Extended Reality

Virtual Reality (VR) is a major component of Extended Reality that leverages computer science to create a completely immersive, simulated environment for a user. By utilizing specialized hardware like headsets that block out the physical world and motion-tracking controllers, VR replaces a user's real-world surroundings with a computer-generated, three-dimensional digital world. The primary goal of this technology is to achieve a state of "presence," making the user feel as though they are physically inside the virtual environment, able to look around, move, and interact with its elements in a believable way.

Augmented Reality (AR), a key component of Extended Reality (XR), is an interactive technology that overlays computer-generated information, such as 3D models, text, or animations, onto a user's view of the real world. Unlike Virtual Reality, which creates a completely artificial environment, AR enhances reality by using the cameras and displays on devices like smartphones or smart glasses to project digital content onto the physical surroundings in real-time. This fusion of the digital and physical worlds is a significant application of computer science, relying on principles like computer vision to understand the environment and computer graphics to render the virtual objects convincingly within it.