Modeling Reality with Virtual Worlds

Virtual reality worlds in today's society are amongst some of the most popular ways of social networking. But, how do these virtual worlds work? The first thing that comes to mind when thinking of virtual worlds is of course video games. However, they can be much more than just entertainment. Virtual reality worlds can be used to re-create real life for social interaction and site seeing. An example would be the re-creation of the Lower East Side with the purpose of creating a social network where users can meet in a place that is common and interesting to them with plenty of three dimensional space unlike Facebook and Myspace.[1] Virtual worlds can also be used in business as well. As a matter of fact, some companies are seeking ways of having meetings in virtual worlds. Employees would simply sit in a virtual meeting room and handle their business just like they would in the real world.[2] This would save time and certainly create a more relaxing environment.

What happens in the virtual world does not necessarily have to stay there. In fact, an advantage of virtual worlds is the ability to practice social iterations with others as a way of prepping one's self for the real world.[3] In the real world people with social phobias or even those who do not get the chance to socialize very much, can simply sharpen their social skills in virtual worlds.

Of course, just like everything that is popular in the digital era, there much be some downsides. Virtual reality can become very addictive. Take video-gamers for example, how many times do we see a child who suffers from real-life inactivity because of video-games? It happens too often, too many teens, even adults in some cases, become obsessed with these virtual worlds and forget about the real world.

A major advantage of virtual worlds despite all the cons however, is the ability to encourage creativity. When it comes to virtual reality worlds, regular everyday people can do just about anything they can think of. In a virtual world, you have a new start and the power to do whatever you want. In these worlds, your imagination knows no boundaries and you are free to be pretty much whatever you can think of.[4]

Personally, I believe that virtual worlds will continue to expand. I do believe that social networks will one day be entirely three dimensional. But, not only for social networking, there might even come a day when our real world becomes very virtual to us. We might never have to leave the comfort of our home again as one day we might just navigate avatars of ourselves just like we do with virtual worlds.



1. Itzkoff, Dave. "I’ve Been in That Club, Just Not in Real Life." The New York Times. 06 Jan. 2008. Web.
2. Tutton, Mark. "Going to the virtual office in Second Life." CNN. 09 Nov. 2009. Web.
3. Saidi, Nicole. "'Naughty Auties' battle autism with virtual interaction." CNN. 28 Mar. 2008. Web.
4. Ferla, Ruth. "No Budget, No Boundaries: It’s the Real You ." The New York Times. 21 Oct. 2009. Web.

New Media and Society

It is without a doubt that the new media has had a tremendous impact on society. Society itself is almost entirely dependent on new media. Take the weather for example, people check the forecast everyday before leaving their houses without even glancing outside. Portable GPS devices are used for directions without a second's hesitation about bothering that the device might be wrong.

We as a society have become more and more dependent on new media. There is not a place in New York City where you can go and not see people without portable devices that are connected to a network of some sort. Because these gadgets are so well connected people depend on them for all their news, weather, updates from social networks, favorite television shows, and just about anything they can think of.

New media has certainly changed the way we interact with others as well. As we become more and more social through the internet as a society, we also become less and less anti-social in actuality. Cell phones for example are used the majority of times to send text messages as oppose to doing what the phone was initially invented for; talking.

The biggest advantage about new media however, is the ability to communicate flawlessly. Skype for example has forever changed the way people communicate. Before it used to be, if you were far apart from someone, you would have to write or speak to them directly without actually seeing them. With live webcam services such as Skype, people are able to see one another as if they were in the same room sitting right next to each other. This is completely beneficial to the media, especially news channels. CNN for example uses Skype to communicate directly to people they do not have access to, even though, that person might be halfway across the world reporting the news.

There is no question that the use of new media has entirely changed societies around the world. Wherever you go on the planet, no matter how high in poverty a country might be, there is still use of new media in their society. The use of new media has completely revolutionized the way we interact as mankind and it will continue to do so for many years to come.

Privacy and Confidentiality

Privacy is always an issue that comes up when discussing new media networks. Is anything ever private? We cannot know that for sure. Supposedly, whatever is made private on a social network stays between you and whoever you choose to share that with. But how much of that is true when they are people working on those social networks moderating everything that is posted whether shared or private?

Of course, social networks are not the only type of new media. So how does confidentiality stand up against new media on the whole? Let us take a site like YouTube for example where anyone can share pretty much anything. What happens if someone captures an unauthorized video of you which of course invades your privacy and decides to post it? Chances are with all the million of videos on YouTube, you will probably never see that footage. However, whether you know it or not, your privacy is being invaded and posted for the entire world to see without you having a single clue.

So is there such a thing as confidentiality with all this new media? Can anything be kept a secret for too long? Even people with the highest social status such as politicians are exposed more and more by today's new media. It seems as if nothing is safe with this new media simply because of the fact that word spreads so fast. The media has the power of destroying someone's reputation within minutes, for that is how long it takes for word to spread on a global scale with this new media.

Also, with all this new wave of media comes a new wave of criminals. There are people out there who make a living exposing others. With hackers and such, nothing processed through the media is ever private. Even a social network as gigantic and popular as Facebook has privacy flaws. When it comes to new media, nothing is ever private or confidential for too long, everything comes up to the surface one way or another.

The Next New Thing

If I had the opportunity to introduce a new type of social networking to the world, it would be a social network where regular everyday people reported the news. Things happen everyday in just about anywhere in the world at any given time. Why not allow those people who witnessed the situation first-hand be the ones to report the occurrences?

Sure, such things already occur in blogs and other social networking communities. However, with this type of social networking everyone will be connected the way everyone is connected on Twitter with trends and such. If something happens at any given moment and someone decides to report it, within minutes it can become a worldwide trend.

Not only will it offer the opportunity for people to report what is happening at the moment, it will also allow people to launch investigations. Whether it be a neighborhood investigation or an investigation on someone world renowned, anyone can contribute. Certainly this will bring people with common interest together as they communicate and contribute to each others work.

With a social network like this, the entire world can benefit. We have already been seeing regular everyday people doing things like this on current social networks and the results turn out to be beneficial not only to them but to many others affected by the situation. Why not have a social network dedicated to improving the world and bringing people together while giving everyone an equal opportunity for their fifteen minutes of fame?

Advice to Brooklyn College

To improve Brooklyn College with the use of new media, there are a few things I will definitely incorporate. First on the list would be making a Brooklyn College exclusive social network. Next would be the use to wikis of have a Wikipedia-like system where students and teachers both can contribute. And finally, I would recommend all lectures be streamed live on the college website.

The Brooklyn College Facebook would definitely be a must. Having a social network exclusive to the college will certainly be beneficial. For one, communication between students and teachers will be much easier and efficient. The Brooklyn College social network will keep everyone updated and without a doubt give us all the benefits of social networks like Facebook and Twitter.

The incorporation of a wiki site such as Wikipedia is certainly a must. Think of a system that will allow for all past assignments to be posted online that will allow students and professors to contribute to each others work. This would certainly be helpful in putting an end to plagiarism and create a more accessible college encyclopedia. Having an online system like this would certainly help students in producing more solid and accurate work.

The most ambitious idea at incorporating new media in Brooklyn College would be the live streaming of all classroom lectures. If a student were to miss class, they would be able to log-in to the College's social network and simply watch what is happening in the classroom, live. This would certainly be helpful not only for students who missed classes but also when is comes time to review for exams as every lecture should also be captured and archived.

How beneficial would the incorporation of these new media type technology be? Think of the accessibility. With all the new technology allowing freedom with portability, faculty members and students will both be able to have access to the College no matter where they are in the world. That is the power of today's new media.

Social Networking

Social networks are a huge part of the internet these days and there are many different things they can be used for. Asides from the obvious fact that social networks can be used to communicate with people and keep you updated, it can be used for business as well. Since there are millions of users on social networking sites, businesses use it as a form of advertising. Movies, music, products, you name it, it is being advertised on social networking sites. There is good reason for that, with so many unique users, social networks have become a giant in the advertising field.

Asides from business, social networks can be used and have impacts on many other things. People can organize groups that can plan rallies and protests because they can communicate to a mass amount of people. President Obama himself turned to social networks when he was campaigning. He recognized the power of the internet and communication through social networks and was able to use it effectively to gather his supporters.[1]

Of course to every advantage there must be a disadvantage and social networks have many dark sides. Because there are no certain ways of knowing who is behind a picture, predators lurk around social networks. The most terrifying thing about the internet is that your identity is never safe. With social networks identity theft is inevitable. Information given on social networking sites can easily be extracted and combined with other sources to steal someone's identity.[2] People must be very careful of the personal information they submit on the internet.

Technologies are advancing fast and almost every portable device has social networks embedded on them. I personally believe that social networks will continue to grow. It seems to me that the more sophisticated technologies become, the more socially connected people are able to be. I believe that as technology continues to evolve, having a digital identity will be a requirement one day. So in the future, everyone will be a part of one large social network.

1. Carr, David. "How Obama Tapped Into Social Networks' Power." The New York Times. 9 Nov. 2008. Web.
2. "Leaving 'Friendprints': How Online Social Networks Are Redefining Privacy and Personal Security." Knowledge@Wharton. 10 Jun. 2009. Web.

Check out Social Networking Sites

I've recently visited four different social networking sites which are Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, and Friendster. Now I'm going to compare my impression of each of them.

Facebook has the look and feel of a very organized site. It has the feel of a more professional environment than the other social networks. The other social networks allow users to create user-names which can be confusing and misleading at times. Facebook displays everyone by their real names so finding people is a lot more easier and effective. Facebook also does the best job of the social networking sites at keeping everyone connected.

Twitter is the most different social networking site from the others. At first it feels simplistic and there seems to be no activities happening. There are no photo albums or any other sort of things to look at for users. There simply is a short written bio and a small user picture. Twitter revolves around words from people to people and pretty much nothing else. However, it is possible to share pictures, videos, links and etc. Twitter is basically like text messages except you are sharing your thoughts with the entire world. It can become very addictive and fun because sometimes celebrities reply to everyday people.

Myspace is the social network that feels more unprofessional than the others. It has the look and feel of a social network dedicated to teens and music. Myspace has tons of activities but the interface is not the simplest and since users can edit their own pages, it can become impossible to navigate around sometimes. Also, user-names can make it difficult to find others.

Friendster is a social gaming site. It is the most fun of all the other sites because it is dedicated to keep people connected by playing games with each other. It is not the best at communicating with others. Friendster is mostly for those who are into online gaming or for anyone looking for ways to pass time.