Metaverse Meetup at Stanford...

Here I am waiting for the live video from the RL conference in Stanford to begin... I made sure I spared no expense and dutifully dressed for the occasion since I figured the lobby of the International Spaceflight Museum might look somewhat Posh-ish and plush.

***BREAKING NEWS FROM THE NEAR FUTURE!***

Tara5 Oh has just mentioned this blog posting in her massive blog posting :-)
Please click this link and scroll down about half-way down to read all about it.
Hey there Metaverse Minglers and Stanford and Sons,

Earlier this evening and on (calculated) impulse, I attended Stanford University's Metaverse Meetup session featuring an industry talk by Mike Liebhold from the Institute for the Future.

Here is Liebhold's official bio:

"Mike Liebhold is a Senior Researcher for the Institute for the Future, IFTF, focusing on the mobile and abundant computation, immersive media and geospatial web foundations for context-aware and ubiquitous computing. Previously, Mike has worked for an impressive array of companies including Intel Labs, Netscape Communications & Apple Computer..."

And here was what he discussed:

"Abstract 3D data, maps, and software will change the way we compute and interact with spatial services. Moving beyond simple texture mapped terrain and boxes, new 3D mapping frameworks are rapidly evolving into platforms for real world virtual world media, interaction, commerce, and science. In this talk I'll review work of various groups who are building different components of a 3D Geoweb. I will first describe how their 3D data and software will work as a platform for a 3D real world virtual world, and then, what kinds of new applications and user experiences might be developed on these platforms, and then finish with a brief discussion of prospects and mechanisms for data interoperability allowing users to create, discover, use, and exchange 3D data across platforms."

At any rate, I figured it was worth attending because I really enjoy the networking sessions before and after such events (for example, I made a new connection with Tara5 Oh from Ugotrade) and I sure learned alot from previous Stanford events hosted by Lys Ware (Henrik Bennetsen in RL)... But more importantly, who could resist a representative from an Institute from the Future...

Ok, Liebhold is officially billed as being from the Institute FOR the Future but really, if you really know that much about the future and represent it, you gotta also be FROM the future right? Am I the only person who did not catch onto this conspiracy theory? As a result of this insider knowledge, I was a bit disppapointed when he did not give me the exact date when virtual and actual worlds would meld into the ultimate augmented-reality convergence/singularity scenario since he obviously knows when it is all going to happen. I was hoping he would be honest and just mention December 21, 2012 since we all know that is the date for all of this future-stuff anyway ;-)

I think he may have willingly been keeping the exact date classified since there was something eerie about him... At times, he actually appeared to me as the quantum-based shapeshifter he really is and this means that he definitely is some sort of entity from the far future...This is waaaaaaaay cooler than all the hype about David Icke and the Reptoids from Mars (no, not the name of a punk rock band)! Please check out some of the pix below to see what I mean...

Ok, this specific pic does not show any evidence to support my pet conspiracy theory but what it does show is that I managed to invite my performance art colleague Blued Food to the event :-)

I guess this pic does not show you what I mean either...Hmmm...Am I good at setting up suspense or what? Heheheheheh... Well, at least the video-stream started and you can see Henrik Bennetsen in RL introducing our otherwordly guest speaker from the future. Also, you can see that I also managed to invite my SLNN correspondent contact, Esther DeCuir to cover this event - I am sure she will have much more intelligent and objective things to say about this highly academic and corporate Stanford event than I do.

Finally, here is the beginning of Mike's lecture where he tried his best to retain his early 21st century humanoid form. But as you will soon see, our present paradigm for what constitutes "humanity" will soon evolve into something much more "virtual" and "augmented".... Even at this point, you can see Mike's aura begin to flee his contemporary corporeal form...


I think it is pretty clear to you now that Mike Liebhold is not all that he seemed. He is either from some astral dimension or from a far (or perhaps not so far) future time where the virtual and the actual have already blended into some form of etherial post-humanity built for the quantum age....

In this picture, you can see his attempt to feign classical dualism by appearing as both a Humanoid and some form of spectral entity. It looks almost as if he is becoming one with the computer-generated diagram that has been mapped beside him.

Ah-Ha! Mike has become one with his diagram! Eureka! The prophecized union/fusion of virtual and actual realms has come to pass! The future is now!

I was glad that our beloved alien presenter was in his true form long enough for me to invite my artist friend, Netwurker Twin...What better way to generate ideas for performance collaboration(s) than to collectively witness the unveiling of consensual reality! I realized after the fact that I took a snapshot of my private message-exchange with Netwurker along with this viewpoint so I have replaced our private Netwurking conversation with a nice Op-Art graphic for you so the text revealing our classified collaborative performance ideas that we have colluded on together will forever remain bound with the secrets of the future... Only someone with inside-knowledge like Mike Liebhold will ever hold the key to our future proprietary secrets...