Yesterday I had about 25 Taconic High School students walk the plank.  To hear how much of a ruckus were making (sorry library folks, the quite floor is downstairs!) one would probably think that it was a real plank and not Virtual Reality.  We had several onlookers due to the scene we made and as a result one of the BCC Librarians even gave it a try despite her fear of heights!

Here’s a little about the process I used for yesterday’s demonstration.  I set up in a corner of the library where they often do classes on Information Literacy among other things, I moved all the tables and chairs to create a 20×20 foot VR space and put down a yoga mat generously supplied by STEM.  Then I turned off the lights, and dimmed the blinds a bit so that I could attempt to project the image from the headset on a screen.  This however, didn’t work out so well.  I was able to get the Oculus to cast in the menus, but once I started Richie’s Plank Experience, everything crashed.  It even made the headset reboot itself once.  It seems that a recent software update broke casting.  In addition, the street scene sometimes appeared as a parking garage which I had never seen before.  There was also this new countdown every time the app was paused, which is what happens when the headset is taken off.  So every new person who put it on had to endure a 10 second countdown, slowing the process down. All this I discovered 5 minutes before the first group of students arrived.

Students were brought to me in groups of 8-9 and each group also had a teacher (I assume) from their school and a BCC representative as a guide.  To start with I give a short speech introducing myself and explaining what we would be doing today — taking turns walking the virtual plank.  I explained that VR is already being used as a way to simulate very dangerous situations to provide training.  Doctors can practice surgery with no risk to patients in VR.  Firefighters can experiment with new innovative techniques without risking their lives.  You can meet with someone halfway around the world as if they were in the same room with no travel cost and minimal carbon footprint.  Therapists use VR to give patients exposure therapy in a safe way for individuals with a fear of heights for example.  Virtual Reality completely fools your brain, so now let’s walk the plank!

While I was unable to cast to the screen, I was able to get the headset to cast to a tablet.  As the students took turns walking the plank their peers watched their progress on the tablet and cheered them on.  To make sure everyone was safe, once having their permission I would guide the plank walker by placing a hand on their arm or back to let them know they were safe and I would not let them be injured. Several of the teachers and a few of the BCC guides tried to walk the plank as well.  Everyone remarked on how completely real it feels, and that’s the whole point!  About 15-20% of plank walkers never made it to the end and walked off the plank.

Overall the demonstration went very well and I am very pleased with the student’s reactions and feedback.  I’m looking forward to seeing if STEM provides any written comments as they have done in the past.  Next week I have a drone demo for STEM which I’m sure I will be writing about.