Over the last century we have observed yesterday's science fiction become
today's vi1iual reality. Traditional technologies-phone, cinema, and TVhave
converged within the global interconnectivity of the Internet. Human
biology and intelligence have converged with miificial intelligence and robotics.
In the mis, ente1iainment, medicine, the military, science, and entertainment
we now project multiple versions of the self onto an array of traditional
and new virtual environments. This means we now coexist in both real
and virtual spaces--onscreen and online-with a variety of artificial forms of
life and intelligence. This chapter explores the design epistemology of virtual
worlds via the case study of Second Life, an interactive, 3D graphic media
platform. Second Life is a latest-generation multi-user virtual environments
(MUVEs). It is available globally to Internet users who meet online to socialize,
to create, and to share digital identities, objects, and locations.
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