Holodeck

The Holodeck is a fictional device from the television franchise <a href="/facts/Star_Trek/kKGkVK5y">Star Trek</a> which uses "holograms" (projected light and electromagnetic energy which create the illusion of solid objects) to create a <a href="/facts/Virtual_reality/0psDGsxT">realistic 3D simulation</a> of a real or imaginary setting, in which participants can freely interact with the environment as well as objects and characters, and sometimes a predefined narrative.
In several series, holodecks are an amenity available to the crew of starships. In the series <a href="/facts/Star_Trek:_Deep_Space_Nine/ESUWjCmK">Star Trek: Deep Space Nine</a>, a similar device is referred to as a holosuite, operated by the owner of the space station's bar, <a href="/facts/Quark_(Star_Trek)/Dml0TExE">Quark</a>, who rents them out to customers.
From a storytelling point of view, the holodeck permits the introduction of a wide variety of locations and characters, such as events and persons in the <a href="/facts/Earth/HLLmDfj0">Earth</a>'s past, or imaginary places or beings, that would otherwise require the use of plot mechanisms such as time-travel or dream sequences. Writers often use it as a way to pose philosophical questions.

Holodeck open-in-new

Holodeck