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Puttin’ on the Ritz and improving well-being with older adults through virtual music theatre

Digital programming and virtual interactions, initially considered to be stop-gap measures during the first few waves of the pandemic, may now be an important part of supporting many people’s health and well-being — including the well-being of older adults. During the COVID-19 pandemic, group musical activities moved online, prompting a wave of <a href="https://ericwhitacre.com/the-virtual-choir">virtual choir</a> experiments and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rzZ2F18MwI">virtual orchestra</a> offerings. These and other online communities weren’t limited to students. A <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/45-28-0001/2021001/article/00027-eng.htm">Statistics Canada survey</a> found that more than half of Canadians between the ages of 64 and 74 increased their participation in online activities during the pandemic by connecting with family and friends through video conferencing, or accessing entertainment online. Virtual opportunities in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0252956">performing arts are ripe with potential</a> for older adults to foster skills and creativity, and to improve well-being. <h2>Social connection</h2> <figure><figcaption> </figcaption>Going digital serves many purposes, the most important of which may be social connection. Since <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/23748834.2020.1788770">connecting with others</a> remains important for older adults, this can be achieved through, or in addition to, virtual leisure or entertainment opportunities.</figure> Our research has revealed that <a href="https://storage.googleapis.com/wzukusers/user-20563976/documents/598184972c66407e9334c5df1b37bb91/Renihan%2C%20Brook%2C%20Draisey-Collishaw.pdf">virtual music theatre — music theatre online — allows for a more accessible and a less exclusive way to engage with this art form</a> with many benefits for participants. <h2>Online performing arts</h2> The performing arts allow performers and audiences to feel, be creative in community, express themselves and communicate or play through song, movement or storytelling. Benefits associated with participation in the arts include <a href="https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/329834">improved mood and well-being</a> and sense of <a href="https://www.pbs.org/parents/thrive/turn-to-the-arts-to-boost-self-esteem">belonging</a>. Research has also documented associations between seniors’ participation in the arts and improved <a href="https://doi.org/10.1159/000499402">mobility</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.archger.2018.02.012">vocal health</a>. Before the pandemic erupted, we had started leading a program, <a href="http://www.riseshinesing.ca/">Rise, Shine, Sing!</a>, that created opportunities for local citizens typically excluded from the creation of music theatre due to age, ability and access. The program was mostly attended by older adults, some with Parkinson’s Disease or other chronic conditions. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/59MTQnoi2hU?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe><figcaption>A trailer for the ‘Rise, Shine, Sing!’ program.</figcaption></figure> We held three weekly face-to-face sessions from the end of February 2020, until mid-March, and then moved the program online (via Zoom) for 12 sessions from April until June 2020. The program continues to be offered, with many participants indicating a preference to continue virtually. Somewhat to our surprise, when the program moved online, the fact that participants could only hear the facilitator and themselves singing was not a deterrent to participating. Participants enjoyed singing, dancing and creating characters using costumes and props based on cues and feedback from facilitators. <h2>Paradigm shift for music theatre</h2> Virtual music theatre presents a serious paradigm shift for the genre. Most of the time when people think of music theatre, they think of live bodies moving in perfect synchrony <a href="https://www.americantheatre.org/2022/02/04/what-can-be-said-with-and-about-broadway-dance/">to choreographed movement</a>, and voices singing in perfect harmony while performers are physically present together. Researchers have examined how group singing and movement fosters togetherness, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-020-00549-0">community</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01096">social bonding</a>. Music theatre has made strides to become more inclusive over the course of the 21st century. <a href="https://www.deafwest.org/">Los-Angeles based Deaf West Theatre</a>, for example, creates works of music theatre that can be experienced and performed by members of the Deaf and hearing communities. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/k08lV8GO43w?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe><figcaption>ASL version of ‘We Don’t Talk About Bruno,’ from Disney’s ‘Encanto’ with Deaf West.</figcaption></figure> A multitude of new works, stagings and casting practices are highlighting and supporting the experiences of marginalized groups, by <a href="https://www.blackoperaalliance.org/">diversifying</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/arts9020069">queering</a> the field, for example. Such works offer resistance and new stories to an industry that has traditionally been ableist, white and ageist. But despite a healthy <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/beyond-broadway-9780190639525?cc=ca&lang=en&">community music theatre scene</a> in North America, most opportunities still leave out many people due to issues related to social anxiety, experience, mobility, family life and/or finances. <h2>Music theatre meets universal design</h2> We drew on the intersection of <a href="https://muse.jhu.edu/article/629960/pdf">music theatre performance</a> and <a href="https://www.cast.org/impact/universal-design-for-learning-udl">universal design for learning</a> to develop a model where success could look different from person to person. In terms of the movement, participants could synchronize with the facilitator and/or other members of the group. They were equally welcome and encouraged to customize or adapt their movements to suit their own needs and interests. We embraced dancing from both a seated and standing position, to explore different levels and to accommodate different mobility capabilities. Participants controlled how much they shared by deciding how visible they wanted to be on camera. <h2>Classics and newer numbers</h2> We drew on musical classics or standards from <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Singin-in-the-Rain-film-1952">Singin’ in the Rain</a>, the Sound of Music, <a href="https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/stage/2022/08/23/joseph-and-the-amazing-technicolor-dreamcoat-coming-to-toronto-as-a-test-run-for-possible-broadway-revival.html">Joseph and The Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat</a> — as well as newer numbers from Wicked and other popular songs. <figure class="align-left zoomable"><figcaption></figcaption></figure> We also <a href="http://www.riseshinesing.ca/glow.html">co-created our own songs</a> by combining our shared memories or inspirations through image, lyrics and movements to explore themes of joy and resilience in difficult times. While the program was led virtually, before sessions, leaders dropped off or mailed prop boxes to all participants. These were filled with costumes including small scarves and ribbons that could be used for choreography. <h2>Promise of virtual musical theatre</h2> Virtual music theatre has shown incredible promise, even in the short time we have been exploring it. Digital connections reframe being together at the same time and in the same space. This adds new unexpected dimensions to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-6632.2012.06530.x">making music in a group</a>. First, goals and expectations of uniformity are replaced with goals of individual empowerment and creative exploration. Second, participants remain committed to the community and group endeavour, but are also free to tailor and adapt the ways they engage with the material and with one another. If group members invite friends or family in other cities to participate virtually, as some in our group did, the virtual community also expands in meaningful ways. Finally, participants can also adjust their personal comfort by sharing as much or little of themselves with the group without feeling like they are letting the group down. <h2>Our hybrid future</h2> The pandemic catalyzed the need for virtual interaction. While we know that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/occmed/kqab041">Zoom fatigue</a> is pervasive, virtual opportunities for music theatre participation and creation offer a new paradigm of artistic experience. These opportunities also offer striking promise for bringing performers some of the <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00778">same benefits</a> as in-person music theatre experiences. In some cases, they also facilitate new access to music in community, and allow participants to engage with the art form and one another in ways that support personal agency and independence, while also maintaining social connection and interactivity. <a href="https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/6358131/George+Gershwin/I+Got+Rhythm">Who could ask for anything more</a>?<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/188690/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/julia-brook-1064153">Julia Brook</a>, Director and Associate Professor, DAN School of Drama and Music, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/queens-university-ontario-1154">Queen's University, Ontario</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/colleen-renihan-1044307">Colleen Renihan</a>, Associate Professor and Queen's National Scholar in Music Theatre and Opera, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/queens-university-ontario-1154">Queen's University, Ontario</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/puttin-on-the-ritz-and-improving-well-being-with-older-adults-through-virtual-music-theatre-188690">original article</a>.

Music

A robot dog with a virtual spinal cord can learn to walk in just one hour

We’ve all seen those adorable clips of newborn giraffes or foals first learning to walk on their shaky legs, stumbling around until they finally master the movements. Researchers wanted to know how animals learn to walk and learn from their stumbling, so they built a four-legged, dog-sized robot to simulate it, according to a new study <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s42256-022-00505-4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a> in Nature Machine Intelligence. They found that it took their robot and its virtual spinal cord just an hour to get its walking under control. Getting up and going quickly is essential in the animal kingdom to avoid predators, but learning how to co-ordinate leg muscles and tendons takes time. Initially, baby animals rely heavily on hard-wired spinal cord reflexes to co-ordinate muscle and tendon control, while motor control reflexes help them to avoid falling and hurting themselves during their first attempts. More precise muscle control must be practised until the nervous system adapts to the muscles and tendons, and the young are then able to keep up with the adults. “As engineers and roboticists, we sought the answer by building a robot that features reflexes just like an animal and learns from mistakes,” says first author Dr Felix Ruppert, a former doctoral student in the Dynamic Locomotion research group at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (MPI-IS), Germany. “If an animal stumbles, is that a mistake? Not if it happens once. But if it stumbles frequently, it gives us a measure of how well the robot walks.” <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"> <div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> <div class="entry-content-asset"> <div class="embed-wrapper"> <div class="inner"><iframe title="Learning Plastic Matching of Robot Dynamics in Closed-loop Central Pattern Generators" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/LPL6nvs_GEc?feature=oembed" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div> </div> </div> </div> </figure> Building a virtual spinal cord to learn how to walk The researchers designed a <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/machine-learning-tool-brain-injury/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">learning algorithm</a> to function as the robot’s spinal cord and work as what’s known as a Central Pattern Generator (CPG). In humans and animals, the CPGs are networks of neurons in the spinal cord that, without any input from the brain, produce periodic muscle contractions. These are important for rhythmic tasks like breathing, blinking, digestion and walking. <div class="newsletter-box"> <div id="wpcf7-f6-p198628-o1" class="wpcf7" dir="ltr" lang="en-US" role="form"> </div> </div> The CPG was simulated on a small and lightweight computer that controlled the motion of the robot’s legs and it was positioned on the robot where the head would be on a dog. The robot – which the researchers named Morti – was designed with sensors on its feet to measure information about its movement. Morti learnt to walk while having no prior explicit “knowledge” of its leg design, motors, or springs by continuously comparing the expected data (modelled from the virtual spinal cord) against the sensor data as it attempted to walk. “Our robot is practically ‘born’ knowing nothing about its leg anatomy or how they work,” Ruppert explains. “The CPG resembles a built-in automatic walking intelligence that nature provides and that we have transferred to the robot. The computer produces signals that control the legs’ motors and the robot initially walks and stumbles. “Data flows back from the sensors to the virtual spinal cord where sensor and CPG data are compared. If the sensor data does not match the expected data, the learning algorithm changes the walking behaviour until the robot walks well and without stumbling.” Sensor data from the robot’s feet are continuously compared with the expected touch-down data predicted by the robot’s CPG. If the robot stumbles, the learning algorithm changes how far the legs swing back and forth, how fast the legs swing, and how long a leg is on the ground. “Changing the CPG output while keeping reflexes active and monitoring the robot stumbling is a core part of the learning process,” Ruppert says. Within one hour, Morti can go from stumbling around like a newborn animal to walking, optimising its movement patterns faster than an animal and increasing its energy efficiency by 40%. “We can’t easily research the spinal cord of a living animal. But we can model one in the robot,” says co-author Dr Alexander Badri-Spröwitz, head of the Dynamic Locomotion research group. “We know that these CPGs exist in many animals. We know that reflexes are embedded; but how can we combine both so that animals learn movements with reflexes and CPGs? “This is fundamental research at the intersection between robotics and biology. The robotic model gives us answers to questions that biology alone can’t answer.” <img id="cosmos-post-tracker" style="opacity: 0; height: 1px!important; width: 1px!important; border: 0!important; position: absolute!important; z-index: -1!important;" src="https://syndication.cosmosmagazine.com/?id=198628&title=A+robot+dog+with+a+virtual+spinal+cord+can+learn+to+walk+in+just+one+hour" width="1" height="1" /> <div id="contributors"> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/technology/robot-machine-learning-to-walk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">This article</a> was originally published on <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cosmos Magazine</a> and was written by <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/contributor/imma-perfetto" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Imma Perfetto</a>. Imma Perfetto is a science writer at Cosmos. She has a Bachelor of Science with Honours in Science Communication from the University of Adelaide. Dynamic Locomotion Group (YouTube) </div>

Technology

Take a trip through an ancient home in Pompeii

Archeologists have recreated a Pompeiian villa that was destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 C.E. Through the use of VR (virtual reality), researchers have carefully created a digital model of the ancient residence to better understand how visitors would have seen the home, according to <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/antiquity/article/reviewing-pompeian-domestic-space-through-combined-virtual-realitybased-eye-tracking-and-3d-gis/E82035C72C580D9602CCF00D625BC65D">the recently published paper in the </a><a href="https://www.artnews.com/t/archaeology/">archaeology</a> journal Antiquity. The villa, known as the House of the Epigrams, was excavated in the 1870s and so named because it contains mythical paintings accompanied by Greek epigrams. While the identity of the owner is impossible to determine, researchers have suggested it may have belonged to a Lucius Valerius Flaccus due to a signet ring bearing his sigil being discovered there. The paper, titled “Re-viewing Pompeian domestic space through combined virtual reality-based eye tracking and 3D GIS,” was written by PhD. candidate Danilo M. Campanaro and Professor Giacomo Landeschi, who are both affiliated with the Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Lund University, Sweden. <iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9t39at8xgLw" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> Through extensive research, the authors of the paper have been able to determine what decorations to use in the recreation, as well as uncovering how the opulent villa would be viewed by residents of Pompeii of various social and economic classes. This recreation is the first of its kind in the studies of ancient Pompeii, with the research findings showcasing a different quality of life for locals before their city was destroyed. Image credits: YouTube

Art

Daunted by therapy? Virtual reality could be the answer

If opening up to a therapist seems like a near-impossible task, new research shows that you’re not the only one - and proposes a new option that could soon be available. A study from Edith Cowan University, published in <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frvir.2021.750729/full" target="_blank">Frontiers in Virtual Reality</a>, found that 30 percent of people surveyed would rather talk about negative experiences with a virtual reality (VR) avatar than a real-life person. Researchers created a ‘realistic motion avatar’ that appeared similar to its real-life counterpart, then compared the social interactions between people talking to the avatar versus a real person. Participants then rated their experience on factors such as enjoyment, comfort, awkwardness, perceived understanding, and how much they think they disclosed about themselves. Dr Shane Rogers, a psychology and communication researcher involved in the study, said participants found VR and face-to-face interactions to be quite similar in all but one way. “Overall, people rated VR social interaction as similar to face-to-face interaction, with the exception of closeness, where people tended to feel a little closer with each other when face-to-face,” Dr Rogers <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.scimex.org/newsfeed/virtual-reality-could-help-make-therapy-easier" target="_blank">said</a>. “This technology has the potential for broad application across a number of areas such as casual conversation, business, tourism, education and therapy,” he said. “The study found that 30 percent of people preferred disclosing negative experiences via VR. This means that therapy might be opened up to new people who don’t feel comfortable with traditional face-to-face interactions.” <img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7846832/vr1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/b6881ee566e74d5ba66c6e6a0c91129a" /> Virtual reality has been used in video games for several years now, but new research shows it can also be used in mental health settings. Image: Getty Images Though VR has been around for several years, the new research is among several new studies and initiatives applying the technology to treat mental health conditions. In the United States, veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) are being treated with the assistance of VR, which can transport them back to traumatic experiences - even if they struggle to remember the event or other details. The tech has also been used in “empathy training”, where clinicians wear VR headsets to better understand what patients in their care are experiencing, particularly for veterans with dementia or older LGBTQ veterans. “Now what you hear and what you see in front of your eyes is the same thing as a patient who’s experiencing dementia or an LGBTQ vertan who’s ageing,” Anne Lord Bailey, a pharmacist and director of clinical tech innovation involved in the scheme, told <a rel="noopener" href="https://fedtechmagazine.com/article/2021/12/how-va-using-vr-veterans-therapy-perfcon" target="_blank">FedTech</a>. “All of a sudden, people start talking to you and what you hear is muddled, or your vision doesn’t see what you should be seeing. It looks distorted, or I can’t hear things because they’re not clear, even though I can tell that people are talking to me. Or, I get disoriented: I try to turn to the right, and things are shifty or crooked.” Meanwhile, the UK NHS launched a treatment plan last year using VR to treat patients with trypanophobia, or a phobia of needles, ahead of their Covid vaccinations. Patients are treated by being exposed to scenarios such as a medical waiting room or blood draw, to help therapists treat patients’ fears in a controlled environment. “VR is very effective at bridging the gap between real-life exposure and what the patient feels able to do at the time they enter treatment,” Vanessa Dodds, a cognitive behavioural therapist involved in the UK program, told <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.medicaldevice-network.com/news/needle-phobia-vr/" target="_blank">Medical Device Network</a>. Dr Rogers echoed this sentiment, adding that improvements in the technology will improve its affordability and accessibility as a treatment option - with applications beyond therapy as well. “It might also enable therapists to conduct therapy more effectively at a distance, as a person can be in the therapist room (in virtual reality) while seated in their own home,” he said. “More powerful computers are becoming more affordable, VR headsets are continuing to develop, and more user-friendly VR interaction software platforms are becoming more available and being updated.” Following the work by Dr Rogers and his colleagues, future steps will involve more investigation of how different aspects of the avatar affect user experience, as well as how VR can be used in therapeutic settings. Image: Getty Images

Mind

Centenarian's priceless reaction to virtual tour of childhood town

A 100-year-old grandmother has broken down in tears while exploring her hometown in Armenia through the use of a virtual reality headset. The woman, who now lives in the US, became emotional while using VR to take a tour around her hometown of Vagharshapat - something she never thought she would do again. Upon seeing the Etchmiadzin Cathedral that she used to visit as a child, she was hit by a wave of emotion and started to tear up. The woman's granddaughter, Michelle, captured the heart-warming moment and shared it on TikTok, where it racked up over three million views in just a few days. Michelle captioned the video, "Showing my 100-year-old Armenian grandma the Etchmiadzin Cathedral in virtual reality," that shows her grandmother, whom they call Nene. <div class="embed"><iframe class="embedly-embed" src="https://cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2Fembed%2F7034663525347953967&display_name=tiktok&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40shmellywelly%2Fvideo%2F7034663525347953967%3Flang%3Den%26is_copy_url%3D1%26is_from_webapp%3Dv1&key=59e3ae3acaa649a5a98672932445e203&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=tiktok" width="340" height="700" scrolling="no" title="tiktok embed" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe></div> <div class="embed">Nene dons the extravagant VR headset while her family members instruct her to look around, as they follow what she is seeing on their own screen.</div> Suddenly, Nene becomes emotional, as someone behind the camera asks, "Why are you crying?" "It's so beautiful," she responds, attempting to wipe away her tears with a tissue. The breathtaking Etchmiadzin Cathedral is often considered the oldest cathedral in the world, and a shrine for Armenian Christians. The comments on Michelle's video were flooded by people praising the sweet gesture, as one person said, "This is what VR should be used for." Another commenter noted, "She went from a time when televisions didn't exist to VR in her living room. Protect and love this sweet woman." Image credits: TikTok @shmellywelly

Technology

Antarctica without windchill, the Louvre without queues: how to travel the world from home

SpaceX’s recent <a href="https://theconversation.com/spacexs-historic-launch-gives-australias-booming-space-industry-more-room-to-fly-139760">Falcon 9 rocket launch</a> proves humanity has come leaps and bounds in its effort to reach other worlds. But now there’s a quicker, safer and environmentally friendlier way to travel to the centre of the galaxy – and you can do it too. <a href="https://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2020/gcenter/">NASA</a> has co-developed a free virtual reality (VR) adventure providing 500 years of travel around the black hole at the centre of the Milky Way. The experience is available to download from two major VR stores, <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/1240350/Galactic_Center_VR/">Steam</a> and <a href="https://www.viveport.com/21f8b24c-783b-4af2-8e81-a63a14553721">Viewport</a>, in a non-collapsed star system near you. And this kind of spacefaring may be the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the potential of virtual travel and tourism. <h2>The virtual travel bug</h2> Simply speaking, VR refers to technology that immerses users in a computer-generated world that removes them from reality. Augmented Reality (AR), however, aims to superimpose virtual imagery over a user’s view of the real world. Pokémon Go is a popular AR game. VR-based tourism has a longer history than you might think. In the 1850s, it involved staring at <a href="https://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/stereo/background.html">stereographs</a> with a <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/sterographs-original-virtual-reality-180964771/">stereoscope</a>. With this invention, viewers looked at slightly different images through each eye, which were then assembled by the brain to make a new image providing the illusion of spatial depth (in other words, a 3D effect). A century later, 1950s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinerama">Cinerama</a> widescreen viewing inspired cinematic travel though its large, curved screens and multiple cameras. The 1960s <a href="https://www.engadget.com/2014-02-16-morton-heiligs-sensorama-simulator.html">Sensorama</a> foretold a shiny future of multimodal immersive cinematic experiences, playing 3D films with sound, scents and wind to immerse users. In <a href="https://www.vrs.org.uk/virtual-reality/history.html">VR circles</a>, Ivan Sutherland became famous for inventing the head-mounted display, as well as augmented reality (AR). Travel restrictions under COVID-19 <a href="https://www.ft.com/virtualtravel">present an opportunity</a> for virtual reality travel to finally take off. In an era of lockdowns and social distancing, we could use VR to travel to remote, distant or even no longer existing places. Remote tourism is here (the <a href="https://www.remote-tourism.com/">Faroe Islands</a> offers a great example), and interest in VR tourism is <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/solrogers/2020/03/18/virtual-reality-and-tourism-whats-already-happening-is-it-the-future/#5b39a26228a6">blossoming</a>. <h2>VR comes in many forms</h2> The word “virtual” can refer to an immersive 3D experience, but also 360° panorama photographs and movies (a <a href="https://wiki.panotools.org/Panorama_formats">cylinder, sphere or cube of photographs</a>). What is deemed “virtual” varies greatly across different devices and platforms. Let’s look at some of the ways this term is applied. Desktop virtual environments: these are computer-based 3D environments on a flat screen, without the spatial immersion of VR platforms. Cinematic VR: these are phone-based panoramic environments. Many desktop experiences of 360° movies or images can be conveyed in low-cost <a href="https://arvr.google.com/cardboard/">stereoscopic VR through smartphones</a>. Google Street view can be viewed in <a href="https://www.blog.google/products/google-vr/get-closer-look-street-view-google-earth-vr/">Google VR</a> on Android and <a href="https://3g.co.uk/guides/what-smartphones-work-with-virtual-reality">some Apple</a> smartphones, but it’s not real VR. Head-mounted displays: HMDs such as <a href="https://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-Google-Cardboard/">Google Cardboard</a> and <a href="https://arvr.google.com/daydream/smartphonevr/">Google Daydream</a> are what many people think of when they hear “virtual reality”. Some HMDs are self-contained, not requiring connection to a computer or console. Arguably, the market is <a href="https://3dinsider.com/oculus-vs-htc-vive-vs-psvr/">dominated</a> by the Oculus range owned by Facebook, the HTC Vive range, and PlayStation VR. <h2>VR in a pandemic</h2> In a post-coronavirus age, device sharing is problematic. HMDs aren’t easy to clean and VR software can quickly become obsolete, with new headsets sometimes not running two-year-old software. Users also have to deal with costly updates, eyestrain, and having to share displays that sat on someone else’s face. Developing and sharing content across different devices can be a nightmare but there are increasingly <a href="https://www.vrtourviewer.com/">simple</a> and effective ways to create <a href="https://www.pocket-lint.com/ar-vr/news/google/142054-google-arcore-android-s-equivalent-to-apple-arkit-explained">AR</a> and VR content, despite a bewildering range of platforms and equipment (there are more than <a href="https://www.archives.gov/files/applied-research/ncsa/8-an-overview-of-3d-data-content-file-formats-and-viewers.pdf">140 3D file formats</a>). Despite this, many VR projects are not preserved – including <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/8/2425">virtual heritage</a>projects! Even for the largest HMD companies, supplies can be <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/20/21177442/half-life-alyx-vr-headset-compatible-valve-oculus-rift-quest-htc-steamvr-available">limited</a>. <h2>Places you can virtually visit now</h2> Nonetheless, there are plenty of VR programs available to help relieve lockdown boredom, with many sites <a href="https://www.digitaltrends.com/virtual-reality/best-virtual-reality-apps/">offering</a> <a href="https://www.lifewire.com/virtual-reality-tourism-4129394">lists</a> of their favourite picks. The Street View app for Google Daydream and Cardboard provides a “virtual tour” of <a href="https://chernobyl-city.com/virtual-tour/">Chernobyl</a>. <a href="https://earth.google.com/web/@-10.50049963,35.75744511,1062.93460117a,116.59974009d,35y,0h,0t,0r/data=CisSKRIgMzczNGFmOTk5MTIzMTFlOTliOTNjYmE2MDYxMWYzYzMiBXNwbC0w">Google Earth</a> and <a href="https://earth.google.com/web/@-10.50049963,35.75744511,1062.93460117a,116.59974009d,35y,0h,0t,0r/data=CgQSAggB">Google Earth Voyager</a> feature travel sections, too. <a href="https://arvr.google.com/earth/">Google Earth VR</a> is available on the <a href="http://store.steampowered.com/app/348250/Google_Earth_VR/">HTC Vive</a> and <a href="https://www.oculus.com/experiences/rift/1513995308673845/">Oculus Rift</a>. <a href="https://www.vrfocus.com/tag/tourism/">VRfocus</a> also has an interesting travel section. You can virtually explore <a href="https://grandtour.myswitzerland.com/">Switzerland</a> or <a href="https://www.virtualyosemite.org/">Yosemite</a>. Or you may want to stay in Australia. Australian company <a href="http://whitesparkpictures.com.au/">White Spark Pictures’</a>Cinematic/360 experience of <a href="https://www.dneg.com/antarctica_vr/">Antarctica</a> tours museums. Melbourne-based company <a href="https://www.lithodomosvr.com/">Lithodomos</a> brings “the ancient world to life” and <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=no.hallingdata.hiddenar&hl=en_AU">Hidden AR</a> offers mythical augmented reality. Other links to check out include: <ul> <li>the Guardian’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2020/mar/23/10-of-the-worlds-best-virtual-museum-and-art-gallery-tours">review</a> of the world’s best virtual museum and art gallery tours</li> <li><a href="https://artsandculture.google.com/">Google Arts and Culture’s</a> virtual tours and online exhibits from myriad <a href="https://artsandculture.google.com/partner?hl=en">museums and galleries</a>, as well as scavenger hunts – including at <a href="https://artsandculture.google.com/project/virtual-tours">the British Museum</a></li> <li>the Louvre’s <a href="https://arts.vive.com/us/articles/projects/art-photography/mona_lisa_beyond_the_glass/">Mona Lisa: Beyond the Glass</a></li> <li>the <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/515020/The_VR_Museum_of_Fine_Art/">VR Museum of Fine Art</a>.</li> <li>Europeana’s <a href="https://teachwitheuropeana.eun.org/stories-of-implementation/implementation-of-vintage-vr-soi-hr-109/">vintage stereo VR</a> and <a href="https://pro.europeana.eu/data/vintage-stereoscope-cards">examples</a> of how to create stories and <a href="https://teachwitheuropeana.eun.org/learning-scenarios/vintage-vr-ls-es-14/">lessons</a> with stereosonic VR prints</li> <li>The Smithsonian’s <a href="https://naturalhistory.si.edu/visit/virtual-tour">virtual tour</a> and downloadable <a href="https://3d.si.edu/">3D artefacts</a>, including a tour of a <a href="https://airandspace.si.edu/vrhangar">hangar</a> from the National Air and Space Museum</li> <li><a href="https://sketchfab.com/museums">Sketchfab</a>’s cultural heritage section which can be accessed through <a href="https://sketchfab.com/virtual-reality">VR headsets or Google Cardboard-enabled smartphones</a>. There’s also a places and travel <a href="https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/categories/places-travel?date=week&sort_by=-likeCount">section</a>.</li> </ul> Image credits: Getty Images This article was originally published on <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/antarctica-without-windchill-the-louvre-without-queues-how-to-travel-the-world-from-home-140174" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>.

Travel Tips

10 ways to experience the world from home

Welcome aboard Armchair Airlines, equipped to take you out of your living room and to your next virtual vacation. Going in and out of lockdown has been a total drag and we're counting down the days to when our lives can go back to normal. For those sick of trying to fill the hours of lockdown, here are 10 online experiences you can safely enjoy from your living room bubble. <img style="width: 0px; height: 0px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7843716/gettyimages-1166558312.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/4a0a33be212b4bedb471c4613e83857b" /> Image: Getty Images For the chefs who want to learn how to make more than just banana bread <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g304554-d20376822-Small_Group_Authentic_Mumbai_Virtual_Cooking_Class_with_Dessert-Mumbai_Maharashtra.html" target="_blank">Small Group Authentic Mumbai Virtual Cooking Class with Dessert</a> Learn how to make Pav Bhaji and Rice Kheer from Kajal. Based in Mumbai, Kajal picked up authentic home-style family recipes from her mom and sister. In 2017 she started hosting food tours and Pav Bhaji was always one of the most popular dishes. This Maharashtrian delicacy is a thick vegetable curry made from seasonal vegetables, potatoes, tomatoes and onions served with pav, which is a bread roll topped with butter and best served hot. The word 'pav' comes from the Portuguese word for bread and 'bhaji' in Marathi means a vegetable dish. <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g189433-d20369790-Virtual_Private_Cooking_Class_Live_from_Santorini-Santorini_Cyclades_South_Aegean.html" target="_blank">Virtual Private Cooking Class Live from Santorini</a> Have you been to Greece? Kathrin’s booked you a first-class ticket, ready to teach you how to make her famous Santorini Tomato fritters. In the class, feel free to chat with Kathrin as she shares all she knows about the food, culture and traditions of her home, Greece. <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g298082-d20952623-Virtual_Experience_Cocktails_Stories_From_Vietnam-Hoi_An_Quang_Nam_Province.html" target="_blank">Cocktails & Stories From Vietnam</a> Shake up a cocktail or two with bartenders and mixologists in Vietnam. Learn how to create some classics like the Daiquiri, Mojito and Espresso Martini but each with a local twist. So whether you’ve been to Asia and miss its flavors or would like to learn about them – this experience is for you. <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g312741-d20937277-Argentinean_Empanadas_cooking_Virtual_Live_experience-Buenos_Aires_Capital_Federal.html" target="_blank">Argentinean Empanadas cooking</a> The gastronomy of Argentina combines influences from Creole, native, Spanish and Italian food. Learn to whip up some tasty empanadas as Camila teaches you more about typical Argentine foods. <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g294316-d20987011-Virtual_Peruvian_Cooking_Class_Lomo_Saltado-Lima_Lima_Region.html" target="_blank">Peruvian Cooking Class "Lomo Saltado"</a> Hang out with Chef David as he teaches you how to make Lomo Saltado, a popular, traditional Peruvian stir fry dish. Also pick up interesting stories and background on Peruvian culture and heritage as you travel with your tastebuds. For a little meditative break <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g188644-d20384882-Yoga_and_Mindful_Conversation_with_a_Brussels_Local_Online_Experience-Brussels.html" target="_blank">Yoga and Mindful Conversation with a Brussels Local </a> Start your journey to achieving a balance between mind and body with Shanthuru. Practice Yoga together and dive into the world of mindfulness conversations. Shanthuru can tell you all about vegan food culture in Brussels and beyond. Wherever you are on your journey, a beginner or advanced, Shanturu can make this experience customizable to ensure it’s tailored to your level. <img style="width: 500px; height: 333.3333333333333px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7843715/gettyimages-967871316.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/356e858db0eb4eed9baf3f2311ee4586" /> Images: Getty Images To walk the streets of a different city <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g187497-d20434781-Best_of_Barcelona_Live_Virtual_Tour-Barcelona_Catalonia.html" target="_blank">Best of Barcelona Live Virtual Tour</a> Walk the streets of Barcelona in this small group guided virtual tour. Learn more about the iconic attractions in Barcelona including the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia, Parc Guell and the Gothic Quarter (Barri Gotic). An interactive experience from home, full of stories, anecdotes and insights, including quizzes, polls and live Q&A session with your guide. <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g187323-d20433091-Best_of_Berlin_Private_Live_Virtual_Experience-Berlin.html" target="_blank">Best of Berlin - Private Live Virtual Experience</a> If you’re starting to feel down about not being able to travel, the next best thing is a virtual tour that allows you to explore the world from home. This tour takes you through Berlin’s top monuments and popular spots in the city, including the Reichstag Building, Tiergarten, Soviet War Memorial, and Brandenburg Gate. <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g297683-d21032853-Taj_Mahal_Virtual_Tour_with_a_Guide_Online_Experience-Agra_Agra_District_Uttar_Pra.html" target="_blank">Taj Mahal Virtual Tour with a Guide</a> Learn from a local the beautiful love story behind the iconic Taj Mahal and what it took to build this historic monument. The virtual tour will take you through the history, intricate design details and different areas of the estate. Your tour guide will also be able to share more about Indian culture and heritage. <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g294217-d21190627-Old_Town_Central_A_Real_Time_Online_Tour_in_Hong_Kong-Hong_Kong.html" target="_blank">Old Town Central: A Real-Time Online Tour in Hong Kong</a> Walk the busy streets of Hong Kong with a friendly expert guide that will take you through a bustling open-air market dotted with small traditional shops to show you their curious trade practices. Got a question? You can ask the shopkeeper directly! Enjoy this hour-long tour from the comfort of your home. The group size is small and intimate so that you can interact directly with your guide, who lives in this very neighbourhood and you’ll get to mingle with virtual travellers from other parts of the world too!

International Travel

Take a virtual tour of New York’s brand new Legoland

The first theme park to open in the Northeast United States in 40 years pays homage to a beloved toy. Legoland New York opened its doors to the public last week, with seven different lands for kids and adults to explore. The opening comes as a sign of relief for the state and industry that have both been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. “The pandemic took a devastating toll on New York, and as we make our comeback, the new Legoland New York Resort in Orange County is a testament to the resilience and ingenuity that this state has always been known for,” <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-cuomo-announces-full-opening-theme-park-legolandr-new-york-resort-orange-county" target="_blank">Governor Andrew Cuomo said</a> in a statement on Friday. “This is historic,” Cuomo said. “This is the first new theme park in the Northeast United States in 40 years.” The theme park features 50 rides stretched out across 520 acres. Built in Goshen, a village in Orange County, the theme park is roughly 95 kilometres from Manhattan. Reservations are required and the park uses a cashless system for tickets, games, food and other services. Images: legoland.newyork / Instagram

International Travel

Over-60s make the leap to virtual “Feisty Feet” dance classes

<a href="https://nzdc.org.nz/education/feisty-feet">Feisty Feet</a> is an over 60s seniors dance class created and facilitated by The New Zealand Dance Company (NZDC), which brings together the wisdom keepers of our communities to express and enjoy themselves through dance. Feisty Feet classes, certified by the <a href="https://www.livestronger.org.nz/">Live Stronger for Longer</a> intiative, are held weekly at two Auckland locations in Takapuna and Point Chevalier, but can now also be accessed from anywhere across New Zealand through a weekly Virtual Class. NZDC tutor <a href="https://nzdc.org.nz/our-team/kerry-ann-stanton">Kerry-Ann Stanton</a>, who manages the class in Pt. Chevalier, has been teaching and developing Feisty Feet from its inception in 2016. Kerry-Ann says, “I enjoy bringing the joys of movement to people in their older age. Dance has been shown to have a positive influence on people, such as a reduced risk of dementia, reduced stress and depression, providing increased energy and serotonin. These classes are fun, inclusive of all cultures and are a great way to make new friends.” Like most activities in 2020, Feisty Feet was affected by COVID-19, but in a positive way. The disappointment regular class-goers expressed about missing their weekly class during lockdown inspired NZDC to move Feisty Feet online. The Company wanted to stay connected with its seniors dance community from the safety of their homes as a means of combatting loneliness during the isolation period and supporting physical and mental wellbeing. <a href="https://nzdc.org.nz/our-team/carlene-newall-de-jesus">Carlene Newall de Jesus</a>, a community dance advocate, specialist, and lecturer at the University of Auckland is also a core facilitator for Feisty Feet, developing and teaching NZDC’s Takapuna class. She reflects,“The transition to virtual classes was surprisingly smooth. After initially worrying that being together across our screens would be too removed and distanced, it became clear that even in this digital space, physical exploration and connection was still possible. As the virtual classes developed I began to appreciate homes spaces as dancing places and found ways to allow individual contribution even in the digital space.” Survey feedback from class participants also showcased that the benefits of a Feisty Feet class were not lost when moving to an online class. One participant shares, “Although I've never attended a dance class before, learning flowing movements and practising coordination, balance and memory and enjoying the friendly faces of other participants and the encouragement of the tutors got me moving and made me feel content in myself.” Another participant enjoyed the “extra physical movement, using whole body and the associated wellbeing and inspiration and pleasure of communication and meeting new dancers as well as learning new IT skills.” An additional participant reflected how it was “easy to access, no embarassment as on [your] own and no time lost in transportation” Carlene encapsulates the intention of Feisty Feet classes and the desire at NZDC to continue to offer the online class alongside in-person classes: “I believe dance offers a unique combination of exercise, creativity, cognition and socialisation that can be beneficial for older bodies, brains and general wellbeing. The digital platform allows older adults who may not have access to appropriate dance classes in their region, or who are unable to travel to classes, a chance to dance, move and express. Aotearoa is made up of more than just large cities and I am excited to see what sense of community can develop across older New Zealanders from diverse towns and regions.” More Information: <a href="https://nzdc.org.nz/education/feisty-feet">nzdc.org.nz/education/feisty-feet</a> VIRTUAL WHERE: Online through Zoom WHEN: Every Friday 9-10am TUTOR: Carlene Newall de Jesus COST: $10 per session. Register ahead of class here: <a href="https://bit.ly/virtualfeistyfeet">https://bit.ly/virtualfeistyfeet</a> TAKAPUNA WHERE: St Peters Anglican Church, 11 Killarney Street, Takapuna WHEN: Every Wednesday 10-11am until 16 December 2020 TUTOR: Carlene Newall de Jesus COST: $10 per session or $90 for 10 sessions. Pay in person before class with cash. POINT CHEVALIER WHERE: Subud Hall, 19 Formby Rd, Pt Chevalier WHEN: Every Wednesday 11am-noon until 16 December 2020 TUTOR: Kerry-Anny Stanton COST: $10 per session or $90 for 10 sessions. Pay in person before class with cash. Photos by Caroline Bindon and Ashley David.

Retirement Life

Duchess Kate surprises schoolchildren in a virtual assembly

The Duchess of Cambridge has surprised young students across the United Kingdom by popping in virtually to lead their online assembly. The Duchess spoke with students from Waterloo Primary Academy in Blackpool as part of the special assembly for Oak National Academy, an online classroom founded in response to the coronavirus lockdown. The site has delivered more than 12 million lessons to young people. In the speech, which was pre-recorded from Anmer Hall, Kate discussed the importance of kindness and being nice to others amid the pandemic. <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CBh6Ka4AIRv/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CBh6Ka4AIRv/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">Drumroll please... 🥁🥁🥁⠀ ⠀ This week, we're absolutely thrilled to have The Duchess of Cambridge leading our assembly on kindness ❗️❤️👫⠀ ⠀ Her Royal Highness and the lovely pupils from Waterloo Primary Academy will be exploring what it means to be kind 😁⠀ ⠀ This assembly was created in collaboration with children's mental health charity @_place2be⠀ ⠀ Don't miss it this Thursday at 10am on the @tesnews YouTube channel!⠀ ⠀ @kensingtonroyal</a> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/oaknational/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank"> Oak National Academy</a> (@oaknational) on Jun 17, 2020 at 1:40am PDT </div> </blockquote> “Being unable to see your friends or spend time with your family will undoubtedly be frustrating for you, just as it is for them. It’s been a really difficult time for us all,” she said. “But it’s important to know that these feelings and frustrations are totally normal, and that they won’t last forever.” She encouraged the students to talk to “a friend, family member or teacher” to help them manage their feelings. “You can also play your part in helping others to feel better too, whether offering a friendly ear, or helping someone in need. Small acts of kindness can go such a long way.” She also asked the students what kindness meant to them, with the answers ranging from “sharing” to “[treating] people how you want to be treated”. Matt Hood, principal at Oak National Academy thanked the Duchess for her virtual appearance. “We’re thrilled that The Duchess of Cambridge was able to lead this week’s assembly on acts of kindness. Being kind and considerate is a vital lesson for children at any time, but especially so in the current pandemic,” he said. “We must encourage young people to talk about their feelings and to know that it’s normal to feel a bit anxious or upset right now.”

Beauty & Style

The Nanny cast reunites for virtual pilot re-enactment

The cast of beloved ‘90s sitcom The Nanny has come together for a YouTube reunion, more than 20 years after the show aired its final episode. Fran Drescher and 13 of her former co-stars gathered via video conferencing platform Zoom for a reading of the show’s 1993 pilot amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Titled “The Nanny Episode 1: Pandemic Table Read”, the 33-minute video posted to YouTube featured Drescher as the main character Fran Fine, Charles Shaughnessy (Maxwell Sheffield), Daniel Davis (Niles), Lauren Lane (C.C. Babcock), Nicholle Tom (Maggie Sheffield), Benjamin Salisbury (Brighton Sheffield), Alex Sternin (Eddie), Renee Taylor (Sylvia Fine), Madeline Zima (Grace Sheffield), DeeDee Rescher (Dottie) Rachel Chagall (Val) and Jonathan Penner (Danny). <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"><iframe class="embed-responsive-item" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/C3a6KuP1X14"></iframe></div> Co-creator Peter Marc Jacobson and composer Ann Hampton Callaway were also featured in the special event, with Jacobson reading the script directions and Callaway singing the theme song. “Laughter is the best medicine,” Drescher said in a statement. “So, in these challenging times, Petah and I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if we pulled together the original cast of The Nanny for a virtual read of the pilot?’ “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic performance for our fans around the world who are currently stressing in isolation and could use a real upper! It sure has given each of us a lift, and we hope it does for you as well.”

4 virtual tours you can do from the comfort of your home

More and more people are cancelling their trips and staying indoors in an effort to limit the spread of the new coronavirus. However, you can still explore other parts of the world from the comfort of your home. Here are some virtual tours you can go on. <ol> <li> Wellington, New Zealand</li> </ol> While the capital of New Zealand remains physically off limits, aspiring visitors can take a stroll around the city through a virtual reality game. In WellTown, which is described as “the world’s first gamified virtual city”, people can try out different Wellingtonian experiences, ranging from an underwater dive in the capital’s harbour to a stargazing session during Matariki. Users can also stand next to the All Blacks at Westpac Stadium as well as tour the National Museum of New Zealand Te Papa and learn more about movie production at the Oscar-winning Weta Workshop. Those with VR headsets can access the interactive experiences through Steam and Oculus VR stores. Some of the 360-virtual trips have also been made available on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSYQLfOl2OcLb7R5PRLPeczsSy5ohZqgc">Youtube</a>. <ol start="2"> <li> Yosemite National Park, US</li> </ol> While the Californian national park is closed indefinitely in the wake of the growing pandemic in the US, visitors can zip around the cliffs and waterfalls through the <a href="https://www.virtualyosemite.org/">Virtual Yosemite site</a>. Trail across the famous Half Dome, see the majestic view of Washburn Point from the Glacier Point Road and watch the dawn break at the million-year-old Mono Lake. <ol start="3"> <li> Musée d’Orsay, Paris, France</li> </ol> The Paris museum boasts a vast trove of paintings, sculptures, furniture and photography – all of which can be viewed on <a href="https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/musee-dorsay-paris?hl=en">Google Arts & Culture</a>. The collection ranges from Vincent Van Gogh’s iconic Self-Portrait to Alexandre Cabanel’s The Birth of Venus. You can also click on the artist to find more of their works on the platform. <ol start="4"> <li> Georgia Aquarium, Atlanta, US</li> </ol> Zoos across the world have closed their doors until further notice, but Georgia Aquarium is offering live views of their marine animals through <a href="https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/webcam/beluga-whale-webcam/">special webcams</a>. See how African penguins, beluga whales and sea otters spend their day with no human visitors, or learn more fun facts about harbor seals and puffins on the animal guide.

International Travel

The problem with virtual reality is endless possibilities

Just a few years ago, virtual reality (VR) was being showered with very real money. The industry raised an estimated US$900 million in venture capital in 2016, but by 2018 that figure had <a href="https://content.fortune.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/vir_graphic_01.png">plummeted to US$280 million</a>. <a href="https://www.oculus.com/?locale=en_US">Oculus</a> - the Facebook-owned company behind one of the most popular VR headsets on the market - <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com.au/how-facebooks-oculus-go-santa-cruz-headsets-plan-to-make-vr-mainstream-2017-10">planned to deliver 1 billion headsets to consumers</a>, but as of last year had <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com.au/mark-zuckerberg-facebook-oculus-vr-bet-taking-longer-than-expected-2019-10?r=US&IR=T">sold barely 300,000</a>. Investments in VR entertainment venues all over the world, VR cinematic experiences, and specialised VR studios such as <a href="https://atap.google.com/spotlight-stories/">Google Spotlight</a> and <a href="https://www.ccpgames.com/">CCP Games</a> have either significantly downsized, closed down or morphed into new ventures. What is happening? Recent articles in <a href="https://fortune.com/longform/virtual-reality-struggle-hope-vr/">Fortune</a> and <a href="https://www.theverge.com/a/virtual-reality">The Verge</a> have voiced disdain with VR technology. Common complaints include expensive, clunky or uncomfortable hardware, and unimaginative or repetitive content. Sceptics have compared VR experiences to the 3D television fad of the early 2010s. As a VR researcher and developer, I understand the scepticism. Yet I believe in this technology, and I know there are “killer apps” and solutions waiting to be discovered. Last week, Western Sydney University hosted a <a href="https://vrst.acm.org/vrst2019/">global symposium on VR software and technology</a>, at which academics and industry partners from around the world discussed possible ways forward for VR and augmented reality. Among the speakers were Aleissia Laidacker, director of Developer Experience at <a href="https://www.magicleap.com/">Magic Leap</a>; University of South Australia computing professor <a href="https://people.unisa.edu.au/Mark.Billinghurst">Mark Billingurst</a>; and Tomasz Bednarz, director of UNSW’s <a href="https://artdesign.unsw.edu.au/research/epicentre-expanded-perception-interaction-centre">Expanded Perception and Interaction Centre</a>. Virtual reality, literal headache One problem discussed at the symposium is the fact that VR experiences often cause health-related issues including headaches, eye strain, dizziness, and nausea. Developers can partially deal with these issues at the hardware level by delivering balanced experiences with high refresh and frame rates. But many developers are ignoring usability guidelines in the pursuit of exciting content. Gaming industry guidelines used by <a href="https://docs.unrealengine.com/en-US/Platforms/VR/DevelopVR/ContentSetup/index.html">Epic</a>, <a href="https://developer.oculus.com/design/latest/concepts/book-bp/">Oculus</a>, <a href="https://blog.marvelapp.com/designing-vr-beginners-guide/">Marvel</a>, and <a href="https://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/guidelines-for-immersive-virtual-reality-experiences">Intel</a> recommend that games completely avoid any use of induced motion, acceleration or “fake motion”, which are often the main cause of discomfort and motion sickness. Yet the vast majority of available VR experiences feature some kind of induced motion, either in the form of animation or by basing the experience on user movement and exploration of the virtual environment. I have met many first-time VR users who generally enjoyed the experience, but also reported “feeling wrong” – similar to enjoying the clarity of sound in noise-cancelling headphones but also having a “strange sensation” in their ears. Killing creativity Queasiness is not the only turnoff. Another problem is that despite the near-limitless potential of VR, many current offerings are sorely lacking in imagination. The prevailing trend is to create VR versions of existing content such as games, videos or advertisements, in the hope of delivering extra impact. This does not work, in much the same way that radio play would make terrible television. A famous cautionary tale comes from <a href="https://secondlife.com/">Second Life</a>, the virtual world launched in 2003 which <a href="https://gigaom.com/2013/06/23/second-life-turns-10-what-it-did-wrong-and-why-it-will-have-its-own-second-life/">failed spectacularly to live up to its billing</a>. Real-world businesses such as Toyota and BMW opened branches in Second Life, allowing users to test-drive badly programmed versions of their virtual cars. They <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/technology/few-lives-left-for-second-life-20080821-gdsrna.html">lasted mere months</a>. Why would we prefer a humdrum virtual experience to a <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-virtual-reality-cannot-match-the-real-thing-92035">real one</a>? No one needs a virtual Toyota. We need to give users good reasons to leave their reality behind and immerse themselves in a new one. There have been some notable successes. <a href="https://beatsaber.com/">Beat Saber</a>, made by Czech indie developers, is the one of the few games that have explored the true potential of VR – and is the only VR game to have grossed more than US$20 million. The <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CPVOt7QjcM">VR Vaccine Project</a> helps to take the sting out of childhood needles, by combining a real-world vaccination with a superhero story in the virtual world, in which the child is presented with a magical shield at the crucial moment. I really hope VR is on its way to becoming more mainstream, more exciting, and less underwhelming. But we scientists can only present new technological solutions, to help make VR a more comfortable and enjoyable experience. Ultimately it is down to VR developers to learn from existing success stories and start delivering those “killer apps”. The possibilities are limited only by imagination.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/126761/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/tomas-trescak-876634">Tomas Trescak</a>, Senior Lecturer in Intelligent Systems, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/western-sydney-university-1092">Western Sydney University</a> This article is republished from <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-main-problem-with-virtual-reality-its-almost-as-humdrum-as-real-life-126761">original article</a>.

Technology

Do you really need a VPN for your smartphone?

Virtual private networks (known in geek speak as VPNs) were first used to provide a secure connection for remote workers to corporate networks. Now they're often used to access geo-blocked streaming services such as the US version of Netflix. A VPN provides an encrypted conduit to allow users to securely send/receive data. Recently, they've being marketed toward smartphone users, with the main aim to protect people when using public wi-fi rather than geo-blocking. But do you really need one? Well, that depends on how much you value your privacy and access to free internet. Most public wi-fi networks are not encrypted which means others on the same network can eavesdrop on your web browsing. Using the Wireshark utility at a hotel I recently stayed at, I was able to view the online activities of fellow guests also connected to the hotel's wi-fi. Symantec has just released its VPN app, called Norton WiFi Privacy, which is available for both iOS and Android. It costs $49.95 a year. According to Symantec's Australasian territory manager, Mark Gorrie, the app has advantages over offerings from lesser known competitors. "Norton WiFi Privacy does not impose data limits or advertisements on users as a trade-off for services." The app detects when your smartphone/tablet connects to an unsecured network, encrypting data and diverting it through a secure connection. Anyone snooping should only see a stream of gibberish. However, the app adds a small amount of delay into the mix. This was because I was connected to a range of Symantec VPN servers located around the world. So is it worth the $49.95 a year? If you use a mobile device for sensitive correspondence over public wi-fi a lot, it is probably a good idea.

Technology

Making of Sir David Attenborough’s virtual Great Barrier Reef tour

In this video we get a behind-the-scenes look at the new, virtual reality Great Barrier Reef experience produced by the legendary Sir David Attenborough. David Attenborough’s Great Barrier Reef Dive VR, currently showing at the Australian Museum in Sydney, gives viewers the chance to examine coral and sea life off the northeast coast of Australia with the famed naturalist, who climbed into a tiny Triton submarine in late 2014 to document the experience. The behind-the-scenes video above is a rare insight into the production process. How amazing it must have been, to see the reef so close! For more information about David Attenborough’s Great Barrier Reef Dive VR, <a href="http://australianmuseum.net.au/landing/vr-experiences/" target="_blank">click here</a>. Related links: <a href="/news/news/2016/04/will-and-kate-recreate-princess-diana-taj-mahal-photo/">Will and Kate recreate Princess Diana’s iconic Taj Mahal photo</a> <a href="/news/news/2016/04/parent-share-kids-unintentionally-inappropriate-drawings/">Parents share kids’ unintentionally inappropriate drawings</a> <a href="/news/news/2016/04/alligator-devours-smaller-gator/">Massive alligator devours smaller gator</a>

News

Cruise lines offer virtual reality teaser to get bookings

We’ve heard of product demonstrations, but this is something else! Cruise lines are now using virtual reality experiences to snag new cruisers. A variety of lines are offering in-store virtual reality experiences, allowing potential customers to explore what the cruise ship has to offer without ever having to leave dry land. Seasoned cruisers will be able to explore new ships, while inexperienced passengers will be able to get a valuable taste of what the cruise experience is all about. Cruiseabout, a travel agency specialising in the world of cruising and operated by Flight Centre, is one of the first companies to offer these virtual reality experiences in Australia. “This will be a game changer for the cruise booking process that is already a highly collaborative interactive process, and we see access to virtual reality vision as a way to enhance the in-store experience for our customers,” said Mr Jarrod Pask, Cruiseabout General Manager. “For travellers who are new to cruise and unfamiliar with ships, cabin types, and the onboard experience, the vision will be a huge asset as they have the ability to get a taste for it virtually before stepping on board in real life.” And it makes quite a lot of sense. It’s one thing reading about the facilities of a cruise ship or having them explained to you by a travel agent, and quite another thing being able to witness them for yourself. These virtual reality experiences will also be quite useful, when it comes to upgrades. After seeing the standard suite, you may feel compelled to upgrade to a more deluxe option, and vice versa. Cruiseabout has already made two of these virtual reality experiences available online. To experience a virtual reality tour of Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWYMyL7zMmo" target="_blank">click here</a>. To experience a virtual reality tour of Carnival Cruises’ Carnival Spirit, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKhkbm44ezs" target="_blank">click here</a>. These interactive videos let you experience the cruise ships from a range of different angles and really give you a taster of cruising on these vessels. For more information, and to visit the <a href="http://www.cruiseabout.co.nz/" target="_blank">Cruiseabout website click here</a>. Related links: <a href="/travel/cruising/2016/03/how-to-make-cruise-ship-towel-animals/">How to make cruise ship towel animals</a> <a href="/travel/cruising/2016/03/inside-worlds-biggest-cruise-ship/">Inside one of the world’s biggest cruise ships</a> <a href="/travel/cruising/2016/02/can-the-historic-queen-elizabeth-2-cruise-ship-be-saved/">Can the historic Queen Elizabeth 2 cruise ship be saved?</a>

Cruising

Video of grandmother experiencing virtual reality will melt hearts

If you like technology, funny videos or simply that fact that we basically now live in The Twilight Zone, you will love this video of Marie, 89, trying out virtual reality technology for the first time. The grandmother wears Google Cardboard. It’s a VR experience starting with a simple viewer-made out of cardboard- that anyone can build or buy. Once you have it on, you can explore a variety of experiences that appear to unfold all around you. Marie in particular is watching a rollercoaster simulation. Her reaction is nothing short of hilarious. Related links: <a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/entertainment/technology/2015/12/instagram-adds-new-feature/">The new Instagram feature you’ll love</a> <a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/entertainment/technology/2015/11/types-of-people-on-facebook/">The 10 types of people you always find on Facebook</a> <a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/entertainment/technology/2015/11/android-phones-security-phone/">Android phones at risk of hacking</a>

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Video of grandmother experiencing virtual reality will melt hearts