K. N. King and Susan A. Cole Distinguished Lecture

Dr. Carolina Cruz-Neira
Agere Chair Professor of Computer Science
University of Central Florida

The widespread use of VR and AR is finally happening with the technology available to a large audience of industry sectors and consumer markets as well as a rapidly growing number of tools and applications available. Yet, it has been disappointing seeing that VR technology is mostly being portrayed in the public eye as the ultimate gaming and social environment. However, there is much more to VR and AR than that. Sometimes it feels that the current generations of VR/AR users do not realize that we have been pushing the edge of innovation with these technologies for the past thirty years. We've accumulated a wealth of best practices, lessons learned, and success stories demonstrating their value in enhancing processes, accelerating product-to-market operations, improving training, and aiding decision-making. Furthermore, VR technology is also much more than headsets; there are many alternatives to build devices and systems to immerse users in virtual environments beyond headsets so the appropriate VR platform can be used in the appropriate context or setting.

Yet, many of these alternatives seem overshadowed by the rush to market "new and innovative" technologies and applications. We must address the challenges of creating engaging, effective, and safe VR experiences as well as the challenge to differentiate VR professionals from VR amateurs to understand what we are doing.

This presentation shares “from-the trenches” experiences on developing technologies and applications that have been critical to accelerate the deployment, integration, and acceptance of virtual reality to yield successful outcomes.  The presentation focuses on where the true innovation opportunities are today and how to get there.

About the Speaker: Dr. Carolina Cruz-Neira, a member of the National Academy of Engineering, is a pioneer in the areas of virtual reality (VR), interactive visualization, and digital twins. Her work has translated to standard tools in industry, government, and academia. She is known world-wide for being the creator of the CAVE VR system and for transferring research into practice by spearheading several open-source initiatives, such as VRJuggler, and by leading entrepreneurial initiatives to commercialize research. She has over 100 publications and has been awarded over $400 million in grants, contracts, and donations. She is recognized for founding three successful VR research centers: the Virtual Reality Applications Center at Iowa State University, the Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise, and the Emerging Analytics Center at the University of Arkansas.  She serves on international technology boards and government technology advisory committees. She enjoys intersecting her research with the arts and the humanities through performances and installations. She has been named one of the top innovators in virtual reality and one of the top three greatest women visionaries in VR. She is the first person inducted into the National Academy of Engineering for contributions to immersive technologies and VR. She is a member of the IEEE VR Academy, an IEEE Fellow, an ACM Computer Pioneer, an AWE XR Hall of Fame member, and a member of the Modeling and Simulation Hall of Fame. She received the IEEE VR Achievement Award and the International Digital Media & Arts Society Distinguished Career Award, among many national and international recognitions. She has given numerous keynote addresses and she advises government on how VR can help to give industries a competitive edge leading to regional economic growth. She has appeared in numerous national and international TV shows and podcasts as an expert on her discipline and several documentaries have been produced about her life and career. Currently, Dr. Cruz is the Agere Chair in Computer Science at the University of Central Florida. 

About the K. N. King and Susan A. Cole Computer Science Lectureship

This talk is the first in a series of annual lectures by distinguished computer scientists. Funding for the lectureship is provided by retired computer science professor K. N. King and his wife, Susan Cole.