(c)The Foundry 

Virtual reality and 360 video are fascinating mediums, but the only thing even more interesting is how the finished product comes to be. Filming and editing 360 video in particular isn't merely a point-and-shoot process, and can be quite intense. 

But now you can get a peek behind the scenes, as creative software developer The Foundry has released the first episode of a five part, behind-the-scenes documentary...

A virtual reality diagnosis system for early-stage neurodegenerative diseases is being developed by scientists from Tomsk Polytechnic University and the Siberian State University in Russia.

Diseases researchers are hoping to detect with the system includes Parkinson’s, multiple sclerosis (MS) and Alzheimer’s. All of these diseases have a few things in common: they’re slow to develop and lead to a loss of nerve cells, which affects balance and coordination.

In the...

Virtual reality is a lot more complex than its traditional counterparts: live-action filming or animation. While this makes for exciting possibilities, it also means there’s a lot more room for things to go wrong.

For starters, VR requires co-ordination and serious effort. Making even the slightest error during filming can very easily result in untold chaos later on down the line.

With the margin for mishaps that much smaller, the production needs to be managed carefully from the outset to avoid...

(c)iStock.com/Yuri_Arcurs

Virtual reality developers are focusing their efforts mainly on projects for the HTC Vive, according to a new survey by the UBM Game Network.

Ahead of the VR Developers Conference in San Francisco, the company - which also runs Gamasutra.com - surveyed 500 developers about their thoughts on VR.

The survey found 34% of developers were planning to develop their next title...

(c)DukeHealth

A study recently published in Scientific Reports shows improvement of eight paraplegic patients after rehabilitation with a brain-machine interface, including a virtual reality component.

Researchers trained eight paraplegic patients over a year on the 'Walk Again Neurorehabilitation' protocol.

The patients had been completely paralysed for three to 13 years due to a severe spinal cord injury and nonehad shown any clinical improvement with traditional...

(c)iStock.com/Sean Pavone

South Korea’s reportedly making moves to take a lead in the global VR and AR markets, according to a national newspaper.

The Korea Joongang Daily said the government announced it will create a 40bn won ($35.8m) fund to invest in the development of virtual and augmented reality technologies.

This is after it named the two as part of nine emerging tech areas South Korea would aim to focus on - including AI and...

(c)iStock.com/mediaphotos

Virtual and augmented reality were among technologies listed by Gartner's Hype Cycle as trends set to be “of the highest priority” for businesses over the next few years.

According to the analysts, virtual reality is on the ‘slope of enlightenment’, ahead of the other emerging tech it identified as being poignant for organisations.

According to Gartner, its position means that: “more instances of how the tech can...

(c)iStock.com/mfron

It may be the land of maple syrup and skiing, but Canada's also set to be a lucrative market for virtual reality, if the latest data is anything to go by. 

According to the International Data Corporation (IDC)'s Worldwide Virtual and Augmented Reality (AR/VR) Spending Guide, the country is expecting 230% year-over-year growth. 

Research analyst Manish Nargtas at IDC Canada said consumer VR adoption will see short-term...

(c)Google

Being social in VR was always going to be a tricky one. Unlike, say, online forums where there's a direct set of community rules, you're pretty much at your leisure to behave how you will.

This is something Google has recognised in its experimentation with Daydream Labs. In VR, you’re able to literally walk up to and ‘touch’ people or make their experience potentially uncomfortable, so Google’s looked at ways of encouraging positive behaviour.

(c)iStock.com/Guenter Guni

VR is central to getting across an understanding of the refugee experience, according to the curator of VR exhibitions at Sheffield Doc/Fest Mark Atkin.

Speaking in a new two-minute video published by the Thomson Reuters Foundation, he takes a look at the theme of VR and empathy and discusses how VR's being used to help people understand refugees' plights and humanitarian issues.

“It’s certainly not good enough just to take your camera and stick...