Three Kittens Deconstruct Virtual Reality
Author: Frank (Huixin) Ren
What is Virtual? What is Reality?
Philosopher Chalmers, in his 2022 discourse, introduced a perspective on the concepts of virtuality and reality, ingeniously using three kittens as a central metaphor in his definition of 'virtual'. We know that a toy kitten is not a real kitten, but it is a real entity that exists in our physical world, independently of our minds and has causal powers. We could call a toy kitten as a simulation of a real kitten, instead of a virtual kitten. The same goes for a 3D model kitten created in 3D software. This digital entity, realized through silicon technology, can be seen and interacted with on computer screens and VR headsets. Though not a real kitten, it too exists in our physical world as a real onject just as the toy kitten does.
According to Chalmers, both kittens are simulations of real kittens. A real kitten in the real world could also be a simulation as well, as we can't definitively know if our world is a simulation of a higher-dimensional reality. Even if our reality is a simulation, it is real within that higher-dimensional reality, just as the digital model kitten exists in our world.
So, what is virtual?
Take a Harry Potter novel, for example. It describes a fantastical magical world. The book filled with words is real, but the magical world we construct in our minds through reading is virtual. It does not exist in the real world, and every reader creates a slightly different world in their mind based on the book's content. Similarly, Diagon Alley, which we visit at Universal Studios with our wands, is real. The Harry Potter films we watch are real. But the magical world that exists in the minds of billions worldwide is the truly virtual one.
This virtual world pervades our consciousness through various real-world mediums, forming a stable, generally similar, interconnected consensus that doesn't physically exist. The virtual cannot exist outside of our consciousness, but it can propagate and form collective consensus or collective consciousness using real mediums. This consciousness is universally accepted and recognized, despite not physically existing.
Designing Virtual Reality
Generally, we perceive a country as concrete geographical areas, populations, cities, and infrastructural entities. However, on a deeper level, the virtual aspects of a country, such as democracy, socialism, values, cultural traditions, and a sense of belonging to its citizens, also constitute parts of the nation-state.
Similarly, in the context of a company, the brand is virtual. It represents a shared understanding or consensus between consumers and the business about the value of the products.
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The collective consciousness of a nation, though virtual, is stably maintained and propagated through real-world elements such as books, holidays, rituals, and architectural structures. Similarly, consensus around corporate brands is sustained via narratives, activities, and multi-sensory stimuli delivered through 2D or 3D mediums.
This collective 'virtual consciousness' can be designed, manipulated, and continuously evolved. It's influenced not only by the real mediums through which it is disseminated, but also by the ever-changing ways in which people live and work. In the sections that follow, we delve into the interplay between virtuality and reality from both national and corporate perspectives.
From a governance perspective, we will first delve into the dynamic nature of collective consensus - how it's influenced by tangible media and the current challenges it encounters. Consider a city, an integral part of a nation-state. It's composed not only of tangible elements such as architecture, roads, and public infrastructure but also the intangible lives of its residents. This interconnected system forms a complex, living organism that evolves and changes over time.
Isn't the digital life of residents living in this city also part of the city? Braton (2015), in his book The Stack: On Software and Sovereignty, also proposed that the Cloud is an extension of the city and even the state entity as it contains residents' data and social value vouchers. Residents store their data in the public cloud and work and socialize in the digital world. As we discussed earlier, this digital world is indeed real; it has physical carriers, connecting through mobile computing devices (mobiles, computers) and servers and other mobile devices.
The difference is that the digital world is not geographically constrained. The servers we access with our mobile phones can be located in other cities or even other countries. The connection between people is also not restricted by distance, starting from connecting through text, to achieving 2D image connection, 2D video connection, and now connection based on XR technology in 3D space. As the infrastructure of the digital world is increasingly perfected, the time we spend working and socializing in the digital world takes up an increasing proportion of our time, the digital world is expanding the physical aspect of the nation while also reconstructing the original virtual aspect of the nation. The collective consensus of a nation is based on different lifestyles and values generated by the specific real environment of each region. The digital life breaks the constraints of the specific real environment, providing new ways of living and working while also peeling people away from the collective consensus based on the original environment.
Taking the metaverse as an example, it explores a new form of decentralized governance in the digital world, based on blockchain and extended reality technologies, and distinct from traditional governance systems shaped by geopolitics. And the concept of the metaverse is perpetually evolving, driven and molded by various interest groups, each pushing it towards directions that best serve their respective interests.Some people think that blockchain can optimize the current banking system and reduce financial risks, while another group of people are increasingly employing virtual currencies as a medium for conducting illicit transactions. A certain company tries to interpret the metaverse as an immersive social game based on their VR headsets. Some companies, which initially aimed to explore the decentralized governance of the metaverse, have been manipulated by capital and transformed into schemes resembling Ponzi operations in a way of virtual real estate.
The governments need to guard against the invasion of other group consciousness based on adjusting and adapting to the changes in collective consensus brought about by technology. On the other hand, the governance structure of the metaverse, unaffected by geographical factors, conflicts with the traditional geopolitics system. The recognition and sense of belonging of citizens may change. People may more likely define themselves by their online community and metaverse identity, rather than the geographical region they live in.
We will elaborate in our upcoming articles about our experiments in framing Metaverse consensus. Moreover, we will elaborate on our practical design strategies, which involve the creation of an immersive experience grounded in Augmented Reality technology, serving as a tangible medium to draft the collective consensus.
Next, we will discuss from a company perspective how collective consensus about brands (the virtual part of a company) is influenced by physical media and constantly evolves. Luxury brands often possess complex narratives, such as brand history, tradition, and corresponding perceptions of social status. Many luxury brands are steeped in rich history and tradition, setting them apart from other brands and providing a sense of trust and superiority. For instance, the French luxury brand Louis Vuitton prides itself on its 19th-century origins in travel trunks and its royal lineage. The brand narrative is influenced by wider collective consciousness and continues to evolve. For example, themes such as environmentalism, feminism, and LGBTQ+ rights are now being incorporated into many luxury brand narratives. The real-world carriers of the brand also need to evolve to establish broad and stable collective consensus. From traditional newspaper advertisements to TV commercials, and now targeted ads on social media; from flagship stores to pop-up shops, and immersive experiences.
In our design practice of a narrative experience for Firmenich, a fragrance group, our client repeatedly emphasized 'New Luxury' as the core of their brand narrative. New Luxury departs from the traditional definition of luxury based on scarcity and complexity of materials and craft, and shifts the focus towards culture, experience, sustainability, and ethics. Together with Firmenich's brand department, we explored 'New Luxury' in fragrances, proposed a narrative called 'Air Collective' that aims to reconstruct the social classes defined by scent, and designed a multi-sensory immersive experience focusing on taste and complemented by visual, auditory, and tactile elements. Besides creating a sensory immersion, we also designed rituals, voice-guided movement exercises, and meditation practices to immerse audiences in the brand narrative.
To answer the question we posed at the beginning of the article, what we see on a computer is real, and so is what we see through VR devices. They are simulations of real materials and can also serve as physical carriers of virtual communication. The virtual cannot exist independently of human consciousness but can be widely disseminated through real materials to form collective consciousness. The collective consciousness formed by widely disseminated virtual elements can be part of a national subject or a corporate brand. It can be designed, and changes with the material world. It is also influenced by the formation and changes of other collective consciousness.