Coffee & Viz - Virtual Reality: What It Is and What It Can/Can't Do For You

After years of Virtual Reality technology and experiences not being able to match user expectations, recent public launches of Head-Mounted Displays like the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive and increasing industry engagement finally seem to validate Virtual Reality as a tool for entertainment, education and research. As an introduction to the topic, Mike Cuales will provide an overview of current Virtual Reality technologies, applications for 360 video in education and a look at future trends. In the second part of this Coffee & Viz event, Gary Kapral will talk about his practical experience with using various approaches to Virtual Reality in his research and the classroom and identify some of the potential gains and drawbacks of the technology.

Mike Cuales is the Creative Director at NC State's Distance Education & Learning Technology Applications. Gary Kapral is a postdoctoral associate in biochemistry at Duke University.

Note: There will be a Virtual Reality "petting zoo" before and after the presentation where you can try some of the latest devices and applications.