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Presence Examples One of the events at the Accelerating Change 2004 conference at Stanford University, November 5-7, 2004 is highlighted below. The theme of the conference, "Physical Space, Virtual Space, and Interface," "analyzes the intersection of three monumental trends: accelerating interconnectivity of the physical world, increasing accuracy of the simulated world, [and] growing intelligence of the human-machine interface." The conference web site is http://accelerating.org/ac2004/; this item is at http://www.accelerating.org/tech_tidbits/2004/20oct04.html#spotlight; posted to the presence-l listserv October 26, 2004 AC2004 Interface Debate Spotlight: Debate: Finding Humanity in the Interface: Capacity Atrophy or Augmentation? As our interfaces get continually smarter, how do we keep them from dehumanizing us? Can we avoid the world of MT Anderson's masterful dystopia, Feed (2002), where the internet-jacked, childlike teens of 2030 speak pidgin English and live primarily as vehicles for highly sophisticated and automated corporate marketing and political programming? Should we be concerned that U.S. youth have had forty years of declining math, science, and analytical reading skills? Do we need 1960's math skills in a world with ubiquitous calculators, or reading skills in a world with digital cable? Or thinking skills in a world with intelligent text analytics? Encouragingly, the Millennial generation reaches maturity earlier, communicates in new nonlinear ways, and has a strong facility to adapt to new technology. But are we in danger of losing our perspective, independence, and global vision? What are our most important priorities as we enter a world of increasingly sophisticated interfaces and simulations? Join us as interface legends Jaron Lanier and Will Wright discuss and debate this and related topics in a fun, heated, and fascinating exchange. Jaron Lanier is well known among developers as the co-inventor of "virtual reality," a term he coined in the 1980s as founder and former CEO of VPL Research. In the late 1980s he lead the team that developed the first implementations of multi-person virtual worlds using head mounted displays as well as the first "avatars." While at VPL, he co-developed the first implementations of virtual reality applications in surgical simulation, vehicle interior prototyping, virtual sets for television production, and assorted other areas. He lead the team that developed the first widely used software platform architecture for immersive virtual reality applications. As a musician, Lanier has been active in the world of new "classical" music since the late seventies. He is a pianist and a specialist in unusual musical instruments, especially the wind and string instruments of Asia. Renowned as a composer, musician, computer scientist, and artist, he has taught at many university computer science departments around the country, including Yale, Dartmouth, Columbia and Penn. He recently served as the lead scientist for the National Tele-Immersion Initiative. In 1993, he predicted that virtual reality would be accessible to consumers by 2010. He still thinks that's true. Will Wright is Chief Designer and Co-Founder of Maxis (sold to Electronic Arts for $125M in 1997). He released his first game SimCity: The City Simulator in 1989, an instant hit which has won 24 domestic and international awards. Sim City brought complex, realistic simulations to desktop PCs, a capability previously only available to military, scientists and academicians. Using an easy graphical interface, Sim City opened the world of simulations to consumers. SimCity 2000, SimCity 3000, SimCity 3000 Unlimited, and SimCity 4 Deluxe have continued the tradition. SimEarth, SimAnt, and SimCopter have explored other facets of the natural and technological world. His social simulation game, The Sims, was released in February of 2000. With over 9 million copies worldwide, 7 expansion packs, and numerous "Game of The Year" accolades, The Sims has become the best-selling PC game of all time. The Sims Online and The Sims 2 (released September 2004, to critical acclaim) are moving The Sims toward an increasingly realistic world where you choose your role, attitude and destiny. He is now working on a "third generation" simulation project at Maxis. Wright has become one of the most successful designers of interactive entertainment in the world. In 1999 he was included in Entertainment Weekly’s "It List" of "the 100 most creative people in entertainment" as well as Time Digital’s "Digital 50", listing of "the most important people shaping technology today." As one of his hobbies, Wright (along with his daughter) takes part in the annual Battlebot competition broadcast nationally on Comedy Central. Debate moderator Mark Finnern manages the Collaboration Area of the fastest growing SAP Community: The SAP Developer Network. Mark is also the founder and host of the Bay Area Future Salon, co-producer of the Accelerating Change 2004 conference, and blogger for the O'Reilly Network. An amateur musician and community builder, he is interested in how we may best use technology to improve personal insight and strengthen civic life. |