Technology in schools has come a long way from taking notes with pen and pencil. Now we have iPads to take notes with and interactive response systems like Sorcrative which allows our smartphones to become answering devices.

How can technology further enhance certain aspects of our life at school or work? This is the type of question one comes to when they come across certain technology that seems like it was ripped straight from some cheesy 80s sci-fi flick. The “Oculus Rift” video game virtual-reality simulator is just that type of technology. This device makes you feel like you are literally in the video game you are playing. The “’Oculus Rift’: Step into the Game” project is a Kickstarter that was successfully funded and brought to existence last year.

The way “Oculus Rift” works is you put a medium sized goggle headset over your eyes, which covers any vision beyond the screen on the headset. With the apparatus on, any movement the player’s head makes in real life, the avatar in the game will mimic the exact same movement perfectly. And with a controller of some type in hand to move the other body parts of the avatar; the player is completely immersed into the video game.

Now this is a very watered-down version of what the “Oculus Rift” does. But what could a piece of technology like the “Oculus Rift”, that is supposed to be consumer affordable by the way, do outside of the video game realm? Could it possibly be implemented for use in school or work? Imagine this instead of physically attending school; you go to class straight from home on your virtual reality device. If your class is environmental studies, instead of your class being in a traditional classroom, you’re in a virtual city where you can see how certain pollutions actually affect the city by traveling around it. How nice would it be to explore the ocean and see what the aquatic life looks like in its natural habitat through virtual reality?

Virtual reality used in everyday life may be the next big think or it may jut flop again. Whatever happens, the introduction of the Oculus Rift into mediums other than video games is something that at least should be given a chance.