnecaneasilyforeseeafuturewheremoreandmorevideogamesrequireanOculusRifttofullyenjoytheexperiencethatthegameoffers.
Outside of video games, there are other entertainment genres that can take great advantage of this technology, namely film and television. While someone could easily watch a modern movie or television show with a virtual reality system, there could also be the possibility of designing movies for those systems directly. Indeed some of the first demonstrations of the Oculus Rift involved pretty much short films, like one of a roller coaster looping on a track, where the user could look around and see the environment from various angles. If a filmmaker had the patience and the camera angles, they could make something where when you viewed the film, you could see all of the scenery around you. In order to do this, a robotic camera could be designed so that you could film at several angles at once, no matter the view of the audience member and piece them all together in post-production (Pose). With this, you could actually feel like you were inside the movie, and it would increase the amount of re-watching intensely. This could easily promote movie sales over rentals and overall help the movie industry continue to make a profit despite the decline in theater viewings and the rise of Netflix and other systems like it.
Beyondentertainment, thereisagreatopportunitytousesuchsystemstobetterthestateofhumanityinvariousways. Thistakesadvantageofthefactthatanysortofvirtualrealitycanallowyoutosimulatesomethingintherealworldorsomethingfantastical. Whilesimulationshaveexistedforquitesometime, theyhavealwayshadthedisadvantageoffeelingnotsorealwithamonitorinfrontofyou. Thereistheconstantreminderthatyou’retechnicallyonlysimulatingthingswithinacomputerwheneveryouturnyourhead. However, withvirtualrealitysystems, youcanalwaysseetheworldaroundyou. Everythingseemslikeitismorerealisticthanwhatamonitorscreencouldevermanage. Withthis, simulationscanonlyimprovetheirusefulnessandindeed, theyhavealreadybeentakenintoconsiderationasaviabletoolforplentyofprofessionstouse.
Psychologyandvirtualrealityhavebeenworkingtogetherincombinationfordecades, andmoreoftenitisbecomingawaytotreatpatientswithdifferentconditionsthatcouldusethesafeenvironmentofanofficetodealwiththingsthatbotherthemintheirmindorintherealworld. Runningthroughasimulationallowssomeonewithadisorderorsomeonewhoisjusthavingtroublewithcertainscenariosawaytopracticesituationsinordertobecomecomfortablewithorfigureoutwhattheyaredoingwrongintheireverydaylife. Simplescenariosthatallowthepatienttounderstandthingsandallowthepsychologisttogaugewherethepatientneedshelpinamoreobjectivemanner.
Anxiety disorders often require the patients to deal with feelings of anxiousness or nervousness that sometimes can be very situational. Depending on the diagnosis it could be an uneasy in social situations, to phobias of certain things, to general nervousness that does not go away or various other disorders that cause a person to be anxious over no real threat. In many of these cases, such as phobias, there is a type of therapy called Exposure Therapy that allows a patient to experience in a controlled scenario the thing they are afraid of so they slowly get used to it and overcome their fear (Bruce). It often takes several sessions to make progress, depending on the patient, but what if you could allow the patient to practice at home? With virtual reality, a patient who is horribly afraid of snakes, for example, could turn on a simulation and set it to the recommended setting by their psychologist. They would be able to confront their phobia by having a snake in the simulation close to them as the setting allows. This way, they could get more exposure and make progress even faster without having to make trips to the doctor’s office. This is already being done in clinical testing in what is known as VRET or Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (Bruce). In the example shown by Bruce and Regenbrecht, a simulation showing a house with four different rooms that had increasing amounts of claustrophobic cues. This allows patients to slowly get used to moving around in an environment with very enclosed spaces without actually being in such an environment. The implications of this for phobia treatment are immense, and it also works rather well with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder was among the first types of psychological disorders to used virtual reality for treatment purposes. As soon as the early 1990s, psychologists have been working with virtual reality to help those who have dealt with a traumatic experience be able to live normal lives again (Grimani). Often this disorder cripples those who experience it by making them unable to cope with everyday situations that remind them of the trauma that they experienced in the past. Much like with other anxiety disorders, the main treatment tends to be a version of prolonged exposure therapy (Grimani). In this treatment, patients are told to tell the traumatic event that happened in a therapeutic setting so they can relive the experience in a controlled and safe environment (Grimani). The problem with most PE therapy is that it depends completely on the patient's willingness to speak about things that make them uncomfortable (Grimani). The newest simulation being tested, Bravemind, gives several Afghanistan/Iraq war related scenarios and allows customization of vehicles, weather, time of day, and various other factors by the clinician (Grimani). This allows for the patient to not only recount what happened by speaking about it, but also by reliving it visually which helps the patient remember things that they may have forgotten before (Grimani). This is only the start of what could be achieved for patients with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and as the technology improves and more simulations are added, this can go beyond helping veterans to helping anyone with this disorder.
Outsideofthesedisordersthereareafewothertypesoftherapythatcanbenefitfromthistypeoftechnology. Forexample, letussaywehavesomeonewhotendstohaveangermanagementissues. Thepatienthasissuescontrollinghisragewhenpeopledocertainthings. Thissortofvirtualsimulationwouldallowhimtobeabletolearnhowtodealwiththethingsthatmakehimangrywithoutputtingothersindangerifheendsuplosinghiscool. Anotherpossiblewayvirtualrealitysimulationscouldhelpisthatifapatientneedscoachingovercertainscenarios. Apatienthassomeissueswithhowsheactsondates, shecannotseemtobeabletospeaktotheguysheiswithwhenonherdatingsite, shehadnoproblems. Shecouldhaveasimulationofadaterunwithvoicerecognitionandthepsychologistcouldhelpcoachheronwhattodowhenshetriestomakesmalltalkandneedshelp. Anythingthatyoucanpractice, youcanuseasatypeoftherapytohelppeoplewiththeirproblems, betheyfearsorjustadviceonhowtodealwithcertainsituations.
One interesting thing to note in the field of using psychology and virtual reality together for therapy is how other technologies can be implemented to improve it. Right now, there is a company that is working on a rather unique video game called Nevermind. In it, you play a researcher that is trying to figure out what is wrong with their patients by going inside their mind and collecting memories while dealing with some rather scary imagery (Nevermind). The unique thing about this game is that it can work in conjunction with a heart rate monitor, the first of it's kind biofeedback video game (Nevermind). The faster your heart races, the scarier the game gets, the world becoming darker and the images far more frightening (Nevermind). The game requires you to learn to calm yourself down so that you can accomplish the task in front of you. While the game works without a virtual reality system, it shines with one and was designed with the Oculus Rift in mind. The developers are planning for a version to be used in treatment for people who want to learn how to control their anxiety responses (Nevermind). Imagine having a game be a form of treatment to help people so they can learn to handle things in the real world. This is just the beginning of the potential that virtual reality can have for psychology, especially in the treatment of those with mental illness.
Therearealsoavarietyofbenefitsthateducationandtrainingcanreceivefromvirtualrealitysimulations. Astherearemanythingsyoucansimulateviaasimulation, youcanhelpteachanyonehowtodosomethingfromafirstpersonperspective. Also, intermsofyoungerstudents, youcanallowthemtoseethingsinscienceandhistoryinadifferentwaythannormalteachingcanmanage. Imagineifyouwill, tellingachildthattheirhomeworkistogothroughasimulationontheBattleofGettysburgtwice, onceasaunionsoldierandonceasaconfederatesoldier. Allowthemtoseewhatthatwaslikefirsthandtobethereorputthemintheperspectiveofaspacemanwhoisgoingouttolookamongthestars. Theycanlearntheirplanets, aboutthesolarsystem, andgalaxieswhilebeingentertainedatthesametime. Oneofthebiggestproblemsinmoderneducationisfindingasimplewaytoengagestudentsandthisisamongtheeasierwaystosolvetheprobleminfrontofus.
Amongthetypesofsimulationthathasbeenusedalotforbothentertainmentandtraining, isflightsimulatorsthatallowthepotentialpilotstoexperiencewhatisliketakingcontrolofanairplane. Thereareplentyofthesesimulationsthatalreadyexistonacomputer, someevenallowingforspecialcontrolsthatsimulatehowactualairplanecontrolsworkandact, butifyoumakeasimulationwhereitlookslikeyouareinsidethecontrolroom, virtualrealitycouldeasilyhelptrainpilotshowtoflybeforetheyexperiencehoursintheair. Whatcouldhelpthisevenmore, isifyouhavesensorsonthecontrolsorintheuser’shandsthemselvessotheycanseetheirhandsmovinginthesimulationastheyaremovinginreality. Withthis, youcanalsotrainexperiencedpilotsonhowtodealwithvariousairdisasters. Duetothenatureofairdisasters, youcannotalwaysprepareforeverysingleone, butifyoutakeintoaccountcommonorslightlyuncommonsituationsofmechanicalorelectricalfailurethepracticecanmakesurethatinmorecases, pilotsarepreparedforanemergencybecausetheyhavealreadyhandledsuchanemergencybefore. Asthesayinggoes, anounceofpreventionisworthapoundofcure, andthiswillhelppreventmanydisastersthatcanhappen.
Anothergoodfieldfortheuseoftrainingwouldhavetobemedicaltrainingasitisamongthefieldstotakegoodadvantageofvirtualreality. Adoctor, nomatterhowskilledorexperience, isnotgoingtorunintoeverypatientwitheverypossiblemalady. Therearealwaysonesthataremorerarethattheywillhavetohandleforthefirsttime. Withvirtualreality, adoctororsurgeoncanhavearandomizedscenariothattheycanuseforadditionaltraining. Suchasimulationwillgivethemapatientthatcanhaveascaled “helpful” rating, orhowwillingtheywillbetogiveinformationaboutwhatiswrongorknowwhatiswrongwiththem. Fromthere, thedoctorcantrytoassessandmaketreatmentsfortherandomizedailmentorailmentsforhisvirtualpatient. Whenthesimulationisdone, itcanexplaintothedoctorindetailwhattheyguessedright, whattheygotwrong, andwhattheymayhavemissedalongwiththepatient’sactualdiagnosis. Forsurgeonsthisisevenbetterastheycanpracticeperformingdifficultproceduresbeforetheyactuallydoitonalivepatient. Thiscouldallowvariouspeopleinthemedicalprofessiontheopportunitytogetsomeexperiencewithoutpossiblyendangeringthelifeofsomeoneelseiftheymakemistakes.
In any field that requires teaching or training, there is potential for the use of virtual reality to improve the learning process. Anything that could possibly require a hands on demonstration of how to exactly do it could benefit greatly from the opportunities the virtual reality produces. While one may ask why is it that we need the virtual reality systems as opposed to just using a standard simulation on a monitor, it is simply that we can use the immersion of virtual reality to make the experience more authentic. The more real the scenario is, the more likely they are to remember how to do it and gain muscle memory for the task that they are attempting to learn. This realism helps facilitate learning which as virtual reality progresses and becomes even more realistic, it will allow for training and teaching to become less from a textbook, and more from actually doing it.
Beyondtheusesoftherapy, entertainment, andtraining, thereareafewotherplaceswherevirtualrealitycanshineasausefultechnology. Skypehasbecomeatechnologythatallowspeopletoconnectacrosstheworldwithfarlessofacostthancallingpeopleuponthephoneandalsoallowsforvideo. Whatif, insteadofviewingapersonviaacamerathatcanonlylookoneway, youwereabletoturnyourhead, lookaroundtheroom, andatotherpeopleinit? Whileobviouslyavirtualrealityheadsetasitcurrentlyiswouldbeimpractical, somethingsmallerthatshowsmoreofyourfacecouldbeimplementedthatallowsforacameraintheroomtolookaround, soyoucanseewhatisgoingonaroundyouwhenyouareinaSkypecall. Thiswouldalsobeawonderfuloptionfortheelderlyanddisabledtogolookaroundplaceswithouthavingtoactuallybethere. TheOculusRifthasalreadysupportedwithaspecialmodeofGoogleMapsthatallowspeopletoexplorehikingtrailsacrosstheworldinapanoramicway. Withtheseyoucanturnyourheadandseetheforestaroundyouandfeellikeyouarethereeventhoughyouhaven’tgoneanywhere. Thisisjustasmallsampleofwhatvirtualrealitycanoffertothosewhowishtouseit.
Overallthefieldofvirtualrealityisgrowingeverydayandasitbecomesamuchmorecommonfeatureinhomesitwillfindmoreandmoreusesthatcanexpandoutindefinitely. Asthetechnologyimprovestogiverealisticgraphicsorvideoandthevirtualrealitysystemsbecomefarcheaper, thistechnologyisonlygoingtobearoundmoreandmore. Howwillpeoplehandlethisbrave “new” worldofvirtualreality? Welllikeanytechnologyitwilltakesometimetogetusedtoandfigureoutitsbestapplications. Thereisalsothefactthatitwillprobablychangeovertime. WemaynothaveanythingliketheHolodeckfromStarTreknow, butthereareseveralcompaniesworkingonmakingthatareality. Inthefuture, wemaynothavetheneedforaheadset, itmightjustbeassimpleasflickingonalightswitchorchangingthetemperatureonathermostat. Thereisalsothepossibilitythatitcouldbecomeapassingfad, muchlikewhathappenedbetweenthelate 1990sandthe 2000s. ThoughIpredictthatifwe continue to findpracticalapplicationsandcontinuetoworkonmakingthetechnologycheaper, thereisagrandfutureaheadofus, anditwillbeinvirtualreality.
WorksCited
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Grimani, Hartholt, Leeds, Liewer, and Albert Rizzo. “Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy for Combat-Related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.” IEEE Computer Society (2014): 31-37. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.
Nelson and Marcus Yam. “The Past, Present, and Future of VR and AR: The Pioneers Speak.” Tom's Hardware. n.p. 30 Apr. 2014. Web. 2 Mar. 2015.
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