<p class="p1"></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/551eaf676da811f9465968e2-1200-924/mamta-badkar-oculus-rift-business-insider-21.jpg" border="0" alt="mamta badkar oculus rift business insider"><p class="source"><span>William Wei, Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div>One week ago, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/altspacevr-helped-me-finally-understand-why-facebook-bought-oculus-2015-3">I finally understood </a><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/altspacevr-helped-me-finally-understand-why-facebook-bought-oculus-2015-3">why Facebook spent $2 billion</a> on a virtual reality company. It was all thanks to <a href="http://altvr.com/">AltSpaceVR</a>, which gave me an immersive demonstration of their virtual social spaces with an Oculus Rift headset and a pair of headphones.<p class="p1">It was inspiring: I'm now a believer in social being the "killer app" for virtual reality, the aspect that's going to make people want to drop hundreds of dollars on goofy-looking headsets to put in their living rooms and wear on airplanes.</p><p class="p1">But the most important and probably most overlooked facet of this experience was the 3D sound. I'd experienced this before, when I got to see "Guardians of the Galaxy" at a Dolby Atmos theatre last year.&#xa0;</p><p class="p2"><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Have you ever listened to an old song through a pair of headphones and noticed how the sound is the same in both ears? That's 2D, or "monaural" sound. You experience 3D, or "binaural" sound when you take those headphones off and notice that every sound in your environment has its own position and orientation: You hear birds chirping out the window to your right, a couple of co-workers talking quietly behind you, the hissing sound of the radiator to your back left, and so on.</span></p><p class="p2"><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Here's an idea of what it's like - just throw on a pair of headphones and start listening at the 0:40 mark.</span></p><div><div><iframe width="853" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/u163wC6mP2A" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div></div><p class="p2"><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">This kind of positional sound is what makes virtual reality experiences so convincing and immersive, </span><a href="https://twitter.com/CymaticBruce">according to "Cymatic" Bruce Wooden</a><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">, AltspaceVR's head of developer and community relations.</span></p><p class="p1">Wooden explained it all to me as he was rigging up the headset last Friday:</p><p class="p1">"It's extremely important. It's crucial to the experience actually," he told me. "If I'm far away, just like in real life, my voice fades in AltSpace; and if I'm close, my voice is going to be louder.</p><p class="p1">"If you're on my left or right I can tell who's talking. If we're 5 or 6 people in a circle, I can tell this person is talking because I can see they're blinking and their sound's coming from there."</p><p class="p1"></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5515758869bedd27711ee6a3-1200-706/sbowlshot01.png" border="0" alt="AltspaceVR"><p class="source"><span>AltspaceVR</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div><p class="p1">As I would later see in my demo - where I was standing in a giant mansion highlighted by an enormous television and a half-moon couch, as well as a balcony off to the side - the sound is what brought everything together.&#xa0;</p><p class="p1">"If you're near to that screen, it's loud, you hear everything," Wooden said. "But if you're at the balcony, you can't hear that screen at all. So it's just like a real party, where you'll have two people at the screen, you'll have French guys over there in a circle talking about whatever French guys talk about, there's a few people on the balcony doing their thing, and it's just like a house party. You'll have these natural social interactions, which is exactly what we're shooting for."</p><p class="p1"></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/551eb17d69beddc81da43755-1200-924/altspacevr-2.png" border="0" alt="AltspaceVR"><p class="source"><span>AltspaceVR</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div>Throughout my demo with AltspaceVR, I always knew where my host was, even as I was constantly turning and moving my body and head to look around, because of the positional sound. Even as my host did things no one could do in the real world - suddenly disappearing and reappearing right behind me to whisper in my ear, or reappearing 100 yards away from me - the sound adapted instantaneously and always felt natural and convincing. It's a big reason I didn't feel disoriented at all during my demo, and probably why I could've spent an extra hour or two wearing that headset.<span style="line-height: 1.5em;">&#xa0;</span><p class="p1">"There's been a <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/12/8021733/3d-audio-3dio-binaural-immersive-vr-sound-times-square-new-york">resurgence of 3D sound</a> with this resurgence of VR," Wooden told me. "I think <a href="https://www.oculus.com/blog/introducing-michael-abrash-oculus-chief-scientist/">Michael Abrash</a> [chief scientist at Oculus] said it best: 'It's not an addition - it's a multiplier.' It's a force multiplier when you have 3D positional sound in VR. It's just one of those things that's just so important. You buy into what you're seeing."</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/living-another-life-through-virtual-reality-oculus-rift-seeing-i-2015-2">This man will live the life of someone else through a virtual reality headset for 28 days</a></h3>        <div>            <div>    <script src="http://player.ooyala.com/v3/6e12e8b3387a44daacfb73afba25a76e"></script>    <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="9mdG5hczqG5F1x8V5sRI7ChhW3X87qi9" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>    <script>    if (typeof RunFunctions === 'undefined') { var RunFunctions = []; }     RunFunctions.push(function()    {         var ooyalapopvideo = OO.Player.create('ooyalaplayer_popvideo', '9mdG5hczqG5F1x8V5sRI7ChhW3X87qi9',{ autoplay: 'false' });     });    </script>    <noscript><div>Please enable Javascript to watch this video</div></noscript></div>        </div>        <script>(function() { function createPlayer() { OO.ready(function() { RunFunctions.forEach(function(ooyalaFunction) { ooyalaFunction(); }); RunFunctions = [];}); } createPlayer(); }()); </script>    </div>

This is the most important reason virtual reality can feel so convincing

<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">How do you move in virtual reality?</span></p>
<p>When you're wearing the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset, your natural instinct is to walk or run around as you explore the simulated environment that surrounds you.</p>
<p>The Virtuix Omni is a virtual reality treadmill that's designed to solve this problem, and I got to try it at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.</p>
<p>The booth was located right next to the Oculus VR booth, and it's hard to say which booth drew more people. Crowds would stop to take pictures and videos of the futuristic spectacle of the Virtuix Omni in use, captivated by the testers running in place on the treadmill, waving a plastic gun around with an Oculus Rift strapped to their face.</p>
<p><span class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><span><span data-post-image="" class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54ac7de0eab8ea784fcf6c1f-1200-924/virtuix-omni-1.png" border="0" alt="Virtuix Omni"><span class="source"><span>Business Insider</span></span></img></span><p></p></span></span></p>
<p>The Virtuix Omni has been around for a little while now, raising over $1,000,000 in a Kickstarter campaign last July. Virtuix then went on to raise $2.7 million in funding just a month ago.</p>
<p>I got to try the very latest and final design of the Virtuix Omni, which is available now for pre-order for $499 (the price is going to go up when it launches).</p>
<p>Strapping into the Omni is a bit of chore. You have to wear special low-friction shoes that allow you to run in place, with your feet sliding and gliding along the bowl-like surface of the Omni treadmill.</p>
<p><span class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><span><span data-post-image="" class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54ac7f3becad04a4536e9a3e-1200-600/virtuix-omni-4.png" border="0" alt="Virtuix Omni"><span class="source"><span>Business Insider</span></span></img></span><p></p></span></span></p>
<p><span class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><span><span data-post-image="" class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54ac7f796da811306259827c-1200-924/virtuix-omni-5.png" border="0" alt="Virtuix Omni"><span class="source"><span>Business Insider</span></span></img></span><p></p></span></span></p>
<p>Attached to each foot is an Omni sensor, which is "where the magic happens" according to a Virtuix booth attendant. These sensors track how fast you're walking and running so your in-game avatar moves at a similar pace.</p>
<p><span class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><span><span data-post-image="" class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54ac7fa969beddee090a7cf2-1200-924/virtuix-omni-6.png" border="0" alt="Virtuix Omni"><span class="source"><span>Business Insider</span></span><span class="caption">The shoe sensors that track how fast you run or walk.</span></img></span><p></p></span></span></p>
<p>After the shoes comes the harness, which straps around your waist. There's also some thigh straps. While you could technically use the Omni without a harness, it allows you to run and lean forward without falling over, and it frees up your hands from trying to keep you balanced, so you can hold a controller, or in this case, a plastic gun.</p>
<p><span class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><span><span data-post-image="" class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54ac7fd76bb3f71f05826095-1200-924/virtuix-omni-7.png" border="0" alt="Virtuix Omni"><span class="source"><span>Business Insider</span></span></img></span><p></p></span></span></p>
<p>The last step was to don the Oculus Rift headset. For this demo, we used an Oculus Rift Development Kit 2, which isn't bad, but it's not nearly as nice as the most recent Crescent Bay prototype.</p>
<p><span class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><span><span data-post-image="" class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54ac8017eab8ea6c54cf6c26-1200-924/virtuix-omni-8.png" border="0" alt="Virtuix Omni"><span class="source"><span>Business Insider</span></span></img></span><p></p></span></span></p>
<p>With the headset covering my vision, the Virtuix team booted up their own demo, which is a speed run where you try your best to shoot down various targets through a maize of rooms. The faster, the better.</p>
<p>Running on the Omni certainly doesn't feel like actual running. Your feet rarely leave the ground. Instead, it's more of a continuous sliding, almost like you're pedaling your feet across a wooden floor in slippery socks.</p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">&#xa0;</span><span class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><span><span data-post-image="" class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54ac830b69beddce110a7d02/omni%20gif%201.gif" border="0" alt="Virtuix Omni GIF 1"><span class="source"><span>Business Insider</span></span></img></span><p></p></span></span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">That being said, it's still feels like the closest thing to running in virtual reality that I've ever experienced, and it's quite the workout.&#xa0;</span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Once I got the hang of it, I quickly found myself running from room to room, using my head to focus on a target and the gun to activate an iron site for better aim.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><span class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><span><span data-post-image="" class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54ac83d56da8114f7b59827a-1200-924/virtuix-omni-9.png" border="0" alt="Virtuix Omni"><span class="source"><span>Business Insider</span></span></img></span><p></p></span></span><br /></span></p>
<p>Now, the nice thing about the Virtuix Omni is that it plays nicely with all games, since it's basically just translating your footsteps into a forward, left, or right direction and feeding it into the game, almost like a big gamepad that you can run on. While that's probably the best way for the Omni to be compatible with a large range of games when the Oculus Rift launches, it also means that movements are far from exact; the movements are merely estimations.</p>
<p>All in all, this final version of the Omni looks and feels almost ready for release. There's still no ability to move backward or to strafe left or right, but I was told that's being worked on for the consumer release, which is scheduled for the first half of 2015. Design wise, the construction is far more solid and polished than other past Omni iterations, some of which actually featured a wooden rather than metal frame, and it can also be taken apart for storage, since it does take up a lot of space.</p>
<p>So should VR enthusiasts shell out $499 on a virtual reality treadmill? Like most VR tech coming out, the best option is still to wait. The Omni is a great workout, so if you're planning on buying an Oculus Rift and want to lose weight while using it, the Omni is a great choice that will work well enough with games.</p>
<p>But Oculus is still the leader of the pack when it comes to VR, and since they're targeting a seated experience, it's safe to say that you won't be missing out if you decide to save $499 and just sit on the couch. It might be slightly less immersive, but as of right now, there's no need to physically move your legs in VR quite yet.</p>
<p>You can pre-order a Virtuix Omni <a href="http://www.virtuix.com/">right here.</a></p>

How Do You Move In Virtual Reality? With A Treadmill Like This One I Just Tried

<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54468c84ecad04c64c13cef1-1200-805/img_7028-2.jpg" border="0" alt="meatopia"><p class="source"><span>Christian Storm/Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></h3>
<p>This past Sunday, on a pier on Manhattan's West Side Highway, the so called "Woodstock of Edible Animals" celebrated its tenth year. Founded by food writer Josh Ozersky and presented by Creekstone Farms, <a href="http://meatopia.org/">Meatopia</a> (which is perfectly named) is a celebration of all things carnivorous.</p>
<p>More than 30 restaurants and chefs from all over the US came to cook, assemble, and handout unique and delicious dishes, all heavily featuring a wide variety of animal meat and flesh. Mmmmmm. </p>
<p>With tickets starting at $200, the event was truly for the die-hard meat eater. But boy, were they in for a treat. Everyone had a great time, getting their money's worth of meat and beer, and dancing surprisingly enthusiastically to the DJ spinning wedding jams.</p>
<p>I was lucky enough to score a press pass and figured this was an event I couldn't pass up. It lived up to the hype and then some, and while I am absolutely no food critic or expert, here are some of the tastiest and strangest meat dishes I've had in a long time.</p>
<h3>Garam Masala Quail, Orange Marmalade, Cultured Butter, Pickled Squash and Quinoa Salad, from Chef Francis Derby, The Cannibal, NYC</h3>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54467bfe6bb3f7c74ae4a2c6-1300-867/img_6983-2.jpg" border="0" alt="meatopia"><p class="source"><span>Christian Storm/Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></h3>
<p><strong>The verdict</strong>: I didn't think I'd be eating quail today, let alone twice (see below). Basically, it tasted like a smaller, pinker chicken with more tiny bones. The quinoa salad was delicious, though.</p>
<h3>Morcilla y Callos: Tripe and Yellow-eyed Pea Stew with Blood Sausage, from Chef Jamie Bissonnette, Toro, NYC</h3>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54467bfe69bedd88533ecd67-1200-800/img_6989-2.jpg" border="0" alt="meatopia"><p class="source"><span>Christian Storm/Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></h3>
<p><strong>The verdict</strong>: This is the kind of meal I would want to eat if I was coming down with some mild black plague, stuck inside my cabin on a snowy day on some tundra, while my eight red-faced children played with wooden toys and sang folk songs by the fire. It was hardy, smokey, and really good. </p>
<h3>Wood-Grilled Spitted Quail "Spiedini," Fall Bean Ragout, from Chef Michael White, Altamarea Group, NYC</h3>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54467bfdecad04a60e13cef0-1300-855/img_6995-2.jpg" border="0" alt="meatopia"><p class="source"><span>Christian Storm/Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></h3>
<p><strong>The verdict</strong>: More quail. I now consider myself a quail connoisseur. This meat was a bit more tender and juicy, and was definitely easier to eat than my previous experience. The vegetables were good, too. I think it was a bit dainty for some of the carnivores around me, but I liked it. Plus, I got a free pointed wooden stick to fight through the lines that were forming.</p>
<h3>Pomegranate-Marinated Beef Heart, Anson Mills Grits, from Chef Richard Brown, New York Hilton Midtown, NYC</h3>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54467bfdeab8ea7d3fd108c5-1300-885/img_6986-2.jpg" border="0" alt="meatopia"><p class="source"><span>Christian Storm/Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></h3>
<p><strong>The verdict</strong>: Before eating this, I was already feeling a bit full and was worried that I might have to bow out of my odyssey of meat. Then I ate some beef heart. Now that I had the power and stamina of a full grown steer, I felt like I could tackle the rest of the offerings with even more zeal. This dish was actually quite light and tender and the beef heart had an interesting texture, soft but not gross.</p>
<h3>Root beer and Tabasco-Glazed Lamb Ribs, from Chef Tim Rattray, The Granary, San Antonio, Texas</h3>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/54467bfe69bedd82523ecd68-1300-896/img_6996-2.jpg" border="0" alt="meatopia"><p class="source"><span>Christian Storm/Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></h3>
<p><strong>The verdict</strong>: Ah, here's what I came for - some good old fashioned ribs, glazed with things you can buy at a gas station and served to me with a pickle spear. Though I can't say I really tasted the root beer and Tabasco, the meat was tender and delicious and I enjoyed getting my hands messy, a rite of passage I was expecting from Meatopia.</p>
<h3>Chirashi: Japanese-Style Marinated Creekstone Ribeye Tartare, Japanese Rice &amp; Pickles, from Chef Harold Moore, Commerce NYC</h3>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5446810f6bb3f70c5de4a2c6-1200-800/img_7002-2.jpg" border="0" alt="meatopia"><p class="source"><span>Christian Storm/Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p><strong>The verdict</strong>: You may not believe it from my previous review, but this refined, elegant bite was my favorite of the day. Call me an aesthete, but this gorgeous bite had refreshing Asian flavors and light textures that were a pretty welcome respite from all of the grease-soaked cow parts piling up in my stomach.</p>
<h3>Dr. Brown's Cream-Soda Brined Smoked Short Rib Pastrami with Homemade Rye, Vegetable Pickles, and Mustard Horseradish Sauce, Kale Slaw, from Chef Alex Lee, Glen Oaks Country Club , Old Westbury, NY</h3>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5446810feab8ea534fd108c7-1200-794/img_7033-2.jpg" border="0" alt="meatopia"><p class="source"><span>Christian Storm/Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p><strong>The verdict</strong>: OK, this sandwich ruled. The pastrami was some of the best I've ever had and the mustard horseradish sauce was perfect. If this sandwich is available at the Glen Oaks Country Club all the time, I might just have to take up golf.</p>
<h3>Smoked Pork Cheeks with Coriander Chutney and Apple Achar, from Chef Hugh Mangum, Mighty Quinn's Barbeque NYC</h3>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5446810feab8ea2550d108ce-1200-800/img_7037-2.jpg" border="0" alt="meatopia"><p class="source"><span>Christian Storm/Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p><strong>The verdict</strong>: Coming off my previous pastrami high, I crashed and burned into this thing. Apologies to Chef Hugh and Mighty Quinn, but this was my least favorite dish of the day. Beef cheeks, which I've never had and doubt if I ever will again, are sort of slimy and mushy and the green sauce tasted like thick, bitter beer. The apples were pickled, which I'm not sure apples ever should be, and the little cracker thing tasted like someone has left a church communion wafer in the toaster too long. I dropped most of this in the garbage can.</p>
<h3>New England Charcuterie Wood-Smoked, Wood-Grilled "Butcher Bacon," New England Charcuterie Sampler, from Chef Josh Smith, Moody's Delicatessen &amp; Provisions Waltham, MA</h3>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/544681f469beddf56a3ecd68-1200-800/img_7083-2.jpg" border="0" alt="meatopia"><p class="source"><span>Christian Storm/Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p><strong>The verdict</strong>: Oh, pork belly, you frustrating prince. You taste so delicious, yet as I eat even just one bite of you, I can feel my face growing pudgy, my stomach doubling, and my butt yearning for the couch. This spread, a very carnivoresque version of a charcuterie, was delicious and also included some sausage and sliced meats, as well.</p>
<h3>Prosciutto and Cherry Ice Cream, from Sam Mason, Mohan Kumar, and Holiday Kumar of OddFellows Ice Cream Co., NYC</h3>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5446810f69bedd2a673ecd68-1200-786/img_7058-2.jpg" border="0" alt="meatopia"><p class="source"><span>Christian Storm/Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p><strong>The verdict</strong>: To round out my afternoon of pure indulgence, I headed to the Odd Fellow's table, where they were serving up Prosciutto and Cherry Ice Cream, salt optional. Imagine vanilla ice cream with a few pieces of prosciutto laid on top, and you pretty much know what this tastes like. It was not bad at all, as both elements were tasty, but the flavors didn't create much fireworks when mixed together. </p>
<h3>Overall, I had a fantastic time at Meatopia. As I waddled home, full of various and intriguing bits of meat, I remembered how much I like my job. I'll be back next year, Meatopia, if you'll have me.</h3>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/544695c2ecad04f47513cef6-1200-800/img_7088-2.jpg" border="0" alt="Meatopia"><p class="source"><span>Christian Storm/Business Insider</span></p><p class="caption">This is not me.</p></img></div><p></p></div></div></p>

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