Immersion (virtual reality)
Encyclopedia
Immersion is the state of consciousness
where an immersant's awareness of physical self is diminished or lost by being surrounded in an engrossing total environment; often artificial
. This mental state is frequently accompanied with spatial excess, intense focus, a distorted sense of time, and effortless action. The term is widely used for describing immersive virtual reality
, installation art
and video games, but it is not clear if people are using the same word consistently. The term is also cited as a frequently-used buzzword
, in which case its meaning is intentionally vague, but carries the connotation of being particularly engrossing; it is also used to describe suspension of disbelief
.
The sensation of total immersion in virtual reality
(VR) can be described as implied complete presence within an insinuated space of a virtual
surrounding where everything within that sphere relates necessarily to the proposed "reality
" of that world's cyberspace
and where the immersant is seemingly altogether disconnected from exterior physical space.
According to Ernest W. Adams, author and consulter on game design
, immersion can be separated into three main categories:
Tactical immersion
Strategic immersion
Narrative immersion
Staffan Björk and Jussi Holopainen, in Patterns In Game Design, divide immersion into similar categories, but call them sensory-motoric immersion, cognitive immersion and emotional immersion, respectively. In addition to these, they add a new category:
Spatial immersion
Immersive virtual reality is a hypothetical future technology that exists today as virtual reality
art projects, for the most part. It consists of immersion in an artificial
environment where the user feels just as immersed as they usually feel in consensus reality
.
in the nervous system
directly. In functionalism
/conventional biology
we interact with consensus reality
through the nervous system
. Thus we receive all input from all the senses as nerve impulses.
It gives your neurons a feeling of heightened sensation. It would involve the user receiving inputs as artificially stimulated nerve
impulses, the system would receive the CNS outputs (natural nerve impulses) and process them allowing the user to interact with the virtual reality
. Natural impulses between the body and central nervous system
would need to be prevented.
A comprehensive understanding of which nerve impulses correspond to which sensations, and which motor impulses correspond to which muscle contractions will be required. This will allow the correct sensations in the user, and actions in the virtual reality to occur. The Blue Brain Project is the current, most promising research with the idea of understanding how the brain works by building very large scale computer models.
Ability to manipulate CNS
The nervous system would obviously need to be manipulated. Whilst non-invasive devices using radiation have been postulated, invasive cybernetic implants are likely to become available sooner and be more accurate. Manipulation could occur at any stage of the nervous system - the spinal cord is likely to be simplest; as all nerves pass through here, this could be the only site of manipulation.
Molecular Nanotechnology is likely to provide the degree of precision required and could allow the implant to be built inside the body rather than be inserted by an operation.
Computer hardware/software to process inputs/outputs
A very powerful and probably (but not necessarily) Strong AI
would be required to process all the inputs from the CNS, run a simulation of a virtual reality
approaching the complexity of consensus reality
, and translate its events to a complete set of nerve impulses for the user. Strong artificial intelligence
may also be required to write the program for a decent alternate reality.
An immersive digital environment is an artificial
, interactive, computer-created scene or "world" within which a user can immerse themselves.
Immersive digital environments could be thought of as synonymous with Virtual reality
, but without the implication that actual "reality" is being simulated. An immersive digital environment could be a model of reality
, but it could also be a complete fantasy user interface
or abstraction
, as long as the user of the environment is immersed within it. The definition of immersion is wide and variable, but here it is assumed to mean simply that the user feels like they are part of the simulated "universe
". The success with which an immersive digital environment can actually immerse the user
is dependent on many factors such as believable 3D computer graphics
, surround sound
, interactive user-input and other factors such as simplicity, functionality and potential for enjoyment. New technologies are currently under development which claim to bring realistic environmental effects to the players' environment - effects like wind, seat vibration and ambient lighting.
can perceptually fool the senses through:
from simple arcade to Massively multiplayer online game
and training programs such as flight
and driving
simulators. Entertainment environments such as motion simulators that immerse the riders/players in a virtual digital environment enhanced by motion, visual and aural cues. There is a motion simulators of the Virunga Mountains
in Rwanda
to meet a tribe of Mountain Gorilla
s, or a ride that takes a journey through the arteries and heart
to witness the build up of plaque and thus learn about cholesterol
and health.
There are art installations such as those made by Knowbotic Research
, Donna Cox
, Rebecca Allen
, Maurice Benayoun
,
Char Davies
, StudioIMC
and Jeffrey Shaw
.
The Belgium performance company CREW specializes in immersive performances, using special designed omni-directional video images.
More generic examples of an IDE include:
To some extent screensaver
s and DVD
movies are also immersive digital environments, though usually not interactive.
Consciousness
Consciousness is a term that refers to the relationship between the mind and the world with which it interacts. It has been defined as: subjectivity, awareness, the ability to experience or to feel, wakefulness, having a sense of selfhood, and the executive control system of the mind...
where an immersant's awareness of physical self is diminished or lost by being surrounded in an engrossing total environment; often artificial
Simulation
Simulation is the imitation of some real thing available, state of affairs, or process. The act of simulating something generally entails representing certain key characteristics or behaviours of a selected physical or abstract system....
. This mental state is frequently accompanied with spatial excess, intense focus, a distorted sense of time, and effortless action. The term is widely used for describing immersive virtual reality
Virtual reality
Virtual reality , also known as virtuality, is a term that applies to computer-simulated environments that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world, as well as in imaginary worlds...
, installation art
Installation art
Installation art describes an artistic genre of three-dimensional works that are often site-specific and designed to transform the perception of a space. Generally, the term is applied to interior spaces, whereas exterior interventions are often called Land art; however, the boundaries between...
and video games, but it is not clear if people are using the same word consistently. The term is also cited as a frequently-used buzzword
Buzzword
A buzzword is a term of art, salesmanship, politics, or technical jargon that is used in the media and wider society outside of its originally narrow technical context....
, in which case its meaning is intentionally vague, but carries the connotation of being particularly engrossing; it is also used to describe suspension of disbelief
Suspension of disbelief
Suspension of disbelief or "willing suspension of disbelief" is a formula for justifying the use of fantastic or non-realistic elements in literary works of fiction...
.
The sensation of total immersion in virtual reality
Virtual reality
Virtual reality , also known as virtuality, is a term that applies to computer-simulated environments that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world, as well as in imaginary worlds...
(VR) can be described as implied complete presence within an insinuated space of a virtual
Virtual
The term virtual is a concept applied in many fields with somewhat differing connotations, and also, differing denotations.The term has been defined in philosophy as "that which is not real" but may display the salient qualities of the real....
surrounding where everything within that sphere relates necessarily to the proposed "reality
Reality
In philosophy, reality is the state of things as they actually exist, rather than as they may appear or might be imagined. In a wider definition, reality includes everything that is and has been, whether or not it is observable or comprehensible...
" of that world's cyberspace
Cyberspace
Cyberspace is the electronic medium of computer networks, in which online communication takes place.The term "cyberspace" was first used by the cyberpunk science fiction author William Gibson, though the concept was described somewhat earlier, for example in the Vernor Vinge short story "True...
and where the immersant is seemingly altogether disconnected from exterior physical space.
Types of immersion
Game design
Game design, a subset of game development, is the process of designing the content and rules of a game in the pre-production stage and design of gameplay, environment, storyline, and characters during production stage. The term is also used to describe both the game design embodied in a game as...
, immersion can be separated into three main categories:
Tactical immersion
- Tactical immersion is experienced when performing tactile operations that involve skill. Players feel "in the zone" while perfecting actions that result in success.
Strategic immersion
- Strategic immersion is more cerebral, and is associated with mental challenge. Chess players experience strategic immersion when choosing a correct solution among a broad array of possibilities.
Narrative immersion
- Narrative immersion occurs when players become invested in a story, and is similar to what is experienced while reading a book or watching a movie.
Staffan Björk and Jussi Holopainen, in Patterns In Game Design, divide immersion into similar categories, but call them sensory-motoric immersion, cognitive immersion and emotional immersion, respectively. In addition to these, they add a new category:
Spatial immersion
- Spatial immersion occurs when a player feels the simulated world is perceptually convincing. The player feels that he or she is really "there" and that a simulated world looks and feels "real".
Immersive virtual reality
Virtual reality
Virtual reality , also known as virtuality, is a term that applies to computer-simulated environments that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world, as well as in imaginary worlds...
art projects, for the most part. It consists of immersion in an artificial
Simulation
Simulation is the imitation of some real thing available, state of affairs, or process. The act of simulating something generally entails representing certain key characteristics or behaviours of a selected physical or abstract system....
environment where the user feels just as immersed as they usually feel in consensus reality
Consensus reality
Consensus reality is an approach to answering the philosophical question "What is real?" It gives a practical answer: reality is either what exists, or what we can agree seems to exist....
.
Direct stimulation of the nervous system
The most considered method would be to induce the sensations that made up the virtual realityVirtual reality
Virtual reality , also known as virtuality, is a term that applies to computer-simulated environments that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world, as well as in imaginary worlds...
in the nervous system
Nervous system
The nervous system is an organ system containing a network of specialized cells called neurons that coordinate the actions of an animal and transmit signals between different parts of its body. In most animals the nervous system consists of two parts, central and peripheral. The central nervous...
directly. In functionalism
Functionalism (philosophy of mind)
Functionalism is a theory of the mind in contemporary philosophy, developed largely as an alternative to both the identity theory of mind and behaviourism. Its core idea is that mental states are constituted solely by their functional role — that is, they are causal relations to other mental...
/conventional biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
we interact with consensus reality
Consensus reality
Consensus reality is an approach to answering the philosophical question "What is real?" It gives a practical answer: reality is either what exists, or what we can agree seems to exist....
through the nervous system
Nervous system
The nervous system is an organ system containing a network of specialized cells called neurons that coordinate the actions of an animal and transmit signals between different parts of its body. In most animals the nervous system consists of two parts, central and peripheral. The central nervous...
. Thus we receive all input from all the senses as nerve impulses.
It gives your neurons a feeling of heightened sensation. It would involve the user receiving inputs as artificially stimulated nerve
Nerve
A peripheral nerve, or simply nerve, is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of peripheral axons . A nerve provides a common pathway for the electrochemical nerve impulses that are transmitted along each of the axons. Nerves are found only in the peripheral nervous system...
impulses, the system would receive the CNS outputs (natural nerve impulses) and process them allowing the user to interact with the virtual reality
Virtual reality
Virtual reality , also known as virtuality, is a term that applies to computer-simulated environments that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world, as well as in imaginary worlds...
. Natural impulses between the body and central nervous system
Central nervous system
The central nervous system is the part of the nervous system that integrates the information that it receives from, and coordinates the activity of, all parts of the bodies of bilaterian animals—that is, all multicellular animals except sponges and radially symmetric animals such as jellyfish...
would need to be prevented.
Requirements
Understanding of the nervous systemA comprehensive understanding of which nerve impulses correspond to which sensations, and which motor impulses correspond to which muscle contractions will be required. This will allow the correct sensations in the user, and actions in the virtual reality to occur. The Blue Brain Project is the current, most promising research with the idea of understanding how the brain works by building very large scale computer models.
Ability to manipulate CNS
The nervous system would obviously need to be manipulated. Whilst non-invasive devices using radiation have been postulated, invasive cybernetic implants are likely to become available sooner and be more accurate. Manipulation could occur at any stage of the nervous system - the spinal cord is likely to be simplest; as all nerves pass through here, this could be the only site of manipulation.
Molecular Nanotechnology is likely to provide the degree of precision required and could allow the implant to be built inside the body rather than be inserted by an operation.
Computer hardware/software to process inputs/outputs
A very powerful and probably (but not necessarily) Strong AI
Strong AI
Strong AI is artificial intelligence that matches or exceeds human intelligence — the intelligence of a machine that can successfully perform any intellectual task that a human being can. It is a primary goal of artificial intelligence research and an important topic for science fiction writers and...
would be required to process all the inputs from the CNS, run a simulation of a virtual reality
Virtual reality
Virtual reality , also known as virtuality, is a term that applies to computer-simulated environments that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world, as well as in imaginary worlds...
approaching the complexity of consensus reality
Consensus reality
Consensus reality is an approach to answering the philosophical question "What is real?" It gives a practical answer: reality is either what exists, or what we can agree seems to exist....
, and translate its events to a complete set of nerve impulses for the user. Strong artificial intelligence
Strong AI
Strong AI is artificial intelligence that matches or exceeds human intelligence — the intelligence of a machine that can successfully perform any intellectual task that a human being can. It is a primary goal of artificial intelligence research and an important topic for science fiction writers and...
may also be required to write the program for a decent alternate reality.
Immersive digital environments
Simulation
Simulation is the imitation of some real thing available, state of affairs, or process. The act of simulating something generally entails representing certain key characteristics or behaviours of a selected physical or abstract system....
, interactive, computer-created scene or "world" within which a user can immerse themselves.
Immersive digital environments could be thought of as synonymous with Virtual reality
Virtual reality
Virtual reality , also known as virtuality, is a term that applies to computer-simulated environments that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world, as well as in imaginary worlds...
, but without the implication that actual "reality" is being simulated. An immersive digital environment could be a model of reality
Reality
In philosophy, reality is the state of things as they actually exist, rather than as they may appear or might be imagined. In a wider definition, reality includes everything that is and has been, whether or not it is observable or comprehensible...
, but it could also be a complete fantasy user interface
User interface
The user interface, in the industrial design field of human–machine interaction, is the space where interaction between humans and machines occurs. The goal of interaction between a human and a machine at the user interface is effective operation and control of the machine, and feedback from the...
or abstraction
Abstraction
Abstraction is a process by which higher concepts are derived from the usage and classification of literal concepts, first principles, or other methods....
, as long as the user of the environment is immersed within it. The definition of immersion is wide and variable, but here it is assumed to mean simply that the user feels like they are part of the simulated "universe
Universe
The Universe is commonly defined as the totality of everything that exists, including all matter and energy, the planets, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space. Definitions and usage vary and similar terms include the cosmos, the world and nature...
". The success with which an immersive digital environment can actually immerse the user
User (computing)
A user is an agent, either a human agent or software agent, who uses a computer or network service. A user often has a user account and is identified by a username , screen name , nickname , or handle, which is derived from the identical Citizen's Band radio term.Users are...
is dependent on many factors such as believable 3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
, surround sound
Surround sound
Surround sound encompasses a range of techniques such as for enriching the sound reproduction quality of an audio source with audio channels reproduced via additional, discrete speakers. Surround sound is characterized by a listener location or sweet spot where the audio effects work best, and...
, interactive user-input and other factors such as simplicity, functionality and potential for enjoyment. New technologies are currently under development which claim to bring realistic environmental effects to the players' environment - effects like wind, seat vibration and ambient lighting.
Perception
To create a sense of full immersion, the 5 senses (sight, sound, touch, smell, taste) must perceive the digital environment to be physically real. Immersive technologyImmersive technology
Immersive technology refers to technology that blurs the line between the physical world and digital or simulated world, thereby creating a sense of immersion.-Perception:...
can perceptually fool the senses through:
- Panoramic 3D displays (visual)
- Surround sound acoustics (auditory)
- Haptics and force feedback (tactile)
- Smell replication (olfactory)
- Taste replication (gustation)
Interaction
Once the senses reach a sufficient belief that the digital environment is real, the user must then be able to interact with the environment in a natural, intuitive manner. Various immersive technologies such as gestural controls, motion tracking, and computer vision respond to the user's actions and movements. Brain control interfaces (BCI) respond to the user's brainwave activity.Examples and applications
Computer gamesComputer Games
"Computer Games" is a single by New Zealand group, Mi-Sex released in 1979 in Australia and New Zealand and in 1981 throughout Europe. It was the single that launched the band, and was hugely popular, particularly in Australia and New Zealand...
from simple arcade to Massively multiplayer online game
Massively multiplayer online game
A massively multiplayer online game is a multiplayer video game which is capable of supporting hundreds or thousands of players simultaneously. By necessity, they are played on the Internet, and usually feature at least one persistent world. They are, however, not necessarily games played on...
and training programs such as flight
Flight simulator
A flight simulator is a device that artificially re-creates aircraft flight and various aspects of the flight environment. This includes the equations that govern how aircraft fly, how they react to applications of their controls and other aircraft systems, and how they react to the external...
and driving
Driving simulator
Driving simulators are used for entertainment as well as in training of driver's education courses taught in educational institutions and private businesses...
simulators. Entertainment environments such as motion simulators that immerse the riders/players in a virtual digital environment enhanced by motion, visual and aural cues. There is a motion simulators of the Virunga Mountains
Virunga Mountains
The Virunga Mountains are a chain of volcanoes in East Africa, along the northern border of Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda. The mountain range is a branch of the Albertine Rift, a part of the Great Rift Valley. They are located between Lake Edward and Lake Kivu...
in Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
to meet a tribe of Mountain Gorilla
Mountain Gorilla
The Mountain Gorilla is one of the two subspecies of the Eastern Gorilla. There are two populations. One is found in the Virunga volcanic mountains of Central Africa, within three National Parks: Mgahinga, in south-west Uganda; Volcanoes, in north-west Rwanda; and Virunga in the eastern Democratic...
s, or a ride that takes a journey through the arteries and heart
Heart
The heart is a myogenic muscular organ found in all animals with a circulatory system , that is responsible for pumping blood throughout the blood vessels by repeated, rhythmic contractions...
to witness the build up of plaque and thus learn about cholesterol
Cholesterol
Cholesterol is a complex isoprenoid. Specifically, it is a waxy steroid of fat that is produced in the liver or intestines. It is used to produce hormones and cell membranes and is transported in the blood plasma of all mammals. It is an essential structural component of mammalian cell membranes...
and health.
There are art installations such as those made by Knowbotic Research
Knowbotic Research
Knowbotic Research is a German-Swiss electronic art group, established in 1991. Its members are Yvonne Wilhelm, Christian Hübler and Alexander Tuchacek...
, Donna Cox
Donna Cox
Donna J. Cox is an American artist and scientist, Professor of Art + Design; Director, Advanced Scientific Visualization Laboratory at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ; Director, Visualization and Experimental Technologies at National Center for Supercomputing Applications ; and...
, Rebecca Allen
Rebecca Allen
Rebecca Allen is an international artist inspired by a variety of media to create work from 3-D computer graphics, animation, music videos, video games, performance works, artificial life systems, multisensory interfaces, interactive installations, virtual and mixed reality.- Biography :Allen's...
, Maurice Benayoun
Maurice Benayoun
Maurice Benayoun is a French pioneer new-media artist and theorist based in Paris. His work employs various media, including video, immersive virtual reality, the Web, wireless technology, performance, large-scale urban art installations and interactive exhibitions.-Biography:Born in Mascara,...
,
Char Davies
Char Davies
Char Davies is an artist who creates artworks using the technologies of immersive virtual reality.-Life and work:Davies was born in Toronto. Originally a painter, she transitioned to digital media in the late 1980s, becoming a founding director of the 3-D software company Softimage...
, StudioIMC
StudioIMC
Studio IMC is a New York City -based new media firm that was started at Yale in 2001 and incorporated in 2004. It is a team of programmers, designers, artists, and researchers, mostly coming from NYU Tisch's Interactive Telecommunications Program and Yale...
and Jeffrey Shaw
Jeffrey Shaw
Jeffrey Shaw is a pioneering new media artist and researcher. From 1965 to 2002 he lived in Milan, London, Amsterdam and Karlsruhe, and returned to Australia in 2003 to assume the Directorship of the iCinema Research Centre at the University of New South Wales...
.
The Belgium performance company CREW specializes in immersive performances, using special designed omni-directional video images.
More generic examples of an IDE include:
- Any computer application or software program.
- Interactive TV shows or services such as CNN text.
- A VoIP conversation or chatOnline chatOnline chat may refer to any kind of communication over the Internet, that offers an instantaneous transmission of text-based messages from sender to receiver, hence the delay for visual access to the sent message shall not hamper the flow of communications in any of the directions...
session. - A physical environment / immersive space with surrounding digital projections and sound such as the CAVECave Automatic Virtual EnvironmentA Cave Automatic Virtual Environment is an immersive virtual reality environment where projectors are directed to three, four, five or six of the walls of a room-sized cube...
- The use of head-mounted displays for viewing movies, with head-tracking and computer control of the image presented, so that the viewer appears to be inside the scene.
To some extent screensaver
Screensaver
A screensaver is a type of computer program initially designed to prevent phosphor burn-in on CRT and plasma computer monitors by blanking the screen or filling it with moving images or patterns when the computer is not in use...
s and DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
movies are also immersive digital environments, though usually not interactive.
See also
- Alternate reality gameAlternate reality gameAn alternate reality game is an interactive narrative that uses the real world as a platform, often involving multiple media and game elements, to tell a story that may be affected by participants' ideas or actions....
- Cave Automatic Virtual EnvironmentCave Automatic Virtual EnvironmentA Cave Automatic Virtual Environment is an immersive virtual reality environment where projectors are directed to three, four, five or six of the walls of a room-sized cube...
- Conceptual artConceptual artConceptual art is art in which the concept or idea involved in the work take precedence over traditional aesthetic and material concerns. Many of the works, sometimes called installations, of the artist Sol LeWitt may be constructed by anyone simply by following a set of written instructions...
- Environmental sculptureEnvironmental sculptureThe term environmental sculpture is variously defined. A development of the art of the 20th century, environmental sculpture usually creates or alters the environment for the viewer, as opposed to presenting itself figurally or monumentally before the viewer...
- Immersive designImmersive designImmersive design describes the new generation of designers who work inclusively across all story-driven media, from film and interactive media to live audience environments...
- Immersive technologyImmersive technologyImmersive technology refers to technology that blurs the line between the physical world and digital or simulated world, thereby creating a sense of immersion.-Perception:...
- ImmersiVisionImmersiVisionImmersiVision Interactive Technologies Inc. is a Whistler, British Columbia, Canada based company, founded in early 2004, whose primarily revenue source was the production of immersive virtual reality. The product is similar to Google Streetview. The Immersive media is a mixture of both indoor and...
- Interactive artInteractive artInteractive art is a form of installation-based art that involves the spectator in a way that allows the art to achieve its purpose. Some installations achieve this by letting the observer or visitor "walk" in, on, and around them; Some others ask the artist to become part of the artwork.Works of...
- Neo-conceptual artNeo-conceptual artNeo-conceptual art describes art practices in the 1980s and particularly 1990s to date that derive from the conceptual art movement of the 1960s and 1970s...
- Simulated realitySimulated realitySimulated reality is the proposition that reality could be simulated—perhaps by computer simulation—to a degree indistinguishable from "true" reality. It could contain conscious minds which may or may not be fully aware that they are living inside a simulation....
- Sound artSound artSound art is a diverse group of art practices that considers wide notions of sound, listening and hearing as its predominant focus. There are often distinct relationships forged between the visual and aural domains of art and perception by sound artists....
- Sound installationSound installationSound installation is an intermedia and time based art form. It is an expansion of an art installation in the sense that it includes the sound element and therefore the time element...
- Street installationStreet installationStreet installations are a growing trend within the "street art" movement. Whereas conventional street art/graffiti is done on surfaces/walls "street installations" use 3-D objects/space to enhance/interact/interfere with the urban environment . Like graffiti, it is non-permission based and once...
- Video installationVideo installationVideo installation is a contemporary art form that combines video technology with installation art, making use of all aspects of the surrounding environment to affect the audience. Tracing its origins to the birth of video art in the 1970s, it has increased in popularity as digital video production...
External links
- ADSIP Research Centre - University of Lancashire
- Immersion by USC Institute for Creative Technologies
- Annual Summit on Immersive Technology
- http://burundi.sk/monoskop/log/?s=nechvatal pdf download of Joseph NechvatalJoseph NechvatalJoseph Nechvatal is a post-conceptual art digital artist and art theoretician who creates computer-assisted paintings and computer animations, often using custom-created computer viruses.-Life and work:Joseph Nechvatal was born in Chicago...
's text book: Immersive Ideals / Critical Distances. LAP Lambert Academic Publishing. 2009 - Audio and Game Immersion PhD thesis about game audio and immersion.