Did you hear of the couple from India that is going to get married in the Metaverse? An entirely immersive digital wedding! And it will be held in a virtual Hogwarts castle! Attending guests will be connected via ocular devices, and experience the event in its full splendor, using the avatar of their choice. Even the bride's late father will also be appearing as an online digital avatar, to 'bless the wedding'! How much of this event will be tokenizable via the Polygon blockchain is really up for discussion. It is to wonder, will the marriage certificate be an NFT? Will it also be a sort of smart contract? What else could be mintable from that event?

If this last paragraph seems somewhat confusing, you are not alone. Blockchain, NFTs, Metaverse… words that are crystalizing into our vocabulary. And they denote a trend that big tech, economy, and society have been working on for a long time: forging enhanced or alternate realities for our entertainment, information, social connections, work, and even education.

Virtual tech is not new. A few older readers might remember online experiences like 'Second Life', which was immersive itself, but nowadays seems so ancient. Today we are treading into new territories: where tech gear like Oculus VR, haptic suits, and the like, will enable us to not only see the virtual world but also feel it. And this is only the beginning. There is a monumental amount of resources and money being poured into this new market, the Metaverse, and it is set to enter our lives, whether we like it or not. Companies like Microsoft, Neuralink, and Facebook (now rebranded as Meta - of all things) are sparing no expense into securing precious ground in this new El Dorado, paving the way for most of us to probably be adopting this new virtual experience for work meetings, parties, shows, school, and…yes, weddings.

So is digital nirvana finally here? We are in an age where the Metaverse enables you to be anyone (or anything) and inhabit any universe of your creation. How could everyday reality compete? After all, the offer is so seductive! So, in this light, think about this: are we somehow aiming to become immaterial?

These are a few of the issues the MuseOn sets to discuss in this new exhibit. The aim is to take into consideration the benefits and risks of these new impending technologies. With this investigation, the museum seeks to help the audience evaluate how immersive technologies will affect each and every one of us, and invite all to ask questions like; 'What is the future of self?', 'Should all knowledge be shared?', 'Should all experiences be shared?', 'What is the opposite of things?', 'Who will own data?', 'Who are the gatekeepers of virtuality?', and 'What is the future of memory?'. Visitors will also be witnesses to a virtual exhibit, talking about virtual subjects. All done in Augmented Reality!

We, humans, cherish much of what is in fact immaterial; our beliefs, creativity, culture, experiences, knowledge, and language….all of this is formless and crucial not only to each individual but to all of us as well. The smell of rain on dry ground, the grand stories a grandparent might have told us, the sheer beauty of the first snow falling, holding hands, the inner feeling of belonging and love while in a religious or spiritual service, or even the sensation of gentle beach swells bobbing you up and down in the water. It's hard to make NFTs or digital tokens of these experiences. So, while some people may choose to, for example, hold a wedding in a virtual space (and OK, having it inside a virtual Hogwarts castle, while using an avatar might be a lot of fun and bring new memories), how will a culture of increasing virtual presence affect our society?