An Overwatch fan makes a huge collector's find at a garage sale, snagging a great deal on a Widowmaker statue at the sale. The expansive roster of characters from the Blizzard team shooter has served as one of the most popular facets of the franchise since its debut, with characters like Tracer and Genji becoming fan-favorites. The game's popularity has led to a wide variety of merchandise, featuring everything from Overwatch figures and statues to apparel. Now, one fan has found a particularly rare piece of Overwatch merchandise at a garage sale.
'Soaring' over hills or 'playing' with puppies, study finds seniors enjoy virtual reality
20.02.2024 - 03:41 / tech.hindustantimes.com
Retired Army Col. Farrell Patrick taught computer science at West Point during the 1970s and then at two private universities through the 1990s, so he isn't surprised by the progress technology has made over the decades.
But when the 91-year-old got his first virtual reality experience recently, he was stunned. Sitting in a conference room at John Knox Village, a suburban Fort Lauderdale, Florida, retirement community, Patrick sat up straight as his eyes and ears experienced what it would be like to be in a Navy fighter jet flying off the Florida coast.
“Oh my God, that's beautiful,” he blurted before the VR program brought the jet in for a landing on an aircraft carrier.
John Knox Village was one of 17 senior communities around the country that participated in a recently published Stanford University study that found that large majorities of 245 participants between 65 and 103 years old enjoyed virtual reality, improving both their emotions and their interactions with staff.
The study is part of a larger effort to adapt VR so it can be beneficial to seniors' health and emotional well-being and help lessen the impact dementia has on some of them.
During the testing, seniors picked from seven-minute virtual experiences such as parachuting, riding in a tank, watching stage performances, playing with puppies and kittens or visiting places like Paris or Egypt. The participants wore headsets that gave them 360-degree views and sounds, making it seem like they had been all but dropped into the actual experience.
“It brought back memories of my travels and ... brought back memories of my experience growing up on a farm," said Terry Colli, a former public relations director at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C., of his 2022 experience. Colli, 76, liked swiveling in a chair to get a panoramic view. “That was kind of amazing.”
Anne Selby, a 79-year-old retired counselor and artist, found VR “stimulated virtually every area of my brain, all of the senses."
"I particularly enjoyed the ones dealing with pets because I have a cat and I've had pets most of my life," she said.
Stanford's peer-reviewed study, working with the company Mynd Immersive, found that almost 80% of seniors reported having a more positive attitude after their VR session and almost 60% said they felt less isolated socially. The enjoyment lessened somewhat for older respondents whose sight and hearing had deteriorated. Those who found VR less enjoyable were also more likely to dislike technology in general.
In addition, almost 75% of caregivers said residents' moods improved after using VR. More than 80% of residents and almost 95% caregivers said talking about their VR experience enhanced their relationships with each other.
“For the majority of
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