Nehaveigur

Scenario 1
We have extensively terraformed a planet circling a distant star. Its atmosphere is breathable and because of its low gravity, trees  grow a mile or more tall. They are an order of magnitude bigger than the biggest trees on Earth.  Humans fly between their massive trunks using small, nimble hang gliders. Houses and other structures have been added to the side of the trunks, and foot bridges connect the trunks with each other.

Scenario 2
AI performs all white-collar work and makes all decisions. Humans, unwilling to relinquish the illusion of participation, still commute to offices. There they enact the hollow rituals of business, severed from their original purpose. Meetings are convened in which the company mission is solemnly recited, followed by liturgical chants of corporate goals. Stylized PowerPoint decks glow on the walls, filled with financial abstractions no-one knows how to interpret any more. Titles persist: There is a CFO, an HR manager, a strategy lea. One by one, they mount the stage to deliver brief, meaningless homilies. The congregation, clad in business casual, responds on cue, chanting in unison: “Advance strategic alignment! Drive market leadership!” As the CEO, wearing the customary black turtleneck, steps up to the podium, a hush falls over the congregation…