Research

This Los Angeles Times article looks briefly at the projects of the USC’s Institute for Creative Technologies. Here's an overview video. From the article: "Computer-simulated battlefields, three-dimensional video teleconferencing and sprawling virtual worlds are just a few of the tools being developed at USC’s Institute for Creative Technologies.

The cutting-edge research institute, known as ICT, recently opened a facility in Playa Vista where it develops virtual environments used to train U.S. military personnel.

This NewScientist article looks at a new software which may help virtual characters appear more lifelike by imbuing them with realistic body language. From the article: "Avatars in virtual worlds provide a richer way than email or chat to communicate online, but despite better graphics and sound quality, they still can't rival in-person meetings. Now new software may help virtual characters appear more lifelikeby imbuing them with realistic body language.

This ScienceDaily article reports researchers at the University of Barcelona have created a system which measures human physiological parameters, such as respiration or heart rate, and introduces them into computer designed characters in real time. From the article: ""The ultimate aim is to develop a method which allows humans to unconsciously relate with some parts of the virtual environment more intensely than with others, and that they are encouraged only by their own physiological responses to the virtual reality shown," Christoph Groenegress, co-author of the work and researcher at the University of Barcelona explained.

This Geek O System article reports Swiss researchers, Chauncey Graetzel and his team at Zurich’s Institute of Robotics and Intelligent Systems have built a virtual reality rig that allows fruit flies to control robots. From the article: "By strapping a fruit fly into a machine that flashes it with lights and tricks the fly into thinking said lights are obstacles, scientists are able to control which direction the fly flies. Along with another tracking-style system in place that can capture and translate wing movement, the Zurich team can then translate the flies movements into commands for piloting a robot, which they’ve successfully tested on a Lego Mindstorm NXT robot.

This ScienceDaily article reports researchers have used 'virtual mates' to discover if female parrots judge male contact calls when deciding on a mate. From the article: "Parrots are famed for their ability to mimic sounds and now researchers have used 'virtual mates' to discover if female parrots judge male contact calls when deciding on a mate. The research, published in Ethology, challenges traditional understandings of the difference between birds 'songs' and 'calls'.

Parrots are among the few species of bird to have developed the ability to quickly learn and mimic new sounds, but the evolutionary reason for this ability is little understood. The Californian based team used a species of budgerigar to discover if the ability to mimic new calls is linked to courtship and mate choice.

This Computerworld article reports Intel, Nokia and Finland's University of Oulu announced that they are developing a joint research center to create software for 3D and virtual reality experiences for use on mobile devices. From the article: "The software will be developed by about 24 engineers in Oulu using the open-source MeeGo operating system, which was launched in February by Intel and Nokia. An early version of the MeeGo mobile phone OS went to developers in late June. The companies said in a conference call that they envisioned 3D and virtual reality software running on a broad range of mobile devices, including smartphones and tablets.

This ScienceDaily article reports researchers at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid's Facultad de Informática have developed a model for 3-D virtual learning environments based on an autonomous virtual tutor that detects collaboration. From the article: "There are two sides to collaborative learning: collaborating to learn and learning to collaborate. For this reason, learners may require guidance on both how to perform a task and on questions concerning collaboration.

The proposed model is based on analysing non-verbal communication about collaborative interaction that takes place while a task is performed. An avatar personifies the tutor in the learning process, which materializes in the visual framework provided by virtual environments, thereby supporting the collaboration process.

This Technology Review article describes a floor giving tactile, audio and visual feedback. From the article: "Researchers at McGill University in Montreal, Canada have developed floor tiles that can simulate the look, sound and feel of snow, grass or pebbles underfoot. Such a tool could perhaps be used for augmented reality applications, tele-presence, training, rehabilitation or even as virtual foot controllers.

The modular "haptic" floor tiling system is made up of a deformable plate suspended on a platform. Between the plate and platform are sensors that detect forces from the user's foot. And the plate can give off vibrations that mimic the feeling of stepping on different materials. A top-down projection and speakers add visual and audio feedback.

From this Science Daily article: "A researcher at the University of Granada has designed a new system for the mobility of military troops within a battlefield based on the mechanisms used by ant colonies to move using a commercial video game.

This work, developed at the department of Computer Architecture and Technology of the UGR, has designed several algorithms that permit to look for the best route path (this is, to find the better route to satisfy certain criteria) within a particular environment.

This science Daily article reports "Smokers who crushed computer-simulated cigarettes as part of a psychosocial treatment program in a virtual reality environment had significantly reduced nicotine dependence and higher rates of tobacco abstinence than smokers participating in the same program who grasped a computer-simulated ball, according to a study described in the current issue of CyberPsychology and Behavior.