*Editor’s note: K-VIBE invites experts from various K-culture sectors to share their extraordinary discovery about the Korean culture. 

 

Chronicles of Metaverse: Abstract Imagination and the Metaverse

 

By Noh Seok-joon (Master K-architect engineer) 

 

 

Humans can never be entirely free from physical constraints such as age, gender, race, health, geographical location, or nationality. However, as history has shown, humans possess unique abilities—imagination, creativity, intelligence, and a passion for the future. These capabilities have allowed them to surpass most physical limitations with ease.

 

By creating and realizing their own virtual realities, humans have achieved countless remarkable accomplishments throughout history.

 

Since the primitive era, humans have exhibited a distinctive ability that sets them apart from all other living beings on Earth: the capacity to generate virtuality. Each individual possesses a unique form of virtuality, shaped by their personal perspectives and judgments about the world. In the future, where the metaverse will be a realm in which countless individuals participate and create, human imagination—the driving force behind virtuality—will become the most valuable resource.

 

◇ The Accumulation of Stories: The Beginning of the Metaverse

 

Humans are born with inherent physical traits such as appearance, family background, and geographical origins. Over time, these physical factors combine with the intangible cultural, ideological, and lifestyle influences of the communities they belong to, gradually shaping each individual's unique characteristics.

 

▲ Lascaux cave paintings, captured from Wikipedia. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

 

In addition to these innate and cultural influences, an individual continuously accumulates a wealth of environmental data and personal experiences throughout their lifetime. These accumulated experiences form a distinctive dataset that serves as the foundation for generating virtuality.

 

The journey from virtuality to abstract imagination—and ultimately to the metaverse—is not solely based on an individual’s personal data. It is further enriched by imagination, creativity, personal aspirations, and desires.

 

Moreover, an individual’s virtuality is not created in isolation; it is shaped by the stories of others. Humans not only enjoy sharing their own experiences but also take pleasure in listening to others' stories, integrating these indirect experiences into their own imaginative processes.

 

In the past, stories were transmitted orally from person to person. Today, however, individuals are exposed to an overwhelming number of narratives through various channels.

 

These narratives include news delivered through the media, fictional stories found in novels and films, and even the personal experiences shared via social media. This vast and diverse range of stories, acquired indirectly, significantly influences the creation of an individual’s virtuality.

 

In the past, due to the limited availability of materials that could stimulate and complete an individual’s virtuality, only a select few with exceptional talent could access the world of imagination and fantasy, giving birth to virtual realities.

 

However, in today’s world—overflowing with information and creative materials—individuals develop a growing desire to bring their own virtuality into reality.

 

The rise of countless independent creators who publish novels or webtoons on online platforms and upload various creative works on YouTube is a prime example of this desire manifesting in reality.

 

◇ The Future Metaverse Created By The Crowd 

 

In the future, an even greater variety of virtualities will emerge, with many of them materializing within the digital virtual world of the metaverse. As vast amounts of virtual data and content continue to accumulate and overlap, the past and present will remain in constant connection and fusion, creating a foundational environment that perpetually generates new virtual worlds.

 

▲ This poster of film "Ready Player One," centered on a metaverse connected to the real world, is provided by the distributor. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

 

As an ideal environment optimized for the creation of virtuality is established, individual imagination will become more diverse, unique, and advanced. A significant portion of what each person dreams of and envisions will be transformed into virtual reality, taking on various forms through literature, art, science, and technology.

 

The future metaverse will ultimately be shaped by the combination of an individual’s unique environmental background, experiential data, imagination, and highly sophisticated technology. Unlike the virtual worlds of the past, which existed as separate realms detached from reality, the metaverse of the future is being created as a virtual reality closely intertwined with real-life experiences and human existence.

 

The leading force behind the future metaverse will not be a select group of geniuses but the collective imagination of the masses. By combining the overwhelming abundance of virtual materials with their own abstract fantasies and creative vision, individuals will craft even more distinctive and extraordinary metaverses.

 

The countless metaverses born from these personal creations will unlock the largest and most diverse virtual world in human history.

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