I found the presentation very interesting and educational. It was nice to go into the history of VR instead of just exploring its use today. I like how Zohar connected the ancient idea of viewing an alternate world and even the sci-fi spectacles to modern-day VR. It was informative to learn about Jaron Lanier and the devices and software that can help us work with XR (this umbrella term was also new to me). I did not know about MR, which I assumed to be the same as AR.

Something I learned after the talk which surprised me was that people usually think of VR in the gaming context and VR as a technology does not, unlike my assumption, interest everyone. I’ve personally always thought of VR in the art/design/installation, transcendence and storytelling context because that’s what I have experienced, and I think it is so adaptable to each person’s interests as it is a tool and can be used to enhance any experience! It makes me wonder how we would chip through the image that VR has and make it accessible and interesting to people so that they don’t fear or discard its amazing immersive and transportative quality.