Mastering the Metaverse

Dads’ Survival Guide: Parenting

The Metaverse is coming.

Wow. Exciting. If only I had a clue what the Metaverse is.

Luckily, there’s plenty of press out there. So Dads can get up to speed. On VR and Augmented Reality. Avatars. NFTs. Dogecoin. Crypto wallets. Mining. Minting. Gas fees. Web 3.0. The Blockchain. Ripple. And Ethereum.

Seriously? Who can make heads or tails out of such jargon? And besides, isn’t this just tech industry hype? To sell more headsets and gaming consoles. Or another pop culture fad. Likely to flame out before we figure it out.

Why should us Dads care about all this futuristic mumbo-jumbo?

Because our kids will be first to wade in. Check out the Metaverse. Experiment. Engage one another in vast digital realms. A virtual world. Which could be even more challenging, complex, and dangerous than the real world.

And face it, Dads, when our kids know more than us, we can’t protect them.

The Definition

‘Meta’ means beyond. And the concept of a world beyond the universe, or Metaverse, was coined by Neal Stephenson in a 1990s sci-fi novel. His imaginary creation was not far from the views of today’s tech visionaries.

Mark Zuckerberg defines the Metaverse as a fully immersive, virtual experience, “where instead of just viewing content, you’re in it.” Literally, in the game. Each of us as 3D avatars. Our digital personas exploring computer-generated places. And communities. Fortnite. NFT galleries. Virtual concerts, casinos, and clubs. Or simulated office meetings.

With continued advances in 3D graphics, device technology and broadband speed, virtual adventures will feel more and more like real life.

Red pill or blue pill, Neo?

The Evolution

How did we get to the Metaverse?

The evolution started with Internet 1.0. The World-wide Web. An online communications channel. Open. Public. Accessible from anywhere with a Wi-Fi hookup. Static pages of digital content. Websites. Browsing. Search engines. And the genesis of “You’ve got mail.”

Web 2.0 created mobility. iPhones. Ubiquitous connectivity. Anytime. Anywhere. Text messaging. Playlists. And professional-grade videos. Memorializing our everyday.

Then came apps. For fitness. Finance. Friendships. And fandom. The explosion of social media.

And digital advertising. Launching the era of tech giants. Facebook (now Meta). Twitter. Google. Commercializing our personal data. For billions in profits. While governing our online access. To concentrate power.

This has sparked a revolt. A crypto revolution. Web3. Power in the people’s hands. Via peer-to-peer transactions. Decentralization. With infrastructure built on the Blockchain. Rather than corporate servers. Open, public exchanges instead of institutional intermediaries. Bitcoin over cash. Smart contracts. And the rise of virtual asset investing.

As well as a next-generation online platform. Capable of housing imaginary digital worlds. The Metaverse. Alternatives to the real world. Adventurous for some. Escape for others.

Which will it be for our kids?

The Jargon

Understanding the Metaverse starts with understanding the terminology. So, here we go:

· Virtual Reality (VR): Fully immersive, animated 3D places to experience and explore. Accessed through VR headsets. Think Oculus.

· Augmented Reality (AR): Superimposing the digital realm onto the physical world. I.e., Google Glass. Spreadsheets, maps, animation projected in front of our eyes as we work or play.

· Avatars: Our virtual self. 3D personas. Akin to Star Wars holograms. Animated identities we design and accessorize. To be like us. Or how we’d like to be.

· Cryptography: A form of digital security. Using mathematical algorithms and keys to ‘encrypt’ transactions. Enables permanent, verifiable records.

· Blockchain: A decentralized network of digital ledgers. Stored in the public domain. Utilizing cryptography to conduct and timestamp transactions. Ethereum and Ripple.

· Cryptocurrency: Digital tokens (coins) for peer-to-peer transactions. Bitcoin, ETH and Dogecoin. Mediums of exchange for financial transactions over the Blockchain rather than through traditional banking systems.

· Non-fungible Tokens (NFTs): Cryptographic certificates of ownership. Means of acquiring digital assets such as artwork, music, or videos. Also enables the purchase of virtual goods such as avatar merchandise, video game weaponry and virtual real estate.

· Coin Exchanges and Crypto Wallets: Mechanisms for trading and storing digital currencies. Identity tokens: Our personal information on the Blockchain. Mining: Method for recording Blockchain transactions. Minting; Means of registering NFTs. Gas fees: Costs for executing crypto transactions.

Got it? Good.

The Implications

Video games don’t come with directions. There’s no instruction manual. Everyone figures out how to play by trial and error. Experimenting. Investigating. Discovering.

Dads love when kids learn on their own. Testing their ingenuity. Resourcefulness. Awesome stuff. Till trial-and-error lands them in hot water. Tight spots. Even dangerous situations. Fortunately, nothing too dangerous can happen from one’s basement. Bedroom. Or iPhone. Right?

Unless our kids are surfing the Metaverse.

Creating virtual versions of themselves. Make-believe identities. Minus their own physical flaws. And emotional frailties. Bolder. More courageous. Heroic. The embodiment of who they want to be. A full transformation. With a few clicks of the cursor.

Their dreamed-up avatars will explore amazing digital universes. Gaming. Adventuring. And socializing. With other dreamed-up personas. Creating friendships. Relationships. Folks, Dads don’t know. Can’t meet. Or vet.

All, readily available from one’s basement. Bedroom. Or iPhone.

While the Metaverse may look and feel different, it won’t be different. Virtual worlds will not, in fact, be an escape from the real world. Because behind other computer-animated characters are people. With all the people faults and shortcomings. Meaning there’ll be as much teasing, jeering, mocking, and bullying as any playground or hallway.

Only worse. The Metaverse will be a free-for-all. No social norms. Governing principles. Teachers to monitor. Or parents to intervene. Our kids can get hurt. Mentally and emotionally. Rather than physically.

This is not a warning for Dads. It’s a wake-up call. The Metaverse is coming. Full of mesmerizing experiences. That our kids will be voyaging through. Whether we like it or not.

Protecting our kids requires boundaries. And restrictions. And to do so, Dads must understand the landscape. Know ARs from VRs. Minting from mining. Crypto and NFTs.

Then sit the kids down for a chat. About this new frontier. The wonders and dangers. The possibilities and perils. Fun we can have and precautions we must take.

While Dads may not be experts on these future realms, we’re aces at navigating our children through the unknown. And for this journey, they’ll appreciate having Dad along for the ride.

Go, Dads. Go.