Research

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.

This Vancouver Sun article reports that "A virtual walk in the park may be just what the doctor ordered for chronic pain sufferers. Simon Fraser University associate professor Diane Gromala claims research shows a 3-D stroll in the forest has the power to help people manage chronic pain, sometimes with better results than traditional means such as morphine.

Gromala, head of SFU's Transforming Pain Research Group, is developing a virtual reality technique called "walking meditation." The technique is one of several programs used around the world to aid sufferers of chronic back pain and migraines.

From the ScienceBlogs.com website: "USING an inventive new method in which mice run through a virtual reality environment based on the video game Quake, researchers from Princeton University have made the first direct measurements of the cellular activity associated with spatial navigation. The method will allow for investigations of the neural circuitry underlying navigation, and to a better understanding of how spatial information is encoded at the cellular level.

This ZDNet article reports: "The growth in teleoperation systems has achieved a critical mass that has led researchers to explore ways to collaborate, share facilities and access each others’ telerobotic devices.

Nine research teams from universities and research institutes around the world recently collaborated on the first successful demonstration of multiple biomedical robots operated from different locations in the U.S., Europe, and Asia.