From: creon@nas.nasa.gov (M. Creon Levit)
Subject: The original NASA team (Was Re: Did Jaron Lanier lead the 		original research team at NASA Ames?
Date: 13 Nov 91 18:39:41
Organization: Applied Research Office, NASA Ames Research Center



Though I did not work in the group that did the work on virtual
environments at NASA Ames durin the 1980s, I did work at Ames during that
time (and still do) and have collaborated with several members of that
group.  The leaders of that effort were, as far as I know:

Dr. Mike McGreevy (still at NASA Ames)
Jim Humphries     (still with NASA Ames/Sterling Software)
Dr. Steve Ellis	  (still at NASA Ames)
Scott Fisher      (now at Telepresence Research, Palo Alto CA)
Warren Robinette  (now at UNC Chapel Hill)
Beth Wenzel       (Still at NASA Ames)
Scott Foster      (now with Crystal River)
Dave Kaiser       (Now with Macromind)
Doug Kerr         (I'm not sure where he is)

Also involved were:

Rick Jacobi       (still at NASA Ames)
Mark Bolas        (now at Fake Space Labs, Menlo Park, CA)
Ian McDowall      (now at Fake Space Labs)
Steve Bryson      (still at NASA Ames, working on
                   Virtual Windtunnel project (with me))

I'm sorry, but I'm sure I've left some people out.

To my knowledge, It was this group that developed the first LCD-based
headmounted displays (later modified and marketed by VPL research and
others), the first effective 3D sound systems (built by Crystal River
Engineering and marketed by VPL, Telepresence, and others), and the first
integrated virtual environments using 3D sound, gloves, HMDs, remote
robots, remote wide-field stero cameras, voice I/O, etc.

It was also this group (laregly due to FIsher, I believe) that contracted
with VPL to develop the dataglove, based on some technology originated at
Mills College (Oakland, CA, by whom I can't recall) and licensed by VPL.  I
believe the dataglove model 1 was purchased by NASA Ames and no one else,
and the model 2, delveloped by VPL as part of some follow-on work, was
purchased by many groups.

It is interesing to note that until this time, VPL (consisting only of
Jaron Lanier and Steve Bryson at this time, I believe) was an acronym for
"Visual Programming Languages", which was to be their main product. It
still lives on as their Body-Electric macintosh-based VR software.

This whole story is related in some detail in Howard Rheingold's fine book
"Virtual Reality".  If you want to dig even deeper, I suggest contacting
some of the above listed individuals who, unlike me, were actually
present.


Creon Levit
Mail Stop T045-1
NASA Ames Research Center
Moffett Field, California 94035
USA

(415)-604-4403      (phone)
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