Get Inspired: Virtual Reality
VR Gaming Therapy
Montana’s KPAX 8 shares a broadcast about a military veteran in Billings who has recently come off his depression and anxiety medications using Virtual Reality games. Darwin Oak credits Firewall with his progress in dealing with trauma.
Preserving Tuvalu
Following up on his waist-deep in the rising sea address to COP26, Tuvalu’s foreign minister, Simon Kofe announced his nation’s plans to create a digital copy of the country for preservation through the Metaverse.
Embodied Labs Alzheimer Training
Starting from a very low-tech mockup made from tape and safety glasses, Embodied Labs has created their Alzheimers training resource to teach caregivers of both professional and family varieties about the day to day experience of living with the disorder.
Isetan Virtual Flagship
Top shelf Japanese department store Isetan has moved its flagship store in Shinjuku entirely into virtual reality with a new smartphone app. As a response to COVID-19, the century-old retailer followed prevailing online shopping trends but leveraged a custom VR app to recreate the high-touch buying experience that its customers have come to expect.
PwC VR for Learning
PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers) aimed to prove the efficacy of virtual reality-based learning by comparing a traditional classroom training on inclusive leadership (and its existing eLearning counterpart) with a bespoke VR experience based around the same lessons.
Dinaledi Chamber
China Plus profiles the collaboration between the University of Witwatersrand and Perot Museum of Nature and Science that led to their Dinaledi Chamber VR app. The free download allows users to embark on a journey to spend time with some of humanity’s most recently discovered ancestors, Homo naledi.
Catalyst
Australian Broadcasting Company (ABC)’s Science program, Catalyst visits a fitness center where VR headsets and joysticks are every bit as impactful as the free weights and treadmills.
University of Kent
Reuters reports on groundbreaking research conducted in the UK between the University of Kent and St Andrew’s Healthcare in which eight patients living with dementia were presented with a series of virtual reality experiences meant to recall fond memories from their own lives.
How Do These Technologies IMPACT Society?
The Teaching and Learning with Technology IMPACT Deck is an exploratory, card-based game that aims to introduce students, faculty and staff of all ages and backgrounds to a wide variety of situations in which established and emerging technologies impact society.