In his 1992 sci-fi novel, Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson mentions a concept called the "Metaverse," a giant, shared virtual world combining augmented reality with virtual reality, where users appear as avatars and access this new world via special goggles. Facebook is now ready to bring that idea to fruition, with plans to hire 10,000 workers in Europe over the next five years toward that end, reports NPR. In a blog post, the social media giant notes that "the metaverse has the potential to help unlock access to new creative, social and economic opportunities." Critics, however, wonder how Facebook will handle user privacy, as well as the misinformation and conflict that seem to emerge whenever the platform pushes toward more connectivity. More on the metaverse plan: