Tungsten – A word that few in the space have heard of has now become the talk of the crypto-town due to its intriguing and fascinating properties. The cube in question is only 14 inches long and made of tungsten. However, due to the density of the metal, it weighs a ton [approximately 907 kg.].
According to the space community, HODLing the cube is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It's understandable to be perplexed at this point, but keep in mind that anything that can capture people's attention has value today.
People have been trying to figure out the whole cube frenzy over the last few days. The Google Trends result is self-explanatory. The spikes on the chart below are quite relentless, and the previous spikes no longer make their case.
Source: Google Trends
Setting the record straight
Before we get into the other amazing details, it's important to understand how and why this cube saga began in the first place.
Midwest is a tungsten service company that has been in business since 1958 and specializes in tungsten and alloys. Their newer cube products have recently gotten a lot of attention. Since its introduction in 2015, the cube has allowed many people to firsthand experience the density of tungsten.
Tungsten, in fact, is a metal that is 1.7 times as dense as lead. Savants have been purchasing it for quite some time, and owning one is clearly a joke on Reddit.
Because of the sudden popularity of these cubes, Midwest Tungsten Service's sales increased by more than 300 percent in October. Until recently, the majority of the firm's business came from industrial customers, according to the company's official customer breakdown data. However, the publicity prompted them to begin offering cubes in a variety of sizes ranging from 1 cm to 10 cm in order to meet the needs of its new retail customer base.
According to Midwest's recent blog, the firm was pushed to analyze and figure out the largest cube they could build due to the interest in tungsten cubes. Following the introspection, the largest 14-odd inch cube was born.
Reactions that drew a lot of attention
The cube's new owners have already begun dramatizing the situation. One of them went so far as to say that their previous life, particularly during the waiting period, had been a "bad life."
Finally got my cube, after two whole weeks of shipping. The waiting was heart wrenching - especially after understanding what I've been missing out on.
— torkel (@torkelrogstad) October 28, 2021
Two weeks without the intensity of density now feels like a distant memory, a past life, a bad life. pic.twitter.com/BesMsCEeQI
People are generally jumping on the cube bandwagon in order not to miss out on the entire cube saga. They used to be Ether rocks, but now they're tungsten cubes.
am i influencing? pic.twitter.com/5CfskSmHGA
— Meltem Demir◎rs (@Melt_Dem) October 14, 2021
Terms and conditions were followed
Midwest decided to sell the tungsten cube as an NFT in order to maintain its crypto-relevance. Owners of the NFT would be able to pay an annual visit to see/photograph/touch the physical cube that would be stored at the Midwest Tungsten Service headquarters.
As per the NFT’s description on OpenSea,
“Subsequent owners of the NFT cannot visit the cube in a year in which the cube has already been visited.”
In fact, the company went on to clarify that the cube would be stored in a room of its own that would be locked and only be accessible by the NFT owner. The cube would additionally not be available to view until 12 weeks after the first sale. With respect to the delivery, its blog noted,
“Burning the NFT will result in shipment to the most recent owner via freight truck, owner will be responsible for alerting Midwest Tungsten Service of the intention to burn and transport after freight drop-off.”
Thousands of dollars in bids!
The NFT was recently sold to a group called TungstenDAO for close to 57 ETH, or about $250,000. Although it is unclear what the group intends to do with the NFT, it appears that the purchase was made to bring the DAO to public attention.
The group bills itself as a "experimental meme incubation studio," with the goal of "amassing a collection of highly memorable assets, then creating content that reinforces their social significance and strengthens memetic desires for these assets."
Some argue that the density of the cube, combined with the intangible/immaterial nature of NFTs, is an ideal combination. Others, on the other hand, see the experience of HODLing these objects as its own reward. The most straightforward and appealing answer, on the other hand, advocates that the block is purchased to satisfy one's meme-bones.
Will TungstenDAO become the world's first multibillion-dollar meme studio? Will the cube's popularity last? Even though the answer to the aforementioned questions is most likely no, no one in the space can make that claim with certainty. Given the ever-changing trends, a cuboid or even a sphere may soon dethrone the cube.
NFTs are revolutionary by themselves, but the trends these days are getting out of hand. And, looks like the cube is merely another one trying to bite the dust.
