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Virtual reality (VR) and 360° video can provide new opportunities for testing and training in sport. Both options offer different benefits in terms of efficacy for training, ease of use, and cost. This creates questions about the implementation of immersive technologies, and research is required to further understand their use. We aimed to gain initial evidence of athletes' perceptions of face validity and fidelity in VR and 360-video. Thirty-nine international pathway cricketers experienced five overs in VR cricket and in a 360-video recording. After trying each technology, players completed questionnaires to measure perceptions of presence and task workload. Participants reported immersive experience in both methods, but higher levels of realism, possibility to act, physical effort, temporal constraints, and task control in VR. 360-video offers a better possibility to visually examine the environment, while VR offers enhanced realism and physical elements, but 360-video may still offer affordable solutions for visual tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many animals and plants have species-typical annual cycles, but individuals vary in their timing of life-history events. Individual variation in fur replacement (moult) timing is poorly understood in mammals due to the challenge of repeated observations and longitudinal sampling. We examined factors that influence variation in moult duration and timing among elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris). We quantified the onset and progression of fur loss in 1178 individuals. We found that an exceptionally rapid visible moult (7 days, the shortest of any mammals or birds), and a wide range of moult start dates (spanning 6-10× the event duration) facilitated high asynchrony across individuals (only 20% of individuals in the population moulting at the same time). Some of the variation was due to reproductive state, as reproductively mature females that skipped a breeding season moulted a week earlier than reproductive females. Moreover, individual variation in timing and duration within age-sex categories far outweighed (76-80%) variation among age-sex categories. Individuals arriving at the end of the moult season spent 50% less time on the beach, which allowed them to catch up in their annual cycles and reduce population-level variance during breeding. These findings underscore the importance of individual variation in annual cycles.

Introduction: We previously found that self-guided Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (VRET) improved Public Speaking Anxiety (PSA) and reduced heartrate. Elevated heartrate characterises social anxiety and the self-guided VRET seemed to reduce heartrate. Thus, receiving continuous biofeedback about physiological arousal during the VRET could help socially anxious individuals to manage their anxiety. The present study aimed to determine whether biofeedback enhances the responsiveness of VRET. Methods: Seventy-two individuals with high self-reported social anxiety were randomly allocated to VRET-plus-biofeedback (n=38; 25 completers) or VRET-alone (n=35; 25 completers). Three hour-long VRET sessions were delivered over two consecutive weeks. During each session, participants delivered a 20-minute public speech in front of a virtual audience. Results: Participants in the VRET-plus-biofeedback group received biofeedback on heartrate and frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) within the virtual environment and were asked to lower their arousal accordingly. Participants in both groups completed psychometric assessments of social anxiety after each session and at one-month follow-up. PSA improved by the end of treatment and overall social anxiety improved one month after the VRET across both groups. The VRET-plus-biofeedback group showed a steadier reduction in FAA in the first VRET session and a greater reduction in self-reported arousal across the two sessions than the VRET-alone group. Conclusion: Biofeedback can steady physiological arousal and lower perceived arousal during exposure. The benefits of self-guided VRET for social anxiety are sustained one month after therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Offline brand spaces strive to incorporate innovative technologies and showcase their other aspects. Spatial augmented reality (SAR) is a type of augmented reality that is directly integrated into the physical space, overcoming display limitations, and providing a more immersive experience. In this study, 85 participants were asked to experience marketing-based SAR experimental stimuli, and the data were analyzed by evaluating flow, local presence, and brand attitude. The results of the study show a positive relationship between experiential elements such as sensory perception, emotion, cognition, behavior, and flow and local presence, which, in turn, impact brand attitude. However, if the target brand differs, the experiment may vary depending on the specifications, potentially impacting the evaluation. Additionally, future research should consider technological advancements and alternative approaches to expanded reality experiences. This study offers valuable insights into the potential marketing applications of SAR in offline brand spaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The absence of physical accident risk in driving simulation, which allows for safely studying critical driving situations, also reduces the driver's risk perception, which may result in unrealistic driver behavior. Validation studies in this context are rare for ethical reasons, making it difficult to assess the extent of this issue at present. The present study addresses this gap by utilizing naturalistic driving data. Four critical cut-in situations on German highways were extracted from naturalistic data and replicated in a driving simulator study with N = 58 participants. Both in-situ self-ratings on subjective criticality and post-hoc video-based ratings (from the driver and objective observers), as well as presence ratings, were collected to supplement driver behavior. Although driver reactions in the simulator and the field were not equivalent in absolute terms, drivers in both the simulation and the real world exhibited accident-avoidance behavior through braking reactions, indicating relative validity. No clear mediating role of the sense of presence towards a more careful driver behavior was found. This work shows that drivers exhibit accident-avoiding behavior in the simulator and tend to react to hazards in the simulator similarly as they would in a real situation, while absolute numerical values should only be interpreted with caution. • Comparative analysis: simulator vs. real-world behavior. • Unique approach with naturalistic driving data. • Accident-avoidance behavior in simulator and real world. • No absolute validity in braking responses. • Caution advised when extrapolating simulator findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

COVID-19 has forced many universities to adopt online teaching. However, the design discipline attaches great importance to on-site operation and face-to-face design discussions, causing teachers to face major challenges in the implementation of distance teaching. The purpose of this study is to investigate the suitability and teaching strategies for distance teaching in designing courses ("design theory", "design practice", and "hybrid design"). The participants were 312 college students from 1st to 4th grade (above). The questionnaire is based on the "presence" that distance teaching focuses on, including: (1) "cognitive presence", (2) "social presence", and (3) "teaching presence". Each indicator corresponds to the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ). The results of the study found: (1) "Creating a communication environment" and "real interactive feeling" are the most important elements, (2) A "hybrid design" course is more suitable for distance teaching design than other design courses, (3) The element of "hard requirements" is particularly prominent in the "design practice" course, and (4) Distance teaching needs to strengthen "social presence". These results could provide a reference teaching planning template for the design department's distance courses, assist teachers in curriculum planning and adjustment so that the design department can improve the existing distance predicament. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing adoption of mixed reality (MR) headsets with video passthrough functionality, concerns over perceptual and social effects have surfaced. Building on prior qualitative findings,1 this study quantitatively investigates the impact of video passthrough on users. Forty participants completed a body transfer task twice, once while wearing a headset in video passthrough and once without a headset. Using video passthrough induced simulator sickness, created social absence (another person in the physical room feels less present), altered self-reported body schema, and distorted distance perception. On the other hand, compared with past research that showed perceptual aftereffects from video passthrough, the current study found none. We discuss the broader implications for the widespread adoption of MR headsets and their impact on theories surrounding presence and body transfer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our goal was to investigate how increased police presence and contact are related to police-community relations, and whether this relationship may be different for those who are more likely to be subject to targeted policing practices, especially those with preexisting lower procedural justice assessments, living in disadvantaged communities, and having prior experience with the criminal justice system. Increased police presence was related to higher police legitimacy assessments, while low quality contact was negatively associated with police legitimacy. Increased presence and positive contact with the police were related to improved attitudes towards the police for those living in disadvantaged neighborhoods and who had preexisting lower procedural justice assessments. The opposite relationship was found for those living in advantaged neighborhoods with more positive preexisting attitudes towards the police. Implementation of tactics that increase police presence and positive contact with the police could improve police-community relations in neighborhoods that are disadvantaged and have residents that see the police as procedurally unjust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Technologies like virtual reality (VR) and augmented virtuality (AV) based on head-mounted display (HMD) have made immersive interactive narrative experience possible. To investigate the differences between HMD VR and HMD AV for interactive storytelling, an app entitled the Extended Journey has been designed, developed and deployed on both VR headsets and optical see-through (OST) mixed reality (MR) headsets. Subsequently, a within-subjects design experiment with sixty participants was conducted to measure different factors of user experience in HMD VR and HMD AV conditions. Additionally, a between-subjects design experiment with 62 participants was conducted to evaluate narrative immersion and presence. Quantitative results from the experiments reveal that HMD VR narrative had statistically significantly better narrative immersion, presence, enjoyment and perceived affinity of computer-generated (CG) characters compared with HMD AV narrative in the context of galleries and museums. Based on Sundar's Modality-Agency-Interactivity-Navigability (MAIN) model, we proposed and validated that sense of being-there and interaction mediated the relationship between immersive media modality and narrative immersion as well as empathy. Qualitative data and behavioral tests showed that young people have a higher preference for HMD VR over HMD AV, but for specific use scenarios, there is still a certain possibility of choosing HMD AV due to security and space limitations. These findings have theoretical implications for the psychology of VR and AV, and practical applications for HMD-based immersive narrative in general. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review aims to determine the potential of wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) as an effective tool for the measurement and management of the COVID-19 pandemic. WBE is a fast-evolving topic and therefore an up-to-date review is critical for our understanding. The following objectives will be further investigated to determine the presence, transmission, and management of SARS-CoV-2: (i) summarize the effectiveness of current wastewater monitoring procedures to accurately detect and quantify SARS-CoV-2 in communities, and (ii) identify how the virus's behaviour and introduction in wastewater contribute to our knowledge of SARS-CoV-2, its transmission, and effective management. The SARS-CoV-2 RNA was able to be detected in the majority of case studies using various methods. Further research related to the transmission and management of SARS-CoV-2 is required to unlock WBE's full potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virtual reality (VR) users experience unwanted symptoms, such as body imbalance, nausea, dizziness, and loss of presence. This study aims to investigate the effects of posture and locomotion on postural stability, cybersickness, and presence in VR environments. Twenty participants played a VR game under different conditions depending on posture (standing and sitting) and locomotion methods (joystick and teleportation), and seven dependent variables (COM, AP displacement, ML displacement, ASL, PSQ, VRSQ, and SOP) were analyzed to observe postural stability, cybersickness, and presence. The results revealed that postural instability increased when the task was performed in the standing posture with the joystick locomotion method compared to other conditions. The AP displacement, ML displacement, and ASL were lower under teleportation conditions. The PSQ scores indicated that postural stability was better in the sitting posture than in the standing posture. The VRSQ score revealed that the sitting with teleportation condition had less cybersickness than the other conditions. The SOP score was the highest in the standing posture with the teleportation condition. This study concludes that a sitting posture with teleportation locomotion can be considered when designing games in which users actively interact with virtual movements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose a reduced reality [RR] concept of less-is-more that virtual reality [VR] designers can use to create technological frameworks which reduce sensory overload and allow for better concentration and focus, less stress, and novel scenarios. We question the approach taken by scholars in the field of extended reality [XR] research, where the focus is typically to design and use technology that adds sensory information to the user's perceptual field, and we address some of the confusion related to the typical uses of the term reality. To address the latter terminological muddle, we define reality as our conscious experience of the environment, an emergent perception, and we use this definition as the basis for a discussion on the role of sound in balancing sensory information and in the construction of less cluttered and less stressful perceptual environments. We further discuss current auditory strategies that reduce and alter auditory stimuli, and we suggest potential future strategies for RR that use crossmodal design approaches, masking, and filtering techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial intelligence (AI) has seen rapid advancements, establishing itself as a robust tool for fostering accessible teaching and learning environments. Nevertheless, the efficacy of these intelligent learning settings in bolstering the engagement and learning outcomes for students with hearing impairments warrants further investigation. This research leveraged Design-Based Research (DBR) to iteratively refine intelligent learning environments, while also adopting the Community of Inquiry (COI) and Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to assess classroom presence and perception among students with hearing impairments. The results revealed notable enhancements in teaching presence, cognitive presence, social presence, and overall perception within intelligent learning contexts for hearing-impaired students. Additionally, their understanding of abstract and ill-structured knowledge significantly improved. Such findings offer valuable insights for the design of inclusive teaching and learning environments in special education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advent of consumer-grade electroencephalography (EEG) and virtual reality (VR) devices, the use of human cognitive processes directly as means for user-adapted interaction in immersive virtual environments has become increasingly relevant. In this study (N = 43), we investigate electroencephalography-based neurofeedback interaction in virtual reality (VR). Particularly, we investigate this phenomenon in the context of meditation which enables the studying of cognitive processes (attention, sense of presence, meditation depth) when using an immersive interface that is adaptive based on neural responses. A prototype virtual reality environment was built that employs head-mounted display (HMD), and the neurofeedback functionality guided the user to increase the neural indices of meditation-related concentration and relaxation. The observed findings provide evidence for the effectiveness of neurofeedback functionality and VR in evoking desired types of neural activation and subjective experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Virtual Reality (VR), a higher level of presence positively influences the experience and engagement of a user. There are several parameters that are responsible for generating different levels of presence in VR, including but not limited to, graphical fidelity, multi-sensory stimuli, and embodiment. However, standard methods of measuring presence, including self-reported questionnaires, are biased. This research focuses on developing a robust model, via machine learning, to detect different levels of presence in VR using multimodal neurological and physiological signals, including electroencephalography and electrodermal activity. An experiment has been undertaken whereby participants (N = 22) were each exposed to three different levels of presence (high, medium, and low) in a random order in VR. Four parameters within each level, including graphics fidelity, audio cues, latency, and embodiment with haptic feedback, were systematically manipulated to differentiate the levels. A number of multi-class classifiers were evaluated within a three-class classification problem, using a One-vs-Rest approach, including Support Vector Machine, k-Nearest Neighbour, Extra Gradient Boosting, Random Forest, Logistic Regression, and Multiple Layer Perceptron. Results demonstrated that the Multiple Layer Perceptron model obtained the highest macro average accuracy of 93 ± 0.03 % . Posthoc analysis revealed that relative band power, which is expressed as the ratio of power in a specific frequency band to the total baseline power, in both the frontal and parietal regions, including beta over theta and alpha ratio, and differential entropy were most significant in detecting different levels of presence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid advancement of virtual reality (VR) technology has brought many immersive experiences, each designed to transport users into captivating virtual worlds. While these experiences aim to provide a sense of presence and engagement, the factors contributing to a truly immersive experience are often complex and multifaceted. Existing scholarship has predominantly focused on specific aspects of user experience, such as psychological factors (e.g., sense of presence), emotional factors (e.g., enjoyment), or design-related factors (e.g., interface usability). This fragmented approach has impeded a comprehensive understanding of the overall quality of VR experiences. To address this, we propose a multidimensional taxonomy encompassing five essential qualities: immersivity, interactivity, explorability, plausibility, and believability. The framework aims to disentangle the complex, interrelated facets shaping VR experiences for a more systematic evaluation. Immersivity refers to the subjective sense of presence and "being there" in a virtual environment. Interactivity denotes the ability to interact with virtual objects, promoting engagement dynamically. Explorability refers to users' freedom to navigate and discover new elements. Plausibility examines the logical congruence of the virtual environment's rules and behaviors. Finally, believability relates to the world-building and internal coherence of the VR world. This taxonomy provides a structured approach to look at VR experiences holistically, assessing the interplay of these facets to facilitate a more objective, comprehensive evaluation, capturing the multidimensional nature of VR experiences. In summary, our proposed taxonomy marks an essential step toward systematic VR evaluation, providing guidance for researchers and highlighting factors integral to VR quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Augmented Reality (AR) is a technology that overlays virtual objects on a physical environment. The illusion afforded by AR is that these virtual artifacts can be treated like physical ones, allowing people to view them from different perspectives and point at them knowing that others see them in the same place. Despite extensive research in AR, there has been surprisingly little research into how people embrace this AR illusion, and in what ways the illusion breaks down. In this paper, we report the results of an exploratory, mixed methods study with six pairs of participants playing the novel Sightline AR game. The study showed that participants changed physical position and pose to view virtual artifacts from different perspectives and engaged in conversations around the artifacts. Being able to see the real environment allowed participants to maintain awareness of other participants’ actions and locus of attention. Players largely entered the illusion of interacting with a shared physical/virtual artifact, but some interactions broke the illusion, such as pointing into space. Some participants reported fatigue around holding their tablet devices and taking on uncomfortable poses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article deals with the use of language in historiography and with this usage's implications for the conception of history and the historiographical operation/practice. Whereas theorists of "presence" believe that "presence" and "reality" can be grasped in spoken language and written texts, thus generally considering them as a medium that enables access to a "reality" that lies beyond texts and language, I argue that language and texts should themselves be considered as a "reality." We need to distinguish the process of "presentification" performed by words from the presence of language as a lexical and physical reality; though the two aspects are strictly connected, the presence of language needs to be emphasized as a lexical‐semantic system and as a thing in the world. In this article, I consider language as a "living witness" of the narrated events; it is a presence in the moment that events occurred and a presence that is still present. We should think of language as we think of the material world around us—that is, as a transformed landscape that contains present and absent pasts. Historians of "presence" consider the meanings associated with language as a major obstacle obstructing the understanding of history in a new unmediated way; to some extent, this article is an attempt to hold meaning and presence together. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wishing to access the referential nature of things, the later Roland Barthes turned to premodern modes of thinking that emphasise presence, exteriority, and certainty. This essay shows this turn by elaborating on the Platonic, mythical, and tragic subtexts of his Camera Lucida. The photographic pose – interpreted variously through tragic masks, sacred icons, or documentary transparency – offers a rich site to reflect on the objectivity of experience. Though its memories are subjective, photography's vivid effect shares in the universality promised by myth, which is also an imagistic mode of experience. The tension between the studium (techne/rhetoric) and the punctum (wound/experience) leads Barthes to affirm the incontrovertible reality of the latter over the artificiality of the former. Additionally, photography's temporality of the past functions as a confirmation of presence rather than absence: the no-more does not signify what is not there, but corroborates in its melancholy what once was. In short, the light of photography in Camera Lucida is not so much a technical device required by an artistic medium but the very light of truth that grounds the referentiality of existence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In neuropsychology and clinical psychology, the efficacy of virtual reality (VR) experiences for knowledge acquisition and the potential for modifying conduct are well documented. Consequently, the scope of VR experiences for educational purposes has expanded in the health field in recent years. In this study, we sought to assess the effectiveness of ViveDe in a psychoeducational caregiver program. ViveDe is a VR application that presents users with possible daily life situations from the perspective of individuals with dementia. These situations can be experienced in immersive mode through 360° video. This research aimed to ascertain the associations between the sense of presence that can be achieved in VR and some users' psychological characteristics, such as distress and empathetic disposition. The study involved 36 informal caregivers of individuals with Alzheimer's disease. These participants were assessed using scales of anxiety and depression, perceived stress, empathy, and emotional regulation. They were asked to participate in a six-session psychoeducation program conducted online on dementia topics, in addition to experiencing the ViveDe application. The immersive VR sessions enabled the caregivers to directly experience the symptoms of dementia (e.g., spatial disorientation, agnosia, difficulty in problem-solving, and anomia) in everyday and social settings. The results indicated that although the experience in ViveDe (evaluated using the XRPS scale and five questions about emotional attunement) showed efficacy in producing a sense of first-person participation in the symptoms of dementia, further research is needed to confirm this. The structural equation model provided evidence that the characteristics of individuals who enjoy the VR experience play a determining role in the perceived sense of presence, which in turn affects the efficacy of the VR experience as a psychoeducational tool. Further research will be conducted to ascertain the potential role of these elements in conveying change in the caregivers of people with dementia. This will help us study the long-term effectiveness of a large-scale psychoeducation program in VR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the mechanisms of virtual reality (VR) tourism's impact on the well-being of residents in long-term care facilities (LTCFs). It aims to understand how presence and flow during VR experiences can enhance well-being. This experimental study used a quantitative approach with structured questionnaires to investigate VR experiences among LTCF residents in Taiwan. After obtaining ethical approval, 145 eligible participants from four LTCFs completed a full five-week VR tourism experience. Data collection took place from June to November 2022. This study employed Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with Smart PLS software to analyze the causal relationships between latent variables. The results confirm that the more vivid the virtual reality image (β = 0.240, p < 0.05), the more immersive the experience (β = 0.267, p < 0.05), the greater the ability to control the experience (β = 0.465, p < 0.001), and the greater the ability to stimulate curiosity during the experience (β = 0.290, p < 0.05), the greater the sense of presence. Increased presence leads to user engagement and a state of flow (β = 0.556, p < 0.001), which is essential for personal hedonia (β = 0.453, p < 0.001) and eudaimonia (β = 0.220, p < 0.001). This study elucidates the mechanisms through which VR tourism experiences enhance well-being among LTCF residents, emphasizing the critical roles of presence and flow in promoting both hedonic and eudaimonic dimensions of well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As social virtual reality (VR) continues to grow as a medium for digital communication, sustaining presence among communicators remains one of the main constructs that researchers and practitioners use to assess the quality of user experience. In the present paper, we explore language patterns as a behavioral link to presence. We accomplished this through an exploratory text analysis of over 4,800 min of conversation in social VR, consisting of over 130,000 spoken words from 126 participants. We observed that the use of self-references and collective references positively correlated to social presence and spatial presence. Furthermore, median interpersonal distance between communicators was positively associated with using impersonal pronouns, suggesting that participants who stood farther apart from their interlocutors tended to speak in more impersonal terms. Our work sheds light on the possible psychological mechanisms behind presence and the potential of using speech data to help build systems that enhance user engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to capture and illuminate a trauma-focused presence in psychotherapy treatment. The goal is to highlight an integrative approach that centers on the trauma survivor's battle with freedom and limitation. Both the expansive and the constrictive tendencies of many traumatized clients are exemplified, focusing on the dichotomous or polarized positions that clients present. Key factors of evidence-based therapeutic relationships that can guide therapist stances and engagement efforts are explored. This approach moves away from an overemphasis on and strict adherence to the medical model framework and toward a contextual standard grounded in a humanistic blanket and characterized by a person-centered and relationally driven therapeutic approach. The trauma therapist chiefly fosters engagement and makes space or pathways for an assortment of therapeutic interventions that are congruent with the client's theory of change and take shape organically. Developing intrapersonal and interpersonal presence are primary focal points that correlate with the importance of personal and interactive processes in successful psychotherapy outcome research. Meaning making is at the core of a trauma-focused presence and takes place through client and therapist dialogue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teacher education has begun to embrace the use of 360 videos to improve preservice teachers' (PSTs) engagement and immersion. While recent research on such use is promising overall, there are specific questions that have been left unanswered about the construct of presence in 360 videos. More specifically, research has yet to fully explore how video delivery devices and PST characteristics may impact presence. The purpose of this study was to respond to this gap in the literature by examining PST major, delivery device (ie, head mounted display vs. flat screen), and the interaction between the two in informing presence. A total of 93 PSTs watched 360 videos and then completed a questionnaire. Findings indicated that presence in head‐mounted displays was related to emotions and agency. Conversely, presence with flat screens meant familiarity and control. Moreover, PST major was a predictor of presence, suggesting that 360 videos should be personalized according to PST career and professional goals. Finally, the interaction effect of preparing to teach K‐12 mathematics and wearing a head‐mounted display had a negative and statistically significant effect on participants' perceived presence, thus indicating a non‐cumulative effect. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic 360 videos are increasingly used to support preservice teacher training.360 videos for teacher education foster immersion, presence, and noticing skills.What this paper adds Empirical evidence that 360 videos experienced with head‐mounted display facilitate agency and emotional involvement.Empirical evidence that 360 videos experienced with flat screens facilitate feelings of control.Data showed that preservice teachers' content area (math) was a positive predictor of presence in 360 videos.Implications for practice and/or policy Head‐mounted displays show promise as a delivery mode for 360 videos in teacher education.360 videos should be personalized according to PST career and professional goals.The eXtended Reality Presence Scale is confirmed as a robust instrument to measure presence in immersive environments.More research is needed to evaluate the scalability of this approach in other contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The move to digital, and now hybrid, education has defamiliarised teaching practices and unsettled experiences of what it means to be and to engage at university. In this article, I examine what new questions evolving teaching and learning practices provoke with regards rethinking notions of the body, and concepts of presence and absence. Interweaving theories of performativity, of strangeness, and of agency as a cutting together/apart, I explore a specific example of online course design, a Small Private Online Course. I consider the dispersed and fragmented subjects and bodies that evade enclosure within the course, and the ontological implications for thinking about how subjects, bodies and materialities are cut, performed and made strange: what it means to 'be online'. I suggest that such a rethinking is necessary if we are to meaningfully conceptualise engagement, and to move beyond limited, but durable, assumptions that pervade contemporary discussions around digital learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on data from four general elections between 2010 and 2019 this note shows that British MPs are increasingly likely to represent constituencies in the region of their birth. By 2019, more than half of British MPs were born in the region in which their constituency sat. We find clear partisan differences, but no overall gender divide. There is also a clear centre-periphery divide. The less local nature of the current older cohort in the Commons – the most likely to retire in the next few years – means that these trends should continue in the same direction in coming elections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper revisits the 1981 People's March for Jobs as a moment of unemployed activism and solidarity in the UK. The paper argues that the march revealed a spatial politics of solidarity as characterised through mobility, presence, imaginaries and dialogue. It considers how the march emerged through trade union organising and forged political alliances in articulating opposition against rising unemployment, challenging the associated stigma around labour market inactivity. Contributing to geographical scholarship on 'working‐class presence' and concepts of 'imagined solidarity', the paper explores the 'solidarity infrastructures' that enabled unemployed resistance. It considers material resources alongside a more generative and imaginary understanding of solidarity as fostered through the march. These more transitory and temporary forms of solidarity are meaningful in their immediacy, but also hold longer lasting impacts on both those involved and the places visited. In this regard, the combination of 'imagined solidarities' and 'solidarity infrastructures' provides geographers with an insight into the spatial dynamics of marching as resistance, as well as reflecting a wider resonance with trade union sensibilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Occupancy models are commonly used in statistical ecology to model binary detection/non-detection data. These hierarchical models make a distinction between detection/non-detection and presence/absence by treating true occupancy as a latent process. In this paper, we propose a multi-species, multi-season occupancy model to jointly model detection/non-detection data on multiple species. Existing literature has shown that models that account for various sources of dependence in the latent occupancy process improve estimation, especially in the single-survey setting. However, the detection process in the model has not received much attention, even though detectability of a species is expected to relate to the detectability of other species and to detectability in previous time periods. In this work, we propose a model to capture this phenomenon by incorporating a multivariate temporal random effect in the detection process. We perform a simulation study to show that the proposed model yields more accurate inference than models that only use covariates to quantify detection. We apply our model to detection/non-detection data on three species—Thomson's gazelle, zebra, and wildebeest—in Serengeti National Park of Tanzania, Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presence is a palpable sense of space, things and others that overlaps with matters of meaning, yet is not reducible to it: it is a dimension of things that hides in plain sight. This paper is motivated by observations that (1) presence is under-appreciated in questions of modern and nascent human-synthetic agent interaction, and (2) that presence matters because it affects and moves us. The paper’s goal is to articulate a multi-faceted understanding of presence, and why it matters, so the importance of presence may be readily understood by those who regulate media, digital and artificial intelligence (AI) industries. Novel forms of presence raise all sorts of questions of what it means to live with new forms of presences. Some of these are highly positive and others are resistant to simplistic moral diagnosis, a point explored through extended consideration of ‘thanatechnology’ and ‘ghostbots’. To clarify and foreground presence, this paper draws on continental philosophy and technologist ideas about presence to understand the significance and parameters of presence. It then puts these to work by considering a range of existing and emerging human-synthetic agent interactions, arguing that that presence is an underappreciated yet crucial factor in human-synthetic interactions, particularly involving AI and ghostbots. The paper concludes with points of focus for organisations charged with media, data protection and AI governance regarding facets of presence-based characteristics for emergent human-synthetic interaction. Foremost is consideration of open standards for a presence-based afterlife and suggestion of a temporal firewall, or a break of time before resurrection, to prevent harm to those who have recently lost someone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Embodiment (the sensation that arises when the properties of an external instrument are processed as if they are the attributes of one's own biological body) and (tele)presence (the sensation of being fully engaged and immersed in a location other than the physical space occupied by one's body) sustain the perception of the physical self and potentially improve performance in teleoperations (a system that enables human intelligence to control robots and requires implementing an effective human-machine interface). Embodiment and presence may be interdependent and influenced by right temporo-parietal junction (rTPJ) activity. We investigated the interplay between embodiment, (tele)presence, and performance in teleoperation, focusing on the role of the rTPJ. Participants underwent a virtual reality task with transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) twice, receiving either active or sham stimulation. Behavioral measures (driving inaccuracy, elapsed time in the lap, time spent in attentional lapses, short-term self-similarity, and long-term self-similarity), perceived workload (mental demand, physical demand, temporal demand, own performance, effort, and frustration), embodiment's components (ownership, agency, tactile sensations, location, and external appearance), and presence's components (realism, possibility to act, quality of interface, possibility to examine, self-evaluation of performance, haptic, and sounds) were assessed. The results showed that rTPJ stimulation decreased perceived ownership but enhanced presence with changes in the complexity of visuomotor adjustments (long and short-term self-similarity indices). Structural equation modeling revealed that embodiment increased visuomotor inaccuracy (a composite variable of overall performance, including deviations from the optimal trajectory and the time taken to complete the task), presence reduced workload, and workload increased inaccuracy. These results suggested a dissociation between embodiment and presence, with embodiment hindering performance. Prioritizing virtual integration may lower human performance, while reduced workload from presence could aid engagement. These findings emphasize the intricate interplay between rTPJ, subjective experiences, and performance in teleoperation.

Abstract In Virtual Reality (VR), a higher level of presence positively influences the experience and engagement of a user. There are several parameters that are responsible for generating different levels of presence in VR, including but not limited to, graphical fidelity, multi-sensory stimuli, and embodiment. However, standard methods of measuring presence, including self-reported questionnaires, are biased. This research focuses on developing a robust model, via machine learning, to detect different levels of presence in VR using multimodal neurological and physiological signals, including electroencephalography and electrodermal activity. An experiment has been undertaken whereby participants (N = 22) were each exposed to three different levels of presence (high, medium, and low) in a random order in VR. Four parameters within each level, including graphics fidelity, audio cues, latency, and embodiment with haptic feedback, were systematically manipulated to differentiate the levels. A number of multi-class classifiers were evaluated within a three-class classification problem, using a One-vs-Rest approach, including Support Vector Machine, k-Nearest Neighbour, Extra Gradient Boosting, Random Forest, Logistic Regression, and Multiple Layer Perceptron. Results demonstrated that the Multiple Layer Perceptron model obtained the highest macro average accuracy of $$93\pm 0.03\%$$ 93 ± 0.03 % . Posthoc analysis revealed that relative band power, which is expressed as the ratio of power in a specific frequency band to the total baseline power, in both the frontal and parietal regions, including beta over theta and alpha ratio, and differential entropy were most significant in detecting different levels of presence.

During the 1970s and 1980s, telephone answering machines became widely available in the United States. Their use immediately disrupted long-established patterns of interpersonal communication and self-presentation. While solving the temporal limitations and lopsided power of telephone calls, answering machines introduced a range of new techno-social problems. Significantly, they required callers to interact with a machine instead of a human being. The history of the household answering machine provides insight into how telephone users were habituated to changing communication norms during the closing decades of the 20th century. This study examines cultural responses to the answering machine during the 1970s and 1980s, drawing attention to the following three key themes: the perils of perpetual contact, mediated performances, and social surveillance. These themes would shape understandings of digital mediation and become defining characteristics of an emergent "participatory condition." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Media allow individuals to feel 'whisked away' from their surroundings and absorbed into another world. Constructs such as immersion, presence, transportation, and flow have been used to delineate and describe this experience, but few efforts have been made to understand their conceptual overlap or shared and distinct underlying processes. Two studies were conducted to create a model of the immersive experience applicable across media technologies and contexts. First, a scoping review shows these constructs are deeply intertwined and often seen as precursors, subcomponents, or outcomes of one another. Second, re-examining the literature from a complex systems perspective, we identify three key processes: interactivity, boundary alteration, and motivation, as especially promising for developing an integrative ontology of the immersive experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Holistic nursing should be a goal for all nurses. Patients that receive holistic nursing feel acknowledged, valued, and appreciated. Caring for patients holistically requires student nurses to possess and display attributes of mindfulness and Ubuntu. Student nurses therefore need to be supported and taught how to provide caring holistically to patients while being aware, being present, and conscious in the caring moment. The purpose of this article was to describe the model developed as a frame of reference to facilitate holistic nursing through developing mindfulness and Ubuntu. A theory generative, exploratory, and contextual research design was followed. A diagrammatic structure was constructed after the concept analysis was conducted. The model consisted of three phases with an outcome of a student nurse who is caring holistically and mindfully. The model provides a framework of reference to facilitate holistic nursing through the development of mindfulness. This study adds a model of mindfulness and a lens of looking at mindfulness through an African philosophy of Ubuntu. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virtual Reality (VR) applications are increasingly being utilized for research, healthcare, and education. Despite their benefits, many VR users report motion sickness-like sensations (cybersickness), such as headache, disorientation, or nausea. Previous studies suggest that the sense of presence (“being there”) in the virtual world may contribute to the severity of cybersickness; however, results have been contradictory, with some studies reporting a negative and some reporting a positive relationship between the two. The goal of the current study was to further investigate how presence and cybersickness are related. Participants (N = 54) were exposed to a VR scene presented on a head-mounted display showing a 15-minute-long passive movement through space. The level of presence was manipulated by including an avatar (astronaut suit with hand-tracking) or no avatar in the virtual environment. Results showed that the avatar group reported significantly less severe cybersickness compared to the no-avatar group. We also found significant, negative correlations between some of the presence metrics (immersion, sensory fidelity) and cybersickness, indicating that cybersickness severity decreased as the level of presence increased. These findings suggest that more immersive VR experiences using an avatar may potentially reduce the risk of experiencing cybersickness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a genuine and profound problem about what it consists in for anything to be yourself. Once (perhaps per impossibile) all the empirical and modal facts about a particular human being are in, it still remains unexplained both what being you is, and why that human being is yourself. Being you seems an “extra” feature of anything. The problem admits of no scientific solution, and “being you” resists any purely logical analysis. It is argued that the problem is metaphysical, and that because metaphysical problems have theological answers, being you, and why anything is you may only be explained theologically. You are this soul, this immaterial presence, created by God. A new argument for the existence of God, the Autological Argument, is briefly presented.

In 2019, I presented a paper at a conference in NUI Maynooth, Ireland that used Kevin Donnelly’s notion of the soundtrack as spectre as the starting point for discussing performativity and presence in the films of Russian director Andrey Zvyagintsev. During the discussion that followed, Danijela Kulezic-Wilson, who was in attendance, raised several observations concerning the relevance of Donnelly’s concept to her own research exploring the integrated soundtrack. This paper essentially seeks to continue that conversation. By revisiting several examples explored in Kulezic-Wilson’s chapter on “Soundtrack’s Liminal Spaces” in Sound Design Is the New Score, alongside others including Nick Cave’s score for The Proposition (John Hillcoat, 2005) and Birdman (Alejandro Iñárritu, 2014), I explore to what extent Donnelly’s analogy can be expanded to consider instances in film where the foregrounding of tactile musical gestures and spatial placement within the audio mix results in a distinctly performative, quasi-physical sensibility that challenges the “insubstantial” status of Donnelly’s spectral presence. Drawing on a broad framework of theoretical concepts including Miguel Mera’s discussion of the haptic score and Paul Sanden’s network of liveness, this paper aims to provide a complimentary perspective to an important aspect of Danijela Kulezic-Wilson’s significant contribution to the study of film sound and music.

Virtual humans play a pivotal role in social virtual environments, shaping users' VR experiences. The diversity in available options and users' individual preferences can result in a heterogeneous mix of appearances among a group of virtual humans. The resulting variety in higher-order anthropomorphic and realistic cues introduces multiple (in)congruencies, eventually impacting the plausibility of the experience. However, related work investigating the effects of being co-located with multiple virtual humans of different appearances remains limited. In this work, we consider the impact of (in)congruencies in the realism of a group of virtual humans, including co-located others (agents) and one's selfrepresentation (self-avatar), on users' individual VR experiences. In a 2 × 3 mixed design, participants embodied either (1) a personalized realistic or (2) a customized stylized self-avatar across three consecutive VR exposures in which they were accompanied by a group of virtual others being either (1) all realistic, (2) all stylized, or (3) mixed between stylized and realistic. Our results indicate groups of virtual others of higher realism, i.e., potentially more congruent with participants' real-world experiences and expectations, were considered more human-like, increasing the feeling of co-presence and the impression of interaction possibilities. (In)congruencies concerning the homogeneity of the group did not cause considerable effects. Furthermore, our results indicate that a self-avatar's congruence with the participant's real-world experiences concerning their own physical body yielded notable benefits for virtual body ownership and self-identification for realistic personalized avatars. Notably, the incongruence between a stylized self-avatar and a group of realistic virtual others resulted in diminished ratings of self-location and self-identification. This suggests that higher-order (in)congruent visual cues that are not within the ego-central referential frame of one's (virtual) body, can have an (adverse) effect on the relationship between one's self and body. We conclude on the implications of our findings and discuss our results within current theories of VR experiences, considering (in)congruent visual cues and their impact on the perception of virtual others, self-representation, and spatial presence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: An acknowledged conundrum which exists for designers of simulation-based learning exercises centres on how much fidelity is required to aid transfer of learning from the classroom to the field of application and what is the influence of the learner's practitioner experience. This article presents the findings from a study which explored the way in which fidelity influences the sense of immersion and learning transfer experienced by novice and experienced practitioners in technology-assisted simulation-based learning exercises. Methods: Two different technology-assisted simulation-based learning exercises were explored employing participant surveys and interviews. The central aim of the exercises, conducted by an Australian police agency was the development of decision-making skills for high-risk and high-stakes situations. Case one centred on public order management for highly experienced senior police and Case Two was a judgmental use-of-force simulation for novice police recruits with limited or nil operational experience. Results: The findings indicate experienced practitioners did not suggest a need to actually see a replicated site of the incident with the human and environmental elements and sounds. They relied on their policing experience to build their own visualization of the situation. It is the combination of this personal visualization with the psychological factors of the simulated incident which created a realistic environment for these experienced practitioners. For the novice practitioners – they relied on the simulation exercise and environmental features to be as realistic and extensive as possible in order to experience immersion and presence. Conclusion: This study supports the suggestion that measuring how much fidelity is enough or too much is complex, and a unit of measurement could reasonably be identified as determining the balance of physical and psychological fidelity, informed by the field-based experience of the participants, which will support learning transfer from the classroom (or simulated environment) to the field of operation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: This study investigates the psychological mechanisms in virtual reality (VR) games, focusing on the interplay between character morality, selfattribution, presence, guilt, and their collective impact on player enjoyment. Based on Affective Disposition Theory, it hypothesizes that players' moral judgments of characters significantly affect their engagement and enjoyment of VR narratives. Methods: A post-test between-subjects experiment was conducted with 97 participants to examine the influence of character morality on guilt through the mediation of self-attribution, and how these factors affect players' sense of presence and overall enjoyment in VR games. Results: The findings indicate that self-attribution significantly mediates the relationship between character morality and guilt. Additionally, the sense of presence enhances enjoyment, with a stronger sense of 'being there' amplifying the emotional impact of players' moral decisions. Discussion: This study highlights the full mediating effect of self-attribution in the context of VR gaming, intensifying players' emotional responses to moral dilemmas. The results suggest that VR game designers should consider the moral implications of game narratives and character actions to create more emotionally engaging and ethically reflective gaming experiences. These insights have significant implications for VR game design and ethics, promoting greater ethical sensitivity among players. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]