What did YOU do at work on Thursday?

Well, here's what I did. I attended the Emerging Technologies Symposium at the Applied Physics Lab at the University at which I am employed. It was like a gaming conference for the people who created the games. Highly intelligent conversation, thought-provoking ideas, and great knowledge-sharing came out of the day.

AND, I got to fly a vehicle over Mt. St. Helen's in a simulated rescue mission. It was highly cool :). I crashed the vehicle, then got it right again and spun the vehicle all around, actually feeling dizzy in the process as it was stretched out in front of me on large screens. The feelings were similar to that of watching a roller coaster on IMAX. My friend took a turn and aimed the vehicle skyward. She accidentally hit the turbo speed and went 2000 mph at the sun. We called her Icarus the remainder of the day.

Then, there was the virtual reality helmet......yes......I look very odd, but WOW!!! I was looking at a street scene. Pushing the button had me walking forward down the street, passing the buildings. Then, I turned right to go down another street....I didn't move the mouse to the right, I turned my body to the right and was able to walk down that street. I accidentally maneuvered myself into a street post. I actually stopped and took a step back, grabbed the chair and listened to the people waiting for their turn laughing. It was a blast!!! Another person looked up and was able to fly.....her reaction was to keep saying "Oh, S!@t!" which also got laughter from the crowd. There was just as much fun watching the virtual reality as there was participating in it.

So, this is what I did at work on Thursday, what about you?