Since Mark Zuckerberg rebranded Facebook as Meta, many people consider the metaverse the future; but how will it change day-to-day life?
Metaverse is the next evolution of social connection and 3D spaces created for people to socialize, learn, collaborate and play in ways that go beyond what we can imagine, according to Meta’s webpage.
Phylis West-Johnson, a San Jose State professor and director of SJSU’s School of Journalism and Mass Communications, who is also a virtual and augmented technologies researcher, said metaverse is universal.
“[Metaverse] isn’t just one world, there’s multiple virtual worlds out there and they all contribute to a larger metaverse,” West-Johnson said in a Zoom call.
She said technology lends itself to “good and bad consequences” and people may question the metaverse because they fear technology, but the controversy isn’t new.
“Most companies are experimenting with virtual reality. The 2D-version was what Second Life was and then companies including Sansar introduced 3D,” West-Johnson said. “People use these worlds to supplement their real life.”
Second Life is an immersive digital platform introduced in 2003 where users build worlds, create art and buy and sell digital goods including art pieces, clothing and cars. This isn’t too different from metaverse, according to a Jan. 27 Wired article.
Wired publishes information about how technology is changing aspects of life from culture and business to science and design, according to its webpage.
Yingjie Liu, lead instructional designer of eCampus, said metaverse is virtual and augmented realities combined.
eCampus advances the effective use of current technologies to cultivate excellence in teaching and foster student learning at the university, according to SJSU’s eCampus webpage.
“From the learning perspective, you put on goggles and you are immersed in this simulated environment,” Liu said in a Zoom call. “Augmented reality combines the digital and physical worlds, for example Pokémon Go, where you still see your surroundings but you see those digital avatars in your world.”
Pokémon Go is a free smartphone app that combines gaming with the real world. It uses location tracking and mapping technology to create augmented reality where players catch and train pokémon characters in real locations, according to its webpage.
Liu said virtual reality can help students because there are applications using these immersive technologies in education.
“Imagine nursing medical students in a virtual environment where they can conduct safe science labs. Virtual reality creates a safe space and innovative way of learning,” Liu said. “[Art students] can paint in 3D and engineering students can design and print their creation using a 3D printer. History students can tell stories and reveal scenarios in virtuality and put readers into the story scene. It’s an experience for both the creator and the learner.”
She said students can learn more by collaborating in virtual reality spaces rather than Zoom interactions in classes.
“[Students] put on their headset or [they] can join just web based through a computer and interact with others in a more social friendly [manner],” Liu said. “[Students] may learn through visualization and this helps them navigate through their research on a topic.”
West-Johnson also shared this sentiment and said people join these virtual spaces because it enhances teaching methods.
“[Metaverse] is a cool way to teach and engage students; it's a better version of a Zoom lecture,” West-Johnson said. “People create their avatars and they engage better with others when they see similar avatars.”
Digital Arts junior Sharon Tran, who interned for SuperWorld, said the metaverse seems futuristic and “something you see in movies” but it’s an experience that people should try.
SuperWorld is a virtual world in which users can buy, sell, collect and curate more than 64 billion plots of virtual land, according to its webpage.
Tran said she helped redesign the mobile and web platform of SuperWorld and make user experience better.
“I strongly believe [metaverse] is the future,” Tran said in a Zoom call.
After learning about the metaverse through her internship, she said she realized the importance and benefits of virtual worlds.
“I recommend [people] do their research…[the metaverse is] a gateway [for the future],” Tran said.
