Week 3 Lecture Response: The Concept of Cyberspace

What is Cyberspace and why do people engage in it?

Cyberspace is a conceptual space where words, relationships, data, wealth and power are manifested by people using Computer Mediated Communication technologies.  But the question still remains: Is it a "consensual hallucination" or another form of reality?  Or, could it be a third order activity that is real enough when you can make a living out of it?  We must distinguish the virtual communities of cyberspace from virtual reality.  Ultimately, an artificial world that exists only in a computer cannot be defined as reality.

Still, Cyberspace is a very difficult term to define, because it sits at the interconnection of reality and imagination, the hardware and the software, logic assembly of silicon and electricity on the desk and the wetware between one’s ears.  To break it down, Karl Popper identified the nature of reality by dividing it into three worlds.

World 1: the objective material world of natural things and their physical properties

World 2: subjective consciousness: intentions, calculations, feelings, thoughts, dreams, memories, etc in individual minds

World 3: the public structures produced by living minds interacting with each other and the real world

William Gibson’s concept of Cyberspace is perhaps more comprehensive: "A consensual hallucination. A graphic representation of data abstracted from the banks of every computer in the human system. Unthinkable complexity. Lines of light ranged in the nonspace of the mind, clusters and constellations of data. Like city lights, receding..."

In today’s society, people are starting to create new lives such as those created in the online virtual world called Second Life, a game that allows users to fulfill their wishes no matter how unrealistic they may be.  The computer-generated character the individual creates can be as young and beautiful as he or she wishes.  It can walk, fly and talk to other characters.  The game is driven by personal expression, creativity and ownership; but even more interestingly is the fact that the game has commerce and allows its users to make money upon their desire.  But how does someone justify spending real money for imaginary stuff?  I guess if someone were that entranced in the game, it would seem worth it.  Essentially, people use cyberspace to escape a life they’re unhappy with by creating a life they’ve always fantasized about.    

"New Life in Cyberspace." CBS News. N.p., 28 Nov 2010. Web. 10 Aug 2012. <http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=3547970n>.