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From the simple VR games found in upscale video arcades, to the ultimate "immersion"--the CAVE, a surround screen, surround sound system that projects 3 D computer graphics into a ten-foot high cube--virtual reality has introduced what is literally a new dimension of reality to daily life. But it is ...

From the simple VR games found in upscale video arcades, to the ultimate "immersion"--the CAVE, a surround screen, surround sound system that projects 3 D computer graphics into a ten-foot high cube--virtual reality has introduced what is literally a new dimension of reality to daily life. But it is not without controversy. Indeed, some say that a collision is inevitable between those passionately involved in the computer industry and those increasingly alienated from (and often replaced by) its applications. Opinions range from the cyberpunk attitude of Wired magazine and Bill Gates's commercial optimism to the violent opposition of the Unabomber. Now, with Virtual Realism, readers have a thought-provoking guide to the "cyberspace backlash" debate and the implications of cyberspace for our culture. Michael Heim first offers a thoughtful discussion of what virtual reality is "in the strong sense." He outlines its essential characteristics -including the "Three I's" of immersion, interactivity, and information intensity--and introduces readers to such virtual reality technologies as head mounted displays; SIMNET, a networked simulation of tanks rolling over a virtual terrain; and flight simulators in which a trainee can experience conditions approximating those of actual flight. He also leads us through a fascinating gallery of virtual art experiences, including Marcos Novak's Virtual Dervish, in which the viewer wears a head mounted display and is immersed among and interacts with drifting, shifting "transhuman figures" and other virtual entities. And he describes various side effects of immersion in virtual reality, including types of relativity sickness known as Alternate World Syndrome (AWS) and Alternate World Disorder (AWD). Perhaps most important, Heim suggests ways of living with technology and harmonizing computers with culture. For instance, he offers a philosophical reconciliation between the conflicting views of "naive realists," who regard computer systems as a suppression of reality rather than an extension of it, and "idealists" who seem to think computers and software can cure all ills. Heim argues convincingly that in order to have an accurate view of the relationship between "natural nature" and cyberspace, we must balance the idealist's enthusiasm for computerized life with the need to ground ourselves more deeply in primary reality. This "uneasy balance" he calls virtual realism. In this wide ranging exploration, Michael Heim draws on an incredibly eclectic range of sources, from the lyrics of Jim Morrison, to the wisdom of the Tai Chi masters, to the works of philosophers and writers as varied as Heraclitus, Descartes, William Gibson, and Jacques Ellul. The result is an ambitious and provocative commentary on the ways in which virtual reality and associated technologies are increasingly influencing our lives.

One of the nation's foremost authorities in the field of computer science, David Gelernter has revolutionized computing with his advancements in the field of parallel programming. Yet he is dismayed by technologists who assert that art and beauty are anachronisms surpassed by the intellectual ...

One of the nation's foremost authorities in the field of computer science, David Gelernter has revolutionized computing with his advancements in the field of parallel programming. Yet he is dismayed by technologists who assert that art and beauty are anachronisms surpassed by the intellectual attainments of science and technology.

In defining beauty as an inspired mating of simplicity and power, and deep beauty as a condition where many types of beauty reinforce one another, Gelernter sets the stage for the next computer revolution. Pointing out that the most innovative minds in the industry have always been obsessed with beauty, Gelernter asserts that the pursuit of beauty will lead to extraordinary new developments. He lays out his own radical alternative to desktop-model computers, called Lifestreams, a compelling new way of conceptualizing the notion of computers and software.

Gelernter has written a work that is technically accessible, wittily argued, and prodigiously visionary -- a manifesto for all future computer users, programmers, designers, and manufacturers to carry into the next century.

Massive changes are taking place in society surrounding the delivery of information to individuals and the way they process this information. At work, at home, and in schools, the Internet and the World Wide Web are altering the individual's work, his leisure time, her workplace, and their ...

Massive changes are taking place in society surrounding the delivery of information to individuals and the way they process this information. At work, at home, and in schools, the Internet and the World Wide Web are altering the individual's work, his leisure time, her workplace, and their educational environments. All of these changes and their consequences have traditionally been investigated largely within the domain of sociology, semiotics, mass communication, and computer science. The perspective from cognitive psychology has been lacking. The purpose of this volume is to fill this gap. The focus of the book is the cognitive effects of the modern digital environment. In addition, questions are raised about what cognitive conditions must exist for adequately processing information in multimedia environments. Internet use routinely involves the exchange of factual information but also a large amount of information with an interpersonal character is communicated. A socio-psychological perspective is needed to understand both kinds of communication, also to be able to design appropriate support tools. In Cognition in a Digital World, the emphasis is on the psychological analysis of interactive and continuing communication and discourse, rather than on the technical aspects of the individual's interaction at the interface. The three main themes of this volume are: *conditions and consequences of multimedia information processing by the individual; *socio-psychological characteristics of information transfer over the World Wide Web; and *analysis of computer-mediated collaborative communication. Cognition in a Digital World will be of interest to a wide audience of researchers and students in the fields of cognitive science, education, communication sciences, computer science and the arts (discourse analysis).