Don't look for the tail just yet; it's not nice to stare. Besides, he's not a flying squirrel here. Here and now, he's George the data analyst. He lives in metro Atlanta, likes hockey, prefers Coke over Pepsi, hasn't been able to keep up with the plot line of Lost since the first season, and has six dollars worth of late fees on a library book that he keeps forgetting to pay. George is a pretty normal guy. But sometimes he goes home, sits down in front of his computer, logs onto a particular website, and becomes a giant flying squirrel who owns a private island and enjoys discussing philosophy with several dozen like-minded individuals.
George isn't playing a video game, and he isn't day-dreaming or talking to invisible friends. Rather, George is a participant in something called a multi-user virtual environment, or MUVE. A MUVE is an online environment in which users from all over the globe are able to create and interact with a 3-D virtual world. That is to say, George and other people like him design fictional environments-- breathtaking wilderness scenes, trendy night clubs, glittering cityscapes, even schools and classrooms-- where their avatars can meet and talk and investigate the world around them.
If this sounds a little strange to you, well-- perhaps it shouldn't. The idea of humans creating make-believe worlds full of infinite possibility isn't a new one. Consider Alice in Wonderland, Through the Looking Glass, or Peter Pan. Or maybe you prefer a more contemporary example: Neal Stephenson's 1992 novel Snow Crash features a place called the metaverse, which is strikingly similar to today's MUVEs. People have been constructing fantastic worlds for a very long time; in the past, however, they generally stayed on the page or in our imaginations. Now, they're available online.
But you might wonder, why bother? Isn't imagination good enough? Why go through the trouble of building a world online when there's a perfectly good one outside your front door? Who actually uses these things? What's the purpose of these virtual environments, anyway? Are they useful for anything beyond personal entertainment and escapism? If they are, what are their uses? Does George get anything real out of his time in his MUVE?
Good questions all, and somewhat difficult to answer without becoming overly philosophical. But one of the main differences between virtual environments and traditional imaginative fiction is that virtual environments are interactive. George isn't limited to his private island; if he wants, he can venture all over the MUVE, into environments created by thousands of different people who he has never met and who may live continents apart. And he isn't alone-- there is an ever-growing population of MUVE users from all walks of life with whom he can interact. Most MUVEs allow users to talk to each other, either via text (much like instant messaging) or by speech (through software similar to Skype). So George can be in Atlanta in front of his computer, and he can tour the Grand Canyon by raft while talking philosophy with his buddy from Hong Kong-- all at the same time.
There are many MUVES out there, but two of the biggest are Second Life and Active Worlds . In these types of MUVEs, the only limits are those imposed by a user's imagination and skill. For example, if George wants his private island to resemble the surface of the moon, he can program it to do so. If he prefers to discuss philosophy in a virtual zero-gravity chamber on his island, he can do that, too.
But forget George the data analyst-slash-flying squirrel for a moment. MUVEs are not limited to the realm of simple social interaction and communication, as valuable and useful as that may be-- they have other applications. Some companies have recognized that the interactive nature of MUVEs makes them excellent training and conference platforms. But MUVEs are also finding their way into the classroom as immersive learning technologies. There are many specially designed MUVEs for educational use, including:
Each of these MUVE platforms was designed specifically for children and educational purposes, and is therefore a relatively closed community of students, teachers, and others involved in education. A platform such as Second Life, however, which was not designed solely for education (although it can certainly be used in such a way), has no such restrictions. Any adult over the age of eighteen may join Second Life. Thus, the MUVEs listed above are considerably more centrally controlled than other MUVEs.
While this limits in some ways the freedom of the user, it does allow educators to program the MUVE for specific purposes. For example, Eduism is often described as a type of virtual whiteboard, where students from all over the globe may display class projects and investigate those posted by other students. The River City Project, however, is very narrowly programmed, using data such as climate records, topographic mapping, sociological studies, and historical documents in order to create a plausible 19th century American town that is besieged by health problems. Upon entering this world, students must learn how to solve River City's problems by working together, sharing knowledge, and gathering information. Quest Atlantis works on a similar game-driven basis, encouraging students to apply what they learn in the classroom in order to complete various educational objectives. Dr. Sasha Barab, an associate professor at Indiana University who is one of the principle developers of Quest Atlantis, explains some of the uses and strengths of using MUVEs in education in the following video:
While MUVEs are a relatively new educational technology, there is already a fair amount of research on their potential uses and effects floating around out there in the ether. If you're interested in learning more, you may find the following articles and interviews to be helpful:
- "Multi-User Virtual Environments for Education and Training? A Critical Review of Second Life," by Zane L. Berge
- "Learning with Multi-Media Agents," Center for Implementing Technology in Education
- "Learning in a Virtual World," by Chris Dede
In my own personal view, I certainly acknowledge that there are any number of challenges to effectively using MUVEs in the classroom-- one would need hardware, software, time, a flexible curriculum, a supportive administration, as well as a basic familiarity with the technology-- but the educational potential is really astounding. As a history geek, I find the idea of virtual worlds like those in the River City Project and Quest Atlantis to be fascinating. Sure, they're not quite time travel, but they're probably as close as we'll get for a good long while. And for a student to be able to observe and interact in a world they would otherwise never experience first-hand-- well. I think that's invaluable.
So hurrah for George, the flying squirrel data analyst. Hurrah for the imaginations that propel virtual environments. I can't wait to see what we come up with next.
Image: "Alice pushes through the mirror," from Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There, 1871. Artist John Tenniel, engraver Dalziel.
