Events

Dr. Kimberly Hieftje and Bernard François, Preview Labs founder, will be giving a TED-style talk hosted by the Center for Transformative Media. The talk will include topics about immersive media and VR storytelling! Learn more and sign up here. 

Dr. Asher Marks gave a talk during the Grand Rounds at St. Joseph's Children's Hospital in Paterson, NJ.  The talk was entitled, "The Yale Center for Immersive Technologies in Pediatrics: Using Immersive Technologies to Improve the Health and Well-Being of Youth and Young Adults".

Dr. Kimberly Hieftje presented “The Grief We Don’t Teach: Virtual Reality as a Tool for Understanding Child Loss.” Her talk explored how immersive storytelling through the VR experience Year of the Cicadas can deepen understanding of parental grief and foster empathy, education, and support. The session highlighted how virtual reality can be used as an innovative tool for emotional learning and community dialogue around grief. 

Our postgraduate associate, Shawn Van, presented the game “Year of the Cicadas,” which was selected as a finalist for the Serious Games Showcase and Challenge. The project was showcased in Orlando, FL, from December 1–4, 2025, where it was considered for the competition’s top awards. Learn more here.

Dr. Veronica Weser presented the talk “Mixed Reality Source Memory Monitoring: Misremembering Digital Objects Presented with Mixed Reality as Real Objects,” co-authored by Crocker, Drs. Hieftje, Marks, and Hoffman. The study examines how immersive technologies such as the Apple Vision Pro influence memory formation and source identification, highlighting implications for cognitive science and the responsible use of mixed-reality tools.

Drs. Kimberly Hieftje and Asher Marks presented talks at the Pediatric Palliative Oncology Academic Leadership Collaborative & Symposium, November 6 – November 7, 2025, Memphis, TN.

Dr. Hieftje presented her talk “Year of the Cicadas: An Immersive VR Experience Exploring the Enduring Nature of Parental Grief,” and Dr. Marks  presented “Simulated Digital Psychedelics (Si-PHI): A Non-Pharmacologic Immersive Intervention for Pediatric Palliative Care.” Learn more here.

Our Creative Producer/Project Director, Justin Berry spoke with Stuart Neilson, PhD, about neurodivergent people’s experience of place and space within art museums. This keynote conversation was held at the Yale Center for British Art.

Dr. Kimberly Hieftje and Bernard François (Founder, Preview Labs) gave a seminar talk on “Co-Creating Immersive Experiences: Where Research Meets Prototyping. They share how researchers and game developers can collaborate to create impactful health-focused VR projects. Their partnership combines research insight with rapid prototyping, showcased through two works to illustrate how close collaboration can expand VR's potential in clinical training and personal storytelling.

Dr. Asher Marks presented the lab’s work at Mayo Clinic’s Grand Rounds during his sabbatical this past September. The title of the talk was “The Yale Center for Immersive Technologies in Pediatrics: Using Immersive Technologies to Improve the Health and Well-Being of Youth and Young Adults.”