From: Nick Bostrom (nick.bostrom@yale.edu)
Date: Sun Sep 17 2000 - 23:13:45 MDT
[Non-member submission]
Christian Weisgerber wrote:
>Nick Bostrom <nick.bostrom@yale.edu> wrote:
>
> > I'm planning to talk about virtual reality: how teleworking may
become
> > popular when VR gets good enough that you can get those social
> > interactions with office mates that seem to be so essential.
>I'm a bit involved in the Open Source scene. (From what I read on
>this list I gather that for most participants here the Open Source
>movement is rather obscure.) Collaborative projects there are
>typically developed by teleworking only. Social interaction in
>the flesh just isn't an option, so it works without.
Yes, but apart from software development, teleworking is still uncommon.
It's worth noting that the stereotypical programmer is not exactly known
for his sociability - I wonder if that might be part of the
explanation?
Academics also telework sometimes. During the Kosovo war, I was
corresponding and co-authoring a paper with a Serbian physicist, whom I
have not yet met in flesh. Except for the days he had to take time off
to attend to the wounded, this seemed to work quite well. And yet I
still find that there is something especially stimulating and effective
about a face-to-face conversation.
I wonder why there are not more intellectual discussions over the phone.
Theoretically, people on this list for example ought to be calling each
other and bouncing ideas off each other all the time. Why don't we? It
isn't that expensive. I have many interests in common with Robin or Hal
for instance, yet I have never called either of them. Why? Maybe it is a
fear of intruding. Email is a less intrusive and more relaxing way of
achieving approximately the same end.
This suggests that part of what makes the in-flesh communication link
effective is that one can easily see when the other is ready converse.
You know that they are not absorbed in a book or just coming out of the
shower. They are in the conference room or at the restaurant because
they are ready to socialize. Also, the settings provide a shared
context, which helps the parties agree on the right mode and topic for
the conversation. Maybe a VR-world would have to replicate these
ingredients in order to fully match the flesh-world as forum and a work
place.
Nick Bostrom
Department of Philosophy
Yale University
Personal Homepage: http://www.nickbostrom.com
Email: nick@nickbostrom.com
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