Virtual Spaces

Cyberspace. The new frontier. Its pioneers bear names such as LoveSearch, Tomato, Hot Chick, and Satan. They explore an endless variety of virtual spaces like "The Den of Love," "The Ladies Orgy Room," "The Romance Chamber," and "The Dungeon." Their dialogue ranges from the sexually direct ("What are you wearing?," "Would you like to make love to another female?") to the self-reflective ("You don't seem interested in me," and "Will I ever have sex again with a real person?")These are the voices of a new sexual revolution, waged on the virtual frontier of the Internet, where personal anonymity and global access provide unlimited opportunities for sexual exploration. Who exactly are these explorers? What are they looking for? And what do they find? Cleo Odzer, an anthropologist and Internet pioneer, has spent years studying human sexuality, and has now applied her expertise and experience to unraveling the complex evolution of human relationships on the web. Dr. Odzer's engaging account of sex in cyberspace takes us from the on-line equivalent of playing footsie to private Internet rooms that only the most hardened sexual adventurer would dare enter. Through her own observation and participation on the net, Dr. Odzer shows us how personal history and fantasy interact and alter relationships on-line. By explicitly chronicling her own life and adventures on the web, she reveals our own deepest wishes, our darkest desires, and our universal need to connect. She tackles such controversial issues as net sex and pornography, ethics in cyberspace, digital obsessions and love affairs. In the end, she discovers a virtual community as rich and diverse as any real-life counterpart--a brave new world of e-mail, chat rooms, and video-conferencing that, despite its modern trappings, provides a direct line to the most basic of human desires: the need for intimacy, passion, a sense of belonging, and love.A brave and exiting voyage into the sexual cybersphere, Virtual Spaces offers not only a glimpse of our technological future but a timeless exploration of the human heart.