You could call Second Life a computer game, but you’d be mistaken. It’s a “metaverse,” or alternate universe. It exists online, and its population is growing daily. There is no predetermined way to play, and you don’t win or lose; but you do get to enjoy a “virtual life.”

Kim Gregson, associate professor of television-radio, recognized the metaverse’s educational potential early; now Second Life is an integral part of her Qualitative Research Methods class. And with the support of Dean Dianne Lynch, the Park School and Ithaca College are poised to take full advantage of Second Life and related digital media.

Millions of people have registered since the program went public in 2003. These users have the ability to spend their time “in-world” in any way they choose. They can explore, own property, build houses, and buy clothes for their virtual selves. This open-endedness makes Second Life an exciting prospect for participants and, increasingly, for businesses, entrepreneurs, and institutions of higher learning.

After Gregson’s students create individual accounts, they are cut loose, first to observe, later to interview the inhabitants of Second Life—a huge and diverse pool of people from around the world. Austra Zubkovs ’07, a television-radio major in Gregson’s class, cites the ease with which students can access research subjects, especially during evening classes.

The promise of three-dimensional virtual realities has existed since the inception of personal computers and the Internet. As technology expands and broadband becomes more widely available, the ability to create and maintain a virtual world with thousands of active participants at a time has been realized. The possibilities are endless, Gregson says: “Everything is created by the users, and students can study everything.” The introduction of in-world banks was one example. The in-world currency, the Linden dollar (after Linden Labs, the company that developed Second Life), can be converted to and from U.S. dollars with ATMs located throughout Second Life. What role do banks play, and how do they function without a government? These are just some of the questions Gregson’s students ponder.

Many users are going further, using Second Life for things that would be impossible or costly in real life. There is a large-scale model of a heart, complete with murmur, for medical students to explore. The International Spaceflight Museum and Second Life Planetarium both hold educational events. And Zubkovs, with the help of Gregson and assistant professor of philosophy and religion Rachel Wagner, documented religious items found in Second Life. (The research was presented last spring at the Popular Culture Association conference in Boston.)

The past few months have seen a marked increase in the presence of learning institutions in-world, “and it’s just going to blossom,” Gregson says. At press time, some 80 schools from throughout the world are buying islands and even holding classes in Second Life. The Park School has already purchased two islands, where faculty and students are creating buildings and establishing an IC community.

Lynch acknowledges the important role that what she calls “immersive and participatory media” will play in the coming years. “It’s our responsibility as a media and communications school,” she says, “to stay ahead of the curve.”

Last November marked the first time a user became a millionaire from profits earned entirely inside Second Life—and that’s a million real U.S. dollars. German citizen Ailin Graef created her fortune based on extensive virtual real-estate holdings, which she develops for resale or lease. Real estate barons like Graef build malls in which technically adept tenants open stores selling the virtual goods they’ve created (clothes, furniture, bicycles—anything) and paying rent. It adds up, and the barons can convert their Lindens into U.S. dollars whenever they wish. But with the recent creation of an in-world stock market, maybe it’d be wise to reinvest.

Second Life is the largest and most successful such program to date. Linden Labs is privately held, so there’s no way to know its annual revenues, but the large and growing company revolves around the metaverse.

Not everyone is out to make a profit in Second Life; many are just looking for a good time, a challenge, or a learning experience. Tom Torello ’87, executive director of marketing communications, calls Second Life “a place we need to be.” And while the metaverse itself might not be the future, it’s certainly a harbinger of things to come.