Earth Primbee gets Metaphysical: An analogy of worlds, real and virtual

One of the most interesting Twitter exchanges in recent memory began when Aussie virtual artist Nonnatus Korhonen (aka Andrew Burrell) responded to one of my blatherings with "the ultimate divide between the virtual and the real surely remains one of semantics?" I responded: "The virtual/real divide seems less so for those of us who inhabit virtual worlds. How to make the concept less abstract for non VW users?" to which Austin artist Earth Primbee then responded, "to make VWs less abstract, I use the soul or mind to body analogy. Since all physical input is electric signals anyway." How could I resist? I persuaded Earth to tell us more. - Bettina Tizzy


by Earth Primbee

We've all grappled with creating a "It's like this" reference to explain what Second Life® is like. How do you explicate a concept so abstract to someone who has never experienced a virtual world? To many, the 2D representation of “real world” fiction and non-fiction called Television is all the virtual world they will ever need; their ability to understand what a 3D persistent virtual world looks and feels like is on par with that of another dimension.

In my own journey in life I have sought to understand our existence. I have asked myself questions like “Why are we here? What is all this stuff about souls and how does it relate to me? Why are we so creative? Why do we care about anything? What’s the point to all this?”

There are many answers to these questions. More than we know even today. On the way, I feel I’ve stumbled upon a perspective that might help all of us in different ways.

The analogy is “Logging into a virtual world using your computer to connect to your avatar, is like your soul logging into your mind to connect to your body.”


Earth Primbee, real and virtual (Photos by Earth Primbee)

Body/Avatar

First Life
Our body is our physical avatar in first life. It is the outward version of us that everyone sees. We dress it up, we change it, and we derive a great deal of our well being from the condition it is in.

Second Life
Our avatar is our physical body in Second Life. It is also the outward version of ourselves that everyone sees. We have much more control over our appearance, and judging by the importance we place on our bodies in first life, it is no surprise that one of the most commonly enjoyed activities in Second Life is customizing our avatar. Just as in first life, there is an entire industry devoted to changing our appearance.

Mind/Computer

First Life
Our mind is our living personal computer. It records and caches our memories, manages our body's sensory information, and even takes care of a lot of tasks concerning our body that we are often unaware of such as breathing and processing food. As far as the mind is concerned, everything we sense is just an electric signal with meaning.

Second Life
Our mechanical technology: a personal computer, network, and server space provide, record, and process sensory information, and then transmit this information to and from our existence inside the grid. It provides us with our view of a virtual "reality" in all its color and detail and sounds. Without it, we'd be unable to control our avatars or understand what’s going on around them. We'd be cut off from ourselves. Just like the automated processes of our first life minds, our computers and scripts handle a lot of tasks we'd find way too tedious to manage manually. Apart from our emotional experiences, everything we sense is processed by our computer.

Soul/First life "you"

First Life
Our soul is the pure us. I believe is our true nature and that it is connected to our mind and body through a means we have yet to discover. What form our soul actually takes is scientifically unknown but as I ponder the nature of first life and Second Life, I believe that I have formed a reasonable illustration of how the three parts of us relate to each other.

Second Life
When I sit down at my computer and log into Second Life, I am my soul connecting to my mind to my body. My avatar is my physical body. My computer is my sensory and information storage center relating to my life in my body (avatar). I exist both inside and outside of Second Life at the same time.

This is the reason I believe we take so well to these worlds. It makes sense to us in a way we don’t fully comprehend. Imagine if you were an avatar with no memory of being connected to the physical you. In the future, our immersion in virtual worlds will likely reach a point of realism that matches the capability of our physical senses. Will we sometimes forget that we were logged into anything? Why would we believe that there is anything more to our lives than our avatar’s existence?

One of the most difficult parts of discovering “the big picture” is our inability to see our world from outside the box. Each of us is wrapped in a cocoon of comfort and discomfort assembled over the years of a life. What we have seen often dictates what we will see. Many people find it difficult, for example, to imagine a creator setting all things into motion. To think that the world in which we live, in all its vastness and complexity, is without purpose is very similar - in my mind - to thinking that Second Life was developed by no one.

As I walk around and experience things in Second Life, the emotions and memories flow from the grid, to my computer, and as I observe all of this sitting at my desk I grow and change based on my experiences. I form close bonds with people, I create things in the world, and I even amass wealth and business connections.

Just about everything from first life save the experiences of touch, taste and our bodily functions, are present in the Second Life experience. Just like first life, it is up to you to chart the course of a life that evolves and gets better. And believe me, we are much more newbies in real life when we start than we'll ever be in Second Life.

If God is the creator of first life, at some point he coded the base logic that allows the fabric of space to exist. He created physics. He coded the most amazingly dynamic environment ever: the universe. On day one, he turned on the server and through the “big bang” brought up the "grid" of existence. Our universe resolved and expanded into the form we see today, a seemingly infinite expanse of diversity in texture, shape, and size.

Much as Linden Lab, the company that develops Second Life, make changes to the fundamental structures and how we perceive and understand them, perhaps God also alters the fabric of reality upon request. People sure do talk a lot about prayer and we certainly cry to the Lindens to change this or that. This is perhaps one of the best ways to understand why some become so passionate about their second lives that they attack the Lindens with insults, ridicule, or sing their praises. I'm quite certain however, that God has been taken to task many million times more than the Lindens.


Virtual Maritime Pine and Wild Mountain Pine. Copyright (c) Dolly and Lilith Heart 2008


Trees in real life, as photographed by Earth Primbee

Take a look at a tree in Second Life, and look at a tree in first life to begin to grasp the awesome creative power that could be behind it all. A look at the scripts associated with our avatars in Second Life and those of our real life genetic code reveals a similar understanding that we are creating in the same way we may have been created. Our computers are models of ourselves and our virtual worlds are models of the creation.

Drifting further into thought, one can even imagine hell as being stuck in Second Life as an avatar with no governing body to turn to for changes; a grid that is an autonomous self replicating chaotic evolution machine. I can even imagine avatars denying the existence of their true "user" selves claiming that since Second Life is the only life, they might as well live it up till they log out for the final time and are banned from ever logging in again.

When we do log out of first life for the last time and physically die, I believe we will carry our experiences onward to our new state of being just as if we quit one virtual world for another. We likely won't have the same kind of relationships or exist in the same social and physical boundaries we've known all our first lives. We'll have a new existence flavored with the color of our experiences on earth. Ultimately our love for others is not dependent on the physical world and transcends it no matter the structure. The person is not the body or the avatar.

These realizations and understandings of our reality would not have been possible without virtual worlds. Second Life, in particular, has helped me in this quest for wisdom due to the "anything you can imagine" nature of the environment. It has also helped me to realize that most of the problems on planet earth are created by mankind. The majority of our stresses and burdens are man made. You can take human out of reality, but you can't take the reality out of human. Wherever humans go, they carry the best and worst of themselves along for the ride no matter what world they live in.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the read and are better equipped for future discussions on virtual worlds like Second Life and maybe even First Life.


Earth Primbee is, among many other things, an active member of the NPIRL working group, a talented machinimator, and a co-creator of the much loved Second Life classic: Inspire Space Park (teleport directly from here).

evets Igaly - R.I.P.

We received some sad news via Earth Primbee, co-owner and creator of Inspire Park. He just learned that his virtual friend, Second Life® resident evets Igaly (rez: 4/12/2007) died of a heart attack a few days ago.

evets loved to create particle shows. "His performance to the music was right on. Dancing to the music with ethereal lights he drew us deeper into the sounds. He didn't make all his particles, but he used all of them so well," said Earth.



In tribute, Earth created this video and wrote:

This beloved man, friend and artist was one of the stars of an online music and visual event. His work was as dear to us as he was and I dedicate this video to his time on the surface of Planet Earth.

The beautiful song in this video is "Butterflies and Fairytales" by Galaxy Girl. She graciously granted permission for me to include it with this work.

To me, the combination captures the spirit of evets's love for his art, his friends, and our love for him. Many of us only knew him through Second Life, but that was enough to know his soul.

Earth created a dedicated Flickr group for friends to add all photos related to evets.

Earth Primbee's reaction to Linden Lab's revamped policy on Openspaces

Earth Primbee is, among many other things, a NPIRLer, a talented machinimator, and a co-creator of the much loved and spacy Inspire Space Park (teleport directly from here). After reading Mark Kingdon's (Linden Lab's CEO) latest missive on the Second Life blog regarding revised policies for Openspaces, Earth wrote this guest blogpost, which reflects his opinions of the situation.


by Earth Primbee

I'll be the first to admit sometimes you don't know you have a problem until it blows up in your face. In the case of "openspace" regions in Second Life®, it hit me like a ton of bricks. I had no real concept of the amount of these regions that were in use by residents. I did know that my obligations to keep Inspire Space Park alive prohibited me from having any private land of substantial size to build my "home" on. I rented around the grid and lived in some great communities. Ultimately however, I found myself wanting more space and less stuff.

When a good friend of mine bought two of these style regions and offered half of one to me I jumped at the chance! I gladly accepted the prim limits and ended up building a nice natural area with a submarine to live in under the water. It worked out perfect for me and my share of the tier was comfortable enough to endure for some time. We had maybe 4 people max in this space at once for the months I lived there. I was very happy!! It seemed like a perfect product. I suppose it is true that some things are too good to be true.

When the first proposed changes came out and seemed so set in stone I was pissed!!! I know I wasn't alone, but the main problem I believe was the perceived lack of concern for how this would affect my fellow residents and I but mostly I. Coupled with the "abuse" connotation as justification for the changes this was quite enough to motivate a red alert. There was no way I could afford the tier increase let alone the estate owner.

I and many others expressed through various ways other changes that could accomplish the same goal as the proposal. Judging by today's announcement, it looks like our voices have been heard. I do understand the technical challenges faced by a virtual world of this size and complexity. Nothing is ever easy and everything takes a lot more work than anyone who hasn't seen under the hood can imagine.

It is good to see this new direction. To see feedback heard, considered, and acted upon. I don't know if I will be able to afford the July 2009 price increase but I do suspect that many who haven't already dropped their openspace regions may now hold on to them. I can say I'd be much more likely to purchase a homestead than a private island unless my $ituation substantially changes.

This situation reminded me so much of my last virtual life in another virtual world before Second Life. I'd placed all my virtual eggs in one basket and that meant that any changes to this world became very personal. It is VERY important to remember that these worlds contain people who just like in Real Life become emotionally entrenched and attached to places and things they love and create. When you mess with that, you are messing with people's emotions. This is why such fiery backlashes such as we have seen flare up. It is not just a bunch of pixels that have no meaning. It is part of people's lives and in a lot of cases their business!

Following this line, I do wonder if I branched out to other virtual worlds would I be less apt to cry foul if major changes happened in one or the other. An international corporation has many advantages over a company that solely exists in one country. Even a stock portfolio spread out in multiple markets and companies has some advantages. So the real point I want Linden Labs to remember is actions like this openspace situation, feel a lot like a "taxation without representation" kind of thing. It shakes people and sometimes wakes them up to a reality they didn't see before for better or worse. This is why you see people rushing off to other worlds and looking for alternatives to the unacceptable situation they are faced with cause when will this happen again? How long till another unacceptable situation comes up that they have no input on?

I applaud them for taking a moment to step back and listen to what people are saying but more so for taking real action to attempt to bridge the gap. Despite what has occurred that is a good sign that the customer is important. If Linden Labs stays true to the goal of bringing the community input into decisions and problems like this one, it will go a long way to reestablish trust. People put so much into this world they deserve to have input. Our creations are only as fantastic as people believe they are. Without people believing in your world, you will find it empty very fast.

When I came to Second Life, I told myself "never again" will I become so caught up in a single virtual world that it will hurt me if it suddenly changes. Well I did! The community of Second Life and the power of thousands of full time developers working alongside thousands of part time developers is intoxicating and a wonder to behold. The concept to creation ratio is higher than I have ever experienced. I rarely find myself saying I wish the "devs" would make this or that because I can do it myself. This Openspace region issue was one of those rare times when I wished the Second Life "devs" would do something different. It looks like they are. I appreciate that and no matter what other worlds I take part in, as long as they keep that up, I will maintain a presence in Second Life.

Inspire Space Park - A Second Life classic

Fifty years ago today, United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act into existence. This landmark act led to the formation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, better known as NASA. Now France is urging the EU to expand its own space exploration program, with possible missions to the Moon and Mars.

While we can't compete with Wired's fascinating and/or hilarious compilation this week of science and NASA-related news items, or Popular Mechanics' look at the future of space, the occasion invites a celebration of our own... a tribute, if you will, to one of the best loved spots on the grid, and the most cosmic one I can think of, Inspire Space Park.



We've only mentioned it once before here, so caught up are we with new things. In fact, it was the third post ever on this blog, back when Not Possible IRL was nothing more than a repository for in-world notices.

That notice read, simply, "So there you are, on a date in-world with your hunny... you are sitting in a convertible muscle car on the beach, watching a dubbed Japanese sci-fi flick.... hmm, nothing too unreal here...



...but what's that up there in the sky? TP up for an out-of-world experience... not even the astronauts could lay claim to this sorta thing."


That's me as Marie Antoinette, in orbit

And yes, it is still possible to sit in a convertible Impala at Inspire Beach's drive-in, watching 1950s sci-fi movies where people are still polite with each other while the world is coming to an end.

Inspire Space Park - just 200 meters up - is a place many of us choose to teleport to when we need to relax. Their traffic yesterday was 35,490, and while it is still wildly popular with the newish "I'm a club VIP" types sporting the tags of their first in-world groups, it is a frequent stomping ground for oldbies dating back to 2004 and 2005, and that's saying a lot. Surprisingly, even when dozens of avatars are present, it doesn't feel crowded.

Inspire is so much more than just a cosmic space station where the creators have rezzed some vivid planets and meteors and brilliant asteroid belts, and tossed in a chill music stream.

Earth Primbee (rez: 6/20/2006) and his partners, Grafx Newbold (rez: 7/10/2006), and Raphael Cremorne (rez: 10/28/2006), have thoughtfully created spaces and rezzed items for people to share quiet IMed conversations, or interact with each other in a serene and peaceful way. Couples can even orbit together in a gentle embrace.


There are always several people practicing Tai Chi together

Or you can simply take in the view, quietly, along with several others.




Nearby, the newer Inspire Dance Planet hosts concerts with musicians such as Voicedude Renoir (see Earth Primbee's vid on Massively), Nuvolino Roffo, and someone I like especially, Cypress Rosewood, as seen in this Machinima by Earth Primbee.


Earth's Machinima have been featured on Wired online, NASA WATCH, and the International Spaceflight Museum blog, to mention a few websites, including this blog

Speaking for myself, a visit to Inspire Space Park always makes me think about space exploration and wonder what the future holds.




See also:
* Hamlet Au at New World Notes got super inspired and did a sweet feature story on Inspire Space Park, in which he reveals how the Inspire Parks came to be.
* Megaprims for Science


Inspire Beach (teleport directly from here)
Inspire Space Park (teleport directly from here)

Earth Primbee's Machinima - Using virtual environments to benefit Real Life

One of NPIRL's charter members, builder of the much admired Inspire Drive-In and Inspire Space Park, dreamer and machinima maker Earth Primbee, alerted us to two new vids he's created. Here are instances where Second Life's virtual environments accomplish things that would not be possible in real life, but also turn right around to benefit the real world.

NASA CoLab

"It is especially important when considering science and technology to seek the potential as much as the present value in new ideas," said Earth. "So many great things in our lives are a result of ideas born at the edge of "that's impossible" or "that's ridiculous." It is my hope that this video will not only encourage NASA's efforts to harness the power of virtual worlds, but help the world see how it will and does benefit everyone."

"The Narrows" song by Broet

Earth told us that he's been experimenting with using prims as an alternative to traditional lighting instruments in Second Life for some time. He added, "the band Broet knew I loved to create music video style clips. They asked me to throw something together for a show they had coming up in Austin, TX. I decided to push my lighting prims to the limit and really see what I could do. This video is a combination of some of the clips I produced in Second Life that I projected behind the band during the live performance in real life. I thought their song was perfect for the mood of the NASA CoLab video and ties the two examples of the uses of Second Life together."

It's alright Ma, I'm only NPIRL'ing

This notice issued in-world to the NPIRL group on August 31, 2007:

REZZABLE!
If you aren't familiar with it yet, here's the crash course on
Rezzable Productions:
* An entertainment company developing 2 million square meters of sim space
* Founder and owner is Jim Himoff, known in SL as RightasRain Rimbaud
* Rezzable is currently hiring builders/content creators
* By now you've likely been to three Rezzable sims: Greenies, Toxic and the Cannery

NPIRL COMMUNITY STUFF
* Burning Life - You in? If so, we want to know. Please contact Bettina Tizzy.
* A NPIRL Social?
Several of you have expressed an interest in meeting each other and networking. Let me know if this sounds like something you'd like to do? I wouldn't even contemplate doing a monthly event until we had one successful session under our belts.

THIS WEEK'S FEATURES

Let's DANCE!

MOVE IT!
Easy Babcock, creator of the first-rate motion-captured (working with RL pro-dancers) Sine Wave danceloops, just joined NPIRL and so becomes our first animator member. We have urged him to make us some NPIRL fantasy loops... fingers crossed :) Easy tells us that he hopes to collaborate with other leading creators to integrate new animations into quality builds in the not-too-distant-future.
Sine Wave Island

MUSIC: Can it ever be considered NPIRL?
Aldomanutio Abruzzo,composer of the etheral/supernal tracks that have accompanied many of our favorite builds (Blink-Juria Yoshikawa; Flowerball - Douglas Story and Desdemona Enfield; Full Immersion - DanCoyote Antonelli) doesn't think so. Aldo, I beg to differ :P To me, your sounds convey every sort of color and shade and emotion one might expect in an otherwordly environment.

DISCO GONE GREENIE
Zero G is the new disco at the Greenies site (from the Rezzable peeps and built by NPIRL'ers LittleToe Bartlett and Pavig Lok). Events on Monday nights only for the time being. Greenies doesn't allow direct tp's, so you have to go to the main site, then take a teleport or the bottle rocket - Little think's the rocket is especially fun - up to the Mothership.
Greenies Home Rezzable

SPACEY DANCING
* We've mentioned Inspire Space Park before... Earth Primbee's wildly popular - and deservedly so - spacey frolic.
Inspire Space Park
* The Galaxy Dome (Spaceport Bravo) is an offbeat, whimsical space globe that is part of the International Spaceflight Museum.
Galaxy Dome Music Venue

IN THE CLOUDS...
To my friends it is no secret. If I am hiding, I'm likely to be found whirling at the Particle Lab's Cloud Chateau, happily lost in IM's or simply blissing out. As dancing venues go, the Cloud Chateau is NPIRL in the extreme, but keep in mind that it is strictly BYOC (bring your own chimera). Jopsy Pendragon may be swamped in both of his lives, but no matter how often I visit, there are always new, luscious particle surprises.
The Cloud Chateau

FANTASY FURNITURE and JEWELRY
"Second Life is not meant to replace Real Life. It isn't an imitation of Real Life. Second Life stands alone on it's own merit as a separate dimension, rich in dreams and beauty." So said Gwen Carillon, as she championed the NPIRL concept on her blog.
If you are looking to furnish a fantasy build, Gwen's heavenly Elements in Design store is a dependable source. I am proud to own several of her creations.
Elements in Design

VIRTUAL Reality's Daddy
Jaron Lanier, the founder of VPL back in 1984 - the first company to market VR products - and also the man who popularized the phrase "virtual reality," opened an SL account in January 2004 but never went on to develop his presence here. Is he playing WoW instead?

WELCOME new NPIRL members (in order of appearance):
Aldomanutio Abruzzo
Sugar Seville
Gwen Carillon
DanCoyote Antonelli
Easy Babcock
Masami Kuramoto
Eladon Galsworthy
Adam Ramona

At the drive-in

So there you are, on a date in-world with your hunny... you are sitting in a convertible muscle car on the beach, watching a dubbed Japanese sci-fi flick.... hmmmm nothing too unreal here, but what's that up there in the sky? TP up there for an out of world experience... not even the astronauts could lay claim to this sorta thing. Yes, it's funky, but fun... and still good for that date, I might add.

Inspire Beach n Chill Park


~Creator Earth Primbee has since joined the group.~

Notice originally sent to the NPIRL group on July 5, 2007