Society Without People : The Social Implications of the Metaverse and AI.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Pieper, Christopher.

Contributor:

Nelson, Justin.

Series:

De Gruyter Contemporary Social Sciences Series

De Gruyter Contemporary Social Sciences Series ; v.34

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource (214 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Berlin/Boston : Walter de Gruyter GmbH, 2025.

Summary:

Society Without People is the first major scholarly analysis of the profound social and cultural effects of emerging technologies such as generative AI and the Metaverse.Using an approachable style and compelling scenarios, Pieper and Nelson examine the potential ways these technologies will shape identity, institutions, relationships.

Contents:

Intro

Acknowledgements

Contents

Introduction: The Moral Imperative of Technological Progress

Chapter 1 The Inevitable Impossible, or "Why Would Anyone Use the Metaverse?"

1 What Problem is the Metaverse Solving? Answer: Reality

2 Why It May Actually Happen

3 The Sociological Imagination and Structure of the Book

Chapter 2 The Anatomy and Ideology of the Metaverse

1 Who is the Metaverse?

2 Gamism: A Likely Philosophy of the Future

3 Building a Theory of Gamism

3.1 The Creed of Gamism

4 Gamism and the Normalization of Addiction

Chapter 3 Identity Infinity

1 Insights on Identity from Web 2.0

2 Who Will I Be Today?: Ethereal Identity and the End of Demography

3 "Persons"

3.1 Personhood: A Product of the Age

Pre-modern

Modern

Postmodern

Virtual

3.2 Plausible Metaverse Scenarios

Utopian

Dystopian

Balanced

Wild Card

Chapter 4 Community in Web 3.0: Integration or Instagration?

1 The Metaverse as a Cure for Loneliness

2 Metasocial Interactions: The Micro-Foundation of Instagration

3 Relationships in Metasociality

4 Is Community Possible in the Metaverse?

5 Plausible Metaverse Scenarios

Outline placeholder

Chapter 5 Coding Culture: Symbols and Meaning Between the Physical and the Virtual

1 "Let There Be [Your Choice]"

2 The (Re)Construction of Social Reality

3 Coming to Terms

4 Virtual Virtue

5 Religion: Old Wine, New Wineskins

6 Education: An Apple for Every Teacher

7 Plausible Metaverse Scenarios

Wild-card

Chapter 6 Meta-Power

1 The Political Economy of the Metaverse

1.1 You Can Work Anywhere but Work is Nowhere

2 All Politics is Non-Local

2.1 Metaverse as Alternative Physical World Political Space.

2.2 Metaverse as Parallel Political Unit

2.3 Metaverse as Escape from Politics

3 Avatars and Activism

Conclusion: Why Society Without People?

1 Flourishing in the Time of Instant Fantasy Fulfillment

Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

3-11-123616-1

OCLC:

1522906362