A unique, unusual, and till now unfamiliar germ/pathogen – the Corona Virus – that entered the world creating a fearful and atrocious impact on human population has been accompanied by a limitless leap in technology the world had not witnessed before. That which took us along a plateau in its early stages has leapt on to the sky today with humans failing to match its speed.

We are now in a special ‘ new age’ period experiencing Neo Normal lives like never before.

” The only constant in life is change”, and that is reflected no better than the changes we observe in Information Technology today. What has happened since the beginning of this new millennium for 20 years has happened in 18 months. For good in some respects at least.

Even those who have not handled Information Technology in their daily lives have learnt to do that adeptly either by their own will or otherwise. And the business of IT gadgets and tools has been soaring to a new high. This marks the beginning of the Neo Normal.

• – There was this time when I used to send Greetings Cards to 10 or 15 relatives and close friends on festival occasions by post. Today with even 1000s of our personal contacts we are able to send Greetings together at one go in two ticks.
• – Instead of cheques for transactions we now use the instantaneous computer mode through GPay, … … and many other such payments. The giver and the receiver may not even know the bank account details of either but the chief enabler here is the phone number now.
• – Refrigerators where conventionally we have the freezer on top and vegetables /fruits shelf located at the bottom, has been reversed mutually to hold these now. Bottom mounted freezer fridge is the new development here.
• – OTT has now become the usual, popular viewing tool as opposed to movies in theatres.
• – Books and newspapers published in print has taken the route of e-publishing today.
• – 50 years ago we had a ‘watch’ for noting time ; a ‘ torch light’ for searching objects at night times ; a ‘ calculator’ for basic or even advanced mathematical calculations ; a ‘camera’ for taking photographs. Today, a simple smartphone makes all the above redundant and obsolete.
• – Typewriter has given way to voice calls and voice recordings on screens.
• – If we had pen friends earlier, we now have 1000 times more on Facebook whether we know and see them or not.
• These are some obvious tendencies by nature ; examples of our new disposition, making a perceptible impact on our lives. Concurrent with these are the changes in our lives we make to adapt to the new world. Common people have also been compelled to change their priorities to a different Base socially. We are the “system” ; We are the “change” – is the dictum now.
• ” Science and Consciousness making an orderly movement is the path to achieve the goal of ‘Neo Normal’ ” – according to Swami Vivekananda.
• – A new version of this reality is what is spelt out in ” METAVERSE”. It signifies the Virtual World we live in. This is the next big evolution in IT – ” the 3D Internet” – our Future.
• This, in fact was documented as early as 1992 in Neil Stephenson’s Science novel, “Snow Crash”. Using one’s own creation of ‘avatars’ to communicate, interact, and experience new adventures in several sectors is the crux of “Metaverse”.
• Steven Spielberg’s film “Ready Player One” (2018) where a Virtual Reality was designed to hide the keys to the fortune of an individual for which a teenager makes his quest aptly sets out this theme of “Metaverse”. Games like Roblox and Fortnite are based on this technology only.
• Changing the surrounding we are in to a new imaginary environment ; creating a feeling of ourselves being present in that imaginary environment making it a virtual world ; and to combine these images to hold the real world people in this virtual world constitutes the procedural algorithm in this technology.
• What has so far been happening only in Games today will be transformed to have ‘avatars’ created by human fancy live in this Meta verse. Facebook is now concentrating and engaging on this technology to bring to the fore neoteric interactions. Hence, it’s change in logo and name of the Company to “Meta Platforms Inc.” Significant to note is the fact that Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, avers that “METAVERSE” will be the next breakthrough technology.
• The day is not too far for us, human beings in the real world, to create characters of our interest and to live, interact, and communicate with them in this Metaverse. This is expected to unfold experiences in in ever before imagined sites and bases. Sectors like Education, Health, Entertainment, Sports, Construction, Business and Governance are all priming up for this paradigm shift in interactions. Well, this is neither sudden nor quick /swift. May take a decade or more to be felt significantly.
• – Our Kings in olden days without any knowledge of the word, “Technology” created marvels with their innate abilities accomplishing great things.
• 1. Kallanai Dam (329 meters long and 29 meters in width ) was built on Canvey River, Tamil Nadu, India, by King Karikala Cholan in first Century A. D. It was built by cutting and placing rocks one over the other. Cutting rocks included punching holes into the rocks, inserting wedges into these holes, applying water and streaking. Astounded by the Dam, the British General and Irrigation Engineer, Arthur Cotton (1903-1999) called it the “Grand Anicut Dam” and following the same principles of building a Dam on a sandbed foundation, he built one in England.
• 2. The monumental, ornate, temple tower of Tanjore Peruvudaiyar temple in TamilNadu is 216 feet high ; Thiruvannamalai temple tower is 217 feet high ; Tenkasi Viswanath temple is 175 feet high – all built at least 100s of years ago, but without any serious damage until this day. On the contrary, we see buildings falling even as they are being constructed today. Metaverse can probably help guide, monitor, and consummate operations based on our imaginary structural diagrams, enabling necessary purchase and procurement of construction materials , and proper instructions howsoever remote one is placed.
• There were no Executive Engineers ; no Senior Engineers ; no Junior Engineers in those olden days. No contractors, not even benami contractors ; no family members seeking payoffs, discounts, bribes, or incentives. The objects and articles used in most constructions were those brought by the victorious Kings after their war with enemies of the day.
• Kings also a special mode of selection of land for construction that was amazing.
• 1. First, a pit of 2 feet by 9 inches will be made ; the sand recovered from the pit will then be put back into the pit ; if it fills the pit and leaves some excess sand, the earth is considered “superior” ; if it fills the pit exactly, the earth is considered “medium” ; and if it doesn’t fill the pit, the earth is considered unnatural and “evil”.
• 2. After selecting the land by the above principle, it will be tilled with a plough pulled by two bullocks. Sesame seeds, mustard, and lentils will be sown. If they sprout in 3 days the earth is considered “superior” ; if it sprouts in 4 days the earth is considered “medium” ; and if it takes 5 days or more the earth is considered unnatural and “evil”.
• 3. Cows and calves will be made to stay in the place for 2-3 days. Froth and milk oozing out is believed to clean the soil. Also, the chief architect should fill the area with Darbha grass and sleep on that for one night.
• Based on these principles of choosing the land, making it pure and sacred, the temples and other buildings built have made the structures stand firm beyond years, decades, or even centuries.
• If only those Kings had knowledge, experience, and access to today’s technologies what phantasmagoria of mystery could have been created by them is beyond anyone’s imagination. They would have probably created an “Ultra Metaverse”!

There is a price for everything in Virtual Reality. Even if one can get all these experiences through money and intelligence, the relationships and feelings cannot be bought easily. Even the greatest technology cannot be a substitute for the shrewd ability of decision making by Human Brain.

But, it certainly helps to enhance our search for knowledge and methods to face the new fangled changes to emerge in future. And there will certainly be great debate and discussions in the years to come as METAVERSE shines in the limelight to be the next 3D INTERNET.

” Dieu avec nous”

Thursday, November 15, 2021 – 6.09 p.m. (IST)

Tidbit : ” The choices we make today create the future we dream of” – Kapil Tetarwal.