Virtual reality: Is it real yet?
Article Abstract:
Virtual reality (VR) technology is already being explored for scientific and commercial applications and may one day have a profound impact on society. VR involves the computer-based creation of a totally artificial world or the reproduction of a remote but real location and the immersion of the senses of a participant in that three-dimensional environment. Using such aids as a head-mounted display to visually enter and move around in the VR, a glove that senses the position and flexing of a hand and fingers and other feedback tools, a participant can move around and manipulate objects in the VR just as if it was a real world. Research and development is being pursued in the use of VR to interact with scientific abstractions and complex phenomena such as studying airflow and manipulating molecules, to control remote robots, to visualize architectural models and to provide entertainment. The public, though, must act now to influence how VR is to be used and controlled.
Publication Name: Publish
Subject: Publishing industry
ISSN: 0897-6007
Year: 1991
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The fable of the pebble and the pond
Article Abstract:
The technological revolution is going to have a profound impact on every aspect of human society: from government and business to the way in which individuals relate to one another. Desktop publishing, and by extension, computer-mediated communication, can disintegrate familiar human communities and create new ones in their place, and it is the responsibility of the individual to recognize the potential of this power. Technology is at the center of change in today's world. New technologies are empowering; whoever controls the technology has power over those who do not. Therefore, it is essential that individuals pay close attention to the use and regulation of technology. The new power structures that emerge may make use of technology in ways that were not intended by the creators, and individuals must work to protect the civil rights of individuals and maintain a truly free and democratic society.
Publication Name: Publish
Subject: Publishing industry
ISSN: 0897-6007
Year: 1992
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