Toward the Internet of Realities The meaning and answers to the question “What is reality?” have always been shaped by the context of the times, including politics, culture, and technology. With the advent of information technologies that enable unprecedented experiences, and with virtual reality, digital twins, the metaverse, and AI forming new types of spaces and entities that can shape society, it is believed that the importance of this question is increasing, particularly in the pursuit of happiness for humanity and global society. The definition and interpretation of “reality” vary widely, but it is often discussed in contrast to “facts.” While “facts” refer to phenomena that can be confirmed through objective observation, experimentation, and evidence and are accepted as universal truths, “reality” encompasses the subjective totality of phenomena that include the understanding and interpretation of the world formed by personal perception, experience, and social consensus. Based on this definition, there are as many different realities as there are people. However, in past societies, particularly before the internet, it is thought that clusters of relatively similar realities existed. Mass media homogenized the way society was perceived by people, and the limited mobility of physical goods and information forced people’s daily patterns into a certain rhythm, like commuting for school or work. The development and spread of modern information media technologies have made it possible for people to encounter content based on their preferences, giving them a sense of liberation and omnipotence free from social attributes. Technologies such as virtual reality and generative AI have the potential to further this trend. However, these technologies also pose risks, such as confining people to a filter bubble, reducing their sense of belonging to cities, communities, and regions, and lowering mutual understanding between different individuals. Through research activities focused on “understanding and connecting reality,” we aim to discover and solve problems that maximize the happiness of both individuals and society as a whole. For this reason, we have developed the following sub-themes and are conducting research activities in collaboration with researchers and partner companies both within and outside the university.
Reality Embedding: Gaining Representations of Reality
We explore the design and acquisition of vector spaces that can represent and compare individual “realities” through both theoretical and data-driven approaches. The theoretical approach draws from various theories in information science, the humanities, and cognitive science to understand “reality” and conduct research and development on data selection and investigation methods necessary for acquiring its embedded representation. In the data-driven approach, we aim to acquire embedded representations of reality through the learning of large-scale data that may constitute reality, referencing foundational technologies in artificial intelligence. To date, we have achieved many results using similar approaches, such as acquiring embedded representations of urban spaces, gaining insights into the diversity of life patterns, and developing methods for comparing different cities. Additionally, in the field of ubiquitous computing, we have developed various technologies to recognize situations, contexts, and activities through multimodal sensing. If reality is the spatiotemporal synthesis of “facts” and “subjectivity,” then it is possible to approach its embedded representation by building upon these insights and experiences. If successful, this could lead to the realization of diverse computing methods that integrate facts with subjectivity and experience, potentially leading to the creation of new media.
Related Publications:
Naoki Tamura, Kazuyuki Shoji, Shin Katayama, Kenta Urano, Takuro Yonezawa, Nobuo Kawaguch, "OpenUAS: Embeddings of Cities in Japan with Anchor Data for Cross-city Analysis of Area Usage Patterns", arXiv:2407.19872
Naoki Tamura, Haru Terashima, Kazuyuki Shoji, Shin Katayama, Kenta Urano, Takuro Yonezawa and Nobuo Kawaguchi, “Additive Compositionality in Urban Area Embeddings Based on Human Mobility Patterns”, ACM SIGSPATIAL2024
Kazuyuki Shoji, Haru Terashima, Naoki Tamura, Shin Katayama, Kenta Urano, Takuro Yonezawa and Nobuo Kawaguchi, “Unveiling Human Attributes through Life Pattern Clustering using GPS Data Only”, ACM SIGSPATIAL2024
Kazuyuki Shoji, Shunsuke Aoki, Takuro Yonezawa, Nobuo Kawaguchi, "Area Modeling using Stay Information for Large-Scale Users and Analysis for Influence of COVID-19", arXiv:2401.10648
Reality Networks: Information Infrastructure for Connecting Realities
As noted earlier, understanding “reality” quantitatively is important, but it is also possible and important to pursue research activities aimed at developing the network infrastructure to connect different realities independently of that understanding. Through this iterative process, the resolution of our understanding of reality may increase. In social psychology, the shared worldview and values between people are known as “shared reality,” which is considered one of the factors in communication. In this research, we define the state in which internal mental states resonate, and shared reality is heightened, as the state in which realities are connected, and we work on research and development of media and infrastructure technologies to realize and circulate that state. Inclusive group telepresence projects such as the MetaPo project serve as early examples of this concept. We are currently conducting advanced research in the JST CREST project (October 2022 - March 2028) and have begun collaborating with overseas research institutions and companies. Related Publications:
Takuro Yonezawa, Nozomi Hayashida, Kenta Urano, Johannes Przybilla, Yutaro Kyono and. Nobuo Kawaguchi, “MetaPo: A Robotic Meta Portal for Interspace Communication”, ACM SIGGRAPH2022, Poster Session https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3532719.3543255PDF, VIDEO
Yoshiki Watanabe, Nozomi Hayashida, Shin Katayama, Kenta Urano, Takuro Yonezawa, Nobuo Kawaguchi, "360 Robot Hand System for Omni-directional Interaction by Multiple Users", IoT '23: Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on the Internet of Things, Pages 295 - 299 https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3627050.3631573
Reality Transformation: Social Demonstration and Implementation
Building on the knowledge and technologies obtained through the aforementioned research, we aim to contribute to solving real societal issues and creating new value. While focusing on media technologies that connect or transform reality as core tools, we also take a multifaceted approach that does not rely solely on them to identify and solve social issues. We already have multiple research fields in Japan, including initiatives in the JST RISTEX project (October 2023 - March 2027), which is addressing social isolation and loneliness in Oiso Town, Kanagawa Prefecture. Additionally, we are collaborating with the international nonprofit organization Urban Technology Alliance, which promotes smart cities and includes more than 30 municipalities and research institutions worldwide. Through this collaboration, we aim to foster serendipity in discovering and solving problems and creating value from a broad domestic and international perspective.
