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Last year, the Media Development Authority (MDA) pledged to back research and development (R&D) efforts for the local interactive and digital media (IDM) industry, to the tune of S$500 million (US$347.9 million) between 2006 and 2011.

On Wednesday, the MDA held an exhibition of a selected pool of projects for the press.

First Meta's "credit card" for online worlds such as Second Life.

Douglas Abrams, its CEO told ZDNet Asia at the exhibition: "We want to be the online Citibank."

Credit: Victoria Ho, ZDNet Asia

These "augmented reality posters" from Nanyang Technological University's Centre for Advanced Media Technology are recognized by a computer to display 3D representations of what the cards represent.

Pictured here is a Chinese language software which pops up a graphic of what the card says.

Credit: Victoria Ho, ZDNet Asia

The Amagatana, produced by a team from Japan's Keio University, is an umbrella that makes sword swishing noises when you roll it up and swing it around.

No, really.

Credit: Victoria Ho, ZDNet Asia

A sign of things to come? So says the team from Mixed Reality Lab from the National University of Singapore. "This is what we think clothes will look like in the future," said a spokesperson during his presentation.

Pictured here is a shirt that changes color in response to touch.

Also from the team: Pajamas that inflate to tighten around your body when someone sends you a virtual "hug". Could be inconvenient when the suit inflates when you least expect.

Credit: Victoria Ho, ZDNet Asia

Similar to the "augmented reality posters", pictured here are wizQubes, produced by Mixed Reality Corporation. The cubes are paired with software which recognizes the cubes' orientation via a Web cam to reflect a 3D character onscreen.

Credit: Victoria Ho, ZDNet Asia

A way of navigating around 3D building blueprints that its creators say has been picked up by the Singapore Science Centre and seen by the likes of George Lucas and Steven Spielberg.

From the NUS Engineering department's Interactive Multimedia Lab.

Credit: Victoria Ho, ZDNet Asia