PAPER

VIRTUAL REALITY

Virtual Reality

Virtual reality initially was regarded as the digital space created to be accessed by people through the use of sophisticated computer gadgets. In that digital space, the people are able to interact with other people and objects in an environment whose appearance is dependent on the imagination of human beings. Virtual reality is defined an interactive environment that is generated by the computer with the amalgamation of the technologies essential in building that environment (Biocca & Levy 2013).

According to Biocca & Levy (2013), a virtual environment can be defined as the digital space through which the movement of a user is traced with his environs rendered and exhibited to the senses in harmony with the movements. The computer games are a good example. The movements of the joystick used by a player can be traced as the character moves forward, in essence, translating into a new environment. Virtual environments and virtual reality are used interchangeably in the technology sector. The primary objective of the virtual environment is to swap the cues of the environment of the real world with the digital one.

The Importance of virtual reality

The utilization of virtual reality in social science is intrinsic in the nature of technology. The main reasoning behind the development of virtual reality was to provide an environment where people could intermingle in the absence of the physical world’s constraints. Virtual reality is therefore a means through which the body and mind are extended. Virtual reality offers a chance to discover the psychological and social phenomena taking place in the novel as well as the physical world. It is attributable to the ability by virtual reality recreating fantasy and real environs and the host of sensory experiences between them (Ohta & Tamura 2014).

Virtual reality is also viewed as a developing means which plays an important role in our lives daily by enabling personal interrelations and inter longstanding mass media roles. The prevalent dependence on mobile media gadgets and the internet is indicative of the fact that the transition into a full virtual environment is imminent.

Components of the virtual environment

Earn (2014), states that the virtual environment takes various forms and is usually determined by the ability of the hardware or the platform through which the virtual environment is experienced. The hardware is a simple cellular device that integrates wearable devices which allow users to move in physical environs.

The most basic virtual environments are available on computers’ desktops, mobile gadgets, and gaming gadgets. They are three or two dimensional. The use employs the joystick, mouse and the presses keys to move a representation and in essence provides a simple form of tracing. The latest technological advancements have enhanced the tracing capability.

The virtual environment is made up of the rudimentary components viewed in the physical environs and external landscape components like internal space walls and floors. Peoples’ representations are some of the primary thought-provoking virtual objects. The representations have an impact on the viewers and the users. They are dependent on what and on who controls their actions (Wexelblat 2014).

Conclusion

Virtual reality gives us an opportunity to explore the psychological and social phenomena taking place in the novel as well as the physical world. It plays a significant role in our lives daily coupled with the recent overreliance on the internet and mobile phones. The transition into a virtual environment is, therefore, forthcoming.

References

Biocca, F., & Levy, M. R. (Eds.). (2013). Communication in the age of virtual reality.

Routledge.

Earn shaw, R. A. (Ed.). (2014). Virtual reality systems. Academic press.

Ohta, Y., & Tamura, H. (2014). Mixed reality: merging real and virtual worlds. Springer

Publishing Company, Incorporated.

Wexelblat, A. (Ed.). (2014). Virtual reality: applications and explorations. Academic Press.