Tupac Lives?

The Twittersphere has been abuzz about a recent performance at Coachella, the annual three-day music and arts festival in California.  A "virtual rendition" of the late Tupac Shakur was seen onstage rapping and greeting the audience, many of whom were blown away by what the media has begun calling a "Tupac hologram."  The only problem is that, while impressive, the special effect was not in fact a hologram.  As described in this article, the optical illusion was actually a technique known as "Pepper's Ghost," a trick first described in the 16th century.  While many in the audience seemed to think they were seeing a something akin to Princess Leia's plea for help, this illusion can actually be created with a hidden room, large piece of glass, and digital projector.  Those working on advancing digital holography will have to spread the word that real holograms are even more impressive!

Will we see a similar "virtual performance" in Miami?  Only time will tell...