Virtual Worlds and the 3-D Internet

2011 ◽  
pp. 1855-1879
Author(s):  
Carolyn McKinnell Jacobson
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Real World ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
Legal Issues ◽  
Educational Organizations ◽  
Immersive Environments ◽  
Simulated Environment ◽  
The Future ◽  
Computer Based

A virtual world is a computer-based simulated environment, usually modeled after the real world, accessed through an online interface, and inhabited by users in the form of avatars. The purpose of this chapter is to explore how these interactive, immersive environments are being used by a variety of organizations. Although various kinds of virtual worlds are introduced, this chapter focuses on the interactive 3-D virtual world of Second Life, describing its demographics and its features. Ways in which Second Life has been used by businesses, educational organizations, and political entities are then discussed. Legal issues associated with virtual worlds in general and Second Life in particular are raised. The chapter concludes with some ways this technology is expected to evolve in the future.

Virtual Worlds and the 3-D Internet

2010 ◽  
pp. 80-104
Author(s):  
Carolyn McKinnell Jacobson
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Real World ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
Legal Issues ◽  
Educational Organizations ◽  
Immersive Environments ◽  
Simulated Environment ◽  
The Future ◽  
Computer Based

A virtual world is a computer-based simulated environment, usually modeled after the real world, accessed through an online interface, and inhabited by users in the form of avatars. The purpose of this chapter is to explore how these interactive, immersive environments are being used by a variety of organizations. Although various kinds of virtual worlds are introduced, this chapter focuses on the interactive 3-D virtual world of Second Life, describing its demographics and its features. Ways in which Second Life has been used by businesses, educational organizations, and political entities are then discussed. Legal issues associated with virtual worlds in general and Second Life in particular are raised. The chapter concludes with some ways this technology is expected to evolve in the future.

scholarly journals 3D Interactions between Virtual Worlds and Real Life in an E-Learning Community

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ulrike Lucke ◽  
Raphael Zender
Keyword(s):  
Learning Community ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Real World ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Learning Platform ◽  
E Learning ◽  
Learning Scenarios

Virtual worlds became an appealing and fascinating component of today's internet. In particular, the number of educational providers that see a potential for E-Learning in such new platforms increases. Unfortunately, most of the environments and processes implemented up to now do not exceed a virtual modelling of real-world scenarios. In particular, this paper shows that Second Life can be more than just another learning platform. A flexible and bidirectional link between the reality and the virtual world enables synchronous and seamless interaction between users and devices across both worlds. The primary advantages of this interconnection are a spatial extension of face-to-face and online learning scenarios and a closer relationship between virtual learners and the real world.

scholarly journals On the Relationship between My Avatar and Myself

1970 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul R Messinger ◽  
Xin Ge ◽  
Eleni Stroulia ◽  
Kelly Lyons ◽  
Kristen Smirnov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Risk Taking ◽  
Real World ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
Computer Mediated Communication ◽  
Mediated Communication ◽  
The Real ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The Relationship

What is the relationship between avatars and the people they represent in terms of appearance and behavior? In this paper, we hypothesize that people (balancing motives of self-verification and self-enhancement) customize the image of their avatars to bear similarity to their real selves, but with moderate enhancements. We also hypothesize that virtual-world behavior (due to deindividuation in computer-mediated communication environments) is less restrained by normal inhibitions than real-world behavior. Lastly, we hypothesize that people with more attractive avatars than their real selves will be somewhat more confident and extraverted in virtual worlds than they are in the real world. We examine these issues using data collected from Second Life residents using an in-world intercept method that involved recruiting respondents’ avatars from a representative sample of locations. Our quantitative data indicate that, on average, people report making their avatars similar to themselves, but somewhat more attractive. And, compared to real-world behavior, respondents indicate that their virtual-world behavior is more outgoing and risk-taking and less thoughtful/more superficial. Finally, people with avatars more attractive than their real selves state that they are more outgoing, extraverted, risk-taking, and loud than their real selves (particularly if they reported being relatively low on these traits in the real world). Qualitative data from open-ended questions corroborate our hypotheses.

Learning Assignments in Virtual Worlds

2010 ◽  
pp. 54-77
Author(s):  
Tanja Adamus ◽  
Nadine Ojstersek ◽  
Axel Nattland ◽  
Michael Kerres
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Real World ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
Additional Benefit ◽  
Learning Objectives ◽  
Complex Learning ◽  
The Real ◽  
Technical Solutions

The chapter describes different possibilities for the design of learning assignments in virtual worlds with a special emphasis on Second Life. For this purpose, it relates to didactical requirements to obtain criteria for constructing learning assignments for different contexts and conditions. A difference has to be made between distinct forms of simple and complex learning assignments, which have to be solved in the virtual worlds, but serve for the attainment of learning objectives either from the real or the virtual world. Furthermore, it is possible to reach learning objectives concerning the virtual world by means of the real world. It becomes obvious, that the bounds between virtual worlds and the real world are blurring. The decision, whether learning assignments should be edited in virtual worlds, depends on to what extent an additional benefit compared with other (technical) solutions, can emerge in these contexts. For these purposes a closer consideration of virtual worlds‘ specific features becomes relevant.

scholarly journals Second Life: A Hope for Ideal, But Only in Its Imaginary

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 109
Author(s):  
Xiaowei Huang
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Real World ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
The Real ◽  
Short Period ◽  
The Relationship

Second Life, one of the most popular of virtual world was invented by Linden Lab Corporation: its philosophical statement is that Second Life is 'a place where you can turn the pictures in your head into a kind of pixelated reality’ (Rymaszewski, 2007, p. iv). Second Life is, for many reasons to be considered in this essay, a representative example of the (offline/real) world. This paper will argue that virtual worlds such as Second Life are an extension of the real world. Two major questions were posed earlier in this essay: ‘Does the virtual world represent the real world?’ and ‘Is it a refuge for its participants from the real world’. We can answer these questions. First of all, the virtual world is an extension of the real world, because it is built from, and continues to make use of, ideas, meanings, identity categories, performances, narratives and values derived from the real world. Secondly, Second Life is clearly not, in the long term, a refuge for its participants from the real world. Second Life can be understood as a virtual place that allows people to have temporary fun; however, it is only for a moment or for a short period, because the relationship between the virtual and the real world is interpenetrated.

scholarly journals Virtual World and Real World Permeability: Transference of Positive Benefits for Marginalized Gay and Lesbian Populations

1970 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Cabiria
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Real World ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Gay And Lesbian ◽  
Positive Experience ◽  
Positive Coping ◽  
The Social ◽  
Positive Experiences

This study looks at how marginalized gay and lesbian people experience social pressures to conform to hetero-normative culture, how those pressures may lead to negative states, and how positive experiences in online virtual worlds would provide benefits over time and, presumably, become transferable into real life. I will show that engagement with Second Life can be a positive experience and that this positive experience can extend beyond the virtual world to provide lasting benefits in real life. The implications for educators are impressive. In creating virtual world communities, educators, psychologists, and other researchers can provide a safe harbor in which marginalized people can more fully explore their identities and develop the positive coping skills needed to deal with real world stigmatizing influences, which originate within the social environment. For scientists and technology innovators, the creation of virtual world communities and gaming/training programs would be an exciting path to explore, especially for those interested in social justice concerns.

scholarly journals Virtual Worlds Round Table

2009 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nick Yee ◽  
Liz Losh ◽  
Sarah Robbins-Bell
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
Round Table ◽  
State University ◽  
Online Journal ◽  
Ball State University

By being an online journal, the JVWR allows for the inclusion of some pieces that might not otherwise fit a standard journal. This was the thought behind bringing together a group of virtual world scholars to discuss a series of questions and share their thoughts. Meeting in Second Life, Nick Yee (PARC), Liz Losh (UC Irvine), and Sarah Robbins-Bell (Ball State University) were gracious enough to share their thoughts on the study of virtual worlds culture.

scholarly journals The Griefer and the Stalker: Disruptive Actors in a Second Life Educational Community

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Paul Lafayette DuQuette
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
English Language ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Fear And Anxiety

Linden Lab’s Second Life (SL) is well-known for its hands-off approach to user conflict-resolution. Although users are given tools to mute and block individual accounts as well as ban undesirable avatars from user-owned land, that does not prevent determined, malicious users from disrupting communities and harassing individuals. This case study focuses on two such malicious users exemplary of two specific types of malevolent virtual world actors: in-world griefers and online stalkers. As part of a decade-long ethnographic research project within the Cypris Chat English language learning community in SL, this paper utilizes data gleaned from notes on participant observation, semi-structured interviews, and first-hand encounters. It categorizes the disparate strategies these individuals have used over the years in their attempts to disrupt group cohesion, sow distrust between students and teachers, humiliate individuals, and foment an atmosphere of fear and anxiety. It then reviews the methods community members used to defend themselves from such attacks and analyzes the efficacy of these strategies. This study builds on our understanding of harassment in virtual worlds and acts as a cautionary tale for future virtual world educators and community leaders considering the development of their own online classes and groups.

More than just Logging In

2013 ◽  
pp. 149-160
Author(s):  
Kae Novak ◽  
Chris Luchs ◽  
Beth Davies-Stofka
Keyword(s):  
Learning Environment ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
Common Ground ◽  
Content Delivery ◽  
Immersive Learning ◽  
Delivery Vehicles

This case study chronicles co-curricular activities held in the virtual world Second Life. The event activities included standard content delivery vehicles and those involving movement and presence. Several international content experts were featured and allowed students to meet and discuss ideas on a common ground with these experts. When developing these events, the researchers wondered, could an immersive learning environment be provide a deeper level of engagement? Was it possible to have students do more than just logging in? During the events, the students discovered a whole new way of learning. Chief among their discoveries was the realization that in these virtual world educational events, students, scholars, and faculty can all be mentors as well as learners. In virtual worlds, the expert-on-a-dais model of teaching is rapidly replaced by a matrix of discussion, collaboration, and movement that quickly generates a pool of ideas and knowledge.

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