History in VR: Experience Hiroshima After the Bombing

The possibilities of new cutting-edge technologies are surprising, especially the Virtual Reality which is a computer-generated simulation. It is a brilliant piece of tech that creates an illusion that you’re looking around in the real world. Having yourself in a digital world is like deceiving your senses, but the user satisfaction that it brings is impressive. VR developers have been working so hard to deliver the ultimate experience the market anticipates. The advancement in technology has been exceptionally getting faster and faster each year.  The new technology has the power to change the lives of people.

Key pioneers have conducted several efforts before the advancement in the development of virtual reality has paved its way.

A painter’s’ motivation to make people feel present at some historical event or scene is a masterpiece. The first attempt to make the “art of consciousness” possible in the nineteenth century is the creation of Panoramic Paintings. An impressive artwork with an extensive view of an exceptional subject is good enough to reveal a significant scene.

In 1939,”virtual tourism” became famous through a Stereoscope by viewing two side by side stereoscopic photos to bring a sense of depth and immersion. Currently, the design principles still exist in Google Cardboard and mobile phone with low budget VR head-mounted displays.

Link Trainer is the first flight simulator. It is also known as the “blue box”. The developer produced the simulating flight at ground level between the early 1930s and early 1950s to safely train the pilots. Link Trainer became the standard feature of all air training schools back then upon recognising its importance when it comes to standard of instruction and safety. It came into widespread use during the World War II. Experts also applied this technology during the training of the Apollo astronauts as well as to space shuttle pilots.

A science fiction writer named Stanley G. Weinbaum is indeed a visionary of VR. In his story, he predicted that people would soon wear a pair of goggles that can let the user experience a different dimension. It is part of history in VR that indeed came into reality.

A cinematographer — Morton Heilig introduced an arcade-inspired cabinet resembling a theatre. This device can impact not only just ears and eyes but all the human senses. The stereo speakers, fans, smell generators, vibrating chair, and a stereoscopic 3D display provided a rewarding experience to a lot of people since 1950s. This revolutionary motion picture system, later on, declined its traction.

In 1960, Morton Heilig persuaded to invent a more appealing device. He is the pioneer behind the first head-mounted display. HMD is composed of stereo sound, stereoscopic 3D and broad vision.

Comeau and Bryan, the two famous Philco Corporation engineers, introduced the forerunner of our modern VR headset. By letting a remote camera move as the user’s head moves, enables the user to see the environment naturally. The vintage-type VR headset stimulated the emergence of advanced VR.

The concept of Ultimate Display, as described by Ivan Sutherland, could be like in the Wonderland that will let the user experience a tricky moment of distinguishing the virtual world from the real world. The device that emerged in 1968 is composed of an HMD, augmented 3D sound, and force-feedback devices. It is a breakthrough in human interaction.

The founder of the visual programming lab (VPL) named Jaron Lanier popularised the term “Virtual Reality” in 1987. He succeeded, and the term “Virtual Reality” was claimed. Jaron, together with Tom Zimmerman, started selling gears like Virtual Reality Goggles and Datagloves.

History in VR marked other numerous merits. Virtuality Group began releasing a wide selection of arcade games and machines. Multi-player gaming has become familiar to many. Jaron Lanier gathered additional fame when “The Lawnmower Man” movie was released. It showcased the concept of VR to a broader audience. In the movie, Pierce Brosnan played the role of Jaron. A lot of people also got amazed by the movie entitled “The Matrix” and served a significant impact on moviegoers. Companies such as SEGA and Nintendo became very busy selling gaming consoles.

August 6, 1945. The day that Japan and the world will never forget. The 73-year old incident killed 140,000 people due to the bombing of the Hiroshima, a city in Japan. Survivors of the explosion have their heart-breaking stories to transport present back in time.

It is unimaginable how tragic Shigeru Orimen experienced when the atomic bomb fell on Hiroshima at 8:16 am. He’s one of the approximately 27,000 students who helplessly lost their lives unexpectedly. Imagine the extreme pain that Shigeru’s mother felt when all that is left for her to recognise her son was the lunch box after the saddening moment. Visitors can still see this lunch box at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum as one of the valuable archives in memory of the bombing.

A group of Japanese students studying in Fukuyama Technical High School created an inspiring virtual reality experience with the purpose of awakening the sights and sounds of Hiroshima before. Recalling the Hiroshima bombing incident is something worthwhile to let us feel that the city once became a wasteland. Seeing the images through the VR headset will genuinely explain the worthiness of Hiroshima VR. It serves as an eye-opener that something similar should never happen again. Letting the user see the Motoyasu River, the business and buildings that were once there before the blast will pinch one’s heart realising the real horror that the Hiroshima brought to the victims.

VR is digital, the approximation of one’s reality but not the actuality. It makes you believe that you are somewhere else. Human eyes can see different amounts of detail in different places. What the VR headset tries to go about this is figuring out where the user’s eyes focus.

Experience the latest trend. Hiroshima VR is indeed an encouraging virtual reality involvement. It is a marvellous craft done over two years in the making.

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