Website Review 2
Reviewing website The Virtual Reality Blog on The Pros and Cons of Virtual Reality.
Engel, M. (2018) The Pros and Cons of Virtual Reality. Available at: https://www.thevirtualrealityblog.com/the-pros-and-cons-of-virtual-reality/
(Accessed: May 2019)
The Virtual Reality Blog written by Maria Engel that is going to be reviewed weighs up the pros and cons of VR technology. Engel said ‘As with everything in this world, Virtual Reality has its pros and cons. While many people believe that it is the way of the future, there are people who strongly oppose its integration into society.’ The argument Engel poses in favour of the technology is that VR has redefined the way in which people communicate with each other, thanks to this technology people can form actual relationships with anyone, as long as they have connection to the internet. ‘As the world gets more and more connected, Virtual reality will be instrumental in enabling this.’ As addressed in our VR Technology section of the website, Engel also makes the point about VR being used for training purposes saying it ‘enables the training of professionals (doctors, engineers, architects, aircraft pilots) without putting them in harm’s way.’ We have established how this technology can be used as an assistive technology when treating burn patients undergoing painful care procedures but this technology also allows for disabled people to experience a full life as this technology enables you to create your own world and immersively experience it. Tourist companies can now use this technology to review destinations by virtually exploring them, with virtual tours becoming more and more common and as highlighted in the VR in classroom section of the website this can be implemented into the curriculum, children using VR headsets can visit ancient ruins and have a more immersive learning experience without leaving the classroom. VR also allows gamers to have a realistic experience when gaming. The cons that come with VR technology however are that it tends to still be rather expensive for high-quality experiences and some feel this may lead to further social class division as this will not always be accessible to everyone. It is also much easier to be deceived while using a VR headset compared to face-to-face interactions and this leaves people vulnerable to potentially dangerous people and or situations. The pace at which the technology is developing also means there are a lack of laws to regulate these virtual worlds. A user feels anonymity when using VR, potentially making them more confident to commit illegal activities and also acting in socially unacceptable ways but with no laws regulating this they can get away with illegal things easily. The world of VR provides an escape from a persons real life, in small doses this can be good, as the example of the game SnowWorld demonstrates, distracting patients from pain significantly. But when used for prolonged periods of time the user(s) can become addicted to their virtual life, disregarding their real life responsibilities. With this addition also, some individuals might not be able to distinguish between their real life and virtual life, again creating a dangerous situation for themselves and potentially those around them to be in. This technology is still under development thus it still comes with several flaws. It is difficult to determine the long term effects of this technology. Short term, some people have been known to get motion sickness as a result of using VR and it can induce headaches. Users may also experience sever anxiety and fear whilst using VR as some scenarios created can feel very realistic and users feel threatened with actual danger.
In conclusion, VR technology is still being developed so it is expected in the future to see further modifications and enhancements. With this progression, tighter regulations may also be introduced to protect users and prevent illegal activities. VR will continue to innovate and advance technology and teaching. However the human factor must also evolve to ensure the technology is being used safely and to the full capacity. Examples of recent developments in VR, where it is currently at, see Tech Reviews 1 & 2.
The Potential of VR Technology 