SCOTCH BOYS SHARE THEIR VIEWS ON A BRIGHT FUTURE
AS PART OF THEIR YEAR 11 ENGLISH CURRICULUM , OUR STUDENTS REFLECTED ON WHAT THE FUTURE MAY LOOK LIKE . HERE ARE SOME EXTRACTS THAT FOCUS ON THE MORE OPTIMISTIC ASPECTS THEY COVERED
Virtual reality has been improving at an exponential rate and it is certainly going to be a part of our future . While I doubt it will change our society too much , VR could provide currently unimaginable solutions to some issues that have been cold cases for years ; issues thought to be a natural part of life .
The famous novel , and later film , Ready Player One by Ernest Cline , demonstrated the very real possibility of a virtual world with an economy with very real-world implications . In Cline ' s vision , people can spend their whole lives in virtual reality . A full salary could be earned in VR . And it ' s not just Cline . Many real-world companies , such as Facebook ( now Meta ), BP and Volkswagen are already holding meetings in the virtual world , as VR perfectly facilitates long-distance meetings .
This opens a whole new lifestyle to us . Imagine a picturesque house atop a secluded mountain ; wildlife and greenery abound , as a cosy blanketed interior warms us from the inside out . A metallic grey antenna of some brilliant new design pierces the sky , vigilantly hunting for the best wi-fi signal . That could be your house , my house . As long as the signal is good , we ' ll be able to live anywhere we want , while still attending the 9am meetings we all seem to love so much . The future of virtual reality could help more people out of poverty , assist convicts in being re-educated in a safer environment , and give people who are unable to function in society due to physical disabilities and ailments , new access to more equal opportunities . This will not only benefit those directly affected , but all of us .
Imagine if Steven Hawking had access to this technology . Well , when the next Steven Hawking is born , I hope he will be able to talk , write , and discover even more – if virtual reality is a way to make that happen , then I ’ m all for it . The doors virtual reality can open could be great , greater than we know , so when those doors approach , I hope we are ready to embrace the change ; to embrace the future .
HAMISH O ’ KEEFE
I want to begin with a quote from my favourite novel , The Catcher in the Rye : ‘ The mark of the immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause , while the mark of the mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one .’
One of the things I love about The Catcher in the Rye is how perfectly Salinger captures the absurdity of everyday life . There ’ s no chosen www . scotch . vic . edu . au Great Scot 13