Consider getting married and having one of your departed loved ones be a virtual, yet still present, part of your celebrations! Janaganandhini Ramaswamy, a software developer who tied the knot with Dinesh SP, a project associate at IIT Madras is one of its Kind of a wedding as it was hosted in Metaverse. All the relatives, friends, and acquaintances were present in a realistic 3D virtual avatar for the wedding reception in a Hogwarts-themed dining hall. How cool is that? Not just this, but, Janaganandhini was overjoyed as she was able to have her father be a part of these celebrations virtually. This is the power of technology, and the metaverse is both an intrinsic component of it and the future of technology.

What is Metaverse?

The term Metaverse is a portmanteau of “Meta”, which means ‘beyond the physical’ in Greek, and that later part is taken from the word “Universe.” Metaverse gets its name from the 1992 sci-fi novel “Snow Crash” by an American writer, Neil Stephenson. Technically speaking, MetaVerse is more of a vision than a concrete reality. The metaverse is a virtual world in which reality is projected. Users may create, publish, and sell digital content in this virtual realm. It is a representation of the truth at a remote location that you can access digitally or electronically.

-     It is an extension of the real world

-     It is beyond the physical world around us

-     It is experienced from a first-person perspective

-     It is accessible using headsets/glasses

-     It denotes a plurality of meaning, space, and being

How many metaverses will there be?

As mentioned before, in the metaverse the focus is on plurality, it's no surprise that there will be several metaverse worlds. Within a metaverse, there may be multiple virtual worlds where it is possible to participate in activities that are a blend of physical and digital. Instead of looking at a screen, it will allow one to immerse oneself in activities, such as shopping, visiting friends and family, attending a performance, etc.

To name a few there are platforms like the Sandbox, Mirandus, and Decentraland on which people will be able to interact in different ways. Sandbox and Decentraland are metaverses that allow users to buy virtual land and make a world of their own on this land. Mirandus is powered by blockchain technology and is a fantasy world that allows users to create their own content.

Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games or MMORPGs are interactive games that form the foundation of the metaverse. In shared spaces, millions of users are connected by playing games, visiting virtual businesses, and even attending concerts.

Difference between Metaverse and Web 3

Since there is a lot of confusion regarding the future technology, there is growing confusion among people who tend to use these two terms, Metaverse and Web 3, interchangeably. Web 3 is a paradigm that addresses the unique challenges of the Web 2 internet. Social media platforms like YouTube and Facebook created ecosystems and Web 3 is a reaction to those walled ecosystems. Such ecosystems have resulted in people's data being extracted, their privacy being violated, and their ability to control the information being restricted. Web 3 is a reaction against such ecosystems as it aims to subvert them by addressing the issues of ownership. Overall, Web 3 is a crucial building component for the metaverse, although it is a subset of it.

MetaVerse

-     Blockchain and cryptocurrencies

-     Human Interface

-     Digital environment

-     Uses augmented reality (AU) and virtual reality (VU)

-      It is 3-Dimensional

-     It is an immersive next-generation version of the internet

Web 3

-     Blockchain and cryptocurrencies along with public blockchain

-     Digital assets like non-fungible tokens (NFTs)

-      Software running on a blockchain – DOA (decentralized autonomous organization)

-     Digital money – DeFi (Decentralised Finance)

There is still time for the metaverse to become completely functioning and a reality (albeit a virtual one), but meanwhile, we must prepare our kids to enter uncharted terrain. Certainly, the world of technology is changing rapidly, and we are trying our best to assist children in keeping up with this fast-paced world. Technologies such as augmented and virtual reality, artificial intelligence, and machine learning will help to personalize the learning experience for each student and improve educational outcomes. The kids who are more comfortable with technology and be able to use it more effectively for learning purposes. KidsChaupal has put together learning strategies with our mentors and a live education portal to help discover the innate talents in kids. When given the right guidance kids can acquire the necessary skills to tackle the challenges that demand our attention.