Underground Knowledge — A discussion group discussion

I'm curious to see the movie now. I think that, yes, this is way we could go, it would presumably save on resources, and like you say, solve the unemployment problems. Somebody would need to stay behind though, not sure how that would work.

Personally, I'd be fine with living in a virtual reality, especially as I get older and my body falls apart!

Don't you think tho, Iain, jobs in the VR world might be even more likely to be replaced by AI tech than real world jobs? Or am I missing something?

Can you give some examples of some "jobs" in the VR world that you believe people could get paid for in the physical world?

I hope you're not gonna say we all become VR prostitutes to earn a living!! :)

Iain wrote: "Maybe in the virtual world you could package and sell AI according to its potential? ..."

So you mean it's more of a self-employment/entrepreneurial endeavour rather than traditional employment? Creating AI software to work for you in the VR world you mean?

Do futurists say VR worlds will create more employment, do you know?

The problem with Oasis type experiences is that they are endlessly entertaining fantasies but abandon our ethical capabilities as moral agents. With all our limitations on planet Earth, we still have the power to influence things a bit with our will and thus participate in outcomes for the flow of creation--without the drama of sensation-enhancing explosions and computer graphics.

Dont give up your humanity for pipe-dreams. (Hmm?)

Iain wrote: "Adapt, change or get swept aside . . . what to do? ..."

Better to try to work with new technologies rather than become a luddite, I say.

Another issue with this new simulation-style tech like not only VR but also AR, 3D and Holographic formats, is that people might lose touch with reality?

I think ultimately, or ideally, these type of technologies should help us perform and create better in the real world, rather than merely "escape" from it. I guess that's what you are getting at, Iain, by asking if VR might create additional employment and income potential for people to enhance their lives in the "real world"...

John wrote: "Dont give up your humanity for pipe-dreams. (Hmm?)..."

Who is to say what's likely and what's not tho, John?

Never seen the movie or read the book but, if we’re creating virtual worlds couldn’t we create virtual people in these worlds and let them make US money? Could that possibly mean that our universe was created by some money elitist scientist?
Also I think the AR industry will probably be bigger and more useful for us than VR. With AR we could go about our days augmented instead of being fully plugged into a completely new VR world

John wrote: "Dont give up your humanity for pipe-dreams. ..."

Don't really think utilizing tech in revolutionary ways is giving up on humanity, especially if humans are creating and controlling it.

AI, and potentially transhumanism, is more where there may be a way from some who have given up on humanity to try to usurp humanity.

It said eye implants, Iain...or should that be Iain-The-Transhumanist?!

To play the Devil's Advocate tho... Do humans ultimately need real world experiences and if so is it possible the more extreme Ready Player One-style VR predictions are unsustainable?

The Fall and Rise of VR: The Struggle to Make Virtual Reality Get Real https://fortune.com/longform/virtual-...
Virtual reality has been the next new thing for five years and counting. Clunky headsets, a dearth of content, and lack of consumer interest have caused VR to stall. Can this much-hyped technology finally catch on?