From: cyberoid@milton.u.washington.edu (Robert Jacobson)
Subject: U.S. Senate Hearing on Virtual Reality, Wednesday, May 8th
Date: Fri, 3 May 1991 00:20:38 GMT
Organization: Human Interface Technology Lab, Univ. of Wash., Seattle




On Wednesday, May 8th, the Senate Commerce Committee will convene a 
hearing on "'virtual reality' and related computer technology."  Chairing
the hearing will be Senator Al Gore (D-TN), chairman of the Subcommittee
on Science, Technology, and Space, and author of the legislation to create
a National Research and Education Network (NREN), the successor to the
Internet.

Invited to appear on the panel are Dr. Fred Brooks, University of North
Carolina; Dr. Thomas Furness, Human Interface Technology Laboratory,
Seattle; and Mr. Jaron Lanier, VPL Research, Inc.  In its request for
testimony, the Committee asks the witnesses to

        summarize the work being done in your laboratory, discuss
        how the "virtual reality" technology is evolving, and
        discuss the barriers, both technical and otherwise, to
        its further development and application.  The Committee is
        particularly interested in how this technology might be 
        used in education, research, and other fields to improve
        America's competitiveness.

The hearing begins in Senate Room 253 at 9:30 AM.  For more information,
contact Mike Nelson, Majority Staff, 202-224-9360; and Louis Whitsett,
Minority Staff, 202-224-8172.
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