I had the pleasure of taking in STS student Dieter Frehlich’s project on curing fear of heights with virtual reality. Now STS for most stands for Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School, it could also be ‘Supercool Technical Stuff.’’ I walked into a lab and there was a 3D printer making a replica of an Olympic torch. Dieter told me they are kind of neat, but a 3D printer can take three or four hours to complete a project. Wow, students must get in real trouble if they accidentally print in colour. Anyway, Dieter did all this cool stuff setting up virtual parameters so I could tryout his project. I put on this virtual helmet deal that made me look like The Fly. Suddenly there’s a virtual elevator and I have to walk in. The elevator door opens, and there in front of me is a wooden plank about a zillion storeys in the air. There are birds flying under the stupid thing. Skyscrapers surround me. I had to keep telling myself, I was actually on a floor. Spielberg would have said: “Wow I wish I could do that.” I took nothing but babysteps. The only thing higher than the phony plank was my very real blood pressure. Finally, I retreat. I don’t turn around but instead take reverse babysteps back to the door. It was time to show Dieter my tech skills with a digital camera. I forgot the card at the office. Dieter told me he would take a pic and send me one... I was pretty sure I didn’t have to tell him how to do it.
