Hello Steemit Friends,
How many of you play Virtual Reality(VR) games? Do you feel interesting? Isn't engaging three-dimensional (3D) experience interesting?
Yes virtual reality is fast becoming a major part of our lives.Virtual reality is set to be the next ‘disruptive technology’, changing the way we live, work and play.It can transport us to sci-fi battlefields, underwater, outer space and beyond.We use headsets, omni-directional treadmills and special gloves in order to stimulate our senses togetherto create the illusion of reality.Last year i.e. 2016 was dubbed ‘the year of VR’ too. Some of the popular brand like Google,Samsung, Oculus and HTC entering the market and improving the technology making it better than the previous one.
True the the magical virtual future is here,but remember there is always two sides of a coin.
So lets discuss the potential dangers that can be caused by use of VR.
Virtual-reality sickness
It is otherwise known as "cybersickness" too. It is one of the major effect experienced by many individual using VR. It includes motion sickness, including nausea, disorientation, headaches, sweating and even vomiting for some people.However it can vary from individual to individual.Yes it is the major hurdles that Head Mounted Device (HMD) designers and virtual reality creators have to overcome till date.Slow refresh rate and poor resolution of the on-screen images are believed to be the cause of it.
Damage to Brain
It was actually a research carried out to uncover whether the impact VR, by conducting experiments to explore the effects of VR on the brains of rats.Here the rat were made to explore a virtual space on treadmills, they monitored activity in the hippocampus (an area of the brain important for spatial awareness, learning and memory).And the outcome was socking. It was found that half the neurons was simply shut down when exposed to VR. However there was no enough evidence that the similar issue can happen in humans too.
Damage to eye
It is one of the major issue caused when exposed to VR. Actually VR headsets contain two small LCD monitors, each projected at one eye, creating a stereoscopic effect which gives users the illusion of depth.However VR's HMD can cause your eyes to converge in front of the screen to see an image simulated there. Hence causing the negative side effects for some viewers.
Staring at a VR headset screen for a prolonged period may cause eye strain or fatigue, same when you watch TV or to you mobile for long. That’s because you tend blink less when using a digital screen device than you normally do. This can cause the front surface of your eye to dry out and feel fatigued.
It can cause physical injury
It is lame to explain this but still using VR we are so much into another virtual world that there is every chance we can cause damage to our self by falling,bumping into objects or walking through the walls. Its silly but its always better to be cautious.
How these effects can be fixed
Moderation is the ultimate key. It is absolutely OK to use it once in a while,but not advisable to use it continuously making it a habit or getting addicted. User should use it responsibly and always follow instructions.
Let's have a look at Oculus’ risk and safety guide lists these as potential symptoms
Seizures
Loss of awareness
Eye strain
Eye or muscle twitching
Involuntary movements
Altered, blurred, or double vision or other visual abnormalities
Dizziness
Disorientation
Impaired balance
Impaired hand-eye coordination
Excessive sweating
Increased salivation
Nausea
Lightheadedness
Discomfort or pain in the head or eyes
Drowsiness
Fatigue