kaymac 2.28.08

First off, I loved going around in the different groups and talking about the article. It was good to see different perspectives of the article on a one to one level.

One thing that really caught my attention in the discussions was what Raj's group was saying about these new Wii games, named Mii (I think?). Apparently, the makers of Wii are coming out with these controllers that you wrap around your head that literally read your brain in order to know how your character on the screen will move/function/react whatever. Then with these Mii's, you will be able to connect to the virtual world of Miis and interact with other Miis, enter contests, vote on issues, and pretty much live in this virtual community. Talking about this made me think of a novel I read a long time ago by M.T. Anderson entitled Feed. In this futuristic world, people have these chips that are inserted into their brains when they are newborns that act as a computer, cell phone, television, PDA, iPod, etc. all rolled into one. If you do not have a Feed in your brain, you are an outcast in the world and therefore cannot function. If you have ever seen Gattaca (a wonderful film with Ethan Hawke, Jude Law, and Uma Thurman) you will know what I'm talking about with the not being able to function in society thing. So Raj's Miis and Wii's and any kind of "ii" made me think of this.

Technology has led us to this interactive experience and going off of what Bumble and Habermas were saying, we do live in a hyperstimulated world. We are spending time with people who are not physically there for our social interaction. However, when you think about it, people used to do that back in the 1800's as well, in the time of letter writing. People would sit there and write letters back and forth because that was their form of communication--they were spending time with people who weren't there either. Granted, it was not as instant or evolved as it is today, but that did exist back then as well.

Another question that is raised was is this real? We have to use our imagination a lot when dealing with virtual worlds and spaces like this. There is an inherent trust in persons' presentations of themselves but we have to ask is this really reality? Is this not reality? Are we talking with the person or the virtual space that represents them? How can the human identity and mind be compressed onto a chip that can almost be a back-up of our own brain?

In a way, we are immortalizing ourselves, and is that what virtual reality means to do? Think of Facebook and Myspace and whatever website had Myspace profiles for people who have died. We still exist in this virtual world, even after our death.