<!-- MHonArc v2.4.4 --> <!--X-Subject: [MUD-Dev] Ethics & Identity --> <!--X-From-R13: Epnggre <fpnggreNguribegrk.pbz> --> <!--X-Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 10:38:24 -0700 --> <!--X-Message-Id: 36224ADE.1328F954#thevortex,com --> <!--X-Content-Type: text/plain --> <!--X-Head-End--> <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 3.2//EN"> <html> <head> <title>MUD-Dev message, [MUD-Dev] Ethics & Identity</title> <!-- meta name="robots" content="noindex,nofollow" --> <link rev="made" href="mailto:scatter#thevortex,com"> </head> <body background="/backgrounds/paperback.gif" bgcolor="#ffffff" text="#000000" link="#0000FF" alink="#FF0000" vlink="#006000"> <font size="+4" color="#804040"> <strong><em>MUD-Dev<br>mailing list archive</em></strong> </font> <br> [ <a href="../">Other Periods</a> | <a href="../../">Other mailing lists</a> | <a href="/search.php3">Search</a> ] <br clear=all><hr> <!--X-Body-Begin--> <!--X-User-Header--> <!--X-User-Header-End--> <!--X-TopPNI--> Date: [ <a href="msg00156.html">Previous</a> | <a href="msg00158.html">Next</a> ] Thread: [ <a href="msg00159.html">Previous</a> | <a href="msg00155.html">Next</a> ] Index: [ <A HREF="author.html#00157">Author</A> | <A HREF="#00157">Date</A> | <A HREF="thread.html#00157">Thread</A> ] <!--X-TopPNI-End--> <!--X-MsgBody--> <!--X-Subject-Header-Begin--> <H1>[MUD-Dev] Ethics & Identity</H1> <HR> <!--X-Subject-Header-End--> <!--X-Head-of-Message--> <UL> <LI><em>To</em>: <A HREF="mailto:mud-dev#kanga,nu">mud-dev#kanga,nu</A></LI> <LI><em>Subject</em>: [MUD-Dev] Ethics & Identity</LI> <LI><em>From</em>: Scatter <<A HREF="mailto:scatter#thevortex,com">scatter#thevortex,com</A>></LI> <LI><em>Date</em>: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 18:30:54 +0000</LI> <LI><em>Reply-To</em>: <A HREF="mailto:mud-dev#kanga,nu">mud-dev#kanga,nu</A></LI> </UL> <!--X-Head-of-Message-End--> <!--X-Head-Body-Sep-Begin--> <HR> <!--X-Head-Body-Sep-End--> <!--X-Body-of-Message--> <PRE> At <URL:<A HREF="http://www.scu.edu/Ethics/publications/iie/v7n2/turkle.shtml">http://www.scu.edu/Ethics/publications/iie/v7n2/turkle.shtml</A>> is an interesting piece on identity and ethics on the net. It's partly a book review, but has some questions which I thought might interest some on this list: -- cut -- "Is the real self always the naturally occurring one? Is the real self always the one in the physical world? As more and more real business gets done in cyberspace, could the real self be the one who functions best in that world?" These questions have important moral ramifications. What are the ethics of swapping identities? Does someone who signs onto the Internet under a different persona violate the virtues of honesty, trustworthiness, and integrity, or do the rules of the game allow such tinkering? You might conclude that all is fair among consenting players. In fact, such games can be seen as a way of sparking moral imagination. As Turkle puts it, "We can use it as space for growth." By trying out new personae, we can, she argues, learn more about our true selves and the nature of artifice. Then we can return from cyberspace enlarged by our experience. "Virtuality need not be a prison," she writes. "It can be the raft, the ladder, the transitional space, the moratorium, that is discarded after reaching greater freedom." But suppose, for example, that you sign on as an aggressive male in search of what is known on MUDs as TinySex; that is, simulated sex carried on through conversations. If it is true that 90 percent of sex is in the mind, then such an encounter might be almost as emotional as the real thing. Now suppose that the player behind the identity you meet is a 10-year-old child. Should you enter into a highly emotional encounter with such a person? Playing in a MUD may be entertaining, stimulating, and growth-enhancing for a healthy adult. But for an immature individual, it might also be frightening or traumatic. If there is a chance our actions might cause harm to another, are we morally obligated to refrain from playing the game? And what if the player behind the identity you meet is, like Julia, a bot? When one player learned that Julia was just a computer program, she reported feeling "shallow, void, hollow, superficial, fake, out of control of the situation." What is the programmer's obligation to reveal the bot's identity - or lack of it? -- cut -- -- Scatter ///\oo/\\\ </PRE> <!--X-Body-of-Message-End--> <!--X-MsgBody-End--> <!--X-Follow-Ups--> <HR> <!--X-Follow-Ups-End--> <!--X-References--> <!--X-References-End--> <!--X-BotPNI--> <UL> <LI>Prev by Date: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00156.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: META: Review of FAQ's Bio Section</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Next by Date: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00158.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: META: Review of FAQ's Bio Section</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Prev by thread: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00159.html">[MUD-Dev] (CDMag) Sosaria Cracked: Why OSI's great social experiment is doomed</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Next by thread: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00155.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: META: Review of FAQ's Bio Section</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Index(es): <UL> <LI><A HREF="index.html#00157"><STRONG>Date</STRONG></A></LI> <LI><A HREF="thread.html#00157"><STRONG>Thread</STRONG></A></LI> </UL> </LI> </UL> <!--X-BotPNI-End--> <!--X-User-Footer--> <!--X-User-Footer-End--> <ul><li>Thread context: <BLOCKQUOTE><UL> <LI><STRONG>[MUD-Dev] Re: Laws of Online World Design</STRONG>, <EM>(continued)</EM> <ul compact> <LI><strong><A NAME="00233" HREF="msg00233.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: Laws of Online World Design</A></strong>, ApplePiMan <a href="mailto:ApplePiMan#aol,com">ApplePiMan#aol,com</a>, Sat 17 Oct 1998, 01:00 GMT <UL> <LI><strong><A NAME="00236" HREF="msg00236.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: Laws of Online World Design</A></strong>, J C Lawrence <a href="mailto:claw#under,engr.sgi.com">claw#under,engr.sgi.com</a>, Sat 17 Oct 1998, 03:47 GMT </LI> </UL> </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00238" HREF="msg00238.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: Laws of Online World Design</A></strong>, ApplePiMan <a href="mailto:ApplePiMan#aol,com">ApplePiMan#aol,com</a>, Sat 17 Oct 1998, 05:54 GMT </LI> </ul> </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00159" HREF="msg00159.html">[MUD-Dev] (CDMag) Sosaria Cracked: Why OSI's great social experiment is doomed</A></strong>, J C Lawrence <a href="mailto:claw#under,engr.sgi.com">claw#under,engr.sgi.com</a>, Tue 13 Oct 1998, 00:39 GMT <LI><strong><A NAME="00157" HREF="msg00157.html">[MUD-Dev] Ethics & Identity</A></strong>, Scatter <a href="mailto:scatter#thevortex,com">scatter#thevortex,com</a>, Mon 12 Oct 1998, 17:38 GMT <LI><strong><A NAME="00155" HREF="msg00155.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: META: Review of FAQ's Bio Section</A></strong>, Chris Gray <a href="mailto:cg#ami-cg,GraySage.Edmonton.AB.CA">cg#ami-cg,GraySage.Edmonton.AB.CA</a>, Mon 12 Oct 1998, 16:13 GMT <UL> <li><Possible follow-up(s)><br> <LI><strong><A NAME="00156" HREF="msg00156.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: META: Review of FAQ's Bio Section</A></strong>, Benjamin D. Wiechel <a href="mailto:strycher#toast,net">strycher#toast,net</a>, Mon 12 Oct 1998, 17:28 GMT <UL> <LI><strong><A NAME="00158" HREF="msg00158.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: META: Review of FAQ's Bio Section</A></strong>, Ling <a href="mailto:K.L.Lo-94#student,lboro.ac.uk">K.L.Lo-94#student,lboro.ac.uk</a>, Mon 12 Oct 1998, 19:05 GMT <UL> <LI><strong><A NAME="00189" HREF="msg00189.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: META: Review of FAQ's Bio Section</A></strong>, J C Lawrence <a href="mailto:claw#under,engr.sgi.com">claw#under,engr.sgi.com</a>, Tue 13 Oct 1998, 22:37 GMT </LI> </UL> </LI> </UL> </LI> </UL> </LI> </UL></BLOCKQUOTE> </ul> <hr> <center> [ <a href="../">Other Periods</a> | <a href="../../">Other mailing lists</a> | <a href="/search.php3">Search</a> ] </center> <hr> </body> </html>