دانلود کتاب متاورس

The Metaverse. Depending on how you look at it, it’s either the future of the Internet, the next generation of video games, or perhaps “a deeply uncomfortable, worse version of Zoom.” In numerous respects, the confusion, exaggerated promises, and hype echo the envisioning of the Internet itself during earlier eras. After all, William Gibson, who coined the term “cyberspace” in his sci-fi short story “Burning Chrome,” famously described it, in part, as a “a consensual hallucination experienced daily by billions of legitimate operators in every nation.” From this vantage point, the Metaverse may be considered the ultimate realization of Gibson’s original idea of cyberspace itself. According to Wired, in many cases, you can interchange “Metaverse” and “cyberspace”—it’s not primarily about introducing new fundamental technology but, instead, about innovating new methods to engage with existing technology through virtual and augmented reality. However, these technologies can also facilitate the emergence of new markets and economies, driven by the creation, purchase, and trade of digital assets, such as non-fungible tokens (NFTs). In their ideal manifestation, users could seamlessly carry these assets across platforms, exploring boundless virtual realms with a persistent avatar (potentially featuring personalized creations like your own customized X-Wing from Disney). Although many opportunities already exist for users to, for example, buy virtual goods and play games (like Fortnite); that’s only one application of the underlying tech. In short, “[s]aying that Fortnite is ‘the metaverse’ would be a bit like saying Google is ‘the internet.’” A wide array of firms are pouring investments into Metaverse tech, sparking a digital gold rush, given the significant advantage for early adopters. Forbes estimates this opportunity to exceed $1 trillion in potential revenue. These companies include not only Meta (formerly Facebook), but also Nvidia, Unity, Roblox, and even Snap, to name a few. Nike is already developing ways to equip avatars with digital, personalized sneakers. Prices for virtual parcels of land doubled to more than $12,000 in late 2021. There’s even now a “United Metaverse Nation,” which professes its identity as “The United Metaverse Nation is the first decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) that acts as a virtual country.” Yet, since early 2023, there has also been a cooling off of enthusiasm about the Metaverse, mirroring a general wave of pessimism about Web 3.0 products and services including cryptocurrency, NFTs, and the blockchain itself. In other words, the stakes are high, and confusion abounds, particularly in the public, making it —we feel—a perfect addition to the What Everyone Needs to Know series. This book is structured as follows. In Chapter 1, Welcome to the Metaverse, we discuss the definitions and concepts that comprise the Metaverse ecosystem, tracking how the term originated, and how it’s distinct from VR to, in general, separate hype from reality. Chapter 2, Metaverse Economics, focuses on the underlying economic issues that both users and firms are navigating in these persistent, digital environments. Chapter 3, Speech and Expression in the Metaverse, tackles thorny issues around speech, content moderation, and expression in the Metaverse, including how various nations are approaching the regulation of this global space. In Chapter 4, Securing the Metaverse, we analyze lessons from past cybersecurity failures and how they may be mitigated in the Metaverse, along with offering practical tips for how to stay safe online in these virtual communities. Chapter 5, Identity in the Metaverse, delves into the protection of personal information and how diversity, equity, and inclusion apply in the Metaverse, among other topics. Chapter 6, Privacy in the Metaverse, focuses on the meaning of privacy in the Metaverse and its parallels with, and divergence from, privacy in existing digital spaces. Chapter 7, Governing the Metaverse, summarizes how laws apply in the Metaverse, along with examining lessons from Internet governance and how companies are creating codes of content that are already regulating these spaces. Chapter 8, AI in the Metaverse, discusses how Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) tools and techniques are being used and misused in the Metaverse. Chapter 9, Our Meta Future? concludes the book by examining technology and regulatory trends to see how the Metaverse may look over the medium and long run, and whether it may be reminiscent of the Matrix, Ready Player One, or perhaps something far better— or worse.