Simulating Psychedelic Therapy Through Mediated Reality

<p>Due to the illegality of psychedelic substances, and despite proven efficiency, people suffering from various psychiatric illnesses and disorders are unable to receive potentially life-changing psychedelic therapy. With the recent technological development of computer-mediated realities, designers and developers now have the opportunity to digitally recreate such treatments. Through practical application along with the review of literature and conferences, this study aims to analyse the potential of mediated realities to convincingly simulate psychedelic therapy. Augmented reality (AR) and modulated realities (ModR) such as modified and diminished reality show insufficient evidence for practical use in simulated psychedelic therapy. Augmented virtuality (AV), mixed reality (MR), virtual reality (VR) and modulated virtuality (ModV) contain a range of characteristics fundamental to potentially simulating mind manifesting psychedelic therapy. However, mediated reality in general appears to be extraneous for practical use in mind loosening psychedelic therapy. Currently, virtual reality (VR) shows the greatest potential for healing, trauma release, personal growth and exploration of the psyche by simulating closed-eye psychedelic experiences through adding virtual information via an HMD. Accordingly, the author of this study has proposed a proof of concept (POF) for a neurofeedback driven VR experience which simulates aspects of both mind loosening and mind manifesting psychotherapy. This POF is intended to simulate the transformation of phosphenes into complex geometric pattern based hallucinations. With further development in this field, one day people suffering from various mental conditions might be able to receive safe, accessible and legal forms of simulated psychedelic therapy.</p>

Simulating Psychedelic Therapy Through Mediated Reality

<p>Due to the illegality of psychedelic substances, and despite proven efficiency, people suffering from various psychiatric illnesses and disorders are unable to receive potentially life-changing psychedelic therapy. With the recent technological development of computer-mediated realities, designers and developers now have the opportunity to digitally recreate such treatments. Through practical application along with the review of literature and conferences, this study aims to analyse the potential of mediated realities to convincingly simulate psychedelic therapy. Augmented reality (AR) and modulated realities (ModR) such as modified and diminished reality show insufficient evidence for practical use in simulated psychedelic therapy. Augmented virtuality (AV), mixed reality (MR), virtual reality (VR) and modulated virtuality (ModV) contain a range of characteristics fundamental to potentially simulating mind manifesting psychedelic therapy. However, mediated reality in general appears to be extraneous for practical use in mind loosening psychedelic therapy. Currently, virtual reality (VR) shows the greatest potential for healing, trauma release, personal growth and exploration of the psyche by simulating closed-eye psychedelic experiences through adding virtual information via an HMD. Accordingly, the author of this study has proposed a proof of concept (POF) for a neurofeedback driven VR experience which simulates aspects of both mind loosening and mind manifesting psychotherapy. This POF is intended to simulate the transformation of phosphenes into complex geometric pattern based hallucinations. With further development in this field, one day people suffering from various mental conditions might be able to receive safe, accessible and legal forms of simulated psychedelic therapy.</p>

Models of using immersive teaching technologies in the practical activity of a teacher of informatics

Problem and goal. Virtual, augmented mixed reality and augmented virtuality are becoming integral attributes of the immersive educational environment, disposed to continuous learning and comprehensive development. The relevance of the study of models of using immersive technologies in the activities of a computer science teacher is beyond doubt, because they are the real embodiment of new methodological ideas and approaches. Methodology. In the course of the research, the analysis of models of immersive learning technologies for the practical activities of a computer science teacher was carried out. On its basis, a set of computer tools and equipment has been proposed that allows introducing immersive technologies into educational practice. Results. Methodological recommendations on the use of virtual, augmented and mixed reality technologies both in informatics lessons and after school hours are presented. The key topics of the computer science program, in which it is advisable to use immersive technologies, have been identified. Methodological approaches to the transformation of informatics teaching in the context of digitalization of education have been formulated. Conclusion. The results of the study indicate that immersive learning technologies can be successfully applied both in informatics lessons and outside the classroom. They not only contribute to the immersion of students in an interactive environment, but also increase the interest, motivation and quality of their knowledge. Lessons using immersive technologies open up new opportunities for a computer science teacher for professional growth, methodological and subject self-improvement.

Improving Ship Maneuvering Safety with Augmented Virtuality Navigation Information Displays

The paper presents the results of a study on improving the safety of navigation, during maneuvers in restricted areas, with the use of an augmented virtuality navigation information display. The augmented virtuality solution has been developed by one of the authors and has been described in a previous paper. A set of simulation scenarios has been proposed to study various maneuvers with different types of ships. Models of existing areas and existing ships have been used so the study can be recreated and reevaluated with different types of interfaces. The study is focused on comparing safe maneuvering areas with different information sources used. The results showed that augmented virtuality solution can indeed decrease the safe maneuvering areas and thus increase the safety of navigation for maneuvers in restricted areas.

Ecological design of augmentation improves helicopter ship landing maneuvers: An approach in augmented virtuality

Helicopter landing on a ship is a visually regulated "rendezvous" task during which pilots must use fine control to land a powerful rotorcraft on the deck of a moving ship tossed by the sea while minimizing the energy at impact. Although augmented reality assistance can be hypothesized to improve pilots’ performance and the safety of landing maneuvers by guiding action toward optimal behavior in complex and stressful situations, the question of the optimal information to be displayed to feed the pilots’ natural information-movement coupling remains to be investigated. Novice participants were instructed to land a simplified helicopter on a ship in a virtual reality simulator while minimizing energy at impact and landing duration. The wave amplitude and related ship heave were manipulated. We compared the benefits of two types of visual augmentation whose design was based on either solving cockpit-induced visual occlusion problems or strengthening the online regulation of the deceleration by keeping the current τ˙ variable around an ideal value of -0.5 to conduct smooth and efficient landing. Our results showed that the second augmentation, ecologically grounded, offers benefits at several levels of analysis. It decreases the landing duration, improves the control of the helicopter displacement, and sharpens the sensitivity to changes in τ˙. This underlines the importance for designers of augmented reality systems to collaborate with psychologists to identify the relevant perceptual-motor strategy that must be encouraged before designing an augmentation that will enhance it.

Augmented Virtuality Using Touch-Sensitive 3D-Printed Objects

Virtual reality (VR) technologies have become more and more affordable and popular in the last five years thanks to hardware and software advancements. A critical issue for these technologies is finding paradigms that allow user interactions in ways that are as similar as possible to the real world, bringing physicality into the experience. Current literature has shown, with different experiments, that the mapping of real objects in virtual reality alongside haptic feedback significantly increases the realism of the experience and user engagement, leading to augmented virtuality. In this paper, we present a system to improve engagement in a VR experience using inexpensive, physical, and sensorized copies of real artefacts made with cheap 3D fabrication technologies. Based on a combination of hardware and software components, the proposed system gives the user the possibility to interact with the physical replica in the virtual environment and to see the appearance of the original cultural heritage artefact. In this way, we overcome one of the main limitations of mainstream 3D fabrication technologies: a faithful appearance reproduction. Using a consumer device for the real-time hand tracking and a custom electronic controller for the capacitive touch sensing, the system permits the creation of augmented experiences where the user with their hands can change the virtual appearance of the real replica object using a set of personalization actions selectable from a physical 3D-printed palette.