As we develop extensions such as Marshall McLuhan described, and create new ones, our interaction with those extensions becomes ever more complex, and in need of understanding in order to design and use them well in OTL.
As the year of VR personal hardware (2016) edges closer, there’s ongoing development in that “field” as described in this story.
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One of the apps described is “Medium”, a sort of sculpting painting in 3D thingie, for the Oculus Rift VR hardware/ headpiece.
That part of VR which involves touch is referred to as “Haptics”. When one recalls how much emotion can be created through human touch, and how fingers can “read” braille for the blind, no doubt Haptics elaborate on a human extension, or medium, with great potential for communication.
Haptic or kinesthetic communication recreates the sense of touch by applying forces, vibrations, or motions to the user.[1] This mechanical stimulation can be used to assist in the creation of virtual objects in a computer simulation, to control such virtual objects, and to enhance the remote control of machines and devices (telerobotics). Haptic devices may incorporate tactile sensors that measure forces exerted by the user on the interface.