Homo Deus and Digitized Lives
The posthuman understanding of the universe seeks to limit "human activity" in the physical universe. This will have several important consequences. First, the physical universe will gradually be purged of human activity, emptied, and the range of action of the colonial elites will expand. As I mentioned above, a vision will emerge in which digital identities will be seen as more valuable than real identities. On the other hand, the "decentralized" structure of Metaverse will make collectivity almost impossible in the digital universe. It means a more fragmented world. How realistic the concept of “decentralization” is here should also be questioned. It is possible to develop more refined control technologies.
At least, even if there is decentralization within the structure, the structure itself will be under the control of central powers. Every place with an entrance door can be inspected and recorded. On the other hand, it is already said that the capital will compete among themselves in this field, and that more than one Metaverse will be formed. As a matter of fact, it was announced that, after Facebook, Microsoft also joined the Metaverse race.1 Undoubtedly, the Metaverse of the strongest will have the most digital citizens. You will understand that each of the Homo Deus will have its own universe and digitized servants; or a few Homo Deus of your subjects.
While decentralization works against digital collectivities, it may not be against those who hold the structural order. For example, for today, a person's tweet can be removed, or the interaction of a tweet can be limited. If necessary, the account can be suspended. There will be similar limitations in the Metaverse universe as well. While digital metropolises, digital capitals, where people are directed to some regions rather than to regions where they can freely roam, will be formed, as well as digital suburbs.
It is difficult to predict in advance what kind of results the physical sensation of activities in the digital universe will lead to. However, it seems that there will be access to physical bodies, albeit to a certain extent, through digital identities. We can also consider with certainty that there will be digital law enforcement officers, digital agents, digital terror groups, digital exploitation networks (digital human smugglers, digital pedophilic structures, etc.) within the Metaverse. It should also be noted that there will be a "Deep Metaverse" such as the deep web, the dark web.
Digital technologies made people observable and audible regardless of body and place. An important result of the Metaverse will be to make bodies tactile from afar. The temptation to be “sensible and sensible” without being there is high. However, almost always the blessings of technological developments are discussed first, and the burdens are learned by "experiencing".
Facebook entered people's lives with the "innocent" idea of "find your old friends". Then it turned out that people were analyzed and sold to companies and used for political manipulations. As social media reinforces antisociality, the difference between what we are told and what is actually happening has often been shocking. In the coming years, Metaverse's education, economy, politics, sociology, psychology, etc. It is likely that their aims in these areas, the new interests and problems that will arise in this context will be discussed more frequently. But as far as I can tell, Metaverse comes more as a mystical, "theological" practice; Homo Deus' attempt to write their own universe versus the Divine universe.
Software: Alphabet, Pen and Blank Page
The famous political philosopher John Locke's definition of human nature as "Tabula Rasa" (blank page) became the motto of educators and psychologists for a while. To them, a newborn baby was just a blank page on which anyone with a pen could write anything. John Watson, the founder of behavioral psychology, said in 1925: “Give me a dozen healthy babies and my private world to raise them, and I would randomly pick one and choose it, regardless of talent, inclination, and ancestral race, in any subject (doctor, lawyer, artist). , merchants and yes even beggars and thieves).”
It soon became clear that the matter was not so simple. The structure of DNA consisting of a four-letter alphabet was discovered. DNA sequences were quite complex software consisting of this alphabet. Moreover, it was not easy to read. Many experts have tried to understand what is written in this incredibly complex biological text. One of the main topics of discussion has been how much of the features that make us us are written with a biological pen and how much is left to the "environment". This debate is still going on.
In short, neither the human nor the physical world consisted of a blank page that anyone could paint in any color they wanted. There was no space like the tip of a needle where the ink of the Pen of Power did not drip. While science was an effort to accurately read what was written, being Homo Deus was about writing. Reading and trying to understand what was written was something that only the servants could accept. How can you claim to be a god if you can't write? That's why "writing/software" became the biggest passion of Homo Deus. As we mentioned in our previous articles, large investments have been made in genetics (Wetware) and software (digital software) fields for the last 70 years. Biotechnology and digital technology companies have become the new central powers of biopower.
However, the problem is not just not being able to find blank pages. You will need a new alphabet, even if you have a pen like “biotechnology” for writing. Using the same letters, you can make up your own words, but that's not writing from scratch. The power of Homo Deus was only enough to "hack" and distort the meaning. Although they have been playing around with this for a while and trying to be satisfied, they also realize that the problem is finding blank pages and producing a new alphabet.
The verse I gave at the entrance is from Surah Qalem. It is the second surah descended after Surah Alaq, which begins with "Read".
It has caught your attention, the sura begins with the letter Nun. There are also other suras that begin with letters. These letters were called “Huruf-u Mukatta” (broken letters), and commentators have thought a lot about what they mean. Letters are the building blocks of writing. All meanings are formed by combining letters in different ways. Although the meanings may differ, as long as the building blocks used remain the same, the words that give the main meaning will never disappear and it will be possible to find them. As I said, writing from scratch isn't just about finding a blank page; requires creating an alphabet from scratch. You can't be a real God using someone else's alphabet! Could there be a plagiarist God? But still hopeful Homo Deus. Maybe they must be thinking that if another universe is established, it would be possible to write from scratch. Could there be a God who does not already have his own universe!
The metaverse, that is, the "metaverse", I think, is a reflection of the hope of a "blank page", albeit virtual. When they said that I would rewrite the already written universe, they spoiled it a lot, and they could not make a new meaning. The "climate" issue, which has recently been presented as a global mission, is based on the idea that the natural universe is becoming increasingly uninhabitable. It is said that we have entered the Anthropocene era and “human existence” itself is being questioned. “Reducing people” is presented as an important goal. Reducing human is thinking of reducing and limiting human's relationship with existence (with other living things and nature). Man is forced into relationship with "artificial beings" and is asked to rearrange his own ontology accordingly. By saying artificial/electronic human, artificial plant, artificial meat, man is being dragged towards an artificial universe step by step.
Now Zuckerberg invites everyone to a new universe, the Metaverse. We do not know whether he is making this call as a god from the gods or as a messenger of the gods. But it must be said that the call was quite "garny". Homo Deus, their ambassadors and influencers seem very hopeful from this call. How could they not be hopeful? Isn't the human being, who does not look at his own creation, fascinated by the sound of Samiri's calf and bowed before him? Isn't the history of mankind largely a history of false promises, false hopes, and real tragedies?