"The metaverse: A virtual world of AI-powered connections - or disconnections?"

The metaverse is the internet's latest brainchild, designed to either tighten or tear the bonds of human interaction. Depending on your perspective of the internet and its advancements, you may view the metaverse with either excitement or skepticism. But let's dive into the main points and explore this new digital realm together.

Upon watching a fragment of a lesson given by tech genie Mark Zuckerberg, the question arised instantly: how disconnected can we be from reality? In the video, he explained all the interactive features that would be available in the metaverse. From virtual workspaces to shopping, to meeting with friends in virtual coffeeshops, I could feel nothing but eerie preoccupation. However, Mark promises that the goal is not to push us away from reality but rather combine many realities together. It aims to do so by providing:

Digital working spaces: Not only does it allow you to communicate with your team but to be present in the moment with them. Imagine being able to draw business plans and statistics in the air, while sitting on your best couch. We wish we had this back in Covid 19.

Opens doors for businesses: How many times have you wondered whether those tight jeans you are planning to buy online actually fit you. Well, with the help of metaverse, you could have a 3d hologram of those jeans in front of you. This makes it easier for businesses to promote their product overseas by providing a more accurate representation of its texture and dimension. Consumers no longer need to stick to their local boutiques. It could also be an opportunity for holiday providers and airlines who wish to give a 3D experience of their products to the customers.

The metaverse will not only be a virtual, but also physical world:

It uses a more advanced method of virtual reality: Extended reality, which aims to merge the digital with the physical world. Of course, to sustain this, we need enormous amounts of energy, and as it grows, we need to expand its storage capacity.

It will help reduce environmental footprint: The lack of physical spaces will reduce usage of sources like electricity and infrastructure. This is ideal for teams that cannot budget an office space or are located remotely from each other.

From a more holistic perspective, the increase in population will simply mean less available infrastructure, and more opportunities for nature to thrive.

The internet: Where being social means being alone

What if people prefer this virtual reality instead of the real world, especially those with social anxiety and other mental disabilities, choose to shell themselves in a utopian fantasy instead of facing reality? Think about it, you are in front of your computer, connected to your VR headset or glasses, with company in the virtual space, but in the physical space, you are alone. I do not doubt, however, that we will indeed feel connected and submerged into the experience. In fact, It has been proved that the same areas of our brain that are active when we experience something show just as much activity when we imagine it. ( See https://drdavidhamilton.com/does-your-brain-distinguish-real-from-imaginary/). But what happens when we come back?

- Decreased interaction with social connections in the real world

- Loss of touch with reality

- Possible addiction due to short-term dopamine gratification

- Decreased attention span from intense and variable stimuli.

The idealized nature of this social space is the perfect potion for all the byproducts listed above. It could also lead to unrealistic expectations and friendships. How we choose to describe ourselves on social media is at times very far from reality. I have had countless friends whose best tinder matches turned out to be far from ideal in real life. There is nothing better that using your five senses to judge someone.

I will finalize this blog letting you ponder on all these questions. After all, I believe that you can ripe benefits out of anything as long as you know how to use it best. The metaverse could revolutionize the virtual world, but it threates to throw gaps in the real one. I would love to hear your opinion on it.

PD: Anyway, I actually managed to complete the course on the metaverse and earned my certificate. It gave me a better insight into how the internet works.