Online meetings are getting a dose of reality, thanks to researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Central Florida. In a computer, people's virtual faces and bodies can react to a conversation in real time, according to a report in the Chicago Tribune today.
People already can meet via computer, but their online representatives–computer-generated, cartoonlike images used in virtual worlds like Second Life or a variety of instant-messaging services–are frozen still-life pictures, at least as far as facial expressions go.
Body language and facial reactions are important parts of communication, however. So researchers at Illinois's Electronic Visualization Laboratory and their colleagues are using cameras to capture a real person's responses in a conversation, and developing programs that feed them to an animated virtual counterpart. –Josh Fischman
Developing online and blended learning programs requires research and collaboration. Learn how top technology companies are partnering with campuses across the country to advance online learning as it becomes an increasingly important aspect of higher education.