In my Introduction to Anthropology class, my professor had us watch a short YouTube video called, An Anthropological Introduction to YouTube. It seems far fetched, but Michael Wesch, a professor of anthropology and media ecology at Kansas State University put media in a whole new light.
He talks about the sharing of ideas on the web and how the media changes human relationships. My main idea came in the form of emotions and how social media and virtual realities effect emotions and more specifically, how we grieve. Let me throw something out there.
If virtual realities gave people the ability to, in essence, "upload their personality", how would that change the grieving process?
My personal idea? People would be able to continue talking to their loved ones after they have passed away. There are many implications to this idea. Would the avatar grow? Would they be "frozen in time"? Is the personality real? I honestly don't know.
The idea of virtual realities has been around since the 1950's, but only recently has debuted in society. So the implications, of virtual realities, have not been tested on a broader, world wide scale. But it has the potential to change what we know as real.
Dr. Wesch discusses YouTube in his video, but it was the beginning of a much larger, more complicated form of media, virtual space. We use media to connect, make friendships, love, laugh, maybe even to live. Most of us use media on a daily basis.
So I dare to ask, what are your thoughts on virtual realities and how will they change human interaction?
He talks about the sharing of ideas on the web and how the media changes human relationships. My main idea came in the form of emotions and how social media and virtual realities effect emotions and more specifically, how we grieve. Let me throw something out there.
If virtual realities gave people the ability to, in essence, "upload their personality", how would that change the grieving process?
My personal idea? People would be able to continue talking to their loved ones after they have passed away. There are many implications to this idea. Would the avatar grow? Would they be "frozen in time"? Is the personality real? I honestly don't know.
The idea of virtual realities has been around since the 1950's, but only recently has debuted in society. So the implications, of virtual realities, have not been tested on a broader, world wide scale. But it has the potential to change what we know as real.
Dr. Wesch discusses YouTube in his video, but it was the beginning of a much larger, more complicated form of media, virtual space. We use media to connect, make friendships, love, laugh, maybe even to live. Most of us use media on a daily basis.
So I dare to ask, what are your thoughts on virtual realities and how will they change human interaction?
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