Dora the Explorer, the cute Nickelodeon cartoon character, is teaching kids what it means to be Sigma, a slang term describing an extremely toxic male archetype which originates in the darkest corners of the so-called manosphere.Hola, grown-ups! Today I have a super cool word for you! Sigma, a 3D rendered version of Dora says in a video uploaded to the official Dora the Explorer Instagram account yesterday. Sigma is a word for someone whos confident, independent, and does things their own way! Think of it as someone whos a leader and a trendsetter. Lets say your friend is doing their own thing, focusing on their goals, and not worrying about what others think. You can say, youre such a SIGMA! View this post on Instagram A post shared by Dora (@officialdora) As Dora explains this, the video cuts to different Nickelodeon characters like Spongebob Squarepants and Aang, the main character from Avatar: The Last Airbender. The video, which was also shared from the official Nickelodeon Instagram account, has 2.8 million views, 156,000 likes, and almost 7,000 comments, most of which are incredulous or joking about Dora defining a term even mildly online users recognize as inappropriate for children.Dora thats not even Spanish youre losing the PLOT, one user said.Doras definition of Sigma isnt wrong, but its missing some very important context. In the world of toxic masculinity, incelhood, and the manosphere, men fit into one of a few rigid categories. There are Beta males, who are viewed as weak, effeminate, and generally losers who cant get women, and Alpha males who are strong, masculine, and can dominate women as well as other beta males. And then there are Sigma males, who are so masculine they ascend these categories and the normal social hierarchies and become something more powerful. It is very similar and sometimes overlaps with the community of Men Going Their Own Way (MGTOW).Know Your Meme attributes the origin of the term to the far-right misogynist and white supremacist Theodore Beale, known mostly for his online persona Vox Day. In 2010, Beale defined Sigmas on his blog as:The outsiders who don't play the social game and manage to win at it anyhow. The alphas hate sigmas because they are the only men who don't accept or at least acknowledge their social dominance. (NB: Alphas absolutely hate to be laughed at and a sigma can enrage an alpha by simply smiling at him.) Everyone else is vaguely confused by them. At the party, it's the guy who stops by to say hello to a few friends accompanied by a tier one girl that no one has ever seen before. Sigmas often like women, but also tend to be contemptuous of them.To be fair, Sigma went through another evolution before Doras video. It is now part of the brainrot meta meme, which takes a bunch of online terms like Skibidi, Rizz, and Sigma, and blends them all into a soup which is regurgitate in various forms to express that you spent too much time on the internet and can prove that by referencing these words.I dont know if Nickelodeon or the people in charge of these social media accounts are ignorant of Sigmas origin, if they dont care, or if its some irony-poisoned cynical wink at an audience that is obviously responding to the provocation.I can easily imagine this being a case of brands trying to be and online for engagement but going too far, especially because its workingthis post is getting a lot more engagement than most things the Dora account has posted.It also reminds me of something thats been bugging me for months but I have not had an excuse to write about yet, which is that the TV brand TCL has been promoting its products with ads calling their customers gooners and inviting them to goon with their TVs. Technically, TCL is an official partner with the Arsenal Football Club, which has called its fans gooners for years, but the TCL posts are obviously playing on the fact that today, at least online, gooning more commonly refers to the practice of hedonistic masturbation and excessive porn consumption. TCL also invites its customers to be Alpha.Ultimately it doesnt matter if the Dora post is a mistake that cant tell the difference between skibidi toilet and a racist Pepe the Frog, or if its an ironic joke. While the video addresses grown-ups, Dora is a giant kids media brand, and she is currently introducing them to a toxic philosophy that glorifies misogyny and the desire to be above and outside social relationships.Nickelodeon did not respond to a request for comment.