I’m writing this on New Year’s Day, 2023, as we begin another cycle around the sun. Of course there isn’t anything special about Dec 31 or Jan 1 from a natural perspective — it’s a relatively arbitrary date based on tradition that…

A Tribute to the Life of My Father — Muhammad Yaqub Virk (April, 1937- November, 2022) His adventurous spirit brought us East to West His playful stories brought joy to many Recently, my father, Muhammad Yaqub Virk, passed away at the age of 85, after having lived a long and very full life. It feels like the funeral was…

By Rizwan Virk, College of Global Futures, School for the Future of Innovation in Society, ASU DRAFT FOR FEEDBACK, August, 2022, send feedback to rvirk1@asu.edu Abstract While the term, Metaverse has gained popularity in recent years, the exact definition of what is “the Metaverse” vs. “a Metaverse” remains a bit fuzzy…

by Rizwan Virk and Kacy Hatfield Author Notes: This story, originally written as part of a Metaverse world building project, is set in 2045, when the Metaverse has become pervasive. More importantly, AGI is ubiquitous in the Metaverse, in the form of AI Avatars, or Aivies, who have many different…

As part of my doctoral research on the metaverse, I am creating some sci-fi vignettes which can be used as “imaginaries” of the future of the metaverse. An “imaginary” is a term that social scientists like to use to talk about a vision of the…

As part of my doctoral research on the metaverse, I am creating some sci-fi vignettes which can be used as “imaginaries” of the future of the metaverse. An “imaginary” is a term that social scientists like to use to talk about a vision of the future, usually (thought not always)…

Parallel worlds and multiple spidermen — the ‘multiverse’ that dominates the next spate of superhero films sounds like a fantasy. But is it? Sometimes yesterday’s science fiction inspires today’s science, and sometimes it’s the other way around. Take, for instance, William Shatner’s (aka Captain Kirk’s) recent trip to space, or…

Some of you may know that i’ve started at the School for the Future of Innovation and Society in the College of Global Futures at ASU to work on a PhD. My research areas will be, roughly speaking, the emerging metaverse from a set of imaginaries (term that academics like…

Excavating the Shadowy History of Aladdin Across the Centuries: Countries, Languages, Media & Technologies — “Well Ali Baba had them forty thieves, Scheherazade had a thousand tales, But master you’re in luck because up your sleeves You got a brand of magic never fails… I’m in the mood to help you dude You ain’t never had a friend like me” -Friend Like Me (Aladdin, 2019…