A downloadable program allows Second Life participants, called "residents", to interact with each other through motional avatars or computer generated virtual representations. Residents can explore, meet other Residents, socialize, participate in individual and group activities, create and trade services and even buy virtual property. "I was told participants wanted to use our lease abstract, space classifications and information exchange standards to track property in virtual worlds," he continues. "It just about blew the top of my head off."

But he didn't say no. Standards enable real estate professionals to speak the same language, from country to country or from one world to another. They're a good thing, Fuhrman says, especially at a time when the line between virtual and real is increasingly blurred. For Fuhrman, the convergence of the tangible and the intangible is both exciting and challenging. Here's what he had to say about standards, reality and the state of the real estate industry.

GlobeSt: What impact are virtual worlds having on traditional real estate and, more importantly, CRE professionals?