With potential benefits ranging from education to healthcare to entertainment, virtual reality is a major focus of research and spending across industries, but the actual technology behind it can be confusing. The Onion provides a step-by-step guide to how virtual reality actually works.
STEP 1: Humans spend millions of years evolving spatial awareness and depth perception to stare at a couple brightly colored polygons.
STEP 2: Infinite wonder of material world deemed too boring.
STEP 3: Brainstorming session for visually astonishing immersive environments like “conference room” and “restaurant.”
STEP 4: Naïve investors secured.
STEP 5: Frame rate calibrated to perfectly induce nausea.
STEP 6: Haptic feedback sensor gloves make it seem like user in earthquake simulator is experiencing a real hand earthquake.
STEP 7: Breast size of anime squirrel selected.
STEP 8: Random guy who will be there staring at you when you remove your headset silently enters the room and sits down.
STEP 9: User’s face scanned without their knowledge so Auntie Anne’s can sell them pretzels on Instagram.
STEP 10: Apex of human technology results in installation of virtual billboard in living room.