My name is Derrick Aragon and I’m a Sophomore majoring in Informatics with focus on Media Production and Journalism. I’ve done something similar to blog posts in the past so I’m kind of familiar and look forward to it.
Growing up I played all types of video games and even at one point dreamed about being in one as most kids do. One thing that continuously blows my mind is thinking about the major advancements in technology in just the 20 years of my existence. We have only really began to scratch the surface within these last couple of years but look what we have already.
Virtual Reality is something in particular that interests me, because visually some things feel disturbingly real and just standing around inside a world that was made with technology just baffles me. It has already been used to help people with phobias, such as a fear of heights but I’m especially curious to see the next advancements with Virtual Reality will be. Will we be able to replicate any other senses while playing like touch and sound and just how realistic can these worlds get?
Hello:
This subject seems very enticing. I can foresee virtual reality being used by those who are in the medical field for practice, from new surgeons, dental students, and first responders; and because virtual reality exist in a safe and controlled environment, miscalculations that could cause the loss of life, is nonexistent. Perhaps the medical students that take part in virtual reality training procedures develop their skills, which they can later apply to the tangible world. And from research, virtual reality has been showed to treat mental disorders. For example, phobias.
However, virtual reality therapy works because of a neurological trick scientists uncovered by comparing the brain pathways activated in phobics and non-phobics in the virtual environment. Non-phobics are quickly able to pick up the subtle details telling them the object is not real, such as the way the spider moves and reacts or the lack of motion in the virtual aeroplane. Phobics, however, instantly look for the cues they perceive to be relevant to their survival. The mere presence of the spider’s legs and motion in their direction is enough to trigger a strong emotional response – sufficient to initiate the corrective learning experience (Cox, 2014,para.13)
This is a good thing because virtual reality lets someone rehash their phobias without their emotions becoming overwhelming. But my question to you is this: How will you carry out this study? Maybe your proposed study group could involve video game enthusiasts to see if virtual reality gaming has any positive effects on their long-term memory.
Reference:
Cox, A. (16 Oct 2014.) Virtual reality can help people conquer their phobias. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2014/oct/16/virtual-reality-phobias-public-speaking-flying
It is crazy to see just how far VR tech has come. You bring up the idea of being able to replicate other senses and I cannot wrap my head around how it would possible to simulate touch. I think it is possible right now using the VR hand grips that are usually present to somewhat replicate touch in that they can use vibrations to make it feel like your hand would be touching something. In terms of actually replicating the feel of whatever object someone comes into contact with, I can’t think of a way that would be feasibly possible. Maybe that is something that might be possible with more advanced technology but right now, I think that is not achievable.