The document identifies 5 key characteristics of the virtual world Second Life: 1) high level of detail in representations, 2) intelligent objects, 3) tools for displaying content, 4) social environment for interaction, and 5) connections to real world issues and topics. It provides examples to illustrate each characteristic, such as using Second Life to display educational content or participate in simulations. The purpose is to understand how Second Life can be used for practical applications.

1. UnderstandingSecondLife as anextension of ourselvesthroughtheIdentification of 5 characteristics of this Virtual Environment Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 1 flying

2. Index Introduction 1, The detail in the representation of the things 2, Intelligent objects 3, Tools for displaying contents 4, Social environment 5, Linked to “real world” Conclusions Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 2 flying

3. Introduction Thisisanexploratoryworkthatidentifiesfivesalientcharacteristics of the Virtual WorldSecondLife. Theslides show someof theactionsthatcan beaccomplished in SecondLife. Thepurposeistohelp in achievingusefulapplications of this Virtual Environment Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 3 flying

4. 1, The Detail in the representation Thedetail in therepresentation of theobjects in SecondLifeisveryhigh. Thelights, theshapes, thecolors. .. Thiscontributestocreate a sensation of immersion and tofeelthatyou are in a humanspace. Most of theobjects, buildings and shapes are copyfromthe“real life”. Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 4 flying

5. 1,The Detail in the representation Thefacilitiyforcreatingscenes, objects and buildingsitisappliedwithdifferentpurposeslikerepresenting real buildings. This can beveryusefulfortestingtheirappearanceorforexplainingtheircharacteristics. Forinstance, organizingan art classintotheSistineChapel, in SecondLife, wouldhelpstudentstobefocusedonthelesson. Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 5 flying

6. 2, Intelligent objects Objects in S. L can beintelligent. Therefore, there are places thathavetoolsavailablethatgiveinformation and evenevaluatetheknowledge of peopleaboutseveraltopics. ForinstanceSt Georges UniversityParamedic Training Scenarioisdesignedforexplainingpeoplehowtheymustact in emergencysituations Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 6 flying

7. 2. Intelligentobjects You can choosethecontextin whichyouwanttobeinvolved. In this case, I am (into my avatar) in front of a robot avatar whohadanaccident in thekitchen. If I touchit, someoptionswillappear in orderto try tohelpthe avatar. Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 7 flying

8. 2. Intelligent objects OneClimate Island is a place whereyou can findinformationabouttheclimatechange. There are boards, which show data abouttheissue, slidesthatdisplaytextsabouttheactionsthatmustbetakenintoaccount in ordertoavoid more damages... Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 8 flying

9. 3. Tools for displaying contents Thus, in S.L you can displaycontentsusingboards, screens, etc. In thisphotoyou can see a screenthatis set in OneClimate Island. Ifyoutouchthescreen, youwillbeinvitedtowatchseveral videos. Forchoosingtheoneyouare interested in, youmusttouchit. Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 9 flying

10. 3. Tools for displaying contents Thetoolsfordisplayingslides are popular foritsgooddesign and ease of use. In theimage, you can see a graphic I havemadetorepresent a classification of communicationtheories done byEm Griffin. Theuniquedisadvantageof usingslidesisthatitisnecessarytopay10 lindsforeachimageyouuploadintosecondlife. Nevertheless, there are alternativessuch as thesloodlepresenterthatallowsshowingimageswithoutpay. Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 10 flying

11. 3. Tools for displaying contents In SecondLifethere are severalplaces forgettingtoolsthat are suitableforeducativeorresearcherpurposessuch as the International SchoolsorEdunation. Moreover, there are scriptersthat can designthetoolyouneed. Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 11 flying

12. 4. Social environment Being in touchwithpeoplefromdifferentcountries and culturesisone of thebestapplications of SecondLife. Theenvironmentiscomfortablefororganizingmeetingsbecauseitenhancesthefeeling of sharing a commonspace. Thus, we can do activitiesin groupas brainstormingorgroupdiscussions. Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 12 flying

13. 4. Social environment Forcommunicatingwithotheravatars, you can use the local chat orsendprivatemessages. Moreover, you can communicatebyvoice. Foraddingan avatar as friendyouonlyneedtotouch in hisname (overhis head) Then, youwillcan tosendtohim a “friendshipoffer”. The avatar whomyou invites can acceptorrejectyourfriendship. Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 13 flying

14. 4. Social environment Once time youhaveaddedan avatar as friend, youwillknowwhen he orsheisintoworld. Moreover, itispossiblecommunicatewithavatarsusinginstantmessagealthoughthey are not online. Theywillreceivethemessageswhentheyenterinto S.L. Otherusefulactionforbeing in contactwithothersconsistsonjoinintogroups. There are severalgroupsrelatedtodifferenttopics and evenyou can createyourowngroup Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 14 flying

15. 4. Social environment Becoming a member of groups of yourinterestisoneof thebestwaysforreceivinginformationabouttheeventsthat are organizedin SecondLife. There are differentkind of groupswhichcoverdifferentissues. Some are notvery active and a few are lively. Ifa Groupdoesnotsendtoyouanyinformation, leaveit and try another. We can be in twentyfivegroups as maximum. Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 15 flying

16. 4. Social environment First times in SecondLife can befrustratingifyouthinkthatyouwillfindmanyavatars in the places youvisit. During my firstweeks in SecondLife, I created 5 Criteria, definedbyitemsforevaluatingeducative places in SecondLife: 1, Affluence of people , 2, Interaction 3, Information, 4, Organization and type of lectures, 5, Possibilitiesforbeinginvolved in a group.Afterevaluatingmany places, I becameaware of thefactthatforsocializinginto S.L wemustjoinintogroups , subscribe tolistssuch as Second Life Educators List or check webpages as Sldevents for educators in Second Life Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 16 flying

17. 5. Linkedto Real World A smalltravelintoSecondLifewill show toyouthat“real life” isalwayspresentin thisvirtual environmentnotonlybecauseobjects and buildings are similar totheoneswehave in “real life” butbecausethere are places focusedontopics andissuesthat are part of ourlife. In theimagesyou can seeonelocationforsupportingObama and one place whereyou can obtaininformationabouttheswineflue Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 17 flying

18. Conclusions SecondLifeamplifiesourcapabilitiesforestablishing social relations. This can improvethedevelopment of business, educationalorresearchactivities. FollowingMcLuhan'sapproach, thesekind of toolsoperate as extensions of thebody, removingbarrierslinkedtothespace and the time. Piere Levy (1998: 24) emphasizesthehumanaspect of these virtual environmentswhen he saysthat“virtualizationis a reinvention, a multiplication, a heterogenesis of thehuman”. Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 18 flying

19. References G.DIAGO, Gloria (15 diciembre, 2008) “Criterios para evaluar Sitios educativos en SecondLife” http://fromcommunication.blogspot.com/2008/12/criterios-para-evaluar-sitios.html LÉVY, Pierre (1994) L'intelligencecollective. Pour une anthropologie du cyberespace. La Découverte, Paris. MCLUHAN, Marshall (1964) Understanding Media: TheExtensions of Man. GingkoPress SistineChapel in SecondLifehttp://slurl.com/secondlife/vassar/165/91/24 Second Life Educators List https://lists.secondlife.com/cgbin/mailman/listinfo/educatorsG Sldevents for educators in Second Life. http://sledeventsmini.blogspot.com/ One Climate http://slurl.com/secondlife/OneClimate/130/127/27 International Schools. http://slurl.com/secondlife/Info%20Island/54/202/34 Edunation. http://slurl.com/secondlife/EduNation%20II/142/215/25 Sloodle (Simulation Linked Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment) http://www.sloodle.org/moodle/ Gloria Gómez-Diago (October 2009) 19 flying