通常來(lái)說(shuō),，年齡的增長(zhǎng)意味著不可避免地要失去某些東西——頭發(fā),、牙齒、家人和朋友,，也許還包括房子和金錢(qián),。

隨著人口不斷老化，越來(lái)越多的人想要活到100歲甚至更大的歲數(shù),。不過(guò),，更長(zhǎng)的壽命可能是件禍福相依的事情。我們真的愿意延長(zhǎng)老年時(shí)代嗎,？畢竟,，如今的許多老人發(fā)現(xiàn)自己失去了與社會(huì)的聯(lián)系，他們成天待在封閉的房子里面,，感到十分孤單,。身體機(jī)能的下降讓老年人很難維持他們的人際關(guān)系，以及愛(ài)情和生命的意義,。

現(xiàn)在好了,。歡迎來(lái)到虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)世界。

許多專家認(rèn)為,，虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)絕不僅是游戲領(lǐng)域一時(shí)流行的風(fēng)尚,。越來(lái)越多的人相信它能夠打造全方位，廣角度的體驗(yàn)，甚至可以重現(xiàn)人們珍視的記憶,。

想象一下,，在你100歲的時(shí)候，和妻子重溫第一次約會(huì)的場(chǎng)景,，那會(huì)是什么情形,？

想象一下，如果我們?cè)谀昀系臅r(shí)候,，無(wú)論身體狀況如何,，都可以利用科技手段，尤其是虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)技術(shù)和其他可穿戴設(shè)備,，重現(xiàn)當(dāng)年的記憶并創(chuàng)造新的人際關(guān)系和體驗(yàn),，那會(huì)是什么情形？

約會(huì)指南作家詹妮弗?凱爾頓表示,，這都是多巴胺和催產(chǎn)素作用的結(jié)果,，我們從社交互動(dòng)中獲得的快感會(huì)促進(jìn)大腦分泌化學(xué)物質(zhì)。

荷爾蒙是人生意義,、激情以及愛(ài)情中必不可少的一部分——無(wú)論我們的年齡大小,。

約會(huì)網(wǎng)站BadOnlineDates.com創(chuàng)始人，《21世紀(jì)約會(huì)求偶指南》一書(shū)的作者凱爾頓表示：“多巴胺和催產(chǎn)素會(huì)給予我們身體和情感方面的支持,?！?/p>

“有趣的是，我們從社交網(wǎng)絡(luò),、游戲以及親身互動(dòng)中,，能得到許多令人愉悅的荷爾蒙?！彼a(bǔ)充道,。

在我們老去的同時(shí)，包括可穿戴設(shè)備和機(jī)器人在內(nèi)的許多技術(shù),，會(huì)打造一個(gè)方便人們約會(huì)和建立人際關(guān)系的全新世界,。不過(guò)，虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)和游戲技術(shù)也許會(huì)引發(fā)最大的變革,，尤其是隨著幻覺(jué)狀態(tài)和生物反應(yīng)技術(shù)的發(fā)展,。

第一波虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)技術(shù)已經(jīng)初露端倪?！都~約時(shí)報(bào)》不久前發(fā)布的虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)應(yīng)用贏得了一片喝彩,。谷歌推出了一套硬紙板折成的虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)眼鏡，供用戶配合手機(jī)使用,。還有一些公司從各種高度和角度拍攝360度視頻,，讓用戶不只是看電影,，而是親身參與到電影當(dāng)中。Facebook旗下的Oculus Rift公司也準(zhǔn)備發(fā)布下一代頭戴設(shè)備,。

游戲開(kāi)發(fā)者,、XEODesign公司創(chuàng)始人尼克爾?拉扎羅也認(rèn)為，虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)技術(shù)和游戲?qū)槔先颂峁┤碌捏w驗(yàn),，絕不僅僅是簡(jiǎn)單的娛樂(lè),。她目前在開(kāi)發(fā)一款名為“追蹤白兔子”的游戲，以迎合人們希望深化虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)體驗(yàn)的情緒,。

拉扎羅指出,，這項(xiàng)技術(shù)在未來(lái)50年的迅速發(fā)展，甚至灰超出我們今天的想象,。她表示：“虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)的精髓在于體驗(yàn),，在于催生情緒,。當(dāng)我們考慮年齡老化和約會(huì)時(shí),，我們實(shí)際上討論的是社會(huì)關(guān)系，而虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)顯然可以實(shí)現(xiàn)這一點(diǎn),?！?/p>

這意味著，待在沉浸式,，廣角度的虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)領(lǐng)域中就能體驗(yàn)到新鮮事物,，比如滑翔傘運(yùn)動(dòng)，還能重現(xiàn)記憶,。使用虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)技術(shù),，還可以將當(dāng)前的幻想和過(guò)去的現(xiàn)實(shí)結(jié)合并聯(lián)系起來(lái)。

物理限制將會(huì)消失,。即便你在空間上受到了限制,，你也可以與新的朋友騎著自行車游覽尼泊爾或者乘風(fēng)滑翔。

不相信嗎,？請(qǐng)想像一下那些笨重的虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)頭戴設(shè)備被隱形眼鏡代替,，而其他佩戴虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)眼鏡的人與你同處一個(gè)場(chǎng)景。你可以用你想被感知到的方式塑造自己,，而其他人會(huì)真的感覺(jué)你在那里,，而不只是知道你的年齡。如果你想要再次變得年輕,，在虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)場(chǎng)景里就可以辦到,。甚至，如果你想成為一只章魚(yú),，在接下來(lái)50年內(nèi)也許也能實(shí)現(xiàn),。

對(duì)于50年后的人際交往和約會(huì),，這意味著什么？這意味著我們?cè)黾恿艘粋€(gè)新層次的現(xiàn)實(shí)世界,，物理限制將會(huì)消失,。這意味著衰老被重新定義，那些可能無(wú)法輕易,、頻繁出門(mén)的老人也能擁有全新的工作和社交時(shí)間,。它有助于緩解老年人面臨的問(wèn)題，他們之前被隔絕開(kāi)來(lái),，無(wú)法與同齡人或者比他們年輕的人交往,。

顯然，這種先進(jìn)技術(shù)也許會(huì)促使百歲以上的老人結(jié)合在一起,。你在對(duì)公園里散步的那對(duì)老夫妻微笑,？也許50年后，他們就會(huì)在重現(xiàn)的高中禮堂里漫步了,。

現(xiàn)在大約有60%的老年人已經(jīng)開(kāi)始上網(wǎng),，他們會(huì)去社交網(wǎng)絡(luò)、游戲平臺(tái)或OurTime.com之類的約會(huì)網(wǎng)站,。隨著更多數(shù)字時(shí)代的人進(jìn)入老年,，這一數(shù)字在未來(lái)還會(huì)上升。

如果你覺(jué)得老人不需要繼續(xù)約會(huì)或是保持親密關(guān)系的話,，那就錯(cuò)了,，老年人也有許多性行為。實(shí)際上,，由于人們對(duì)婚外性行為的態(tài)度比以前開(kāi)放,，老年人感染性病的案例有所增加。更高的離婚率和更多的分手次數(shù),，讓老年人的單身數(shù)量也提高了,。

不過(guò)凱爾頓表示，無(wú)論是線上還是現(xiàn)實(shí)中會(huì)面,，其重點(diǎn)在于跟其他人交流,。隨著越來(lái)越多人在家里而不是輔助生活社區(qū)中變老，這一點(diǎn)尤其重要,。

她說(shuō)：“無(wú)論是真實(shí)社區(qū)還是虛擬社區(qū),，生活在聯(lián)系緊密的社區(qū)中的人們，都會(huì)有更長(zhǎng)的壽命,?！保ㄘ?cái)富中文網(wǎng)）

本文作者安迪?斯科洛普夫是前高盛集團(tuán)技術(shù)分析師，目前在丹佛云服務(wù)公司HOSTING擔(dān)任首席戰(zhàn)略官,。

譯者：嚴(yán)匡正

審校：任文科

Growing old, at least as we know it today, is about inexorable loss — loss of hair, loss of teeth, loss of family and friends, loss of home and money, perhaps.

As the population ages, and more people are expected to reach 100 years old and beyond, it can seem a mixed blessing. Is old age something we want to prolong? After all, many old folks do today find themselves cut off, shut in and lonely. Relationships — love and meaning — can be made difficult by physical barriers.

Enter VR — virtual reality.

Many experts believe that VR will be more than a gaming fad. There is a growing belief it can create an ability to have full-fledged, wide-angle experiences, and even relive cherished memories.

Imagine if, at 100, you and your wife could relive your first date?

Imagine old age if we can use technology, VR in particular, and other wearables to not only rekindle memories, but also to create new connections and experiences, no matter what our physical status in real life?

Dating guide author Jennifer Kelton says it’s all about dopamine and oxytocin, and the rush we get from social interactions which spur the brain chemical.

It’s a hormone that is integral to meaning and excitement — and love — no matter what our age.

“These hits of dopamine and oxytocin sustain us on a physical and emotional level,” says Kelton, the founder of BadOnlineDates.com and the author of Don’t Use My Sweater Like a Towel: The Stain Free Guide for Dating and Mating in the 21st Century.

“Interestingly,’’ she adds, “we can get these doses of pleasure hormones from social networks and gaming, as well as from in-person interactions.”

Many technologies, including wearables and robotics, will create Brave New Worlds for dating and relationships, as we get older. VR and gaming may offer the most dramatic shifts, however, especially as the suspension of disbelief improves and biological responses develop.

The first wave of VR is already on the horizon, too. The New York Times just released its VR app, to some acclaim. Google GOOG 2.03% has created a whole selection of cardboard VR viewers you can use with your cell phone. There are companies that are filming 360 degree video from multitudes of heights and perspectives to allow users to participate in movies, rather than just watch them. Oculus Rift, owned by Facebook FB 2.51% , is ready to launch next-generation headsets.

Game developer Nicole Lazzaro, founder of XEODesign, agrees that that VR and gaming could open up new experiences for the elderly in the future, and that it will go beyond simple entertainment. She is working on a game called Follow the White Rabbitthat targets emotions to deepen the VR experience.

Lazzaro notes that the technology will advance in leaps and bounds in the next 50 years to beyond what we can even imagine today. “Virtual reality is about experiences and generating emotions,” she says. “When we think about aging and dating we are really talking about social relationships, and virtual reality will deliver that in spades.”

That means a sojourn in the immersive, wide-angle VR realm could allow someone to experience new things such as paragliding as well as a memories. It also could tie the two — present fantasy and past reality — together and network them with others using VR.

Physical limits will fall away. Even if you are physically confined, you could be cycling in Nepal or hang-gliding with your new friend.

Skeptical? Just imagine that those clunky VR headsets have been replaced with contact lenses, and other people wearing the VR lenses can be in the same scene as you. You can project yourself, as you want to be perceived, and be seen for who you feel you really are, rather than just your age. If you want to be young again, in VR you can. (Heck, if you want to be an octopus, in 50 years from now you could probably do that, too.)

What does this mean in terms of relationships and dating fifty years from now? This could mean that we add a new layer to reality, one where our physical limits fall away. It could mean a redefinition of aging as a newly productive and social time for old folks who perhaps can no longer get out as easily or as often. It could help bridge the gap that both elderly men and women face in being closed off from interaction with people their own age, and with younger ages.

Of course, the advances will also probably spur a spate of centenarian coupling, too. That old couple that you smile at as they take a stroll in the park? In 50 years they might be walking through a re-creation of the halls of their old high school.

About 60 percent of seniors are already online today, on social networks, gaming platforms or dating sites such as OurTime.com. Those numbers will grow as more digitally savvy generations hobble into the future.

And if you think older folks don’t need to continue to date and be in relationships, seniors are having lots of sex already. Indeed, the prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases have risen among the elderly, helped by more relaxed attitudes to sex outside of marriage. Higher divorce rates and more breakups and higher have led to more single people, too.

But whether you meet online or in person, Kelton says what remains important is having interactions with others — something that’s especially important as more Americans age in place rather than moving to assisted living facilities.

“People who live in strong communities, whether they are real or virtual, will have longer lifespans,” she says.

Andy Schroepfer, a former tech analyst for Goldman Sachs, is chief strategy officer at HOSTING, a Denver-based managed cloud services firm. Follow him on Twitter at @SHrepFUR, which is the phonetic spelling of his name.