Welcome to Cyberspace, the Birthplace of the New You

As I begin to write this paper about whose imagined future of the Internet and its effect on our lives is more accurate, I come to an impasse; I cannot connect to the Internet. Yes, I could definitely write the paper without the use of the World Wide Web, but the fact that it isn't there if I should need it makes me nervous. I need to be able to have access to the Internet, the technology that ties everyone and everything together. It made me think about how dependent on the Internet I will be in 5 years if I freak out without it now. Tim Wu and William Gibson describe how they perceive our future and the Internet in The Master Switch and Neuromancer, respectively. Their imagined futures are rather far-fetched, but they are worlds that are not impossible.

"The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that...serve billions of users worldwide" (Internet). It consists of millions of private, public, academic, business, and government networks that are all linked together. Today, the Internet can do anything and everything. It is "the new home of Mind" (Barlow). That quote, made by John Barlow in 1996, is from his manifesto, A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace. It was a pronouncement that the Internet was outside any country's borders and therefore there was no government that could apply laws to it. It is a "world that is both everywhere and nowhere, but it is not where bodies live" (Barlow). This world of communication and "civilization of the Mind" cannot be contained by a set of laws.

John Barlow

"The Internet by 2010 had become a fledgling universal network of all types of data: phone calls, video and television, data, a potential replacement for every single information industry of the twentieth century" (Wu 256). The Internet has become so much more than anyone could have ever imagined. But is it becoming too connected? Tim Wu thinks so. He believes we should apply what he calls a Separations Principle to the many information industries of society. This principle would create a "salutary distance between each of the major functions or layers in the information economy" (Wu 304). It is a system of checks and balances, without government intervention, that prevents a monopoly from arising. The Internet would be an exception to this principle, however. It is not controlled by anyone and there are very few substitutes for it. You can't check every function of the Internet; it is so massive. And what of the Declaration of Independence of Cyberspace? It is impossible for anyone to make laws in a world that is as infinite as the mind allows it to be.

Everything is backed by money and power. In the world of information industries it's about gaining as much money and power and keeping it as long as possible. It is why the major companies such as Google and Microsoft buy out smaller competing companies because they want their potentially profitable ideas for their own. For this reason, the Separations Principle will not work. This principle is creating a cartel and sooner or later someone's selfish desires are going to ruin the agreement set forth. Even if such a body of checks and balances were to come about it would be short-lived. The information technologies of the twentieth century are becoming more and more obsolete. The Internet can do everything that the many information industries of television, film, and mobile devices must do separately. The companies of the many information industries strive to maximize profits. Conversely, consumers want to spend as little money as possible. The only costs for Internet use are to Internet Service Providers (ISPs). Once connected, the whole Cyberspace world is at your fingertips. Consumers are going to want to use the cheaper, more immersive Internet rather than the more expensive, separate technologies. It is only a matter of time before the Internet literally becomes an immersive experience similar to the one described in William Gibson's Neuromancer.

Ultima Online

Even today, we begin to see the stepping stones of a virtual, immersive Cyberspace. There are millions of people who play dozens of massively multiplayer online role-playing games - MMORPGs (Dibbell 11). The virtual game world is one where people escape to so they can be whoever they want to be. Even in 1996 Barlow saw what the Internet truly was; "a world that all may enter without privilege or prejudice accorded by race, economic power, military force, or station of birth...where anyone, anywhere may express his or her beliefs, no matter how singular, without fear of being coerced into silence or conformity" (Barlow). As technology advances, it is possible for us to physically enter these virtual game worlds and physically be there as opposed to clicking a mouse. For those who are not avid MMORPG players, there is a similar program that could lead to immersion. "Video chat" programs such as Skype are ones that connect two or more people via a video feed that creates the illusion of being face-to-face. We prefer this type of technology because we can see who we are talking to. Cisco Telecommunications has products similar to this designed for the business world. "To deliver an immersive collaborative environment with an in person experience, the Cisco TelePresence System 3010 allows 6 people to connect with up to 48 locations" (Cisco). In the description it is defined as an immersive experience. It won't be long before MMORPGs and video chat programs lead to a 3-Dimensional Cyberspace that users physically enter.

However, I cannot see humans wanting to have a "cord" stuck into the back of their heads to enter this Cyberspace world like the way Gibson describes. Rather, I can see a system similar to the one created in James Cameron's Avatar. A person lies in a link system that connects their nervous system with an avatar in the cyberspace world. I am extremely curious as to what happens to someone who would get "lost" or even die in this Cyberspace world. Do they die in real life as well? Or is it similar to Christopher Nolan's Inception where someone falls into "limbo" and is lost forever? It is almost like creating a second, parallel universe. How that universe connects to the real one we have now will be something that will be difficult to grasp and even define.

Even at the dawn of the Internet's use, Gibson realized that we would be completely dependent on the Internet in the future. We rely on the Internet every day. Either through computers, smart phones, or iPads, our dependence on the Internet has grown. This addiction comes to the public's eye today in Egypt. The Egyptian government decided to block all Internet traffic in response to protests. This has only created more protests. "Egypt's government must return Internet access to the country...or perhaps suffer massive economic damage, as banks and other economic institutions return to work without the ability to conduct commerce" (Rothman). We have put too much reliance on the Internet; almost everything is connected through it. Our economies depend on it to continue to expand and grow. We seem to love our Internet so much that we cannot live without it at all times.

In a previous blog post, I said that we must use our technology appropriately without becoming dependent. This is a difficult concept to put forth, but if we don't we will lose sight of what is real and what is not. It seems that if we continue down the path that we are currently on, our conception of reality and fantasy will become blurred. I am afraid that our world will become exactly like the one in Inception. We will be unable to tell the difference between the real world we live in and the fake one we have created in our minds. We will need "totems" to be able to distinguish in what world we are living. The Internet has been a blessing that has opened up a vast number of doors for advancement and connection, but with every new great technology comes dangerous side effects.

totem from Inception

After about a half hour, I was able to connect to the school's network and writing came easier. I used the Internet sparingly but the fact that I had it if necessary made it easier to write my thoughts. The dependence on constant connectedness is one I feel will never decrease, but rather increase exponentially until Gibson's vision of a "consensual hallucination" (Gibson 5) is a reality. Will the Internet continue to be a phenomenon that allows for infinite ideas or will it become a disaster that ruins everyone and everything? Only time will tell.

Works Cited
Barlow, John P. "A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace." Web. 13 Feb. 2011. <https://projects.eff.org/~barlow/Declaration-Final.html>.
"Cisco TelePresence System 3010 - Cisco Systems." Cisco Systems, Inc. Web. 13 Feb. 2011. <http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps10753/index.html>.
Dibbell, Julian. Play Money: Or, How I Quit My Day Job and Made Millions Trading Virtual Loot. New York, NY: Basic, 2006. Print.
Gibson, William. Neuromancer. New York: Ace, 1994. Print.
"Internet." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 13 Feb. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet>.
Rothman, Wilson. "Net-less Egypt May Face Economic Doom Monday." Technolog. 28 Jan. 2011. Web. 13 Feb. 2011. <http://technolog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/01/28/5942650-net-less-egypt-may-face-economic-doom-monday?ocid=twitter>.
Wu, Tim. The Master Switch: the Rise and Fall of Information Empires. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2010. Print.