I was recently involved in a research project using virtual reality (VR) to explore the impact of virtual green spaces on mood and well-being. I tried out the tech – an Oculus VR headset – on myself first and was instantly transported to a beautiful forest clearing, surrounded by deep green foliage with the sound of birdsong and leaves blowing in the wind. As far as immersive VR experiences go, it was blissful. The only thing missing was other people. The metaverse, however, will soon change that.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the metaverse is an interconnected virtual world where digital avatars from around the globe can congregate to shop, study, socialise and work. Essentially, the metaverse is where the internet meets immersive technologies, such as virtual and augmented reality. Many industry insiders refer to these emerging developments as Web3, an evolution made possible by faster mobile networks, advances in virtual reality and the rollout of blockchains and cryptocurrencies.
I won't be sitting alone in my virtual reality forest for much longer. My colleagues will join me in avatar form. Rather than sharing my screen, I will point to the virtual sky, where the content of my presentation will be projected on to a fluffy white cloud for my fellow workers to see. A week later we will hold the team meeting on a tropical island hideaway.
Opening my mind to the possibilities of the metaverse, I begin to realise just how significant and far-reaching this development could be. For example, I imagine metaverse psychotherapy sessions, where the client's avatar accurately expresses their body language. Body language is something many therapists say they miss when working online using current two-dimensional (non-immersive) technologies such as Zoom.
Beyond enhancing client-therapist communication online, the metaverse could also enable clinicians to conduct powerful therapeutic techniques known as behavioural experiments. For example, this might involve safely exposing clients to feared situations such as public speaking, flying in an aircraft or coming across a spider. Traditional VR has already proven helpful in therapy. It is easy to see how elements of the metaverse could become therapeutic environments.
I recently taught an online (Zoom) class as an avatar and I was amazed at how quickly I got used to being avatar-me
I can also imagine a virtual classroom with students from all over the world. The students' AI-powered avatars would express life-like emotions. So, if a student is puzzled, a teacher can see it in the eyes of the student's avatar; if the student is bursting to speak, teachers can see that too.
I recently taught an online (Zoom) class as an avatar and I was amazed at how quickly I got used to being avatar-me. The students in the class gave the avatar-led experience a high rating. Although, thankfully, they still seemed to prefer the real me.
An industry survey published by Statistica in 2021 ranked the UAE as having the highest social media penetration rate in the world. It is evident that the UAE is well-placed to be a leading contributor and beneficiary in the digital well-being research agenda.
There are plenty of indicators to show that the metaverse isn't merely coming – it is already here. Its presence will become increasingly evident as more online experiences can be accessed through virtual and augmented reality. There are already reports of children opting to have their birthday parties in shared online environments such as Roblox (an online game). Even weddings are taking place in the metaverse. Such occurrences are primarily a legacy of Covid-19. The pandemic forced us online, and many of us just got used to it. We may now even prefer the digitised version for certain aspects of our existence.
As we make further progress in technology, it is worth considering how living more of our lives online will influence mental health, and what implications might the metaverse – Web3 – have on our psychological well-being. The truth is, we are still reeling from the technologies that grew up on Web2. For example, we have not all that long ago been alerted to the fact that social media use can become compulsive and highly problematic. It took until 2019 for the World Health Organisation to recognise internet gaming disorder as a diagnosable psychiatric entity. The initial suggestion that it might be a problem was made in the late 1990s.
At best, the metaverse might provide a helpful temporary diversion for those overwhelmed by problems in the offline world. However, even here, we need to be cautious. Activities that help us escape real-world pain tend to become habit-forming or addictive.
On the darker side, being divorced from reality and immersed in a virtual world may lead to delusions and psychotic symptoms. In a recent article for Psychology Today, Phil Reed, a professor of psychology, points to growing evidence of a link between online technology use and clinical problems associated with delusions and hallucinations.
As online technology touches more aspects of our lives, it is increasingly essential to develop sustained research programme to understand the affects of online technologies on our mental health. Such research programmes should also focus on how best to use emerging technologies to promote psychological well-being.
As it stands, research on Web2 and how it affects us mentally, is still very much a work in progress. As for the psychological and social implications of the metaverse, so far, we can only speculate.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
VEZEETA PROFILE
Date started: 2012
Founder: Amir Barsoum
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
Size: 300 employees
Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)
Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC
So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?
Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
Mountain Classification Tour de France after Stage 8 on Saturday:
- 1. Lilian Calmejane (France / Direct Energie) 11
- 2. Fabio Aru (Italy / Astana) 10
- 3. Daniel Martin (Ireland / Quick-Step) 8
- 4. Robert Gesink (Netherlands / LottoNL) 8
- 5. Warren Barguil (France / Sunweb) 7
- 6. Chris Froome (Britain / Team Sky) 6
- 7. Guillaume Martin (France / Wanty) 6
- 8. Jan Bakelants (Belgium / AG2R) 5
- 9. Serge Pauwels (Belgium / Dimension Data) 5
- 10. Richie Porte (Australia / BMC Racing) 4
The fake news generation
288,000 – the number of posts reported as hate speech that were deleted by Facebook globally each month in May and June this year
11% – the number of Americans who said they trusted the news they read on Snapchat as of June 2017, according to Statista. Over a quarter stated that they ‘rarely trusted’ the news they read on social media in general
31% - the number of young people in the US aged between 10 and 18 who said they had shared a news story online in the last six months that they later found out was wrong or inaccurate
63% - percentage of Arab nationals who said they get their news from social media every single day.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).
Second leg
Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm
Games on BeIN Sports
List of alleged parties
May 12, 2020: PM and his wife Carrie attend 'work meeting' with at least 17 staff
May 20, 2020: They attend 'bring your own booze party'
Nov 27, 2020: PM gives speech at leaving party for his staff
Dec 10, 2020: Staff party held by then-education secretary Gavin Williamson
Dec 13, 2020: PM and his wife throw a party
Dec 14, 2020: London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey holds staff event at Conservative Party headquarters
Dec 15, 2020: PM takes part in a staff quiz
Dec 18, 2020: Downing Street Christmas party
Crops that could be introduced to the UAE
1: Quinoa
2. Bathua
3. Amaranth
4. Pearl and finger millet
5. Sorghum
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
Five personal finance podcasts from The National
To help you get started, tune into these Pocketful of Dirham episodes
·
Balance is essential to happiness, health and wealth
·
What is a portfolio stress test?
·
What are NFTs and why are auction houses interested?
·
How gamers are getting rich by earning cryptocurrencies
·
Should you buy or rent a home in the UAE?
Company%20profile
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COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
Superliminal%20
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The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
SECRET%20INVASION
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THE SPECS
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 275hp at 6,600rpm
Torque: 353Nm from 1,450-4,700rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Top speed: 250kph
Fuel consumption: 6.8L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: Dh146,999
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
