VR and Back Again: An XRobots Tale

Our friend [James Burton] from XRobots has engaged in another bit of mixed-reality magic by showing how one can seamlessly step from the virtual world into the real world, and back again. Begone, green screens and cumbersome lighting!

Now, most of what you’re seeing is really happening in post-production — for now — but the test footage is the precursor for a more integrated system down the road. As it works now, a GoPro is attached to the front of a HTC Vive headset, allowing [Burton] to record in both realities at the same time. In the VR test area …read more

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A Virtual Glimpse Into The Forest

Taking a stroll through the woods in the midst of autumn is a stunning visual experience. It does, however, require one to live nearby a forest. If you are one of those who does not, [Koen Hufkens] has recently launched the Virtual Forest project — a VR experience  that takes you though a day in a deciduous forest.

First off, you don’t need a VR apparatus to view the scenery. Web-browsers and most smart phones are capable of displaying the 360 degree images. The Raspberry Pi 2-controlled Ricoh Theta S camera is enclosed in a glass lamp cover and — …read more

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Electromagnetic Pulse: Pure Hollywood?

Imagine you’re in charge of a major heist. Right as your crew is about to rob the main vault, you need all of the electronics in the building to fail at exactly the right moment with no other collateral damage (except, maybe, to your raggedy panel van). Obviously you will turn to one of the entertainment industry’s tired tropes, the electromagnetic pulse! The only problem is that if you were to use a real one rather than a Hollywood prop either there would be practically no effect, a large crater where the vault used to be, or most of humanity …read more

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Our Simulated Universe Is Just One Piece of a Matryoshka Doll of Annihilation

Perhaps a posthuman civilization running simulations self-destructs, or a lab assistant accidentally spills coffee on computer hardware. Simulations can collapse. Continue reading Our Simulated Universe Is Just One Piece of a Matryoshka Doll of Annihilation

Elon Musk Is Wrong. We Aren’t Living in a Simulation

A simulated apple can’t feed anybody, and other reality checks by a philosopher and a cognitive scientist. Continue reading Elon Musk Is Wrong. We Aren’t Living in a Simulation