Author: Meaghan Moody

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Voices of XR: Nathalie Mathe

speaker Nathalie Matte.

Virtual Reality Creator & Educator

speaker Nathalie Matte.

Nathalie Mathe is a pioneer virtual reality (VR) creator and a globally recognized consultant, educator, and public speaker. A former NASA AI scientist and visual effects artist, she combines her artistic passion with a solid scientific and technical background to explore new frontiers in VR storytelling and embodiment. She is the founder of NativeVR, an independent VR studio in California, where she focuses on creating immersive experiences with a transformative and social impact, generating a more diverse and equitable future.

Her original interactive VR film UTURN, a comedy raising awareness on the gender gap in the tech industry, was nominated for best interactive experience at the Raindance and FIVARS festivals and screened at a dozen international film festivals. Her latest VR project Wallada explores themes of trauma and healing through poetry, calligraphy, and volumetric video.

She has contributed to dozens of VR projects as director or post-prod supervisor for JauntVR, Condition One, Google, Facebook, and World Vision, and created visual effects for feature films like Fast & Furious 6, Skyfall and Dark Knight Rises. She is also a public speaker and has taught VR at Drexel University and University of the Arts.

In this talk, she will describe her work creating VR projects with a transformative and social impact, and how she experimented with teaching VR remotely during the pandemic.

The Voices of XR speaker series  is made possible by Kathy McMorran Murray and the National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Traineeship (NRT) program as part of the Interdisciplinary Graduate Training in the Science, Technology, and Applications of Augmented and Virtual Reality at the University of Rochester (#1922591).

Where: Zoom
When: Friday, March 4th from 1 to 2pm EST
Register: bit.ly/VoXRNathalieMatte

Recording

graphic for XR speaker series entitled Voices of XR. On the bottom, is an illustration of a person in a headset reaching with neon geometric squares in the background. On the top is text that reads: "Voices of XR: A Studio X Speaker Series." On top of that, is the Studio X and River Campus Libraries wordmarks.

Voices of XR is a Studio X speaker series. Speakers are scholars, artists, and extended reality professionals who discuss their work with immersive technologies across disciplines and industries. All talks are free and open to the general public.

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Ain Center: Creative Collision Challenge

Registration is now open for the Creative Collision Challenge! This one-day competition brings together students from diverse backgrounds and programs to brainstorm solutions to social and cultural issues. Teams are guided by mentors and experts to devise an action plan, which is then presented to a panel of judges. Top teams earn cash prizes. The Challenge is open to all UR students from any school, program and class year. It will be held on Friday, February 18 from 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. in Studio X. Lunch will be provided. This year’s Challenge will tackle the future of work in relation to student services and technology solutions. Students will receive their team assignments and the problem statement the night before the Challenge.

Register online!

Questions about this year’s Challenge? Contact Ain Center for Entrepreneurship Program Manager, Heidi Mergenthaler at heidi.mergenthaler@rochester.edu.

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Blender 101: Valentine’s Day Edition

Blender workshop promotional image. Shows three teddy bears with the text: "Blender 101: Valentine's Day Edition. Model a Teddy Bear."

Join us while we create cute and unique teddy bears for Valentine’s Day! This workshop focuses on asset creation with the 3D modeling software, Blender. This open-source and free software has become the industry standard over the last couple of years. Learn how to navigate its workspace, tools, and hotkeys and become familiar with one of the most popular platforms of the industry. You will create a low-polygon model using provided reference images. Your model can then potentially be used as avatars in other XR projects or 3D workspaces such as Unity.

Blender workshop promotional image. Shows three teddy bears with the text: "Blender 101: Valentine's Day Edition. Model a Teddy Bear."
3D-modeled teddy bear wearing overalls.

Join Studio X, UR’s hub for immersive technologies, and learn more about the digital world of extended reality (XR). All levels welcome. No experience necessary!

Note: Workshop attendees must bring a laptop with Blender installed. Please download this ahead of time.

Instructor: Nefle Nesli Oruç & Koshala Mathuranayagam
Where: Learning Hub, Studio X, First Floor Carlson Library
When: Thursday, February 10th from 6 to 7:30pm
Register: tinyurl.com/blender-valentines

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Reality+ Reading Group

promotional design for David J. Chalmers's book "Reality +". Includes a penguin random house logo in the corner.

David Chalmers, a leading philosopher of consciousness and philosophy of mind, will be giving a virtual talk on his forthcoming book about the philosophical implications of virtual and augmented reality as part of our Voices of XR Speaker Series. The talk will take place on Wednesday, April 6 from 12-1 with support from Kathy McMorran Murray (details TBA).

Students, faculty, and staff who are interested are invited to join a casual reading group to discuss Reality+ in advance of Professor Chalmers’ visit.

promotional design for David J. Chalmers's book "Reality +". Includes a penguin random house logo in the corner.

The group will meet biweekly from 12-1 on Fridays beginning Friday, February 4. If we are able to be on campus, the group will meet in Studio X and use a hybrid format for anyone who wishes to join on Zoom. Generous funding has been made available from the Humanities Center and River Campus Libraries to purchase copies of the book for reading group members. Thanks to Kate Phillips, Associate Professor in the Writing, Speaking, and Argument Program for organizing this group. If you are interested in joining the reading group, please fill out this short form.

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Voices of XR Speaker Series

graphic for XR speaker series entitled Voices of XR. On the bottom, is an illustration of a person in a headset reaching with neon geometric squares in the background. On the top is text that reads: "Voices of XR: A Studio X Speaker Series." On top of that, is the Studio X and River Campus Libraries wordmarks.

Join Mary Ann Mavrinac Studio X at the University of Rochester Libraries in conversation with invited scholars, artists, professionals, and more, who will discuss their work with immersive technologies across disciplines and industries. These events are virtual, free, and open to all members of the campus community and the general public. This series is made possible by Kathy McMorran Murray.

Upcoming Talks

Join us next spring for more exciting talks!

Recorded Talks

Voices of XR: QuHarrison Terry
4/7/2023 @12PM
Voices of XR: Anurag Kumar
3/27/2023 @10:25AM
Voices of XR: Lieutenant Colonel Stephanie Raffo
3/22/2023 @10:25AM
Voices of XR: Benjamin Suarez-Jimenez
3/20/2023 @10:25AM
Voices of XR: Damien McDuffie
3/15/2023 @10:25am
Voices of XR: Ram Haddas
3/13/2023 @10:25AM
Voices of XR: Mike Murdoch
3/1/2023 @10:25AM
Voices of XR: The Ferryman Collective
2/20/2023 @10:25AM
Voices of XR: Kaan Akşit
2/6/2023 @3:30PM
Voices of XR: John Haddick
4/29/2022 @1PM
Voices of XR: Sylvia Xueni Pan
4/22/2022 @1PM
Voices of XR: Scott McEldowney
4/15/2022 @1PM
Voices of XR: David Chalmers
04/06/2022 @12PM
Voices of XR: Muhsinah Morris
3/25/2022 @1PM
Voices of XR: Kavya Pearlman
3/18/2022 @1PM
Voices of XR: Nathalie Mathe
3/4/2022 @1PM
Can We Walk in Our Patients’ Shoes?
11/12/2021 @1PM
Voices of XR: Ahmed Ghazi
4/7/2021 @10:25AM
Voices of XR: David Glowacki
3/31/2021 @10:25AM
Voices of XR: Anand Santhanam
3/29/2021 @10:25AM
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Anxiety Cues Found in the Brain Despite Safe Environment

3D nature scene. Shows a field, a wide sky, and a mountain in the background.

Imagine you are in a meadow picking flowers. You know that some flowers are safe, while others have a bee inside that will sting you. How would you react to this environment and, more importantly, how would your brain react? This is the scene in a virtual-reality environment used by researchers to understand the impact anxiety has on the brain and how brain regions interact with one another to shape behavior.

“These findings tell us that anxiety disorders might be more than a lack of awareness of the environment or ignorance of safety, but rather that individuals suffering from an anxiety disorder cannot control their feelings and behavior even if they wanted to,” said Benjamin Suarez-Jimenez, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience at the University of Rochester and first author of the study published in Communications Biology. “The patients with an anxiety disorder could rationally say – I’m in a safe space – but we found their brain was behaving as if it was not.”

Read more.

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Beat Saber Competition

Studio X Beat Saber Competition.

Like dancing to fun music, light sabers, and virtual reality? We have the perfect competition for you! Compete against your peers, and if you dominate and have one of the top-three scores, you will win a trophy. If you are the ultimate, numero uno, top dog Beat Saberer, you will win a fancy portable, wireless, waterproof Bluetooth speaker.

But what’s Beat Saber, you say? Only the most popular VR game of all time! Beat Saber is a VR rhythm game in which you slash floating boxes as they fly toward you to the beat of the music with gigantic light sabers.

The Rules

  • Participants must be affiliated with the University of Rochester. Students, faculty, or staff are welcome to participate.
  • Participants must complete all three rounds to be eligible for prizes.
  • Participants must complete each round in Studio X.
  • Scores must be recorded by a Studio X staff member.
  • Participants will get three attempts for each of the three rounds.
  • Participants are not allowed to use score multipliers.
  • The songs will be chosen by Studio X staff.
  • Once you have your score, you will be added to our scoreboard.
  • At the end of rounds one and two, a selection of the lowest scoring participants will be eliminated. This depends on how many participants we have.
  • The first week will be a song on easy mode, the second week a song on normal mode, and the third week a song on hard mode. You will have to follow the difficulty levels, no matter your current skill level.

The Schedule

You have the entire week to come into Studio X and complete that week’s song.

  • Round 1 (easy) will be the week of November 15th.
  • Round 2 (normal) will be the week of November 29th.
  • Round 3 (hard) will be the week of December 6th.

Register

Sign up here >> bit.ly/studioxbeatsaber2021

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Microsoft HoloLens 2

HoloLens2 mixed reality headset.

HoloLens 2 is an untethered, mixed reality headset created by Microsoft. 

HoloLens2 mixed reality headset.

Patrons can demo the headsets within Studio X. Patrons can also request to reserve these headsets for up to a week of time outside of Studio X. Patrons may also request to use these headsets for a custom period, if interested please email ” studioX[at]library.rochester.edu ” This equipment is intended for XR development work. Patrons must provide a reason for using this equipment.

Reserve

Reservation & Usage Policies

Making Reservations
  • Borrowers may check out headsets for use within Studio X. Borrowers can also request to reserve the headsets out of Studio X for up to a week if available.
  • Last call for equipment is 30 minutes prior to Studio X’s closing.
  • Reservations that are not picked up on time (~two hours) will be made available to other patrons.
  • Requests for more than two items of the same kind require approval from a Studio X staff member.
  • No more than three items may be checked out to one person at the same time.
  • Patrons are limited to booking equipment up to nine days a month.
  • Equipment may be booked up to 21 days in advance.
  • Equipment is available to currently enrolled UR students, faculty, and staff. Priority is given to borrowers using the equipment for course purposes.
  • Studio X does not provide disposable accessories such as batteries.
  • Renewing Reservations
    • Renewals are not automatic. You must check with Studio X staff to extend reservations.
    • Hourly equipment may be renewed for up to an additional four hours or until closing time (if available).
  • Picking Up Equipment:
    • A valid UR ID is required to check out equipment and must be presented at time of checkout.
    • Equipment must be picked up by the individual who made the reservation.
  • Returning Equipment
    • Equipment must be returned directly to Studio X.
  • Please do not attempt to sanitize equipment. Borrowers may inadvertently damage the equipment. Studio X staff will sanitize the equipment following this process before its next use.
Late Fees & Fines
  • Hourly bookings: $5.00/per hour until $25.00
  • Day bookings: $25.00/day for seven days 
  • After one day, the equipment is considered to be lost, and the replacement cost (item cost) is charged to the borrower’s account. Upon return, the replacement cost will be waived.
  • Fines and fees may be paid at the Carlson Q&i Desk using a credit card. Cash and checks are not accepted. Unpaid bills will be reported to the Bursar or other appropriate authority.
  • When fines accrue to $100, patrons will be unable to reserve equipment until the fines are resolved.
Loss & Damages
  • If the equipment is lost, damaged, or stolen, the borrower is required to pay its replacement cost.
  • All pieces of the equipment must be returned and in the same condition as in which they were lent. Please check the equipment tag for full list.
Health & Safety
  • Prior to each reservation, Studio X sanitizes its equipment using a combination of UVC light technology, nanotechnology spray, and alcohol-based sanitizers. Read more about this process here.
  • If you are experiencing any symptoms of a cold, like a sore throat, coughing, or sinus issues, please do not use the equipment.
  • Wash your hands or use an alcohol-based disinfectant. Let your hands dry completely before using the equipment.
HoloLens 2 Technical Specifications

Read about HoloLens technical specifications here.

Documentation & Tutorials

Studio X Equipment Usage Guide
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Zoom H3-VR Audio Recorder

Zoom H3-VR audio recorder.

The Zoom H3-VR virtual reality audio recorder captures and processes spatial audio for VR, AR, and MR content. 

Zoom H3-VR audio recorder.

The recorder may be checked out and taken outside of the library. Please review our reservation and usage policies below.

Reserve

Reservation & Usage Policies

Making Reservations
  • Borrowers may check out the audio recorder for up to three days if available.
  • Last call for equipment is 30 minutes prior to Studio X’s closing.
  • Reservations that are not picked up on time (~two hours) will be made available to other patrons.
  • Requests for more than two items of the same kind require approval from a Studio X staff member.
  • No more than three items may be checked out to one person at the same time.
  • Patrons are limited to booking equipment up to nine days a month.
  • Equipment may be booked up to 21 days in advance.
  • Equipment is available to currently enrolled UR students, faculty, and staff. Priority is given to borrowers using the equipment for course purposes.
  • Studio X does not provide disposable accessories such as batteries.
  • Renewing Reservations:
    • Renewals are not automatic. You must check with Studio X staff to extend reservations.
    • Audio recorders may be renewed for up to an additional three days (if available).
  • Picking Up Equipment:
    • A valid UR ID is required to check out equipment and must be presented at time of checkout.
    • Equipment must be picked up by the individual who made the reservation.
  • Returning Equipment:
    • Equipment must be returned directly to Studio X.
    • Please do not attempt to sanitize equipment. Borrowers may inadvertently damage the equipment.
Late Fees & Fines
  • External Lending
    • $25.00/day for seven days 
    • After seven days, the equipment is considered to be lost, and the replacement cost (item cost) is charged to the borrower’s account. Upon return, the replacement cost will be waived.
  • Internal Lending
    • $5.00/per hour until $25.00
    • After one day, the equipment is considered to be lost, and the replacement cost (item cost) is charged to the borrower’s account. Upon return, the replacement cost will be waived.
  • Fines and fees may be paid at the Carlson Q&i Desk using a credit card. Cash and checks are not accepted. Unpaid bills will be reported to the Bursar or other appropriate authority.
  • When fines accrue to $100, patrons will be unable to reserve equipment until the fines are resolved.
Loss & Damages
  • If the equipment is lost, damaged, or stolen, the borrower is required to pay its replacement cost.
  • All pieces of the equipment must be returned and in the same condition as in which they were lent. Please check the equipment tag for full list.
Zoom H3-VR Technical Specifications

Read about the Zoom H3-VR technical specifications here.

Documentation & Tutorials

Studio X Equipment Usage Guide
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iPad Pro with Apple Pencil

iPad Pro

11-inch, 3rd generation, 128 GB

iPad Pro

You may request an Ipad for a custom period. See the booking form for more details. You are also welcome to stop by Studio X to try an Ipad. Speak with a staff member. 

Reserve

Reservation & Usage Policies

Making Reservations
  • Borrowers may check out equipment for up to four hours if available. 
  • Hourly equipment must remain in Studio X. 
  • Last call for equipment is 30 minutes prior to Studio X’s closing.
  • Reservations that are not picked up on time (~two hours) will be made available to other patrons.
  • Requests for more than two items of the same kind require approval from a Studio X staff member.
  • No more than three items may be checked out to one person at the same time.
  • Equipment is available to currently enrolled UR students, faculty, and staff. Priority is given to borrowers using the equipment for course purposes.
  • Patrons are limited to booking equipment up to nine days per month total. 
  • Equipment may be booked up to 21 days in advance. 
  • Renewing Reservations:
    • Renewals are not automatic. You must check with Studio X staff to extend reservations and renew equipment up to an additional four hours or until closing that day (if available).
  • Picking Up Equipment:
    • A valid UR ID is required to check out equipment and must be presented at time of checkout.
    • Equipment must be picked up by the individual who made the reservation.
  • Returning Equipment:
    • Equipment must be returned directly to Studio X. 
    • Please do not attempt to sanitize equipment. Borrowers may inadvertently damage the equipment.
Late Fees & Fines
  • Internal Lending: $5.00/per hour until $25.00
  • After one day, the equipment is considered to be lost, and the replacement cost (item cost) is charged to the borrower’s account. Upon return, the replacement cost will be waived.
  • Fines and fees may be paid at the Carlson Q&i Desk using a credit card. Cash and checks are not accepted. Unpaid bills will be reported to the Bursar or other appropriate authority.
  • When fines accrue to $100, patrons will be unable to reserve equipment until the fines are resolved.
Loss & Damages
  • If the equipment is lost, damaged, or stolen, the borrower is required to pay its replacement cost.
  • All pieces of the equipment must be returned and in the same condition as in which they were lent. Please check the equipment tag for full list.
iPad Pro Technical Specifications

Read about the iPad Pro technical specifications here.