Pramod K. Nayar’s book, An Introduction to New Media and Cybercultures was published in 2010, giving his book an up-to-date view of cyberculture and how the virtual world affects our society. Nayar, an English professor at the University of Hyderabad in India, presents a coherent and detailed introduction of cybercultures in the first chapter of his book. His Indian background provides him with unique insight on cybercultures, as India is one of the top countries in the computer industry. This enables him to effectively describe how cybercultures and the virtual world are intertwined with the material world, and how each culture affects the other. He states,

While cultures determine what forms of technologies develop, these technologies, in turn, shape cultures. Technology, in other words, is not merely an effect or cause of culture but it is both: it determines and is determined by the culture in which it develops (4).

Nayar also argues that material world issues such as race, gender, class, identity and socio-economic status are also inherent in cyberculture, thus making it impossible to separate the real world from the virtual world. Another very interesting point Nayar addresses is identity in cyberspace. He states,

Cyberspace allows one to pick an identity, to masquerade, mimic and transcend bodily identities and interact with the world as somebody else. In a world where race, class, gender and sexuality can become obstacles in interactions with the world, cyberspace allows one to choose an identity that my have nothing to do with one’s “real-life” gender or race….They can play any role the choose because it is difficult to authenticate the identity presented in cyberspace (14).

Because so many people change their identity in the virtual world, cyber identities reflect major issues existing in the material world. For example, Nayar states that cyberspace allows a woman to “masquerade” as a man so she can participate in cyber discussions about issues such as politics, without the worry of gender bias. However, as our society moves forward and gender issues become less and less apparent, there would be an expected decrease in how many women must change their cyber identity. These cyber identities allow people to safely become what society considers “unacceptable” without fear of being ostracized by society. However, while cyber identities can be a positive outlet allowing people to be whoever they want, there can be negative consequences as well. For instance, take the craigslist killer. His cyber identity allowed him to be someone completely different than who he was in the real world, but it also enabled him to continue to carry out horrendous crimes for a long period of time before getting caught. But in conclusion, the issue of identity illustrates Nayar’s original point: that cyberculture and virtual reality cannot be separated from the material world, and that actions in either culture often have lasting effects on the other.