What exactly is the metaverse? Build a digital space where virtual and real are integrated?

【Abstract】 Three books take you down to the Metaverse——What is the Metaverse? So far, no one person or company has been able to give a specific and exact definition. They are all saying that what you think of A is not a metaverse, and what you think of B is not a metaverse, but what is it? This thing is very complicated. Involved in all aspects…

1 Introduction

Some people say that this is a hot spot, but it's not. Not the Metaverse I went for, but us the Metaverse came to find. Is the Metaverse reliable or not?

The term Metaverse originated from the science fiction novel "Avalanche" 29 years ago, in which the future life of human beings is described as a digital world where people communicate with each other in a virtual world.

The Metaverse is actually like the VR that exploded a few years ago, but with a different name.

The biggest problem in the metaverse is artificial intelligence. The current artificial intelligence technology is actually weak artificial intelligence, which mainly imitates the basic functions of the human brain, such as perception, learning, memory and decision-making, and needs to be in a specific situation to express human brain intelligence.

The strong artificial intelligence required by the metaverse needs to combine high-level intelligence of the human brain such as emotion, cognition, and reasoning, and can be used in various scenarios. Due to the high technical barriers, strong artificial intelligence is still in the early stage of exploration, so it is still unknown how strong artificial intelligence will develop in the future and whether its capabilities will surpass that of humans.

Secondly, the technical problems of brain-computer interface still need to be solved. Although brain-computer interface applications such as cochlear implants, bidirectional myoelectric prostheses, and lattice input of visual signals already exist, healthy people in a short period of time will not be willing to enter the metaverse through surgical plugging.

As for the other four technologies, they are all in a period of rapid development. If these 6 basic technologies can be mastered proficiently, we may really be able to enter the fully immersive era from the Internet era. As shown in the recent hit "Out of Control", NPCs with strong artificial intelligence will make players unable to distinguish whether there is a real-world player behind the character. And only the so-called "full Internet" is the real metaverse!

Judging from the status quo of global technology giants increasing their efforts to deploy the Metaverse, the Metaverse is a medium-to-long-term trend in the Internet industry, with real investment opportunities. It's just that the entire industry is still in a very early stage of the industry, and the six basic technologies of the Metaverse are not yet mature. If related concepts are hyped up unrealistically like A-share companies and currency circles, there may be bubbles, thereby delaying the development and construction of the Metaverse. Therefore, in the short term, the Metaverse is a theme hype, and in the long run, it is a future trend.

Under the current market conditions of rapid rotation of the A-share sector and endless emergence of metaverse concepts, investors should have the ability to judge the investment value of hot sectors. For investors who are optimistic about the Metaverse, they can seize investment opportunities from the perspective of the six supporting technologies of the Metaverse, and always be cautious not to become a leek harvested by capital.

2. How to choose books, read and think with a set of questions?

Here is a way of thematic reading, trying to find different answers to the same question from different books. There is a certain coherence between different things that echoes each other.

From the beginning of 2021 to the present, the popularity of the Metaverse is really hard to escape, various industries, technical reports, white papers, etc. Even some tourism and scenic spot marketing have been pulled into the Metaverse. Major companies are hyping up the concept of the metaverse. It's blooming everywhere~

3. A more consistent view of the Metaverse

As far as a statement is currently recognized by the industry: Metaverse is a fully real digital world based on virtual 3D technology that can be integrated with the real world, decentralized, interactive, immersive and collaborative. All people can use virtual identities to enter the virtual world, work, live, communicate and play like in the real world, and experience a variety of lives.

4. A thousand people have a thousand metaverses

With so many opinions on the "metaverse", who should we listen to?

• Are we already behind?
• Hurry up and jump into the Metaverse and give him a vote?
• To buy a piece of land in the Metaverse?
• How many Metaverse concept stocks did you buy in the stock market?
  It's actually not as simple as you might think!

5. What is the nature of the metaverse?

We are faced with these problems, one is to see tricks and dismantle tricks. In the end, we should not follow in the footsteps of others, jump out of the fixed thinking, and we can discover more.

The following are several conclusions or opinions drawn from the three books I read.

Therefore, the metaverse is still a rather mysterious concept.

6. "Plato and the Technologist"

The essence of the metaverse is not difficult. In fact, it is a set of software, and there is a lot of hardware behind it. Along this line of thought, we can find a book "Plato and the Techno-Nerd", which draws a very crucial revelation.

Plato, the greatest philosopher of ancient Greece and one of the greatest philosophers and thinkers in the entire Western culture. Plato, teacher Socrates and student Aristotle are also known as the three sages of Greece. The concepts that Plato has created or developed include: Platonic thought, Platonism, Platonic love, etc. He has a well-known book: "Republic". This is a popular philosophy book, but it is far from science. As technology lovers who like philosophy, we often need to read some philosophy books related to science and technology. And popular books on philosophy of science tend to have catchy titles like "What is Time," "What is Matter," "What is Energy," or "How Evolution Made Consciousness." But if you read some popular books on the philosophy of technology, you'll find quite a few accounts of how the transition from foraging societies to agricultural societies to the Industrial Revolution took place. We all know that computer technology has created artificial intelligence and will change the nature of work in the future.

This book is a work on digital and computer technology. It's tied to what's going on right now. An important theme in the book is that digital technology is co-evolving with human civilization. We depend on technology to survive, and technology depends on us, and this trend of cooperation and symbiosis is becoming more and more obvious. Technology is not so-called "applied science", it is driven more by creativity than by discovery. Any evolutionary process requires random mutation, and creativity makes that mutation possible. This is also a book that breaks through the boundaries of disciplines, engineering technology, information science and other fields, comprehensively integrates human cognitive experience, and analyzes the symbiotic relationship between information technology transformation and human cognition from multiple perspectives such as philosophy, physics, and sociology. About "Plato and the Technical Nerd", it is a super brain-burning book with a wide range of knowledge points, which is summarized as follows.

Starting from the relationship between science and engineering, the author resents the current view that "scientists are higher than engineers". He believes that engineering is not a so-called "applied science", but an equally or even more creative Disciplines, sometimes ahead of science, create new things that science cannot yet explain. I used to be biased too, believing that the impact of scientific discoveries is far-reaching, the impact of engineering techniques is limited, and that new technologies may be obsolete in decades or even years. Later I realized that this is not the case, and that many scientific discoveries are directly related to new scientific research equipment. Science and technology complement each other, and technology is equally far-reaching by influencing scientific discoveries, not to mention its impact on human life and social development. The relationship between science and technology and the relationship between humans and technology can be said to be very similar.

This book is very readable. It should be a must-have book for IT-related developers, researchers, scholars, etc. It can explain the relationship between current scientific and technological development in a good and pertinent manner. with creation.

Of course, this book is not written specifically for the metaverse, and there are two fragments from it that can enlighten the thinking of the metaverse.

Above is "The Matrix", I believe many people have seen it, behind is a long corridor, what is behind the door? We can vividly compare the two to the "digital world" and the branches or functions of software.

While we are accustomed to living in the digital age, companies that were successful before the internet were struggling to adapt to digital business models, a fact highlighted by the urgent need for digital transformation brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. These companies were designed for pre-Internet business, and the mindsets of their leaders were embedded in these structures. To digitally transform their businesses, leaders need to change their own mindsets to lead digital organizations.

Let's make a game to number the gates below with natural numbers.

What kind of scene will it be if the real numbers are used for numbering below? How many doors will there be?

Quite simply, the answer is an infinite number of doors.

Quite simply, the answer is an infinite number of doors. Why is it infinite?

• Real numbers are continuous, there are infinitely many real numbers between any two real numbers
• Natural numbers are discrete, and there is only a finite number between any two natural numbers.
  Let’s make another analogy. Any part of the real world can be regarded as a continuous real number. What about software? It can be regarded as a rational number of finite length. Is this easy to understand?

The real world is constantly changing, and no one dares to say that he can master all the details of the world. Moreover, there are countless unknown mysteries in this world. There are many wonders in the world, and there are many unsolved mysteries in this universe. Each is beyond human comprehension. Humans are the only known species with advanced intelligence on earth. With this unique advantage, humans have evolved today's modern civilization in just a few million years. Stand at the top of the Earth's food chain. However, while advanced intelligence brings technological advancement, it also brings us troubles that other species do not have.

Take a small incident that is currently happening. Shenzhen has recently had an epidemic again. No one will tell you in advance to beware of the epidemic. The recently used health treasures will also be constantly changing.

7. Why can only limited sampling of anything in the real world be done?

As you can see from the chart below, there are also a lot of differences between the real genders.

Therefore, there will be many, many questions. for example:

• Is it to be careful to avoid insulting connotations in gender naming?
• Should privacy be handled in some cases?
• Should different countries have different practices?
• Will there be discrimination?
• Shouldn't people's gender be judged based on genetics, gender and psychological factors in the future?
  ...

So, what will the software do? When you see this software, you can't imagine many unexpected situations at all, and you can only make certain knowledge into information inside the software. Any software is alive and rejuvenated in constant version iterations. A lot of human and financial resources need to be invested. If a software will not be iterated again, it must be offline.

Any part of the real world, with infinite details and unknowns, is a real number. The infinity of any real number is much larger than the infinity of the rational numbers.

8. Summary

The essence of the metaverse is a set of computer software
. Any part of the real world has infinite details and unknowns. It is a real number
. The essence of software is a finite sampling of the real world
. Without all the "details" of a real number

here, there will still be people who believe that the metaverse will come true. He put forward this view: "As long as it can confuse people's five senses and six senses, the metaverse can be regarded as the real universe, right?"

One might also think so, "The metaverse exists in two parallel ways in the four-dimensional space of the real duality world. The two parallel metaverses consist of two parts, one is the bright universe (yang) and the other is the dark one. Universe (Yin). Two parallel metaverses are interdependent, transform each other, cycle back and forth, cause and effect to each other, go back and forth, correspond one-to-one, and define each other's boundaries. Driven by the gravitational force of the first thrust, the duality world is jointly maintained and protected by Two sets of binary bodies in the four-dimensional space constructed by two parallel metaverses perform orderly relative motion (two-dimensional perpetual motion machine). The two parallel metaverses are an inseparable binary whole. The metaverse is not controlled by time and space, and the overall definition of space, mass and matter is quite clear, with distinct layers and clear at a glance. Two parallel metaverses are a real existence in the four-dimensional space of the dual world, which is bidirectional The absolutist inevitability of the metaverse. The value of the metaverse in the real four-dimensional space of the duality world is beyond your imagination. The development of the future modern science relying on the duality and parallel metaverse is unprecedented, huge, infinite and recyclable. It is precisely because of the real existence of two parallel metaverses in the four-dimensional space of the binary world that the gravitational binary engine (binary perpetual motion machine) becomes a reality. The gravitational binary engine fundamentally and completely solves the energy problem of human beings , to save the ravaged earth that we humans depend on to survive."

Then take a look at the following game models, which are considered to be relatively high-level modeling effects at present.

It's so far from the real world that even detailed modeling can't portray your real world effects.

There are too many details that will not be presented. Even if all the details can be imagined, can hardware and software render such a high-level model? The answer is of course not negative.

9. Metaverse: Building a digital space where the virtual and the real merge

Do the following questions, everyone, do

you feel uncomfortable when you think about it?

The full arrival of the metaverse era still needs to go through many obstacles, and there are many challenges that cannot be ignored. Regarding these issues, there are mainly the following six points that need attention.

1. The problem of social acceptance

For any emerging field, social acceptance is a key factor at the top of the list. The essence of society's attitude towards the Metaverse and whether it is acceptable or not lies in the potential risks, ethics, and practical values ​​brought about by the development of the Metaverse industry.

The situation that the Metaverse is facing now is just like the artificial intelligence a few years ago. If it can be widely recognized by the society, then the development of the Metaverse will be smoother and faster.

2. data security issues

Although it is difficult to call it the metaverse era, it is undoubtedly the "data era". Whether it is artificial intelligence or blockchain, it is inseparable from the foundation of data and the support of algorithms.

The Metaverse is a virtual world constructed from data. In the event of a virus intrusion or account theft, it will cause serious consequences. Therefore, data security is the top priority.

3. economic operation problem

The metaverse is different from the real world. There is no traditional industrial structure, and the economic form must be unique. In the metaverse, virtual currency will replace the currency in the real world and play the role of circulation.

However, how to legally and reasonably construct a set of economic and monetary systems that belong to the metaverse world will be a huge challenge. At the same time, the Metaverse should also try to eliminate the “gap between the rich and the poor” in the real world, and make practical explorations in the areas of universal benefit and common prosperity.

4. power monopoly problem

In any society, as long as there are human groups, contradictions such as domination and being ruled, monopoly and anti-monopoly, governance and conflict are inevitable. From the current point of view, the "metaverse" has the possibility to avoid being monopolized by a few powers.

The formation of the Metaverse is not a simple process. Capital investment is a lot of money. High capital investment means that capital forces will dominate the Metaverse market, forming a monopoly and gaining "rulership". How to ensure democracy, freedom, fairness and justice in the metaverse world, and how to establish rules and order for harmonious coexistence will be a difficult problem to solve.

5. The problem of technological breakthroughs

The real metaverse should be a virtual world that can be accessed at any time and is highly stable, which is obviously a huge challenge at the current level of technology.

At present, the development of the VR/AR industry is accelerating, but there is still a lot of room for improvement in the miniaturization, convenience, experience, stability and other aspects of the equipment. It is difficult to meet the requirements of the future metaverse era. Breakthrough progress.

6. Maintaining positive interactions with the real world

After ushering in the metaverse era, people can live in the real world and the virtual world at the same time, which will make people's neural perception and consciousness expand.

The formation and development of the "metaverse" requires positive interaction with the real world, the complementarity and balance of the two worlds in terms of concepts, technology and culture, and the formation of a new civilization ecology, but it is not easy to do this.

10. "Insights: From Science to Philosophy, Unlocking Human Cognitive Truth" - a wonderful book

Most of what is known about the human brain is an unproven conjecture. The ultimate goal of human society is to use information technology to integrate human society with the information space and the physical world to form a world of ternary integration of human, machine and material.

Brain-computer interface technology is divided into invasive and non-invasive. It is still an emerging scientific research technology and has a relatively large development space. I learned that in the field of non-invasive brain-computer interface technology, BrainCo, a domestic company, focuses on the research and development of products in this area. At present, some products have been mass-produced and used. For example, the BrainRobotics intelligent bionic hand is a high-tech medical aid that integrates brain-computer interface technology and artificial intelligence algorithms.

Is the brain-computer interface really the entrance to the metaverse? From the current point of view, it is still difficult to achieve landing, and there are still great difficulties in practical application, and the ideal is very full. But the human brain is alive, and it is difficult to capture consciousness and thoughts, which are invisible and unknown.

With the recent success of Neuralink, a brain-computer interface startup invested by Musk, to read the brain data of experimental pigs, brain-computer interface technology has become popular again. In this experiment, the animal species was upgraded from a mouse to a pig, and the transmission was upgraded from a USB cable to wireless. In addition, the chip has also been miniaturized and does not generate heat during transmission. In sci-fi blockbusters, a few electrodes inserted into the brain can allow humans to enter the computer world, and only one thought can change reality; knowledge does not need to be memorized by rote, and infinite skills can be obtained by implanting chips into the brain... These blockbusters depict The sci-fi scene, it seems, is already a reasonable assumption based on the "brain-computer interface".

Brain-computer interfaces were originally envisioned for military applications: Soldiers directly control weapons through their brains, and even remotely control fighter jets and drones. This will greatly improve the combat effectiveness of the army. But now the research on brain-computer interface is more extensive in civilian scope. Needless to say, in the medical field, in the entertainment of daily life, it can also replace the traditional mouse, keyboard and other manual operations to complete operations such as playing computers, playing games, watching TV, etc., which greatly increases the fun of life.

But at present, brain-computer interface technology faces serious commercialization problems. It's hard to imagine invasive interfaces, which require surgically implanting electrodes or other probe sensors into the brain, to make direct contact with neurons, on a commercial scale. Non-invasive interfaces are a class that has progressed well in commercialization, but are limited by inaccuracy when wearing and the signal blocking effect of the skull, making it difficult to achieve high accuracy.

In addition, the non-technical level of brain-computer interface technology still faces many obstacles, such as ethical issues and censorship issues. Therefore, there is still a long way to go before the brain-computer interface can really enter our daily life.

Regarding the current state of scientific research, the scientific research has a look at the following summary

In general, many experiments are unreliable, and many conjectures are unrealizable.

Most of the lively scientific discoveries may be noise. Science has been making progress, but it is much slower than imagined.

To enter the metaverse, the human brain has not yet agreed.

11. Soul torture: How far can digitalization go?

So, even if mathematics is allowed, and the human brain agrees, can the current engineering capabilities of human beings be able to develop the metaverse?

According to the current future development. Technological progress has been enormous, and now the modern technology of digital mobile phones is more and more spread all over the world. The digital world is also coming. For example, the current cash flow is very small, and most of them are used for some transfers, which belong to the current digital life. I believe that digital transactions will continue to be carried out in the near future. And digitalization will bring great convenience to our life.

12. "The Beauty of Mathematics"

This book isn't about the metaverse either, it's well read on the app.

After graduating from university, I read Teacher Wu's "The Beauty of Mathematics". This is the first book I read that explains profound mathematical knowledge in simple language. When I was studying data mining, information theory, graph theory and other postgraduate courses at the postgraduate level, I could always find the shadow of the key words in the book. If I read this book when I was in college, I would have learned more mathematics than now. Okay. This book is a book that must be recommended to college IT majors. A good book for enlightenment will have a huge impact on your future study. There are many problems that can be solved mathematically.

When you read the entire book, you will exclaim the same thing as I do: mathematics and computers can still be said! ! !

The book "The Beauty of Mathematics" uses many easy-to-understand and close-to-life examples to tell us the application scenarios of many mathematical principles. The mathematical model used is so simple, and the effect is so remarkable. After reading it, I am amazed. I didn’t expect mathematics to be so useful? Since this book is too mathematical, the following is a simple diagram to summarize the overall content:

Since this book is too mathematical, the following is a simple diagram to summarize the overall content.

From the above diagram, we can see that, The engineering capabilities required by the Metaverse are far beyond the true technological level of human beings, and there is still a long way to go. We may never see the metaverse.

"First principles" of the feasibility of digital space engineering: whatever is prohibited by mathematics, digital space must reject.

Of course, some people may think that these can be solved. For more than ten years, the key technologies of software development have not made much progress.

13. The Metaverse is a farce

• Related industries gather together to create momentum to attract attention and investment
• The east wind of digital transformation has already blown
  

Of course the metaverse is also an opportunity: the greatest value lies in the ability to spend money in a bottomless pit

From the current point of view, whether the metaverse can be realized or not does not seem to be that important.

14. Conclusion

• The metaverse is fake, but many opportunities to prop up the metaverse are real, and digital transformation is a definite trend
• The metaverse is Something, not Everything
  Mathematics forbids the metaverse, the mystery of the human brain has not yet been solved, and the engineering ability cannot reach

The greatest value of the metaverse:

It is not to replace the universe or become a parallel universe; it is to allow human beings to better recognize the complexity of things and their own insignificance.

If you're worried about the metaverse destroying humanity...

Don't worry!

You have enough time


to give everyone a final word: instead of believing in its metaverse, it is better to retreat and read, the book has its own metaverse.

Originality is not easy, reproduced from: https://bbs.huaweicloud.com/blogs/337727
Author: Cheshen, No. 18, Fuxue Road

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