LIFE & CULTURE
NFTs does not stem from where the tokens stand currently in today’s world but rather where they are headed. Washburn said he believes that NFTs will play a larger role in the metaverse and our digital society and that they will potentially serve a different purpose in the future. “You know, it isn’t just about the artwork,” Washburn said. “It’s about what they come with. … It could be a membership or special access to an event or collection of media.
… Let’s say you want to buy my NFT, maybe you’ll get a T-shirt in the mail too or an exclusive DJ mix.” Stefanick agrees that the potential of NFTs has yet to reach its climax. She said that she believes that NFTs have a lot of potential and will potentially be implemented into many aspects of life. “There’s so much potential it’s ridiculous,” Stefanick said. “Maybe we’ll all receive an NFT for graduating Ithaca [College]. There’s just so much that goes beyond the NFTs themselves.” While NFTs specifically are still being experimented with in terms of everyday application, cryptocurrency has already been integrated into our average consumer lives, with various banks and stores offering services to accept cryptocurrencies. Even social media platforms have jumped onto the trend. Twitter users may see a pop-up that encourages them to invest in cryptocurrency, making this trend a part of daily life for everyone, even for people who do not invest.
Editorial: NFTs have negative long-ter m effects
“There are digital assets called stable coins, like USDC, that are pegged to the dollar and can be spent as currency with a Coinbase debit card,” Volkov said. “There are ways to spend any cryptocurrency you own at a store with the Coinbase debit card. Of course, there’s a conversion fee for go2014 marked the experimental era of ing from crypto to dollars.” non-fungible tokens (NFTs). 2021 was the year of the Washburn has already implemented NFT explosion, making any digital image available for such services into his business, Washburn purchase. Moving from the obscure internet into the Entertainment. Customers can use crypmainstream, 2022 projects us into the future of NFTs. to as a form of payment for Washburn’s However, the path forward is twofold. music services. The future of NFTs provides an opportunity to the “I started to think, ‘How can I make otherwise ordinary individual to be a part of something my company innovative?’” Washburn said. and experience financial success in ways that were nev“We started taking cryptocurrency a few er accessible before. years ago as a form of payment for wedThe more glum, corrupt and arguably realistic side dings and such. Not a lot of people do results in financial instability for those who do not have it, but every time I tell people we the knowledge it takes to succeed in this rapidly growtake cryptocurrency, their eyes ing market: 21st-century artists getting ripped off rather light up because it’s a cool and than protected, allowing a place for global tycoons to innovative thing.” take refuge and environmental harm due to the sheer While millions of people amount of energy that is required. The degree of enaround the world engage vironmental damage is not yet known and not worth with and embrace the finanfinding out. cial and cultural influence of There is limited understanding of NFTs, and with NFTs, many are dismissive. this comes a limited understanding of what is to come. Cryptocurrency is often critIn other words, the naive glorification of the short-term icized for being environmenbenefits negates its long-term effects. tally harmful. According to While the solution is not to wish for an Investopedia.com, 30 kilotons of internet-free world, a solution is not found with hopeelectronic waste are produced anful projections into an uncertain future. It is dangerous nually as a result of Bitcoin mining. when projecting into a future so unknown. Haven’t we Another criticism more specific to read many a cautionary tale of exponential progress NFTs is the impact they have had on the resulting in a halting crash? art community. Anyone can make an Let us pump the brakes. NFTs cause us to be NFT out of any digital media, hence distracted from our current problems, which have many artists who post content online been glaring at us for far too long. Instead, let’s have had their work stolen and sold focus our attention here on the present, on what as NFTs. is already broken at the center — a pressing cliWhether or not NFTs will trimate crisis, poverty and a greedy 1% happy with umph and persist into the future as the way things are — for the center will not hold a crucial staple of finance and an intemuch longer. gral part of culture or become a delicate fad is unknown. However, Washburn said that in the end, he thinks that most people buy and share NFTs so that they can be involved in somthing new and trendy. “[Investing] is the same reason someone would spend $200,000 on a Rolex rather than $20 on a Timex,” Washburn said. “You’re going to buy these NFTs for a certain amount of money because it’s cool.” Washburn commissioned a variety of illustrations to create a potential line of NFTs for people to buy.
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