[talks] Colloquium Speaker-Misha Sra, Tuesday, Feb 27

[Emily Lawrence]

CS Department Colloquium Speaker

Misha Sra, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Tuesday, February 27, 2018 - 12:30pm

Computer Science - Room 105

Host: Prof. Szymon Rusinkiewicz

 

" A Boundless, Fluid and Programmable Reality"

 

Abstract:

Virtual reality, in the form we recognize it today, dates all the way back
to 1968 when Ivan Sutherland created the first head-mounted display. Half a
century later, we've only just begun to explore what VR might ultimately
become. Imagine standing at the edge of a virtual cliff -- your heart racing
and knees shaking. Cognitively, you know the edge is not there, and yet your
unconscious responses say otherwise. This paradox is the root of the concept
of presence. Extend this to walking, using virtual objects, and interacting
with anyone, anywhere, and the power of VR starts to emerge. VR has already
shown great potential across an extensive array of application domains like
therapy, education, journalism, architecture, data visualization, remote
collaboration, and entertainment.

 

My doctoral research explores novel ways of enhancing presence by
incorporating spatial and sensory affordances from the physical world for
single and multiuser applications. The challenge of integrating the real
world with the virtual one while simultaneously trying to prevent the couch
or the wall from disrupting presence can be surprisingly complex. But doing
so successfully can provide a magical experience where the real and virtual
worlds blend seamlessly to create something new.

 

In this talk, I will show different methods of integrating key elements from
the user's physical environment into the virtual experience that lead to an
enhanced sense of presence. The goal is to invent a new language of
"interactive experience design" based on managing perception and attention,
a language as rich and varied as that of cinema. The methods aim to maintain
an unbroken sense of presence despite the constraints of the physical world
and the disruptions imposed by interacting with the system. I will conclude
with a few research challenges and opportunities in virtual and mixed
reality that I am excited about and hope to work on in the future.

 

Bio:

Misha Sra is a PhD student working with Prof. Pattie Maes in the Fluid
Interfaces Group at the MIT Media Lab. Her research involves development of
novel virtual and mixed reality experiences that integrate elements from the
user's real world environment with the goal of enhancing the user's sense of
presence. She is interested in applications of virtual and mixed reality in
learning, healthcare, collaboration, and entertainment and is more broadly
interested in data-driven design of immersive environments. Misha has
published at the most selective HCI and VR venues such as CHI, UIST, IEEE
VR, and VRST where she received a best paper award. From 2014-2015, she was
a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation wellbeing research fellow at the MIT Media
Lab. In spring 2016, she received the Silver Award in the annual Edison
Awards global competition that honors excellence in human-centered design
and innovation.  To learn more about Misha's work visit:
https://web.media.mit.edu/~sra

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