With over 20 million accounts, Second Life has become a pop culture phenomenon. An Internet-based virtual world, the metaverse in which we can be the person we've always wanted to be (without putting in the hard-work of exercise or educational training) have very few competitors. Currently, there is an exhibition going on in Boston called Mixed Realities - an exploration of real and synthetic places made possible by computers and networks. There's an exhibition......

--Representative Ed "Biz" Markey is going to Bali--in Second Life. Way to be hip to the Internets, but does that avatar look like him? Discuss. [Boston Globe] --Boston got dumped by CNN. A debate that was supposed to be in Boston next week has been knocked off the schedule because of the early caucus dates this year. And we were hoping for a look at Wolf Blitzer. [Boston Globe] --The jury in the trial of......

William Gibson will be reading at the Brattle Theatre on Sunday, August 19, at 6:00 pm. Tickets are available through Harvard Book Store. You might want to call them at 617-661-1515 if any are left. He will also read at Coolidge Corner Theatre on Monday, August 20 at 6:00 pm. Tickets are available through Brookline Booksmith. If you were hoping to see the godfather of cybereverything, William Gibson, read from his new book Spook Country......

On Wednesday evening the Museum of Science hosts a moderated discussion in your first life about the second life. Assistant Professor of New Media Eric Gordon of Emerson College moderates a discussion with John Freeman, an artist in Second Life, Pathfinder Linden, community manager for Linden Lab, and Wagner James Au, an embedded journalist in Second Life. While you might not age in Second Life and flying is par for the course, three dimensions......