Can computer simulation provide an anarchic virtual world to stimulate interest in the laws of science?

[Steve Howell]

In this world there are two kinds of law: the prescriptive laws of society (thou shalt not kill) and the descriptive laws of nature (the sun rises every morning).

In virtual worlds, from chat rooms to second lives, many of the laws of society are left behind, perhaps to be rediscovered later. You can always run away from a virtual world and take refuge in reality, so you don't need to fear retribution if you break taboos.

This could also be true of a virtual science laboratory. The consequences of dropping a virtual glass beaker onto a virtual floor or short-circuiting a virtual NiCad rechargeable battery can be made as severe or as mild as the developer of the virtual world chooses. Virtual lab equipment is infinitely replaceable.

So I would like to developer a virtual lab where anarchy reigns. Do what you like. Experiment. Have fun.

This is true experimentation and I believe it could lead to a spontaneous interest in the second kind of laws - the laws of nature - in a way that conventional real-world science lessons often don't. Of course, for this to work, the developer needs to apply those laws of nature all the more rigourously. If you're going to let the student do as they please and you want this to result in them learning something about science you need the virtual world to behave itself - to accurately show what would happen if you did that in real life.

With increasing computing power available on cheap PCs I believe this is possible and I am hoping to prove it.