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Locomotion and vison are closely linked. When users explore virtual environments by walking they rely on stable visible landmarks to plan and execute their next movement. In my research I am developing novel methods to predict locomotion paths of human subjects for the immediate future, i.e. the next few seconds. I aim to connect different types of behavioral data (eye, hand, feet and head tracking) and test their reliability and validity for predicting walking behavior in virtual reality. Such a prediction will be very valuable for natural interaction, for example in redirected walking schemes.My approach begins with an evaluation of the quality of data gathered with current tracking methods. Informative experimental conditions need to be developed to find meaningful patterns in natural walking. Next, raw tracked data of different modalities need to be connected with each other and aggregated in a useful way. Thereafter, possible valid predictors need to be developed and compared to already functioning predicting algorithms (e.g. [2],[6],[12]). As a final goal, all valid predictors shall be used to create a prediction algorithm returning the most likely future path when exploring virtual environments.

Modern progressive lenses are widely used to allow distance and near-view within one lens. Novice users experience motion sickness during adaptation and have problems performing everyday tasks when first using progressive lenses. To evaluate the effects of progressive lens distortion in psychophysical experiments these need to be simulated in real-time. We present a method to generate the distortion pattern of a progressive lens in virtual reality that allows testing perceptual distortions and behavioural consequences of exposure to such distortions. A user study showed that the heading angle on the horizontal axis was significantly underestimated through implemented distortion.

Synaesthesia is a remarkable phenomenon: It unites scientists and artists, as well as different disciplines such as neuroscience, psychology, music, art, philosophy and linguistics. This book is a collection of interviews with scientists and artists who explore synaesthesia. We asked similar questions to each of them: e.g., How can synaesthesia be defined? Is it inborn? Are synaesthetes special? How does it influence visual artists? Thirty people talked with us, including many of the world’s leading synaesthesia researchers, such as Richard E. Cytowic, Lawrence E. Marks, Jamie Ward and Edward M. Hubbard, and famous synaesthete artists such as Anne Patterson, Carol Steen, Timothy B. Layden and Raewyn Turner. Our interview partners from North and South America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand helped create this unique collection and provided many insightful ideas, colourful illustrations and unforgettable descriptions of their experiences.