Margaret Wertheim; The Pearly Gates of Cyberspace

In today’s society we see that cyberspace has filled a space that has links to the Middle Ages. Where there were one physical earthly world, and one non-physical world. A world that was a better place. A place that was dreamt on in the harsh every day life. With cyberspace we can draw links to this point of view. While the non-physical world was after life, something you only could dream off and look forward to, today’s non-physical world is something you can enter whenever you want.

The Middle Ages is called the dark years for many reasons, but one of the most important one is the power of the church and the “death” of individuality. It was God in the centre, not the individual. The peasants were told that if you live right you would come to a better place after life. That to have another life to looking forward to was a relief for many. A place you could imagine in your own head, a place where no one could reach. You could decide over your own life. This belief exist also today, but not in such a big scale. We could say that cyberspace has taken over this role.

Cyberspace is a place where you can hide, and start all over again. You can be the person you always wanted to be. But in cyber world your body remains in the physical world. We can’t escape completely! Today we see many examples of people that have no real social life, but entering cyberspace you can start all over again. Many of these individuals use more time in cyberspace than in real life. Cyberspace has replaced it. Does the real life have too many rules and obstacles?
In reality cyberspace was just a “data space”, an exchange of information. Today, there are mostly a social interactions and communication. Therefore there are not a data space, but a cyberspace.


Herman

Technology has revolutionised the film industry. “Film-tricks” is a way to reproduce a happening without exactly does it “real time” It may be take to much time, be too expensive or to dangerous has to all times existed.

Today the film industry is using data technology in a bi scale to make incredible science. The whole point behind these tricks is to reproduce the reality as closely as possible. The search to reproduce reality has led us to the point we are today. Can we be sure that what we see on the screen is reality or not. Then the filmmakers have achieved their goal. This is also applies also for the game industry and television industry. The technology has reached far beyond what was thought to be possible. So why be critical to this?
Today the computer is called the “the final machine”. With this it is meant that any machine can be simulated and anything can be replicated. On film we accept that what we see is no reality. It does not mater if it is real or made on a computer. In the game world the content of the game is discussed. The games can fell to realistic towards violence. But today the biggest concern lies within the television medium. The content and images we get through news and research programs can be angled or simply made up. It can be ideological, political or economical views behind.

This is a dangerous threat to a democracy. Manipulating and propaganda is a well-known tool for the government in dictatorships. The television has a powerful place in the every day life. Television has over time become the main medium in our every day life. In the future manipulation on television will become intelligent more relevant when the technology becomes even more advanced. There for it is important that we today is aware of this danger.



Herman