When we get a century or so into this revolution, Jaron Lanier is going to prove to be one of the most prominent, deep thinkers. As brilliant as Jaron is, we only have a vague glimpse that there's somebody very special in our midst. This is an intelligence that comes once in a generation. It's not an exaggeration to say it's a little bit like meeting a Mozart.

THE ORACLE (Paul Saffo)

The Prodigy

"One of the processes that concerns me is what I call the "Karma Vertigo Effect." We have an extraordinary amount of what you could call karma in this generation, because this generation is creating the computer network and the infrastructure of computer software that will be running for a thousand years. I call it the Karma Vertigo Effect because when you realize how much karma we have in this generation, you get vertigo!"

Jaron Lanier leads a curious, double life. First, he is a member of the computer-science community and computer industry. He is the best-known pioneer of virtual reality and the founder and former CEO of VPL, one of the first companies to develop this technology. Second, he is a composer, performer, and recording artist. In addition to playing the piano and other Western instruments, he plays ancient instruments from around the world. Jaron is "The Prodigy."

JARON LANIER, a computer scientist and musician, is a pioneer of virtual reality, and founder and former CEO of VPL.