Abstract
Extensive experience creating locations and activities inside virtual worlds provides the basis for contemplating their future. Users of virtual worlds are diverse in their goals for these online environments; for example, immersionists want them to be alternative realities disconnected from real life, whereas augmentationists want them to be communication media supporting real-life activities. As the technology improves, the diversity of virtual worlds will increase along with their significance. Many will incorporate more advanced virtual reality, or serve as major media for long-distance collaboration, or become the venues for futurist social movements. Key issues are how people can create their own virtual worlds, travel across worlds, and experience a variety of multimedia immersive environments. This chapter concludes by noting the view among some computer scientists that future technologies will permit uploading human personalities to artificial intelligence avatars, thereby enhancing human beings and rendering the virtual worlds entirely real.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Bohannon, J. (2008). Scientists, we need your swords!. Science, 320, 312.
Bugeja, M. J. (2007). Second thoughts about Second Life. Chronicle of Higher Education online, September 14, from (http://chronicle.com/jobs/news/2007/09/2007091401c.htm).
Corneliussen, H. G. & Rettberg, J. W. (2008). Digital culture, play, and identity: A World of Warcraft reader. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Denton, N. (2006). A story too good to check. Valleywag. Retrieved December 12, from (http://valleywag.gawker.com/tech/second-life/a-story-too-good-to-check-221252.php).
Deutsch, D. (1997). The fabric of reality: The science of parallel universes - and its implications. New York: Allen Lane.
FM-2030. (1989). Are you a Transhuman? New York: Warner Books.
Gardiner, B. (2007). Bank failure in Second Life leads to calls for regulation. Wired online, August 15, from (http://www.wired.com/gaming/virtualworlds/news/2007/08/virtual_bank).
Moravec, H. P. (1988). Mind children: The future of robot and human intelligence. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Naone, E. (2007). Money trouble in Second Life. Technology Review online, August 8, from (http://www.technologyreview.com/Biztech/19193/?a = f).
Rucker, R. (2005). The lifebox, the seashell, and the soul. New York: Thunder’s Mouth Press.
Rymaszewski, M., Au, W. J., Ondrejka, C., Platel, R., Van Gorden, S., Cézanne, J., et al. (2007). Second Life: The official guide. San Francisco, CA: Sybex.
Stephenson, N. (1992). Snow Crash. New York: Bantam Books.
Vallance, C. (2007). Second Life online gambling crackdown. BBC online, July 27, from (http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/podsandblogs/2007/07/second_life_online_gambling_cr.shtml).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2010 Springer-Verlag London Limited
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Prisco, G. (2010). Future Evolution of Virtual Worlds as Communication Environments. In: Bainbridge, W. (eds) Online Worlds: Convergence of the Real and the Virtual. Human-Computer Interaction Series. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-84882-825-4_22
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-84882-825-4_22
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-84882-824-7
Online ISBN: 978-1-84882-825-4
eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)