Shaping Human-Centered Virtual Worlds

Dear Colleagues,

Electronics is pleased to announce a Special Issue dedicated to exploring the intersection of electronics, immersive and emerging technologies, and human-centric virtual worlds. We invite researchers and experts from diverse disciplines to contribute their original research articles, reviews, conceptual frameworks, and case studies. Together, scholars will shape the emerging and innovative ecosystem comprising virtual worlds and the Metaverse.

Objective:

The evolution of immersive and emerging technologies, assisted by enhanced network capabilities, is offering breath-taking services in everyday life. Extended reality applications are empowered by artificial intelligence to achieve increased societal impact. Multisensory developments, such as those involving haptics and smells, offer even more realistic and immersive experiences, as well as even more accessible and inclusive services and products. This Special Issue aims to shed light on innovative research that harnesses the potential of electronics, computer science, and human–computer interaction to shape even more human-centered virtual worlds in everyday life. We seek contributions that highlight and define the transformative role of technology in tackling challenges related to the human-centricity of the virtual worlds. This Issue will provide a space to explore interdisciplinary approaches and conceptual frameworks, showcase practical experiences, and foster collaboration between practitioners, researchers, policymakers, and professionals under the prism of electronics, computer sciences, social sciences, and virtual worlds.

In this Special Issue, we welcome original research articles and reviews. Research areas include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Extended reality;
• Virtual reality;
• Virtual worlds;
• Metaverse;
• Human–computer interaction;
• User interfaces;
• Storyliving;
• Serious games;
• Immersion;
• Cultural heritage;
• Training and education;
• Health and medicine;
• Sports and e-sports;
• Multisensory experiences;
• Haptics;
• Smell, scent, and olfaction;
• Innovative business models in virtual worlds;
• Accessibility and inclusion;
• Conceptual and human-centric frameworks;
• Ethical considerations;
• Policymaking.

Dr. Eleftherios Anastasovitis
Dr. Spyros Vosinakis
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Electronics is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.