Computer-simulated training on the rise

The footage is then built into a program that responds to a list of questions typed or spoken by the trainee. Unlike the classroom simulator, where responses are controlled by a live actor, the responses are controlled by the computer program itself.

In one, "Rasheed" is a potential informant whom agents must cultivate by demonstrating sensitivity to Arab culture.

Being too abrupt with Rasheed, or telling him that his wife is beautiful, will offend him, and his demeanor will change. Sometimes Rasheed is open, sometimes not, and his motives for talking differ, meaning the same conversation will never occur twice, said Dale Olsen, SIMmersion's president. The system teaches rapport-building with the subject, rewarding a sensitive approach and punishing blunders.

Still, Rasheed is limited — he can't talk about every subject because that technology is several years, maybe decades, away.

All social simulators chase an elusive goal of replicating human behavior.

"We don't quite understand all the things we need to know and we can't quite make the (virtual humans) advanced enough," Shumaker said.

But the advantage comes from providing a safe environment that can be used any time and is a cost-cutting alternative to hiring multiple actors.

"You can't necessarily practice dealing with real people because if you do you will harm people," Olsen said. "People could die or you could get sued."

SIMmersion also has developed a program to help Army chaplains identify and treat soldiers who have suicidal tendencies, and will release a simulation in January that trains people how to counsel a woman who was just raped.

Olsen said he is talking with companies in the communications and pharmaceutical industries to develop tailored programs that train in performance evaluation and sales.

Randall Hill, executive director of the Institute for Creative Technologies at the University of Southern California, created a cultural awareness trainer for the military that combines computer imaging with real props. But he also hopes the technology has a much broader application.

"I want to see these technologies used to transport you to another time and place and be able to interact with people from other cultures," Hill said. "I think we can enhance social skills and cultural knowledge."

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