Summaries

[BERNHARD RIECKE] - "Using Virtual Reality for fundamental research - Using fundamental research for improving Virtual Reality".

iSpaceLab Colloquium Team Presentation Information

[SALVAR SIGURDARSON, Berhnhard Riecke, Daniel Feuereissen Andrew Milne, Jay Vidyarthi] - "Can physical motions prevent disorientation in naturalistic VR?".

[DANIEL FEUEREISSEN, Andrew Milne & Bernhard Riecke] - "Can Self-Motion Illusions facilitate spatial Orientation?".

[JAY VIDYARTHI, Diane Gromala, & Berhnhard Riecke] - "Are you immersed? Characterizing Immersion across Literature, Are and Interactive Media".

Biographies

BERNHARD RIECKE received his PhD in Physics from the Tübingen University in Germany and researched for a decade in the Virtual Reality group of the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Germany. After a post-doc in Psychology at Vanderbilt University he joined the School of Interactive Arts & Technology of Simon Fraser University as an assistant professor in 2008. His research approach combines fundamental scientific research with an applied perspective of improving human-computer interaction. He's leading the iSpaceLab ("immersive Spatial Perception Action/Art Cognition Embodiment") at SIAT.

SALVAR SIGURDARSON is project-oriented viking who cannot turn down a challenge. With a B.Sc. in Computer Science from the University of Iceland, his experience includes reporting for the largest newspaper in Iceland and programming safety-critical software used in air traffic control. Salvar’s latest project involved selling all his belongings and moving to Vancouver to study Virtual Reality, and it’s psychological aspects, at SFU’s iSpace lab. Salvar’s interests include video games, interface design, experimental psychology, writing, cooking and pretty much anything else that calls for combining analytical and creative approaches. To support his exuberant grad student lifestyle he assists in teaching courses at SFU, including an introductory graduate programming course and third-year undergraduate course on interaction design, as well as assisting Dr. Bernhard Riecke with whatever programming problems that need solving in the iSpace lab at the time."

DANIEL FEUEREISSEN became interested in Virtual Reality (VR) and principles to improve existing motion simulator designs. It was then, when he was exposed to Virtual Reality (VR) technology used in various user studies and became intrigued by self-motion illusions in VR. As graduate student at SFU, his aim is to exploit self-motion illusions to improve the user experience in VR.

JAY VIDYARTHI is simultaneously a performing musician, human-computer interaction designer and psychological researcher. His experience spans from industry to academia, where he is presently pursuing a Masters degree at the School of Interactive Arts and Technology at SFU. Jay’s portfolio includes a unique brand of psychedelic blues music, comprehensive interface design specifications for various media, and research focused on the psychology of technology use. As diverse as it may seem, Jay’s work intersects at the concepts of ‘immersion’ and ‘expression’. Whether studying how a user and machine express to each other, designing technological mediation of expression between people, or simply expressing himself to audiences, the goal is unified: to create, understand and use new, immersive forms of human expression.