  Virtual Humans (VHs) were first developed more than 50 years ago and have
undergone significant advancements since then. In the past, creating and
animating VHs was a complex task. However, contemporary commercial and freely
available technology now empowers users, programmers, and designers to create
and animate VHs with relative ease. These technologies have even reached a
point where they can replicate the authentic characteristics and behaviors of
real actors, resulting in VHs that are visually convincing and behaviorally
lifelike. This paper explores three closely related research areas in the
context of virtual humans and discusses the far-reaching implications of highly
realistic characters within these domains.
