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Here in Don Burn’s Blogspot, we like to keep you up to date with the latest and greatest of upcoming and new telecommunication technologies, so you are always aware of what’s going on in this always changing fast-paced world of hi-tech developments.
Augmented reality is a concept that we have been hearing a lot about lately. What is it? What does it mean for me? What aspects of our life is augmented reality able to influence and change?
According to Wikipedia, “Augmented reality (AR) is a live direct or indirect view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are augmented (or supplemented) by computer-generated sensory input such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data.” This means that technology in a way enhances our views, concepts and perceptions of reality, as opposed to Virtual Reality (VR), which completely replaces it with an entirely simulated world.
Augmented reality adds graphics, sounds, tactile interaction and smell to the natural world as it exists. This in itself, is enough to let the imagination of developers run wild with ideas on how the human experience can be enhanced in pretty much all aspects of how we interact with the world around us. People in all walks of life can be greatly benefited by AR, from soldiers in a battlefield to tourists visiting a new city or children learning in a classroom.
In Hollywood films we have seen approximations to augmented reality that today have become gadgets that we can get at any electronic store and that continue to transform into more amazing examples of what this technology can do it. The use of HUD (Heads-Up Display) is not something new anymore, but new advances to augmented reality are putting these types of display to good use in eyewear, windows, glass displays and can windshields to name a few. From education to manufacture and gaming, the world seems to be at a turning point for augmented reality assimilation.
A recent study predicted that by the end of 2016, revenue produced by the AR Industry would total more than $600 billion. This study also determined that in 2014, approximately 864 million mobile phones will be AR-ready, and in excess of 100 million vehicles will come equipped with AR tech. Knowing this makes it more than clear, that augmented reality will have a profound impact in our world over the next decade.
One of the most amazing implementations of AR in medicine comes probably from one of the most simple uses of the technology, remote viewing. Using Google Glass, doctors are able to perform surgery and stream to thousands of students throughout the world from a first-person perspective.
Augmented Reality in Medicine.
One of the most amazing implementations of AR in medicine comes probably from one of the most simple uses of the technology, remote viewing. Using Google Glass, doctors are able to perform surgery and stream to thousands of students throughout the world from a first-person perspective.
This type of applications are highly advantageous considering the steep learning curves and the valuable insight that can be give to many learners at once considering there are 143 million simple operations need to be performed annually, and that requires need 2.2 million surgeons, aestheticians, and obstetricians.
The advantages are countless. AR allows for teachers to capture the undivided attention of students by implementing AR technologies in the classroom. Students can access in their own devices class materials, interactive prototypes, models, illustrations and supplementary learning tools that will make them appropriate lessons in a more effective manner. The fact that with a simple scan of their phone, students can access so much information linked to each other, ensures a higher retention level of the information presented in class and foster the intellectual curiosity of a generation that is more familiar everyday with this type of devices and initiatives.
Pokémon Go is a game that encourages you to get out in the real world and use your mobile phone to catch Pokémon using the implementation of augmented reality. (Pokémon, for those who don’t know it, are collectible creatures that players use to battle one another. They debuted in gaming consoles by Nintendo in 1996, and in the early 2000’s they also populated an animated cartoon and stacks of playing cards). Only two days after being released, Pokémon Go has been installed on 5.16% of Android phones in the United States. In less than a week it has become the most downloaded app in Apple’s App Store.
Until now, no other augmented reality app has gone mainstream, let alone in such massive way as Pokémon Go, which means that even if we don’t care about this little creatures at all, we must look forward with hopeful eyes to what developers are planning next knowing the amazing response from people towards this type of apps.
Augmented Education.
The advantages are countless. AR allows for teachers to capture the undivided attention of students by implementing AR technologies in the classroom. Students can access in their own devices class materials, interactive prototypes, models, illustrations and supplementary learning tools that will make them appropriate lessons in a more effective manner. The fact that with a simple scan of their phone, students can access so much information linked to each other, ensures a higher retention level of the information presented in class and foster the intellectual curiosity of a generation that is more familiar everyday with this type of devices and initiatives.
Entertainment.
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Image courtesy of Eduardo Woo at Flickr.com
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Unless you have been hiding under a rock for the past few weeks, you must have heard of Pokémon Go, the amazing app developed by Niantic. The idea started as an April Fool’s Day joke that merged Google Maps with the popular game Pokémon by Nintendo.
Pokémon Go is a game that encourages you to get out in the real world and use your mobile phone to catch Pokémon using the implementation of augmented reality. (Pokémon, for those who don’t know it, are collectible creatures that players use to battle one another. They debuted in gaming consoles by Nintendo in 1996, and in the early 2000’s they also populated an animated cartoon and stacks of playing cards). Only two days after being released, Pokémon Go has been installed on 5.16% of Android phones in the United States. In less than a week it has become the most downloaded app in Apple’s App Store.
Until now, no other augmented reality app has gone mainstream, let alone in such massive way as Pokémon Go, which means that even if we don’t care about this little creatures at all, we must look forward with hopeful eyes to what developers are planning next knowing the amazing response from people towards this type of apps.
Virtual reality is getting better and better each year. Many gaming companies are now talking about the next evolutionary step in VR and the next generation of this computer technology, but they are not just talking about gaming, Indeed, they are also planning on using this computer technology for education, reducing the psychological problems of PTSD, high-tech communication, and even space communities.
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