Bringing Virtual Reality Home | Ryan McMahan | TEDxUTD

With the advent of virtual reality technologies like the Oculus Rift, it has gained a lot of enthusiasm. There is still a lot more to be explored in virtual reality, however. In Ryan McMahan's talk, he discusses the challenges his lab faces with virtual reality and what it takes to make it more mainstream.
Dr. Ryan P. McMahan is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at the University of Texas at Dallas, where his research focuses on the effects of system fidelity for virtual reality (VR) applications and systems. In his Future Immersive Virtual Environments (FIVE) lab, wireless head-mounted displays (HMDs) and a motion tracking system are used to create high-fidelity VR applications that include head-tracked stereoscopic graphics, 3D sound localization, and tactile feedback via wireless handheld controllers.
Dr. McMahan’s current research focuses on the effects of system fidelity for learning and training transfer. This research involves identifying a learning objective, building a VR application to train the tasks involved, and evaluating the amount of training transfer that occurs through objective and subjective measurements.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at