<!DOCTYPE html><html><head><title></title><style type="text/css">p.MsoNormal,p.MsoNoSpacing{margin:0}</style></head><body><div style="font-family:Arial;">another, I think relevant/interesting science fiction reference: Neal Stephenson's <i>Snow Crash</i>.<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">Not central to the novel, but central to scene settting for much of the action was a concept of a metaverse\u2014a single streeet 32,000 miles long) where the superstructure/infrastructure was paid for, hosted on servers owned by a (world?) government; the structure maintained by a non-profit (ACM in the novel); Buildings and neighborhoods by corporations; rooms and suites by smaller businesses and affinity organizations; and smaller buildings/rooms by effectively any group or individual.<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">Always struck me as a not unreasonable approach to creating a metaverse, one free from the insidious and evil intent of some entyty like Meta.<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">davew<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">On Tue, Aug 23, 2022, at 7:41 AM, glen wrote:<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> This is an interesting take on AR I hadn't really thought of:<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> Sanas, the buzzy Bay Area startup that wants to make the world sound <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> whiter<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> <a href="https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/sanas-startup-creates-american-voice-17382771.php">https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/sanas-startup-creates-american-voice-17382771.php</a><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> And a voice modifier from a different company here: <a href="https://koe.ai/recast/">https://koe.ai/recast/</a><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> This post brings home the implications of such:<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> Does the rise of the Metaverse mean the decline of cities?<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> <a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/ideas/agora/2022/08/rise-metaverse-mark-zuckerberg-decline-cities">https://www.newstatesman.com/ideas/agora/2022/08/rise-metaverse-mark-zuckerberg-decline-cities</a><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> Do we want our "public spaces" (e.g. cities) to be owned by singular <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> corporations? Olympia (where I live) is already bad enough, mostly <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> renters, most of the downtown rental properties owned by a single <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> family. We're inching ever so slowly to Plato's Philosopher King, <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> except any benevolence of the King is a mere (and sporadic) side-effect <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> of the primary motive: profit. This seems, to me, strongly analogous to <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> the grifters who call pretending to be "Agent Bob Jones" or whatever <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> from the IRS trying to steal money from me in the form of Walmart gift <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> cards. I know several of my similarly aged peers who talk loudly and <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> often about their rental houses, usually, since I'm surrounded by <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> liberals now, bragging about how they keep the rent low and try to <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> provide a good place for the renters to live. This altruism-washing of <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> their rent-seeking behavior is way too similar to disguising an East <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> Indian voice to sound more white. Is it really any less dystopian if <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> you're the one on top?<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> It's interesting that I don't mind the loss of possible <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> contact/engagement with some people because they rely solely on <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> Facebook (Instagram, Zoom, or whatever) for their networking. Most <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> breweries and music venues up here use Instagram as their primary <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> announcement forum. The result? I don't know about them. So I'm much <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> less likely to engage. That's fine. More time to think <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> <<a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35901414/">https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35901414/</a>>. I'm "this close" to <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> quitting LinkedIn, too:<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> People Are Flooding LinkedIn With Strange Stories. We\u2019re Calling Them <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> Broetry.<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ryanmac/why-are-these-posts-taking-over-your-linkedin-feed-because">https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ryanmac/why-are-these-posts-taking-over-your-linkedin-feed-because</a><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> We really do need honest *public* spaces, even if you hate "socialism". <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> The internet is a public utility and should be treated that way. And <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> governments should devote some of our tax monies to <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> corporation-independent social network platforms. Mastodon would be <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> perfect for that.<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> -- <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> \ua66e M\u0265\u01ddu \u01ddl\u01ddd\u0265\u0250u\u0287s \u025f\u1d09\u0183\u0265\u0287' \u0287\u0265\u01dd \u0183\u0279\u0250ss sn\u025f\u025f\u01dd\u0279s\u02d9 \ua66e<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> -. --- - / ...- .- .-.. .. -.. / -- --- .-. ... . / -.-. --- -.. .<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv<br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> Fridays 9a-12p Friday St. Johns Cafe / Thursdays 9a-12p Zoom <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> <a href="https://bit.ly/virtualfriam">https://bit.ly/virtualfriam</a><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> to (un)subscribe <a href="http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com">http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com</a><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> FRIAM-COMIC <a href="http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/">http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/</a><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> archives: 5/2017 thru present <br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> <a href="https://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/">https://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/</a><br></div><div style="font-family:Arial;">> 1/2003 thru 6/2021 <a href="http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/">http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/</a><br></div></body></html>