I've wandered around a few virtual reality environments. And I've spent even more time watching people demonstrate them on a 2D screen in the backdrop.
So when Dr. Oz came jetting through the Microsoft Store at the Domain in North Austin Thursday afternoon, I knew I could be in for a treat.
You see, the TV personality and health advisor is an investor in Sharecare, the startup that created the YOU application that allows Dr. Oz to strap on an HTC Vive and explore a virtual person's innards in great detail, including simulations of a wide array of common afflictions. So, for the consumer, it's an even more graphic and immersive way to see what happens inside.
And for a health promoter like Dr. Oz, it's the type of engaging content that can draw viewers and drive home a point in cutting-edge detail. It's even useful in breaking news when a well-known person comes down with a disease or injury.
After his pitch and demonstration, Dr. Oz took a few minutes to shoot a Facebook Live video using the new VR tech to explain what Julia Louis-Dreyfus, the actress who said on Thursday she has been diagnosed with breast cancer, may be facing.
But, VR medtech is still limited to a model body -- not an individual's actual insides.
In the future, Dr. Oz said he hopes we can input personal data -- including x-rays and other metrics -- to show an individual's body and the current status of its internal organs. For now, however, the VR application mostly represents a big step forward in visualization for medical students and patients who want a better understanding of how their bodies may be changing.
OK, let's cut to the video of Dr. Oz exploring a virtual reality intestine... poop jokes and all.
