Science News

You can turn on your computer and Skype your therapist, meet them in Second Life or have e-therapy by email.

Basked in the glow of the computer humming quietly in her living room, Kimberly Winnington is creating worlds limited only by imagination.

When a virtual human is controlled by an actual human’s behaviours in real time, it is an avatar, by definition. If it is controlled by a computer, it is an agent. However, the notions of doppelgängers challenge these definitions, by begging the question, ‘If it looks just like me in every way but is controlled by a computer algorithm, is it really just an agent?’ Strictly speaking, the answer to this questions is ‘yes’. However, the notion of self is fluid in virtual reality. The same holds for people in the physical world, but to a lesser extent. ‘I wasn’t myself when I said that!’ is an excuse people often give for some transgression.

The possibilities for self-representations are many in virtual reality, and scholars are just beginning to scratch the surface of understanding the implications of these new technologies for who we are and how we act as humans. There are many unknowns about these doppelgängers – for example, how long the effect lasts, how it interacts among people who vary across cultures and personality type, and what is the exact psychological mechanisms behind the process. As the technologies to build avatars move from the laboratory into the living room the need to answer these pressing questions will be more pronounced.

Does the virtual-reality world known as Second Life have anything to offer for real-world scientists? Absolutely — and a trailblazing researcher says the payoffs are sure to increase when the Internet goes 3-D.

New research suggests that far from disengaging young people from real life, virtual worlds can provide unique environments that can help them learn and negotiate new situations.

The military’s newest digital training system is gonna open a can of whoop-ass on new recruits. And maybe a sonic blaster, too.

The use of gaming technology, from first-person shooters to virtual worlds, is quickly becoming the military’s mode of choice for training the troops of this generation. But those digital proving grounds come with one major disadvantage: They just don’t hurt enough. That could be about to change, according to a new request for proposals issued by the Army last week, which calls for technology to “create an impulse force that simulates the feel of debris… or bullet strikes.”

A sophisticated new open-access online psychology clinic is helping people with mental health disorders better manage their symptoms.