College to Build Star Trek Inspired Reality Deck

Ever wanted to spend time in a holodeck? Well, soon you’ll be able to, or soon students and faculty at Stony Brook University in New York will be able to. The college has earmarked $2 million to erect a room encased entirely in screens, a la Star Trek’s holodeck.Using $1.4 million for a National Science Foundation grant and $600,000 of its own funds, Stony Brook University will build what it’s calling a “Reality Deck.” The “Reality Deck” will be a 40-foot by 30-foot-11-inch high room located in the school’s Center of Excellence in Wireless and Information Technology. The room’s walls will feature 300-plus LCD display screens, surrounding visitors with 1.25 billion pixels of imagery. While the “Reality Deck” can be used for entertainment purposes, it is also projected to be utilized for scientific and medical applications.The “Reality Deck” is scheduled to be completed in about a year.