My first memory of virtual reality came from the arcade where my older brother stuck his head into a machine and started to move as if in his own world, which he was. However seven year old me had no clue what was happening and so just stood there and watched as he moved left and right responding to prompts unseen by the "real" world.
As virtual reality technology has improved, from books to movies to graphic work and art, so too has my interest in it, with a whole host of fantasy and online games creating new imagined worlds. It is quite interesting to think about these virtual "realities" and their impact on the world. One example that immediately comes to mind is an online game called "second life", very similar to 'the sims' however, much more in depth and immersive. Countless people have invested ridiculous amounts of time and money into this game, treating it as a higher priority than the 'real'; it had become their 'reality'. When looking at this example, I find myself leaning much further towards a technological determinist view where technology has literally taken over our lives.
This view was furthered when watching a number of the videos in the lecture where the virtual or augmented reality technology had completely ingrained itself into the subjects mind like in the Virtual Hand Illusion in which subjects felt as if the virtual hand was actually theirs. This video, along with the IDEO Labs 3D Immersion Technology video really hit me with the realisation that while the human body can adapt to perceptual changes quite quickly, it seems the mind can be very easily tricked; reality as I know it may not be 'real' but my perception of real.
On a more entertaining (and less existential) note, augmented reality has become the next big thing in the gaming world with consoles like the Wii and Xbox Kinect focusing on real world action translating to virtual reaction. This is slowly picking up in the mobile gaming world too, with games like Ingress which requires you to physically move to areas displayed on your mobile phone GPS to allow you to do actions in the game. There are also a number of features of augmented reality, like projection mapping, which have taken off in the art world. These conceptual artworks attempt to frame our senses and perception of the world we live in and attempt to make us question the way in which we view what reality is compared to the real.
Main References
Anon. (n.d.) ‘Augmented Reality’, Wikipedia Available online at < http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augmented_reality >
Havens, John (2013) ‘The Impending Social Consequences of Augmented Reality’, Mashable, Available online at <http://mashable.com/2013/02/08/augmented-reality-future/ >
Luttik, Dane (2012) ‘Augmented Reality—Projection Mapping’. Available online at < http://vimeo.com/43385747 >
Mendes, Jeremy & Allison, Leanne (2012) Bear 71 Available online at <http://bear71.nfb.ca/#/bear71 >
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