Stephen Downes

Hm. I think if you're 'balancing' the virtual and the physical then you're understanding at least one of them incorrectly. The virtual and the physical aren't some kind of opposing realities or competing realms that need in some way to be 'balanced'. The difference between the physical and the virtual is illusory - it is a distinction that has been marketed hard by companies that want to keep sellig you paper. But the virtual is the physical - the people online are real, the computers are real, the impact of your words is real, and it all happens in the physical world to people with physical bodies. So much in our world is illusion and fiction - I really need to take the time to sort this out, so people can get on with their lives without the need for pundits.