Despite Hollywood’s best efforts to have us ‘Enter the Matrix’ and technology improving beyond even the wildest dreams of any fan of Tomorrow’s World, Virtual Reality (VR) still manages to conjure up images of blocky, labouring animations such as used in the 80’s hit Money for Nothing by Dire Straights. Ironically, like the Matrix, there is much more going on under the surface than what we perceive. Take medical practice for example, groundbreaking procedures are currently being rehearsed everyday by medical students using VR. Heart transplants, brain surgery and repairs to damaged tissue are all within the realms of this ‘virtual’ world. This is providing a number of benefits to the profession; firstly, advanced surgeons can pass on their life-saving skills through a means better than the traditional textbook. Procedures can be practiced in advance of the real surgery to help reduce risk of infection and other complications to help ensure the patient recovers. Lastly, virtual tongs left inside the patient will not impede on their recovery.
Since the introduction of dancing like a mad fool on an arcade machine, it seems almost a distant memory when you could slip on a heavy headset and fly a virtual plane around the virtual sky at an amusement arcade. Arguably both instances make the user appear a total wally to any onlooker but being so immersed in the game makes this fact disappear to the background. User interaction within the mainstream came on with leaps and bounds following the introduction of the Nintendo Wii (you no longer have to embarrass yourself in front of strangers but can now do so in the presence of your family, pets and teddy bear – who are, arguably, far less likely to record it and post it on YouTube!). Although this is not strictly VR, it still suspends the real world and engages children both young and old alike in a whole new way for gamers.
VR has been an intrinsic method of training commercial and fighter pilots across the world. A hydraulic simulator platform combined with realistic sounds and images being played all at ‘real-time’ makes the experience very real indeed. Although this kit is not cheap by any means, it is a safer way to train – reducing costs and potential loss of aircraft and crew. Computers these days are nearly as sophisticated as the most advanced flight training equipment, if not more-so. Thanks to Channel 5’s ‘Gadget Show’ it was only recently tested to see how a popular ‘off the shelf’ flight simulator enthusiast would fare in a real cockpit. Needless to say, the light aircraft and its two crew (including a professional pilot who’s skills were not called upon) successfully managed a flight and landing without any emergency.
Schools have been the testing ground for interaction between computers and children for years. With intelligent displays to aid in the education by replacing the humble blackboard, children are arguably the most exposed and technically interactive of any generation. Education has taken on a whole new level with 10-year-olds being the target for virtual lessons on dealing with bullying, gangs, drugs and even sexual predators. No longer are children, parents and teachers likely to breach the difficult topics like coping techniques or sexual education without the intervention of technology.
This possibly leads to the question where’s left to become virtual?
If the past and present are anything to go by, the future of VR looks very exciting. Potentially the Star Trek ‘holodeck’ is going to be upon us sooner than the next sequel film from this popular franchise hits the big screen. With 3D projectors installed in a number of cinemas, history has ended up not just being repeated but adapted, improved and re-packaged for us all to enjoy again! No doubt, this will pave the way for countless slasher flicks and badly scripted B movies to gain cult status purely for getting people to spill their ludicrously priced popcorn as they duck objects jumping out of the screen. Although not quite as common as 3D, cinemas have applied ‘smelly-vision’ before, by having scents being produced at certain points in a film to make it all more ‘real’. It’s not stretching too much of the imagination to put the two together and come up with a twist on 4D – let’s just hope that the first film chosen to do this on isn’t the Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles, due to the amount of time spent in the sewers!
Scaling this technology down, the interactive features available through the humble mobile phone could present the opportunity to not just post images, global position, tag and recorded sound but also relay interactive qualities added through online content and others. As scary as this brave new world could be, mobile phones could begin to replace the laptop with the new features and applications which are being introduced. With mobile phones outnumbering the number of people living in the UK Australia
It is a well coined phrase, but with great power, comes great responsibility - nowhere but within the realms of VR could this be more true. The Orwellian vision of Big Brother is taking steps closer through technology. Through triangulation your mobile phone signal can be used to help trace your whereabouts at any given moment. This is very welcome when used to intervene potential criminal activity e.g. grooming prone or susceptible people to radicalise or target. However, the worm turned recently when the police were caught out by protestors using mobile phones to record the events that took place at the London G20 summit demonstrations. This in turn, could force the hand of armed forces which have been looking into ways to prevent unnecessary loss of life for years. Many have looked into remote warfare, again developed through the research found in VR. It’s possible to take this to the next step and have wars and protests done in a controlled environment. To any online gamer out there, this would sound not too dissimilar to Unreal Tournament or Halo but if adapted for settling scores in real-life, without spilling any real blood can only be a good thing.
In light of the economic downturn, hassle during checking in at the airport and the medical issues that can be encountered abroad, the ideal holiday could be just a few clicks away. Why not virtually arrive at the desired idyllic beach with your family or even by yourself and explore the tropics without running the risk of some contracting some nasty illness? As long as you can walk back into the office with a tan, who’d really know any different?
Speaking of work, why not enjoy the workplace of your dreams? The possibility of sitting at home at a reasonable time being able to accomplish your work in virtual luxury is hugely desirable to any worker.
Lastly, human nature being what it is, man has always sought ways to attract the fairer sex. With more and more people experiencing alternative realities and delving into these fantasies, people are getting to breakdown initial barriers i.e. looks, smell, nerdy disposition or lack of any real friends, and show the ‘real’ them. Naturally this is a watershed moment, where some people can’t distinguish between the real world and the one online. If used in the right way it can help boost people’s esteem and develop people skills and grow the relationship into a healthy and conventional one or it can be abused and mislead the hapless Romeo’s and Juliet’s out there. Fortunately if you fall into the latter category, just remember at least you have one thing in common – you can talk about how VR’s forever!
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