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Lost Convenience… A few weeks ago, I was on my way home to Seattle from visiting a client in the Bay Area. As I was relaxing on the airplane at the end of a busy day, I began to think about how my day had gone and how I had spent my time. Although the client was pleased with the outcome of the meeting, I had had to let them know that I would need to leave by 3:30pm in order to allow enough time to comfortably make my flight that was scheduled for 6:30pm. How did I arrive at that estimate? Well, it would take me about an hour to drive from the client’s offices in Mountain View to the San Francisco airport. Then it would take about a half-hour to check in the rental car and take the elevated train to the terminal. Then it could take at least another half-hour to check in and get through security. That would allow me roughly a half-hour safety margin for unexpected delays. The plane would board a half-hour before departure from the gate. Then there would be another 15 minutes of taxing for takeoff and finally I would spend the next one hour and 45 minutes actually in the process of traveling to Seattle. Thinking about how much more of my day had been spent in travel compared to the actual time that the airplane was making progress toward Seattle caused me to reminisce about when I first started flying about 45 years ago. On one of my first business trips, the taxi I was supposed to take to the San Francisco airport from Redwood City was late. By the time he arrived at my home there was less than 35 minutes before the scheduled take-off time. It was mid-afternoon on a workday but we were able to make the drive to the airport in about 25 minutes. I ran into the terminal and made my flight with about 3 minutes to spare. For some of my colleagues, it was typical for them to get to the airport no more than 15 minutes before the scheduled departure time and walk onto the airplane with only a few minutes to spare. (And for you nostalgia buffs the photo accompanying this column is from about 40 years ago. Can you guess which airplane that was?) When we arrived at our destinations, it was common to find the rental cars parked right outside the terminal – an arrangement that today can only be found at the smallest of airports. Forty years ago, I would have been able to spend two additional hours with my client instead of in the process of getting to the airport and getting to my flight. What is interesting is that there is no one reason for this; multiple forces have conspired to create this situation. The first is, of course, the increase in highway traffic that has introduced more delays and more uncertainty in getting from our starting points to the airport. Once we arrive, we find that the major airports have gotten bigger and bigger and ever more complex. Rental cars have been relegated to facilities that are often several miles from the terminal and/or that require waiting for some kind of shuttle conveyance to take us to the terminal. There does not seem to be any kind of solution being suggested for these additional delays. Instead it seems to be getting worse as airports “improve” their facilities. And once we had to add layer upon layer of security the check in process took on additional and unpredictable delays. A small shining light of improvement has been the introduction of the TSA Pre-Check process. That has been a real blessing to those of us traveling on a regular basis. Finally, as airplanes have become more crowded, the boarding times have had to be extended so that arriving close to departure time becomes a highly risky proposition. Missing a flight may mean that the next available one is the following day – especially during peak travel times. So what are we to conclude from my forty plus years of air travel? Today airplanes fly at the same speed that they did in 1970. The interiors are less comfortable than they were then. The amenities such as food and service are either gone altogether or have been reduced to what surely must be an irreducible minimum. Passengers seem to have responded to all this by dressing more and more casually – and I am saying this as politely as I can. Perhaps one significant benefit has been a reduction in airfares that has made it possible for more people to visit friends and relatives. Given these trends of the past 40 years, can we even begin to speculate what we might see 40 years from now? Will we see even more loss of convenience? I don’t remember anyone 40 years ago predicting that our travel would evolve to what we have today. Technology was supposed to bring us more convenience and make our lives better. Instead we have introduced complexity and inconvenience that has slowed our travels and made them more stressful. As we approach the Christmas Season, many of us will be traveling to see friends and family. Will we find our travels joyful or full of stress — or perhaps some combination of the two? And what can we plan on for the years ahead? Technology does not seem to be helping us solve these problems. Perhaps we will need to come up with a new approach such as “horizontal elevators” – what some people call “trains”. That is a surprisingly efficient way of travel for intermediate distances. Perhaps the Christmas movie Polar Express has something to teach us. Should you have any thoughts on this column or others you may contact me directly from this site or by phone at 425-898-9117. With sincere wishes for a Happy and Joyous – and stress free – Holiday

Raking Leaves… While I was outside today doing my annual “leaf relocation” project, I came to the conclusion that all leaves are not the same. So I decided that the white Christian leaves could have a nice center location in the pile I was creating in the far corner of our property. The Jewish leaves could be just off to one side. The Japanese-Maple leaves would need to be placed in a special campsite and isolated from the others. The Buddhist and Hindu leaves seemed to want a quiet spot where they could just rest in peace. And with a little extra searching, I was able to find just the right location for them. Unfortunately, the Muslim leaves would have to go back to where they came from. They should not be allowed to create potential problems for the other leaves. And then there were yet other leaves that didn’t seem to have any identification that I could discern. They just drifted about with seemingly no useful purpose whatsoever. Of course it took quite a bit longer to sort them all into these and yet other categories, but I can now assure you that the leaves are all much happier. Even the Mormon ones have found a spot away from the others and have started forming some sort of a tall structure. Thus, as you can see, my annual leaf relocation projects have become a highly philosophical activity. However, after a few days, I observed something rather peculiar. As the weather changed and the winds came up, my leaves all decided that they were really just part of the same wonderful world in which they had grown up in and decided that they could be just as happy all mixed up into one joyous jumble. Could we human beings decide to do the same? As we enter the New Year 2016, it’s something worth thinking about. Should you have some thoughts on this topic or others, you may contact me directly from this site, or by telephone at 425-898-9117. With my sincere wishes for all the best in the coming year.

Virtual Reality – Really?… The VR “gold rush” is on! This year is supposed to be the year when Virtual Reality becomes Real Reality. Venture money is over-flowing into the various start-ups that are staking out their place in what is expected to be the great new class of products. Even conservative publication like Consumer Reports are jumping on the bandwagon with a recent article titled “’Reality’ as You Know It Is About to Change”. This article describes how VR will affect us in education, construction, empathy, socializing, sports, journalism, engineering, car design, and travel. Did they miss anything? Is the world as we know it about to go away? Doesn’t all this remind you of something from our recent past? Wasn’t it something called 3D? Wasn’t our world going to change with that new technology also? Of course we have indeed seen some truly revolutionary changes with gadgets such cell phones and iPads. And Facebook has by now pretty much changed how we interact with each other. So why wouldn’t VR fit right in as another technology every bit as revolutionary as these? Perhaps it will happen, but here are a few thoughts to ponder regarding, “What could possibly go wrong?” If we consider what has happened to that great 3D opportunity, we will see that in spite of the intense promotion it failed as a technology for home use and in theaters it became successful for movies that are based on science fiction, animation, or fantasy topics. In fact, it seems to have spawned a renewed interest in such subjects. Why is that? As we have written before, stereoscopic 3D has significant limitations because it does not present the viewer with a truly realistic three dimensional image. It cannot give us realistic depth of focus and there is no parallax shift when we change our head position. So we see something that has a “doll house” or diorama kind of look. This is perfectly acceptable when watching topics that are already in the realm of fantasy. For those we can readily suspend our expectations of reality and the overall effect is enjoyable. But as by now we have learned, this works quite well in a movie theater but does not work in a home environment where the surroundings remind us just how artificial the 3D image is. Will VR successfully overcome these limitations? Clearly there are many entrepreneurs who have absolutely no doubt that success is just around the corner of the next round of funding. However, consider the following real example. Recently, I was sitting on an airplane parked at the gate waiting for the imminent push-back for departure. There was another airplane at the adjacent gate. It started its push-back before we did. However, I did not know that and as I was looking out the window all I could see was the moving body of the other airplane. My visual senses told me that we must be moving forward. However, the rest of me did not sense any movement. Instantly, I felt a wave of motion sickness wash over me. Of course, within a few moments I realized what was going on and the queasy feeling subsided. Nevertheless, this was a good example of what happens when our senses get conflicting information. So what will happen with VR when our visual system is presented with motion but the rest of our senses are getting different inputs? If we experience a roller coaster ride in a movie theater, our peripheral vision still gets information that we are not really moving. But if we eliminate that peripheral information, what then? Let’s consider another potential challenge. When we move our heads we expect the visual cues that we get from our surroundings to respond accordingly. But suppose there is a slight delay? The VR systems will have some small amount of time lag because there has to be a sensor that sends a signal about our head position and then the electronics has to generate the image that corresponds to the new head position. How short does this delay need to be to not be objectionable? Most imaging systems work on the basis of storing frames, modifying them and then sending them from a memory. If the delay is more than a frame or two this could add to the feeling of motion sickness and/or disorientation. All of the VR systems that have been shown so far are quite large and bulky. The weight of the system has to be distributed with either a head strap or with a nose cushion or both. How long will users be willing to have such a large contraption strapped to their heads before discomfort takes over? Will some also not like to have their hair messed up from the straps on these devices? If we add all this up, the VR gold rush is build on a device that shows stereoscopic 3D that is not realistic, it gives our visual system different and conflicting information from our other senses, and it straps a bulky and uncomfortable device onto our heads. Somehow this just doesn’t seem like the next great sustainable user experience. However, none of this will deter the entrepreneurs and promoters. And we can expect that as these products are introduced many will flock to try them out. For a year or two, it will be 3D in-the-home all over again. It will take at least a few years to assess the final outcome. In the meantime, we can all enjoy the adventure of exploration that this new technology wave will bring. Am I being too pessimistic? Will VR indeed be the next great wave of visualization? I would enjoy hearing your thoughts. I can be reached directly from this site, or by phone at 425-898-9117.

It Took More Than 30 Years… It was just about 30 years ago that I was Program Chair and then General Chair of the Society for Information Display Annual Symposium. This is the technical meeting where display experts from around the world gather each year to present and listen to the latest developments in display technology. One of the new and important display technology areas that had great interest at that conference 30 years ago was displays for automotive applications and in particular an all-electronic dashboard. There were presentations from key technologists representing the major car companies and in the exhibit area there was even a concept car with an all-electronic dashboard. The expectation was that we would soon see a major change from mechanical gauges to all-electronic displays. The decade ahead looked full of promise. After all, military aircraft were already using heads-up displays and even commercial airplanes were beginning to contemplate the introduction of display technologies into cockpits of new airplanes under development. And then ten years went by. I was at another annual SID Symposium but this time in the audience. One of the opening keynote speakers was from a major automotive company and he was explaining how electronic displays were about to become important in how information is presented to the driver. I turned to a friend and colleague sitting next to me and said, “Andy didn’t we hear this same talk 10 years ago?” And indeed we had. Basically, nothing had changed. The promise was still there but nothing had been implemented. As it turned out, a key obstacle was that an electronic dashboard does not show much of anything when the car is in the showroom. And apparently when people are car shopping they want to see lots of beautiful precision-looking gauges on the dashboard. The buyers were simply not ready to accept what technology could offer. Then another 10 years went by — and still nothing. Another talk from another industry leader about how electronics would soon take over the dashboard. Nevertheless, this time something new was beginning to happen. It was now common for a car to have a built in GPS system and some of them were being integrated with displays that also functioned for entertainment features such as radios and CD players. Electronics was intruding into the passenger compartment but in the entertainment and communications cluster instead of the dashboard. The tipping point was about to happen but in a way that few had anticipated. As consumers became accustomed to having an electronic display in the center console — with all kinds of interesting features — the path to an all-electronic dashboard was finally opening. And to add to the impetus, during the 30-year span as automotive display applications languished, display technologies made major advances. The proposed automotive dashboards of 30 years ago were based on inorganic EL and CRT displays. Colors and information content were limited – although quite functional. The current displays based on LC, and LED technologies are bright, high resolution, and full color — and can display information in a variety of formats. So the time has finally come. The electronic dashboard is about to become ubiquitous. Car buyers are no longer resistant to electronic displays – even if they don’t light up in the showroom. It took 30 years and a circuitous path through GPS and entertainment displays for it to finally happen. Display technology couldn’t do it alone. It needed a push from an unexpected source. Are you ready to purchase your next car with an all-electronic dashboard? Or have you already done that? Let me know your thoughts on this topic or others. You may reach me directly from this site, or by telephone at 425-898-9117.

I’m Very Puzzled… A new “Gold Rush” is on. Billions are being poured into the Next Great Technology. Of course, I am talking about Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. Every day we read in the popular and business press of the incredible new opportunities just around the corner – be it games, entertainment, education, business, or whatever else may come to mind. How did all this suddenly come about? In my opinion, a major factor was the unbelievably large amount Facebook management decided to spend to acquire Oculus. Who would have guessed that a relatively simple software-corrected optical system could be worth billions? But apparently this was enough to set off this latest “Gold Rush”. So we are in the midst of something that is being touted as far more exciting than 3D television was a few years ago. In the many articles predicting this great new future — that is just barely around the corner — there is usually at least a passing mention that quite often people experience nausea while immersed in their virtual reality experience. Well, what a surprise! Isn’t it well known that when we create sensory conflicts that bad things will happen? There are well-known medical tests to determine susceptibility to motion sickness that rely on creating just such sensory conflicts. We humans have evolved to use multiple senses to assess what is happening to us. Motion is sensed with our eyes, our ears, and our stomachs. Our brains take these inputs and have learned to make sense of them and to test for agreement. If there is a disparity then the message goes out that something is wrong. A typical reaction is nausea – probably because our cavemen ancestors learned that dizziness meant they had eaten something bad and needed to get rid of it. So we shouldn’t be surprised that when we see something with our eyes that does not agree with our other motion sensors in our ears and the rest of our bodies that bad feelings are likely to result. However, even beyond that, it is puzzling why VR and AR are suddenly such hot topics. In October 1993 I wrote a column for Information Display Magazine with the title “Is Virtual Reality About to Become Real Reality”. The inspiration for that column was that there was a new magazine on the newsstands dedicated to Virtual Reality. What better evidence that a new market had opened up than to have a dedicated publication? In that column I speculated that by 1997 we would have entertainment units such as Virtual Reality Chairs that would allow us to be immersed in a surround 3D visual experience that could be used for games, entertainment, or other simulated reality experiences. This was possible with the technology that existed in 1997 and would have been more comfortable (and not much more expensive) than the clunky headsets that are now being developed. So what are the fundamentals that are so different 22 years later to cause a major revival of this effort? Displays are better but still have a perceptible “screen door” effect. Basic optics technology has not changed hardly at all. Perhaps the biggest change is compute power. However, it still requires a top-end personal computer to do the proposed games and entertainment experiences and a tether to the head-mounted display unit. Hmmm… It all seems so disconnected from reality. We are expecting people to wear heavy uncomfortable helmet-like devices on their heads that present a limited viewing window that is not at all like the 180-degree view side-to-side and top-to-bottom that we experience with our own visual systems. And then we are expected to train our senses to ignore fundamental conflicts so we can enjoy this semi-immersive experience. Of course the novelty factor will be there and allow some products to enjoy at least modest success. However, to make even these rudimentary products work there will have to be content that is much harder to create – even harder than good stereoscopic 3D. Perhaps we are at the stage in technology development where we are desperate for something new and novel. This is good for us in the display community because it creates a demand for ever-better displays. But when it is all said and done, will this really be that Great New Thing that was worth the billions being spent on it? I would very much like to hear your thoughts on real, virtual, or anticipated experiences. How do you plan to cope with these appliances on your head and with the sensory conflicts? Will you become immersed or will you have to stop to recover? You may reach me directly from this site or by telephone at 425-898-9117.

Wasted Efforts… Each and every day, I am forced to sort through several hundred incoming e-mails to find the few that are the “real” ones that I actually wish to read. The rest are various promotions or attempts to introduce viruses or malware into my computer. Many pretend to come from reputable retailers or banks but they are devious attempts to get me to click on an attachment. Since there is no way to be sure, even the legitimate ones end up being deleted. Over the last few years most technical publications (that used to be supported by advertising) have gone out of business — or are attempting to stay alive on the Internet. Apparently, the marketing departments of the companies that previously advertised in print have decided that they can save money by simply having an electronic presence. And to some extent that is working. If I know what product I want, it is easy to “get on-line” and do a quick search. We have all become quite adept at doing that. Not so many years ago who would have imagined that we can type in the part number of an electronic component and without further description get a listing of sources for that very component? For me, that is still in the amazing category. However, it seems that danger lurks everywhere. A search for something as simple as “United Airlines” brings up a variety of sites that can easily be confused with the intended search target but which hope to misdirect me to other promotional efforts to sell travel packages or other services. It takes great care to not accidentally click on one of these sites that often have an Internet address that is remarkably close and hard to distinguish from the one we are really trying to visit. The Internet has become a very dangerous place. Our computers are continually at risk and we have to be extra diligent to not have something bad happen. So what does this mean for Internet advertising? It doesn’t work and can’t work. Even if it’s a company we know well, we have to be careful. If it’s a known retailer such as Amazon or Macys, there is no assurance that the e-mail is really from them at all. In fact, most of the time it is not. Every other commonly known retailer, fast food restaurant, or other well-known name is similarly used by those wishing to take over our computers for nefarious purposes. Thus, for all practical purposes the Internet has become useless as an advertising medium. Are there still enough victims out there for these efforts at thievery to continue? Apparently there are. I used to rely on technical publications to teach me about new products and recent advancements. Those days are gone. The Internet is just too clumsy for quick overviews of what is new and interesting. But then I suppose when we spend our entire days staring at our cell phones, who among us has the time to read a printed publication? We seem to be in a period of rapid transition and instability. The Internet is providing us with new capabilities while at the same time bringing new threats. Our traditional social structure is in upheaval as a result of smart phones and “apps”. Many of these changes appear to be in a good direction but — will we be able to manage the ever-present dangers? It may be that technology has outrun our ability to absorb these new capabilities and put them to use in a way that is safe and stable for the longer term. It may not be good for business but a bit of a slowdown and attention to optimizing what we already have may not be such a bad approach. Should you wish to comment on these ideas or others, you may reach me directly from this site, or by telephone at 425-898-9117.

The Magic Box… Do any of you remember the days when telephones were connected to each other with wires – and it was only the wealthier households that could afford a private line? The rest of us had to contend with party lines that connected two or more homes. A long distance call was beyond affordability for most people. Letters and telegrams (when the need was urgent) served as the primary communications method with friends and families in places that were often not all that far away – but still further than a local call. Today we have become addicted to devices that are not only telephones but much more. Not only can we communicate with each other, no matter were we are and how far away our friends or business associates are, but we use these handy devices for navigation, for updates on airplane schedules, for making reservations at nearby restaurants, for shopping, for traffic alerts, and as many other apps as we may choose to add. There is virtually no limit to what we can ask these devices to do for us. As we walk down any street, or sit at an airport, or have a meal at a restaurant, we see everyone around us intently interacting with their hand-held devices. The younger generation is growing up ingrained with this behavior and would be lost without an ever-present access to the world as they know it. These devices have become an integral part of our daily lives. Indeed these are “magic boxes” that tell us everything we may wish to know. What would we do if one day these magic boxes simply disappeared? How many of us know what is really contained in that thin little device with the pretty and colorful touch screen that tells us so much? To even those of us who keep up with technology progress, it is difficult to appreciate all that is contained in these little boxes. Of course we see the display and the touch panel and those in themselves are incredible engineering feats with their full-color high-resolution screens, multi-touch overlays, tiny LED backlights, complex multi-layer light guides, and microscopically small flexible interconnects. The circuitry that gives them the power of a mainframe computer of just a few decades ago, is integrated into a few small chips. The communication receiver and transmitter are likewise just a few tiny specs of ICs surface-mounted to a thin carrier board. And all this comes together with a layer of “sticky stuff” and some intricately designed miniature snap fits. In order to achieve this miniaturization, it has taken a worldwide effort by many engineers. The integrated circuits, displays, touch panels, and finished devices are manufactured using specialized processes that exist only in a few places in the world. We have become incredibly dependent and interdependent as a civilization. We must rely on many others for our very existence. This in itself is not all that bad. However, should anything go wrong or something happen to disrupt any part of this process, we have little to fall back on. The Internet itself is in a fragile state. Our computers are way too susceptible to being taken over by those with less than honorable intentions. We read almost daily about some company or entity that has been hacked and whose records are now in the hands of those who will most likely use them for nefarious purposes. I personally get at least a hundred e-mails each day that if I chose to open the attachments or respond in any way my computer would be immediately invaded. The technological complexity that we now have has brought with it great new conveniences and opportunities. We have embraced these conveniences and have become dependent on them. Nevertheless, it’s scary to realize that our younger generation is growing up with their lives so intimately tied to these devices – devices that depend on a worldwide network of technology that is not all that robust. Nor do most of this younger generation appreciate the complexity and intricacy of these devices that they so casually take for granted. Aren’t these really just “magic boxes” that respond like genies to our requests? Should you have any thoughts you would like to share on this topic or others you may use your “magic box” to call me at 425-898-9117, or you can reach me directly from this site.

Twenty Two Years Later… In December 1994, I wrote a column for Information Display magazine with the following title: “The Tour Bus with a Thousand Eyes”. The theme of the column was to make some near-term predictions of what was likely to happen with Virtual Reality – in just a few years. It is now twenty-two and a half years later. Is it happening yet? Let me know what you think after you read my words from over twenty-two years ago. The Tour Bus with a Thousand Eyes – my column from the December 1994 issue of Information Display magazine. It was a typically cool and cloudy Saturday morning in London. It was early fall – a few years from now. The usual crowds of sightseers and locals were beginning to fill the streets. A group of enthusiastic young French grade-schoolers were crossing an already busy Trafalgar Square street joyfully shouting, “Allez! Allez!” At several of the more popular theaters, lines of hopeful ticket seekers were beginning to form. The streets were still damp and the air was fresh from the overnight London “mist,” and although the sun was making occasionally serious attempts at cloud penetration, folded umbrellas (carried for insurance purposes only, I presume) seemed to be an integral part of everyone’s attire. The traditional red double-decker buses were well into their day’s activities, shiny black taxis were bringing in the morning’s latest Heathrow arrivals, and the sightseeing buses had started their first tours. All seemed quite normal – all except for one rather peculiar looking tour bus. Actually, this bus was quite ordinary as tour buses go. What was unusual was that instead of the normal complement of tourists looking and pointing from behind each window, there were instead four rows of approximately a dozen binocular-looking things lined up like birds on wire perches. Counting up all the windows, one could see that there must be at least 500 of these peculiar robot-like gadgets staring out from inside the bus. What was really weird was that these binocular-things were all moving apparently independently and in all different directions. Meanwhile, the bus driver seemed oblivious to all this strangeness and was narrating the tour just like any other “normal” tour-bus driver. On his console, LED indicator lights were glowing above labels for a menu selection of languages – French, German, Spanish, Norwegian, and at least 20 others. An EL display occasionally blinked as if to acknowledge the words “Automatic Language Translators Activated.” It is very early morning in West Windsor, New Jersey, on this same Saturday. Larry and his wife have arisen early and are sitting in their comfortably furnished, although modest, living room. Autumn is definitely in the air and the trees have begun their annual color show. Several weeks ago, Larry had decided that he and his wife would like to re-live their previous year’s much-enjoyed vacation trip to London. After contacting his travel agent, he had signed up with “Experiential Tours” to have a 1-hour specialty tour of central London, including Trafalgar Square and the Piccadilly Circus area. And so far, the tour was living up to all their expectations. They both hardly noticed the lightweight head-mounted glasses they were wearing. The wrap-around displays effectively closed out any peripheral view of their living room and, together with the stereo headphones, completely immersed Larry and his wife in their tour. What made this experience especially realistic was that they could independently look in whatever direction they wished. The recently improved head-trackers were so effective that there was no perceptible time delay between their head movements and the movements of the remote binocular cameras on that mysterious tour bus many thousands of miles away. (The newest head trackers had optical sensors that analyzed eye movements as a precursor to head motion, in addition to the usual motion sensors.) The overall experience was so close to being there that Larry decided he would do this from now on for any new location that they were planning to visit. It was great to have this kind of personalized overview. Now, when they arrived in person, they would no longer have to wander around for several days finding the locations and activities that they most wanted to experience. Not only that, this was an inexpensive way to find out about new destinations and, of course, to review previous good experiences as they had just done. The cost of the tour had been less than for an in-person bus ticket. The interconnect time had recently been reduced to $50 per hour, so this was becoming a rather manageable expense for a Saturday morning – perhaps even cheaper than a trip into New York, by the time one added a cab ride or two to the train fare. The following Monday, as Larry was describing his exciting new discovery to some of his colleagues, he learned that these “virtual tours” had also become quite the rage with pre-newlyweds in Japan. “Experiential Reality” buses were regularly plying the streets of Honolulu and the main roads of Maui to preview, for these young Japanese couples and even their parents, what they would find when they arrived at their favorite honeymoon destinations. As Larry learned more about this new technology, he discovered that head mounted displays with remote sensors, together with high-performance head-trackers, had found all kinds of new applications. For example, on the same Saturday that he was taking his tour of London and the Japanese couples were previewing Honolulu, out in the Atlantic Ocean a remotely piloted undersea vessel was searching for a sunken submarine. The pilot of this remotely guided vessel was sitting in a surface ship several thousand feet above wearing a head-mounted display that also tracked head movement and provided a high-resolution 3-D picture as clear and sharp as he would be able to get by being there. In this case, being there would not have been a very pleasant experience, with the many-atmosphere high-pressure environment inside the deep undersea