Tag: #virtualreality

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Logistic & Travel Tech Web 3.0 Tech

What is virtual reality and why are aged care providers embracing it?

virtual reality

Written by : Colin Pudsey on Digilah (Tech Thought Leadership)

If you’ve been looking around at new ways to support your residents, chances are you’ve heard the words “virtual reality” being offered as a new idea. Maybe you’ve even seen pictures of people wearing headsets and waving their arms about.

But what is virtual reality, or VR, and why is it making such an impact in the aged care space?

Immersive beyond belief

Virtual reality is a simulated environment that looks and feels incredibly realistic. A key tool for using VR, is the headset, which allows you to explore this digital space by looking up, down and all around you. Unlike a computer or tablet which has a fixed field view, virtual reality adapts to your head movements to immerse you in a rich 360-degree, 3D environment.

This means that putting on a virtual reality headset feels like stepping into a completely different world. But the big question is, what can you do in this immersive virtual space?

The impossible becomes possible

Anything you can imagine! For the adrenaline seekers, how about skydiving, swimming with dolphins, or racing in an F1 car? For those looking for a calmer escape, maybe chilling out on the beach, exploring a tropical rainforest, or visiting a museum?

The technology is limitless, and it can even allow us to experience things that are impossible – a trip to mars perhaps? Or walking around the interior of the Titanic? VR can make that happen too.

That all sounds fun, but we’re talking about older adults here. Why would care providers be so keen to take their care recipients out of the four walls of a facility (virtually)?

Virtual experiences with clinical benefits

The answer lies in research, and whilst these experiences are certainly fun for all ages – they’re anything but frivolous. 

Virtual reality experiences have been shown to improve the quality of life in older adults. 

Participants in an American study were “less socially isolated… less likely to show signs of depression” and “feeling better about their overall wellbeing”. Another study from Taiwan revealed that VR “can provide older adults with the confidence to get involved in social activities”.

So, it’s clear that VR can have a range of positive impacts on care recipients. But the most exciting benefits of all, are linked to who we are as individuals.

A personal journey

Imagine being able to visit a childhood home, a church you were married in or a place you went on holidays with your family? For those of us born overseas, what about taking a journey back to experience familiar sights and sounds, and reconnect with your culture? Maybe a faith-based pilgrimage or personal spiritual practice?

VR is at its best when it’s partnered with a deep understanding of the individual and what’s important to them and that’s how innovative care providers are getting the most out of VR.

By building upon their strong connections with the individual, carers can deliver meaningful personalized experiences that leverage the power of VR to connect to identity.

For all walks of life

No matter what stage of life an individual is at, virtual reality may provide engagement, excitement, and an opportunity for connection.

Particularly for those of us supporting a loved one with dementia, as VR has been shown to “positively affect the cognitive and physical functioning of those with mild cognitive impairment or dementia”.

And what could be more important for someone living with dementia, than to reconnect them to their true self, their culture, and their loved ones. Now we’re really pushing the dial with “joy”!

Sometimes what’s important isn’t a clinical benefit…

Going beyond the clinical

What is immediately apparent when you try on a VR headset is that it’s like magic. Whilst there may be benefits in wellbeing and cognitive function, it’s an experience to bring wonder, enjoyment, and positive emotions and this can be supercharged when sharing the same experience in a group VR setting.

Any tool that can help bring significant and measurable joy, happiness, and excitement to the life of care recipients is one that’s worth exploring.

Ultimately, that might be the driving factor in the growing use of VR in the aged care space, a growth that’s led by innovative companies.

Changing Lives through Virtual Reality

Melbourne based virtual reality startup, SilVR Adventures, has been taking care of recipients on shared virtual reality experiences since 2019. 

Providing a turnkey VR solution to care providers across Australia and New Zealand, they enable care team members to take people with a variety of needs on immersive, group VR experiences.

Our content focuses on storytelling, emotional journeys and reminiscence therapy. We want to build engaging and inspiring experiences for older adults, no matter what stage of life they’re at.

With the largest library of world tours, spiritual journeys, and bucket list events, we’re experimenting with new ways to engage care recipients. But the real magic happens when the headset comes off.

Creating meaningful connections

The most powerful moments in working with VR are the social connections it stimulates.

“We’ve found that the winning formula is taking people on adventures together. They’ll have an amazing time travelling the world or experiencing something brand new, then the headsets come off and they’re chatting about where they went, where they want to go to next and sharing memories and stories from the past. It’s incredible to watch!”

And it’s clear that aged care providers agree too, with some around Australia establishing weekly ‘Travel Clubs’ to build camaraderie and friendship through shared experience across multiple sites.

We’re super excited to be able to connect up to 40 participants around the world in a shared virtual reality experience, then have them meet in a digital space afterwards like our virtual café and chat about it.

The ability to link people couldn’t have come at a better time with restrictions and lockdowns significantly increasing feelings of isolation, loneliness, and depression among our elders.

The future of the technology

Virtual reality has made great strides in the past few years, but it still has an exciting journey ahead. With companies like Facebook and Google making big investments in the space, it’s clear that the technology will continue to grow and develop.

There’s room to grow in the personal care space too, with VR companies pivoting away from residential facilities and beginning to offer services to be used in home care too.

“So far there’s nothing on offer for people in the home, that’s why SilVR Adventures is thrilled to be launching our home care solution in 2021. We’ll be able to support older adults aging in place with enhanced connections and deliver meaningful virtual adventures, in their own home – and that’s something to get excited about.

A rich and incredible virtual world

As we head towards 2023, there is still a lot of uncertainty, but whatever happens it’s clear that we need to find new ways to stay connected and engaged, and that couldn’t be truer for those of us receiving care.

Leading aged care providers around Australia are increasingly turning to the immersive power of VR as a potential tool for reducing isolation, improving wellbeing, and strengthening connections. 

Very soon personal carers in the home will be taking this technology for a spin too.

Watch a video to see how our seniors are enjoying themselves with the new found Virtual reality – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYDr9PAQLMw

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Web 3.0 Tech

INTRODUCTION TO BLOCKCHAIN AND METAVERSE

blockchain

Written by : joel nzoda on Digilah (Tech Thought Leadership)

GOALS

    • Define blockchain
    • Characterize a blockchain
    • Usefulness of blockchains
    • Web 3.0 and the Metaverse
    • NFT or non-fungible tokens and their usefulness

BLOCKCHAIN 

Developed from 2008, blockchain is, first and foremost, a technology for storing and transmitting information. This technology offers high standards of transparency and security because it works without a central control body. More concretely, the blockchain allows its networked users to share data without an intermediary.

Source : https://www.jlconsulting.fr/media/BS_20190614_BlockChain.png

CHARACTERIZE A BLOCKCHAIN

In practice, a blockchain is a database that contains the history of all exchanges made between its users since its creation. Its main characteristics are:

    • The identification of each part is carried out by a cryptographic process

    • The transaction is sent to a network (or storage “node”) of computers located around the world.

    • Each “node” hosts a copy of the database in which the history of the transactions carried out is recorded. All stakeholders can access it simultaneously

    • The security system is based on a consensus mechanism of all the “nodes” each time information is added. Data is encrypted and authenticated by “data centers” or “miners”. The transaction thus validated is added to the database in the form of a block of encrypted data (this is the “block” in blockchain)

    • Decentralized security management prevents transaction tampering. Each new block added to the blockchain is linked to the previous one and a copy is transmitted to all the “nodes” of the network. The integration is chronological, indelible, and tamper-proof.

Source : https://www.economie.gouv.fr/files/files/2019/infog-block-chain.jpg

USEFULNESS OF BLOCKCHAINS

The blockchain represents a major innovation that is used in particular in the banking sector. Indeed, historically, blockchain technology was developed to support transactions carried out via cryptocurrencies/crypto-assets (including bitcoins which are the most well-known form) and which have the main characteristic of not depending on an organization centralizer (like a central bank) and to be international.

But its use is not limited to cryptocurrencies. Many fields and sectors of activity, commercial or non-commercial, public or private, already use the blockchain or plan to do so in the years to come. The uses of blockchains and other technologies include:

    • In the banking sector, technology opens up the possibility of validating transactions without the intermediary of a clearing house, which should make it possible to certify transactions in much shorter timeframes. The blockchain can also promote the sharing of information between competing players in a financial centre while respecting the secrecy of their commercial data and, in doing so, facilitate the management of common structures or instruments by reducing contact costs and administration fees.

    • In the insurance sector, the contribution of the blockchain is due, for example, to the automation of reimbursement procedures and the alleviation of certain formalities at the expense of companies and their customers, provided that the assumptions and conditions of compensation and damage are clearly established.

    • In the logistics sector, the blockchain has two interests:

    • ensure product traceability, as well as the memory of the various interventions on a production and distribution chain.

    • reduce formalities and create the conditions for cooperation between actors in a sector, particularly in terms of information exchange. This use could also find an application in the agri-food sector for food traceability, particularly interesting in the event of a health crisis.

    • In the energy sector, by authorizing the exchange of services and values outside a central management body, the blockchain potentially creates the conditions for implementation on a more or less large scale depending on the technical capacities of local networks. production, exchange and resale of energy to balance supply and demand at all times, which is a major constraint for electricity networks in particular.

But many sectors are potentially affected by the use of blockchain technology: health, real estate, luxury, aeronautics, etc.

Using blockchain has many benefits, including:

    • The speed of transactions thanks to the fact that the validation of a block takes only a few seconds to a few minutes.
    • Security of the system, which is ensured by the fact that the validation is carried out by a set of different users, who do not know each other. This protects against the risk of malicious intent or hijacking, since the nodes monitor the system and check each other
    • The productivity and efficiency gains generated by the fact that the blockchain entrusts the organization of exchanges to a computer protocol. This mechanically reduces the transaction or centralization costs existing in traditional systems (financial costs, control or certification, use of intermediaries who are remunerated for their service; automation of certain services, etc.).

WEB 3.0 AND THE METAVERSE

As conversations began to shift from Bitcoin (BTC) to other larger crypto projects such as Ethereum network upgrades and central bank digital currencies, or CBDCs, media coverage would suggest that widespread adoption of crypto is already well advanced. But it is clear that the majority of people do not know what it is.

The Metaverse (in English) or Métavers (in French) is a generic term for technologies that make it possible to create an entire (virtual) digital universe like our real universe. This universe can be extremely detailed and include a wide variety of different worlds, often also called virtual environments. People can join this Metaverse using different technologies and interact with each other. However, instead of being present in person, the user creates an avatar which is their representation in the Metaverse.

Source : https://i0.wp.com/stylistme.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Metaverse-guide-tuto.png?w=1280 HYPERLINK “https://i0.wp.com/stylistme.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Metaverse-guide-tuto.png?w=1280&ssl=1″& HYPERLINK “https://i0.wp.com/stylistme.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Metaverse-guide-tuto.png?w=1280&ssl=1″ssl=1

However, the Metaverse doesn’t just want to be a massively multiplayer open-world gaming platform (RPG MMO). It is already beginning to be a virtual space where people work, earn money (by spending it), meet people, and invest in real estate. In short, where you can live another life.

Technologies like Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) are important levers for the Metaverse, as they will help create an incredible sense of immersion in another’s skin and in another universe. However, there is one project that may well facilitate mainstream adoption of crypto: Web3.

To better understand the evolution of these two technologies, an illustration between Web2 and Web3 as support for the Metaverse.

Source: https://i0.wp.com/stylistme.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Web-3.0-evolution-Internet.jpg?w=1024 HYPERLINK “https://i0.wp.com/stylistme.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Web-3.0-evolution-Internet.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1″& HYPERLINK “https://i0.wp.com/stylistme.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Web-3.0-evolution-Internet.jpg?w=1024&ssl=1″ssl=1

NFTs (NON FUNGIBLE TOKENS ) AND THEIR USES 

NFT are the three initials of Non-Fungible Token, which translates to non-fungible token. That doesn’t necessarily make things any clearer. Therefore we must detail the notion of “non-fungible”.

For example, bitcoins or €100 bills are fungible. Even though each note is unique, it will have exactly the same value as another €100 note. The first mined bitcoin, no matter what platform it is on or who owns it, is the same value as a recently mined bitcoin stored in another wallet.

Conversely, works of art or concert tickets are non-fungible. Something that is not fungible cannot be replaced or divided. It’s unique. They are objects of the same nature, but which have their own characteristics and their own usefulness.

We talk about “tokens” when they are digital units, which are exchanged with blockchain technology: 3D visuals, objects in a video game, or even a piece of land in a fictional universe.

The NFT can therefore be defined as follows: it is the digital title of ownership of a non-fungible token. NFTs can be classified into different categories according to their nature and usefulness:

    • collectibles: a collection of digital objects, or a work of art for example.
    • metaverses: virtual worlds.
    • online gaming tokens.
    • utilities: they provide a service to their owner.

Some NTFs may belong to more than one category. They are traded on online marketplaces dedicated to NFTs, connected to the blockchain.

                                                                                                           The value criteria of an NFT: This young technology has a future ahead of it, but it could lead to some abuses. Many investors seek to speculate on this trend which, although it is a resounding success, is still very volatile and full of scams. The vast majority of sold works and NFT projects will never have value, simply because no one wants them.

Some NFTs have artistic value: They are works valued independently of the fact that they are digital, in the same way as a painting in a museum. The blockchain does not have a preponderant role in the evaluation of their price, it is simply the art market. Overall, price is defined by what an artist’s fan is willing to invest.

The value of an NFT can also depend on its usefulness: Becoming a member of a club, meeting other holders or the artist himself, being more powerful in a video game, acquiring and showing a certain social status, etc. .

BIBLIOGRAPHY

My name is Joel Nzoda Consultant in Digital Marketing, Junior Blockchain Developer, Junior cyber Security Consultant and Expert in blockchain technologies. I hope I have been able to bring value to each other, I remain attentive. Discover my activities on social networks.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/boschdigital I Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/nzodax

Instagram: https://instagram.com/nzodax I Facebook: https://facebook.com/nzodax

Medium: https://medium.com/agencedigitalenzodax I Tiktok: https://tiktok.com/nzodax

Tumbr: https://tumbr.com/superexpertdigital I Email joelnzoda@gamail.com I Whatsapp: +237693241257

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Food Tech Web 3.0 Tech

A Paradigm Shift is Possible in the Metaverse Experience

metaverse

Written by : Ajit Padmanabh on Digilah (Tech Thought Leadership)

Only if these 2 technologies become a reality!

There is no doubt about it – Metaverse is the next Internet and is here to stay for a couple of generations, if not more. It is also a natural evolution from today’s 2D Internet to be able to experience the Digital Universe in 3D! With today’s technology advancements and research, if we can plug 2 technologies into the Metaverse, it would be a limitless opportunity. 

What are these 2 technologies, you ask? Sensory technologies involving Olfactory and Gustatory systems. In simpler terms, Smell and Taste, respectively. With the pandemic having affected many people with the loss of sense and taste and they having reported a loss of interest in life owing to the sensory loss, it makes sense to build these technologies for the Metaverse.  

Why Sensory Technologies

You may be familiar with the reductionist philosophy. It’s the practice of analyzing and describing a complex phenomenon in terms of its simple or fundamental constituents, especially when this is said to provide a sufficient explanation. 

Quoting few examples from Britannica1, the ideas that physical bodies are collections of atoms or that a given mental state (e.g., one person’s belief that snow is white) is identical to a particular physical state (the firing of certain neurons in that person’s brain) are examples of reductionism.

With advances in neuroscientific research in the last century, there is an existence of what is known as Cortical Homunculus. A cortical homunculus is a distorted representation of the human body, based on a neurological “map” of the areas and proportions of the human brain dedicated to processing motor functions, or sensory functions, for different parts of the body. A 2D representation of the sensory homunculus is shown below. 

Fig.1 A 2D Cortical Sensory homunculus

All signals are received by the primary sensory cortex in the brain. The amount of cortex devoted to any given body region is not proportional to that body region’s surface area or volume, but rather to how richly innervated that region is.

Areas of the body with more complex and/or more numerous sensory or motor connections are represented as larger in the homunculus, while those with less complex and/or less numerous connections are represented as smaller.2 You’d notice that the significant amount of brain-processing is accorded to sensory functions, including those of taste and smell. 

If we are to look at the proposition of Metaverse being an alternate universe and where you are expected to spend considerable amount of time, it has to be capable of attracting your attention not only visually or aurally (as is the case with the 2D internet of today) but as a multi-sensory experience involving haptics (touch), olfactory (smell) and gustatory (taste) technologies as well.

Hence, it is critical to understand and invest in these sensory technologies and ensure that the promise of Metaverse is realized in entirety.

A Sneak Peek into Multi-sensory Prototypes and Ongoing Research 

A lot of research and development has gone into haptic (touch) technologies with many commercially available solutions as well. Since the solutions are fairly established, we will focus on research into olfactory and gustatory technology.

Olfactory Prototypes and Research

As far as olfactory technologies are concerned, considerable research is being performed on classification and extraction of scents so as to define the exact sense stimulus in the brain which then can be simulated using ergonomic hardware. 

According to Judith Amores, a research fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, whose work is focused on scent and virtual reality – “People don’t really appreciate the sense of smell,” she said. “It’s actually so important, it’s so unexplored, and it’s so powerful.”3

OVR Technologies, a Burlington, Vermont-based startup, is one of the few companies developing this technology for Virtual Reality. While reproducing real-world odors with chemicals is challenging, it opens up new possibilities in nostalgic experiences as odor is associated with memories. With earlier 5D systems, scent technology had certain issues, namely the mixing up and lingering of scents long after the experience. This is being fixed with AI-driven algorithms that trigger various odors and control their intensity, duration among other parameters. 

 Lastly, there is research on olfactory-powered deaddiction programs in Virtual Reality, which could prove to be a panacea in the Metaverse. Closer home, research into olfactory is ongoing at various institutes including IIT, Jodhpur.

Gustatory Prototypes and Research

Research into gustatory prototypes is in its early days. The idea is to simulate taste in the physical world first and then look to replicate it in the virtual world. The “lickable screen,” called the “Norimaki Synthesizer,” uses five different gels, each corresponding to the five tastes the human tongue can distinguish between — salty, acidic, bitter, sweet, and umami. 

By weakening and strengthening these five different tastes through the use of electrical currents, the device can reproduce any “arbitrary taste,” according to the research.4 “Like an optical display that uses lights of three basic colors to produce arbitrary colors, this display can synthesize and distribute arbitrary tastes together with the data acquired by taste sensors,” said Homei Miyashita, researcher at Meiji University, Japan. 

In a recent development, A team at the Carnegie Mellon University, a private institution in Pittsburgh, US, have made it possible for users to feel the virtual world in and on their mouth, without making physical contact. What the user can feel are tactile sensations such as drinking from a water fountain, wind on the face.5 Project Nourished, a VR food start-up, has been experimenting with technology to trick taste buds and promote sustainability.6

Conclusion

Metaverse is here to stay and become an integral part of who we are. Multi-sensory metaverse, in its complete form, will not only make it real and immersive but will also open up new industry verticals hitherto unknown as of today. A paradigm shift is also possible in Hospitality, Travel & Tourism and Entertainment industries with such technologies.

There is huge potential to be at the forefront of research and commercialization of such technologies in India – Tasty food for thought for investors and research institutes across the country!

References:

  1. https://www.britannica.com/topic/reductionism
  2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cortical_homunculus 
  3. https://www.wbur.org/news/2022/03/14/virtual-reality-smell-ovr-technology
  4. https://futurism.com/the-byte/device-simulate-any-flavor  
  5. https://www.cnbctv18.com/technology/ultrasound-vr-device-lets-users-touch-and-feel-in-mouths-vr-kiss-13378502.htm

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