6 replies to this topic

[Zans Mihejevs]

When lifelike VR (think of the Matrix) hits the market, some people will opt to move in there permanently, while others will make do with occasional visits.

Whichever option you will choose, I am curious: Since your avatar will not need to go to the bathroom anymore, will you choose to retain your bodily functions anyway, or will you choose to forget that something as nasty as this ever existed?

[niner]

When lifelike VR (think of the Matrix) hits the market, some people will opt to move in there permanently, while others will make do with occasional visits.

Whichever option you will choose, I am curious: Since your avatar will not need to go to the bathroom anymore, will you choose to retain your bodily functions anyway, or will you choose to forget that something as nasty as this ever existed?

How do you figure this is going to work? Will we be brains with a bunch of wires, floating in vats of clear green liquid? Or will we still have our bodies, but be catheterized, tube-fed, and have some sort of hoover stuck up our butts? I think that lifelike VR will be a toy for many, a tool for some, but probably not a permanent lifestyle for any who aren't already quadriplegic.

[Cyberbrain]

I have to disagree with niner a bit. There are already people (mostly teens) already spending days, not hours, on a computer surfing the net and playing games like WoW and Second Life. For some, computers and the internet are an escape from reality and a lot of people want to escape reality. So I agree with Ceros that a lot of people would want to spend most if not their entire life in VR.

However, by the time VR becomes possible (matrix realism) than I honestly think the world would resemble the world of Ghost in the Shell where genetically modified and prosthetic bodies will be the norm. So going to the bathroom would be irrelevant.

But we also have to consider: What would the interests of an augmented consciousness and intelligence be? We like the concept of VR, games, ect because it gives us a chance to experience another world ... it stimulates our pleasure senses. But in a world where we have surpassed our biochemical shackles of pleasure, emotions, etc, would we need VR or would our thinking process be so powerful and fast that VR would be useless to us?

Edited by Kostas, 30 July 2008 - 09:46 AM.

[Matthias]

Will you use the bathroom in a Virtual Reality?

yes, of course!

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[cyborgdreamer]

But we also have to consider: What would the interests of an augmented consciousness and intelligence be? We like the concept of VR, games, ect because it gives us a chance to experience another world ... it stimulates our pleasure senses. But in a world where we have surpassed our biochemical shackles of pleasure, emotions, etc, would we need VR or would our thinking process be so powerful and fast that VR would be useless to us?

Even if I were super-intelligent, I'd still want to keep my emotion systems mostly the same. Since I like video games now, I would want to enjoy virtual realities in the future.

As for going to the bathroom, I wouldn't if I had the choice. It's gross and I'd rather not deal with the annoying interruptions to my day.

[msk]

You can get an answer to this question already by reformulating it a bit. Do people who spend time in the virtual world Second Life use the bathroom? I've tried it and I noticed that there was a few people who had bathrooms installed in their virtual homes, but I think most didn't. You can check for yourself.

[Luna]

The lack of toilet paper.. will be a blessing.
I am against confusing VR with RL though.