Virtual and Augmented Realities allow us to have a sense of exploration and fantasy without actually being in another world or leaving home. Augmented lets us see our actual world and bring in small aspects of fantasy—like having a dinosaur standing behind you in a selfie. Virtual on the other hand lets us immerse ourselves completely in a fantasy world or situation- flying a plane, killing zombies, or walking across a rope that’s 1000 feet in the air for example. VR works due to gyroscopes and motion sensors, small screens for stereoscopic display, and extremely small, lightweight but very quick computer processors. It also has omnidirectional cameras, which allow the 360 views that most, if not all, VR sets have.
Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality are both available to the public for purchase, both becoming increasingly popular as the years pass. Virtual was first, primarily used, between 1970 to 1990 for training purposes in medical fields, flight, auto industries, and military training. The game company SEGA introduced their own VR set in 1991 and Nintendo released ‘Virtual Boy’ in 1995. The Oculus Rift, designed by Palmer Luckey, was introduced in 2010 but not released for 2 years due to video distortion issues. Today, many different video game companies have a VR set of their own, including Sony PlayStation and Valve. Augmented reality is slightly less popular than Virtual, but it is still in use. If you’ve ever played Pokémon Go- which was released in 2016- then you’re familiar with the augmented system. It’s also very visible in football games, as broadcasters are able to draw lines on the field that aren’t actually there, and can analyze plays that way. Historical sites can use Augmented Reality to overlay today’s ruins with what used to be the glorious site that lay there in history, much like Pompeii.
With Virtual reality now in our hands, we can easily do things we might not think possible- both realistic and fantasy. Suddenly, we can be in space with Luke and swinging light sabers around, fighting zombies with Daryl and Rick, and even seeing the Irish countryside and looking off into the ocean below the cliff we’re standing on. We can visit places we might not ever be able to go, if for a fear of planes or boats- like Europe, Hawaii, Japan, or Alaska. It also allows us to practice real-world situations, depending on the reality, like flying a plane for Pilot training, Medical training, and Military practices. Military officials can train their people for raids, dropping from planes, and possible situations without having them in any imminent danger. They can test someone who recently was in a traumatic event, to see how they might react to situations once back in the field, without the possibility of an innocent person getting killed. It also helps Psychologists and Therapists who are aiding a client through fear, as the client can wear the headset in a safe place and look down off a cliff (fear of heights) or be close to an animal (fear of spiders, snakes, or any other animal).
As with most things, there are some dangers to Virtual Reality. Those that have sensitivity to lights, get headaches easily, or have seizures could experience less than a fun time. You could also get injured, if you’re not watching where you are—and are moving around a lot in the VR you’re wrapped in. Tripping over items, running into walls, or even getting too close to another person could all easily end up in injury. Personally, I have an Oculus and I’ve constantly run into things—and it’s not for lack of trying. Despite it having a set area that you can play in, accidents can still happen. I also get headaches within 30 minutes of playing it, despite not having migraine health problems. Once the headache creeps in—that’s when it’s time to stop playing, take a break, something. The most common health concern that occurs is called Cybersickness, which has symptoms similar to motion sickness- dizziness, headaches, stomach awareness, sweating, fatigue, and general discomfort. VR does offer several immersion types, in an effort to combat problems like this. There is non-immersive, where real-world elements can still creep in and combat nausea symptoms. Semi-Immersive combines real-world objects to replicate experiences, like flight simulations. Finally, fully immersive is almost completely digital where you can fully explore environments.
What Is VR? A Beginner’s Guide to Virtual Reality | Digital Trends
What Is Augmented Reality? | The Franklin Institute (fi.edu)