3d event at Orange County Community College (NY) (long)

[P3D Bill Burns <billb@xxxxxxxxx>]

A few weeks ago in P3D it was announced that Stuart Stiles, professor of
psychology at Orange County Community College, NY, was presenting a 3D
exhibition on 6 November 1996.  I contacted Prof. Stiles, and arranged
(with a friend) to attend some of the events.

The program started at 2pm with a workshop on learning to view 3D
(featuring Magic Eye sterograms), which we did not attend, followed at
3pm by a short discussion on the techniques and effectiveness of the
workshop.           

>From 4:15pm to 5:30pm, Prof. Stiles' students ran a hands-on exhibit and
demonstration of visual perception devices, presented in conjunction
with the Physics lab.
Included were: 
2D depth illusions - Necker cube, vase/face, inverting cubes and
staircase. 
Pictorial cues to depth - comparison of photographs of an abstract
sculpture with a one-eyed viewing of the sculpture itself, showing that
the brain's ability to infer depth does not require binocular vision.   
Holmes stereoscopes, with original and repro cards. 
Civil War 3D photography (repros) with lorgnette viewer. 
Keystone eye doctor's stereoscope with cards, instructions, and
advertising pamphlet. 
Electron microscope anaglyphs, with glasses. 
Pulfrich 3D television video, with glasses. 
Laser transmission hologram. 
3D space views and astronomy - Viewmaster viewers, and Viewmaster
projector with Polaroid glasses.  (My friend complained that the
projected images were flat, although they looked fine to me.  When I
checked her glasses, I found two identical Polaroid lenses!) 
Magic Eye stereograms and a PC with Magic Eye computer images. 
Virtual images (the famous parabolic mirror reflector, as seen in
countless Edmund Scientific ads). 
How to take stereo photos - Prof. Stiles was indeed doing this
throughout the day, using a Loreo.  Many of his campus images were
available together with a Loreo viewer.  A number of simple cardboard
fold-up stereoscopes were also available for use.  

Prof. Stiles involved a number of his psychology students in organising
and presenting these events.  All of them were volunteers, and although
they seemed to have little prior experience of 3D, they were
enthusiastically explaining and demonstrating all of the devices and
effects.  

After a break for dinner, Prof. Stiles presented the main events in the
college's Orange Hall Theater.  The evening opened at 7:30pm with Simon
Bell's "Fresh Perspectives" slide show, using twin Carousel projectors,
and complete with a music track.  Prof. Stiles had to assemble and
synchronise the two projectors, tape Polaroid filters in front of the
lenses, and co-ordinate the slides with the soundtrack (his first 3D
projection experience!). Despite some minor technical difficulties, the
show was well-received.

Immediately following the slide show at about 8pm, the evening's
featured speaker, Dr. Marc Grossman, gave a  talk and demonstration on
"How to Develop 3D Vision".  
Dr. Grossman is a Doctor of Optometry, with extensive experience in
sports vision therapy, and the psychology and physiology of stereo
vision.  Accordingly, he was asked by N.E. Thing Enterprises to
co-author the book "MAGIC EYE The 3D Guide - A Training Manual",
published in 1995.  (Magic Eye also has a web site at
www.magiceye.com).  Copies of the book were loaned to each member of the
audience, since this was an interactive talk.
Dr. Grossman's explained that the eyes do not see 3D - that happens in
the brain, where the images from each eye are fused and the brain
interprets the depth information.  He believes that anyone can free-view
3D images (except for those with less than 2 eyes, or severe
eye-direction problems).   
He spoke of the problems that many of us have sitting in front of
computer screens all day, which gives the eye little chance to exercise,
but keeps the eyes muscles under the stress of close focusing.  His
premise is that eye exercise is the key to maintaining good vision, and
exercising the eye can be fun in conjunction with free-viewing stereo
images.  Wide-eye free-viewing causes the eye muscles to relax,
counteracting the effects of close focusing.
Dr. Grossman's  book and talk take the untrained observer through a
series of simple eye exercises, culminating in free-viewing the Magic
Eye stereograms included in the book.  During the course of the talk, he
led some (but not all!) members of the audience to their first
experience of free-viewed 3D.  Throughout the talk there were
exclamations as people "got it" with the Magic Eye stereograms. An
enthusiastic audience participated in the experiments, and had many
questions.  The presentation lasted about 90 minutes as a result, and
Dr. Grossman fielded more questions and signed copies of his book after
his talk concluded.

With the exhibits, demonstrations, slide show and lecture, Prof. Stiles
and his students did a great job of demonstrating many aspects of 3D
media and vision to a mostly uninitiated audience.   From the comments
we heard, perhaps some of the attendees might develop an interest in 3D.
Prof. Stiles is hoping to repeat the event next year, and I'd encourage
anyone from the list to attend if they can. 

-- 
Bill Burns
Long Island   NY   USA
mailto:billb@xxxxxxxxx


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