Today’s newest and most rapidly growing technology is virtual reality, and there are many important reasons why virtual reality will be an integral part of the future. While 2016 has been called the “year of virtual reality”, the truth is that virtual reality is still in its early development stages. However, within the near future, we can expect virtual reality to ascend into technology that we have never experienced before and will change the way we interact with our environments forever.
Virtual reality is defined as a computer-generated simulation of a 3D image or environment that can be interacted with using a headset or other equipment. The VR headset enables a user to become visually separated from their physical area, allowing them to virtually experience a location, a point in history, a new world, and much more using computer generated images.
Virtual Reality Today:
Today’s virtual reality technology has the versatility to capture the interests of the enthusiast or hobbyist, while at the same time presenting scientific rigor to satisfy the eager student or skilled technologist.
Virtual reality is offered in many different formats and on different platforms due to the growing adoption of virtual reality. The fasting growing form of virtual reality is the use of smart phones as a head-mounted display, which allow for head tracking and immersion. Virtual reality on smart phones has become a quickly growing industry because consumers already have these devices and usually just need to buy an add-on to secure the phone to their head. While this form of VR technology is the fastest growing, it is less advanced and does not offer the capabilities that standard VR platforms possess.
VR platforms such as Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and Playstation VR are much more advanced than their mobile phone counterparts and often have a controller or other device to allow the user to interact with their environment, albeit a much higher entry price.
To many, VR believe that it encompasses only video games and mobile phone apps. However, the widespread adoption of VR is encouraging developers to create new, immersive content and applications. Some examples that can be possible with the power of VR include visiting a world landmark, enjoying a basketball game with courtside seats, or studying in a virtual classroom with teachers and students from all over the world. Some articles even discuss how the health industry is exploring the use of VR as a method of consulting with a doctor face-to-face.
Virtual Reality in other Industries:
Virtual Reality can change the entertainment industry forever, enabling a new platform to deliver content to viewers and other consumers. Events such as television broadcasts, broadway plays, concerts, movies, and other forms of entertainment have the potential to be shown through virtual reality, enabling another method for the industry to make money. For example, the entertainment industry can capitalize on the fact that consumers will pay money to view a sold-out concert through a virtual reality platform.
Scientist are still researching VR and its benefits in the health industry, but there are many promising VR applications being developed. There have been multiple scientific studies which explore how virtual reality training improves operating room performance in surgeons. Other studies explored how VR can be used to relieve the sensation of pain, as a form of therapy, and treat phobias or PTSD.
The education industry also has a lot to gain from the growing virtual reality industry. For example, education can be experienced in an entirely new way, as medicine, chemistry, physics, and other sciences can be modeled in an incredible visual way that our minds have not seen before. Imagine rearranging molecules with your hands right before your eyes. An application like this is only possible using the imagination aspect that virtual reality brings. Beyond virtual modeling, a learning environment through virtual reality can be the next innovation in teaching. In other words, if a student in one part of the world perhaps wanted to be taught by a famous professor who lives on the other side of the world, the power of VR enables the “real” teaching and learning interactions to be possible
For more information, here are some interesting links that discuss the future of VR and its potential.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2017/02/06/how-will-virtual-reality-change-the-healthcare-industry/#40bd46a0429e
Virtual Reality: The Future Is Coming | John Vechey | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJf7BfpKTOY
The Future of Virtual Reality | Phil Kauffold | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-HRgfJbPvk
Will virtual and augmented reality move us into the knowledge age? | Zenka | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FA-IuDTMjE
No comments:
Post a Comment