Science Fiction Dictionary
A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z

Latest By
Category:


Armor
Artificial Intelligence
Biology
Clothing
Communication
Computers
Culture
Data Storage
Displays
Engineering
Entertainment
Food
Input Devices
Lifestyle
Living Space
Manufacturing
Material
Media
Medical
Miscellaneous
Robotics
Security
Space Tech
Spacecraft
Surveillance
Transportation
Travel
Vehicle
Virtual Person
Warfare
Weapon
Work

"The permanent government now is the anchorpeople. They don't get elected, and year after year they're responding emotionally to this or that."
- Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

Idoru  
  A virtual person like a video game character; an entity given specific characteristics, existing only in computer networks.  

Idoru is a wonderful novel; I don't want to spoil the story for anyone, because the book is well worth reading. But the idea is one that we will certainly see more of.

"What did Blackwell mean, last night, about Rez wanting to marry a Japanese girl who isn't real?"

"Idoru," Yamazaki said. "'Idol-singer'. She is Tei Toei. She is a personality-construct, a congeries of software agents, the creation of information-designers. She is akin to what I believe they call a 'synthespian', in Hollywood."

Technovelgy from Idoru, by William Gibson.
Published by Putnam in 1996
Additional resources -

Tei Toei is fictional character modeled on a "real" computer generated person named Kyoko Date. Kyoko Date was created by Visual Science Laboratory (VSL) of Japan in 1996, a computer graphics software company that worked on video games like Xtreme Beach Volleyball. See Kyoto Date for more information about her.

In America, Lara Croft (of Tomb Raider video game fame) is our own personality-construct. She has, of course, inspired a live action movie series, starring Angelina Jolie as the idoru. See the entry for synthespian for more information.

Comment/Join this discussion ( 2 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This |

Additional resources:
  More Ideas and Technology from Idoru
  More Ideas and Technology by William Gibson
  Tech news articles related to Idoru
  Tech news articles related to works by William Gibson

Idoru-related news articles:
  - Virtual Girlfriends Updated
  - Webkare - Virtual Boyfriends
  - Love Plus Dating Sim Requires Kissing
  - Virtual Star Hatsune Miku In 3D Hologram Concert Video
  - Is Aimi Eguchi Real or Virtual? Updated!
  - Gatebox Virtual Girlfriend Perfect For Budding Salaryman
  - Man's Marriage To Hologram Ruined By Software Glitch
  - Anna Indiana AI Singer-Songwriter

Articles related to Virtual Person
Anna Indiana AI Singer-Songwriter
Metaverse Hardware - Run And Flail Like A Maniac, Or Lie Quietly?
Virtual Co-Embodyment - Two People Control One Virtual Body
Sorry, Futurists! Tamagotchi Kids, Virtual Children Already Predicted By SF Writer in 2008

Want to Contribute an Item? It's easy:
Get the name of the item, a quote, the book's name and the author's name, and Add it here.

<Previous
Next>

Google
  Web TechNovelgy.com   

 

 

Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Science Fiction Invention Timeline, or see what's New.

 

 

 

 

Science Fiction Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's   1950's
1960's   1970's
1980's   1990's
2000's   2010's

Science Fiction in the News

WiFi and AI Team Up To See Through Walls
'The pitiless M rays pierced Earth and steel and densest concrete as if they were so much transparent glass...'

Climate Engineering In California Could Make Europe's Heat Waves Worse
'Pina2bo would have to operate full blast for many years to put as much SO2 into the stratosphere as its namesake had done in a few minutes.'

Optimus Robot Will Be A Good Nanny, Says Musk
'Nanny is different,' Tom Fields murmured... 'she's not like a machine. She's like a person.'

ESA To Build Moon Bases Brick By Printed LEGO Brick
'We made a crude , small cell and were delighted - and, I admit, somewhat surprised - to find it worked.'

Does The Shortage Of Human Inputs Limit AI Development?
'...we've promised him a generous pension from the royalties.'

Textiles That Harvest Energy And Store It
'The clothes and jewelery drew their tiny power requirements from her movements.'

LORIS Passive-Gripper Climbing Robot
'At the end of each appendage's eight fingers there are tinier appendages...'

Drug To Regenerate Teeth In Humans
'We want to do something to help those who are suffering from tooth loss or absence,' said lead researcher Katsu Takahashi.

Coin-Sized Nuclear Battery Good For 100 Years
'...power pack the size of a pea.'

More SF in the News

More Beyond Technovelgy

Home | Glossary | Science Fiction Timeline | Category | New | Contact Us | FAQ | Advertise |
Technovelgy.com - where science meets fiction™

Copyright© Technovelgy LLC; all rights reserved.