Currently there are many uses for augmented and virtual reality environments, which are coming online due to the rapid advances in this technology. We started to see such uses coming online at the turn of the new millennium as researchers and entrepreneurs started collaborating on real market applications and looking for the “killer ap.†I would like to discuss some of the early applications, which were brought forth and how they help with everyday uses in our civilization.
In 2001 The Federal Government and Colorado State start to come coming out with a Virtual Courtroom. Very interesting. I hope we can get some virtual lawyers too and lay off some organic models? That may actually be another good outcome of this technology, but the Virtual Jury is still out?
http://www.ncsconline.org/D_Tech/CTC/CTC6/CTC6ARTS.HTMhttp://www.state.co.us/cjrtf/min/bc011300mi.htmAnd California is also working on a cool system in Los Angeles, I happen to meet a Superior Court PhD assistant working on how to enlighten judges to deal with Drug Abusers in such a way, as to use empathy and fatherly type skills to get the abusers to want to come clean. This is an interesting report she was writing while on vacation in Billings, MT. She is working with the same court who put together this project:
http://www.lasuperiorcourt.org/court2000/hallway.htmI believe that the government can cut its staff and save taxpayer’s money and change many offices into the virtual system, government can be a web site, unless it is absolutely necessary to put people at a counter. Some schools are thinking that simulator VR is the way to train attorneys. I agree
http://www.usd.edu/law/new_web_site/prospective_students/virtual_tour/virtual_tour.htm
Because most attorneys are Boilerplate Boondoggling Bandits quadruple billing clients while they sit behind books they have never read while their Paralegal interns pop in the CD ROM to look up case law or go online to Lexis Nexis to grab data since the actual attorney is busy. We do not need attorneys if we have VR courts because the cost is less and you can represent your own self? Actually the idea of a VR Courtroom came from down under; from Australia
http://www.auscript.com.au/151100.pdfhttp://zdnet.com.com/2100-11_2-525651.htmlNow then lets discuss another subject; Virtual Reality Control Towers. This would be good so that Control Tower operators would not discuss the sightings of UFOs, etc as the reports from pilots come in. But besides that these VR Control towers right now are only simulators for training control tower operators, for instance you can have the busiest day at Laguardia, O'Hare, LAX or even the EAA show is Oshkosh just to give you a challenge.
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleID=0005471B-3E53-1C75-9B81809EC588EF21Isn't this too cool. And just think once it gets really good, the operators can go on strike and stay there; although I should not say that since my Grandfather use to run the FAA Control Tower at Fresno International. This link shows you some cool Videos;
http://ffc.arc.nasa.gov/gallery/vr_panoramas/You can also stay up on this information by subscribing the newsletter;
http://ffc.arc.nasa.gov/newsroom/newsletter/Many believe that NASA Space Control Centers will use these things too and soon the public will be able to see the workings of a real control tower or almost real in the VR World. The two worlds are coming together faster than you think. Think about it.
Lance Winslow III
