Virtual Worlds, Real People and Learning

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Virtual Worlds, Real People and Learning

• John Lester (Pathfinder Linden)
• Community and Education Manager, Linden Lab

SIGGRAPH 06 Boston, MA
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what is Second Life?

• Second Life is a unique online world
• international community, multiuser, persistent
  world
• not a game
• completely created and owned by the residents
• best fictional analogs are Stephensons Metaverse
  from Snow Crash or Vinges Otherverse from
  True Names

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A new approach to world building

• Stream all content via broadband
• Extremely dynamic content
• Apply distributed/grid computing

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• 300,000 People
• gt2M Hours/Month of Use
• Escape, Entertainment, Education, Work, Advocacy

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demographics

• SL community older and more gender balance than
  most games
• Gender neutral by hours of use
• Median age of 35
• Real world skills translate into digital world

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Building in 3D using geometric primitives
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Breathing Life into Objects with Scripting
Any object can be given physical behavior,
interactivity, and can communicate with the
world (e.g., email, HTTPRequest, XML-RPC)
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property rights

• In Second Life, residents own their creations
• What does this mean?
• Residents retain their Intellectual Property
  rights to their creations
• Residents may buy and sell L for US
• Residents may license their creations back into
  the real world

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Live Video shared in a Community Space
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Live Music shared in a Community Space
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What happens when you give people the tools to
create their own world?

• Waking Dreams made Realand Shared with Real
  People

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Emotional Bandwidth
( ) P
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Emotional Bandwidth
Use real-world social cues and proxemics,
animations and sounds, and create your visual
identity
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Real Educators

• Teach using simulation and experiential learning
• Over 50 different universities and hundreds of
  educators

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Digital Natives, the third space and bridging
social capital
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Living Archeology
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Harvards Austin Hall Berkman Center
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Welcome toMixed Reality
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Poster 179 Live Webcast of Solar Eclipse
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Videos
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first responder and caregiver training

• process
• experience
• empathy

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communities of support

• Aspergers Syndrome
• stroke survivors
• depression support
• cerebral palsy
• children with cancer

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freedom from physical disability
my virtual self has the voice i've always wanted
to have and in many ways it allows me to be the
person i feel i was born to be. -- john
s/Wilde Cunningham
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Real Fundraising in a Virtual World
Total US 40,000
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How to raise US 2,000 in One Evening
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4 Powerful Themes supporting Real Learning

• A world where anyone can create anything.
• A world full of real people.
• A world of high emotional bandwidth.
• A world shared.

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Thank you for listening

• John Lester (SL Pathfinder Linden)
• pathfinder_at_lindenlab.com
• secondife.com/education
• www.pathfinderlinden.com

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