PoliceLineup

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  • Stanford's virtual police lineup makes gangbangers cringe

    by 
    Darren Murph
    Darren Murph
    05.06.2007

    Although the mere mention of "virtual reality" typically conjures thoughts of gaudy headwear and a fairly good time, Stanford researchers are taking the technology to a much more serious front. A newfangled $25,000 helmet can be used to take victims back to the crime scene, and moreover, can adjust 3D digital busts to give individuals a more accurate look at what the attacker may have looked like at the time of the incident. The virtual police lineup, as it's so aptly titled, enables a virtual world to be opened up in hopes of giving traumatized victims a chance at truly remembering what someone looked like. The weight, height, and basically any other physical attribute of the digital criminal can be altered to give folks a better view, and the wearer can actually approach the busts, inspect their figures, and check out the scar on John Doe's left arm as if the suspects were actually before them. Looks like ski mask robbery just came back into style.[Via Primidi]