Ant colony

"Citizen, these are the five best sperm (l) donors selected by the system for you. You can choose one according to your personal preference."

Accompanied by the elegant voice of the counselor of the birth (l) education center, images of five men and their files emerge on the pure white wall.

These men are all strong and handsome, like statues of gods in ancient Greece.The data showed that their scores were very high, and the disease-causing genes they carried were all within the safe range.It's really hard to pick one out of them.

My sister β-33021587-Autumn showed a troubled expression.Seeing this, the consultant smiled and gave advice.

"Donor A has the highest appearance score, and many people have chosen him; Donor D has the strongest athletic ability... Well, but according to the predictions made by the system, you will pay more attention to the child's intelligence? Then consider the donor How about body C? He is amazingly gifted in mathematics, and your child will have a 47% chance of showing above-average math ability for his peers."

"No, I hope my child has a pair of black eyes." β-Qiu shook his head, "Let's choose B, his pupil color gene is four dominant, just like me, we can 100% give birth to a child with black eyes .”

"Haha, you are indeed a researcher at the Institute of Genetics, I guess you have already done all the calculations." The consultant smiled, "But I still have to remind you according to the regulations. According to the prediction of the system, you and the donor Children with body B will have a higher probability of facing the following risks: one, impacted wisdom teeth; two, lactose intolerance. Do you mind?"

As soon as I heard the word wisdom teeth, the unpleasant experience of wisdom teeth extraction immediately came to my mind.Although the whole process was painless, the thought of the sticky and bloody smell in the mouth after tooth extraction still made me uncomfortable.I quickly patted β-Qiu on the shoulder: "Think carefully for your offspring, wisdom teeth are very annoying."

"I don't think this is a big problem." β-Qiu gave me a reproachful look, "Do you think everyone is like you, wanting to lie in bed and moan for three days after pulling out a tooth?"

She turned to the consultant: "I don't mind, please help me choose B.".

"Okay." The consultant nodded, and the system automatically made a record. "Next, please go to the 42nd floor for a medical examination and make an appointment for artificial insemination (l)."

I accompanied β-Qiu to leave the consulting room and took the elevator to the 42nd floor.In the elevator, I still couldn’t forget the problem of wisdom teeth, and sighed: “Oh, why is it so troublesome to calculate the child’s genotype with the development of technology? The gene of the sperm (l) egg is fine. For example, knocking out the gene that controls the growth of wisdom teeth is the gospel of mankind!"

Geneticist β-Qiu smiled: "Whether wisdom teeth are impacted is not determined by genes alone, but is related to many factors. For example, the space of the jaw, the degree of wear of the second molars... and the epigenetics of tooth development Learning is very complicated, how can it be adjusted so casually?"

"I read that science fiction in the 21st century often writes that humans use gene editing technology to create various superhumans. As a result, we are still so behind after 100 years."

"Hey, don't use such a contemptuous tone. At least we can use gene editing technology to treat many diseases." β-Qiu said, "Stop reading those old-fashioned science fiction novels, those authors are just dreamers. Change a few Just one gene can improve intelligence. How can there be such a simple thing? How complicated is the formation mechanism of human intelligence? Just like in 1950, some people predicted that in the 21st century, every basement of every household would have controlled nuclear fusion. Reactors, people can go to the moon for a vacation when they have time, and the result?"

My graduation thesis was about social prophecy 200 years ago, so I've read a lot of those science fiction novels.In that article, I raised a question: To what extent does today's society meet the expectations of predecessors?

I think they may be disappointed in some aspects: In this era, there is still no superman with human-machine integration, genetic optimization, and powerful combat effectiveness; there is no technology for interstellar travel through wormholes; the research on brain networking has encountered bottlenecks, and the delay No breakthrough; certainly no one ever attained immortality.

But in other respects, they must be very relieved: this is also the era where no aliens invaded the earth, no robots destroyed human beings, and no total(h)power(h)rule(h)rule in the dystopian trilogy .Although the Third World War did break out, human civilization quickly recovered and thrived.

Among the many predictions of the 21st century, two types of technologies have indeed matured today and changed the structure of human society.

One is the intelligence of various items.Today, people's lives are surrounded by smart devices. Tables, chairs, cups, walls, and clothes can all provide users with the best experience at any time according to their habits.

The second is the popularization of quantum computers.Even a primitive quantum computer has powerful computing capabilities.Now, quantum computing has been applied to various devices, and tens of thousands of devices are connected to generate enough computing power to support unprecedentedly complex algorithms and process unprecedentedly large amounts of data.

On top of these two main technologies, something called a "system" emerges.Its full name is "Social Management System".Through the data uploaded by smart devices, it can keep abreast of every word and deed of each citizen; and through quantitative sociological laws, calculate the contribution value of each person to society, which is the "social value point".

The algorithm of social value points is very complicated. In a nutshell, the standard to measure all behaviors is how many advantages and disadvantages they bring to society.

Work, of course, is the main source of points.The value calculations of different jobs are different, and the value of material and cultural aspects will be taken into account; life (l) education, generally speaking, can increase points, but if excessive social resources are occupied, or children’s education is not good, the points will decrease; Consumer products can sometimes add points, but waste will be counterproductive; people's evaluation of a person will also be counted, and if a person can improve the happiness of the entire community, the system will consider her useful.

While the process by which the system makes its ratings is not something I can interpret, I trust it completely.More than 7 million citizens in the southern hemisphere, 50 immigrants in the Mars base, and 3 travelers in the space fleet also trust it.

This is because the task of the system is to "maximize the overall interests of mankind".So, even if it monopolizes data and monitors everyone at all times, at least we don't have to worry about our data being used by a few people and groups for personal gain - like some tech companies and government(h)governments did to the people before the war like that.

As an existence above all human beings, the system guarantees fairness among human beings.Today, there will be no ruling(h)groups that hinder social development, no vested interests who get something for nothing, and no unfairness in which outstanding contributions to civilization are not rewarded.

Now there is no currency anymore, and all materials are distributed according to two simple rules: first, people put forward their own needs, and then determine the degree of satisfaction according to the level of each person's social contribution points.

Morality is becoming less and less important. What does more good to society than harm is good, and what does more harm to society than good is bad.

There are still laws today, but the legal text is greatly simplified.All crimes, in the final analysis, harm the interests of society, so they are all anti(h)social crimes, but the severity is different.

Don't worry about people losing their standard of conduct - the system will often provide consequences predictions and suggestions based on people's action intentions.Of course, the decision-making power is in the hands of human beings, and people can completely disregard suggestions, as long as they are willing to bear the consequences.

There is still a government(h)government, but the government(h)government will no longer be reduced to a tool for the interests of the few.It assumes the responsibility of a decision maker, faithful to the well-being of all citizens, proposes the task of managing society to the system, and makes decisions based on the system's recommendations.

In this highly intelligent society, the existing 7 million human beings use society mainly in three categories:

One is the person who proposes tasks and makes decisions, such as government (h) government members, scientists, and engineers.Although they can hand over the trivial tasks of doing experiments and building models to machines, they need to decide what research to prioritize and what projects to build, and they need to order the system to perform tasks.The system makes recommendations, but not decisions.Because once there is any mistake, it is impossible for people to hold the system accountable, and only humans can be responsible.

The second is the interpreter, such as the staff of the data center.They are responsible for understanding the process of the system making judgments, and they cannot let these processes stay in the "black box" and let humans lose their dominance over the system.Of course, due to the large and complex system, each of them can only interpret a small part.But this is not a pity, but just a guarantee of security: because even an expert in the data center cannot manipulate citizen data at will with his own power.

The third is social roles that establish interpersonal relationships, such as mothers, caregivers, and teachers.The system certainly has the ability to raise babies and educate children, but this society is a human society after all, and the connection between people should be stronger than the connection between people and machines.Human beings understand that if everyone is taken care of by machines from an early age, without any social relationship, and completely indifferent to other people, such a society will easily disintegrate.

β-Qiu Today's birth (l) education center is ready to fulfill the third role of a citizen—to become a mother.She is the youngest researcher at the Institute of Genetics. She is only 22 years old, and her social value points have reached 26785 points.What this guy likes most is children, and his whole body exudes the brilliance of motherhood, so as soon as he reaches the age of childbearing, he submits a childbearing application to the system.

We walked around the corner of the hallway, and three children came chasing and fighting, and almost ran into our legs.

Their mother rushed over and scolded them, apologizing to us repeatedly.

"It's okay." β-Qiu loved and pitied the child very much when he saw the child.She reached out and touched a child's furry head, and praised: "It's so cute! Are these all your children?"

"Yes." The mother said proudly, "I am accompanying my sister for the medical examination, and these three little guys are clamoring to come too. I thought it would be good for them to visit and gain knowledge, so I brought them along." up."

When I saw these children jumping up and down and making noise, I started to get upset.I am completely different from β-Autumn, and I am most afraid of children.So even though I am 30 years old, the system repeatedly suggested that I have a child, saying that it would increase my points by 5000, but I flatly refused.

However, even if I don't like children, I must admit that the three children in front of me are very cute.Thanks to the birth (l) center, now everyone can have a healthy, beautiful, smart child.Of the three sisters, the youngest is chubby, with dark blue eyes, golden curly hair, and a fair face with a rosy luster; the second has soft, straight black hair, and obsidian-like red phoenix eyes; Fluffy, looking at her slender legs, one can immediately imagine her proud figure ten years later.

And their mother is a typical East Asian appearance.If it were placed 100 years ago, no one would have believed that these three children were her daughters.But now, a woman can choose her sperm(l) at will, and there are many people who want to have children of different colors.So it is not surprising that such families abound.

After the mother apologized again, she drove the three sisters to play in the children's play area. β-Qiu looked at their backs and sighed, "That's great. If only I had three children like this."

"No, if you have such a group of little devil kings in your house, I will never dare to go to your house again."

"Hmph, don't talk so early. Maybe the system will arrange you to be my child's second guardian."

"Then why not let me go to the northern hemisphere!" I said, "Hurry up and ask the system to help you join a sisterhood. I'm unreliable, so it's better to find a family for the child."

Although many people now choose to raise their children on their own with the help of care robots, the system still recommends that children be provided with a family environment based on the theory of educational psychology, so that they can have more contact with other adults other than their mothers. Allow children to better integrate into society.Therefore, the system will organize mothers who gave birth at the same time to form a "sisters' raising association", or encourage lovers to live together and raise their children together.

But β-Qiu is not interested in women, he only likes humorous, beautiful and eye-catching companion robots whose vocation is to please women.The system customized three "boyfriends" for her according to her taste, a mature uncle with a sloppy beard, a tall and mighty ancient Roman gladiator, and a young man with abstinence (s) desire (s) temperament Priest.

Although these three guys have different appearances and "characters", they are actually controlled by the system.The system understands β-Qiu's every move, every word and deed since birth, all her habits, all her hobbies, so it can control these companion robots to have interesting conversations with her anytime, anywhere, always in line with her wishes - of course, If you feel that it is too boring to always go well, the system can also appropriately make them make trouble and add spice to the intimate relationship.

"I don't need a human lover(s), I can consider raising a meeting." β-Qiu said, "I've already met a few sisters recommended to me by the system, and they are really good people!"

"So fast?"

"Although it's still early, I thought, even if we can't really bring up the children together in the future, it's better to make friends. The people recommended by the system should match my personality."

"You really like making friends."

"You know, I'm bored as long as I'm alone, unlike you, who can be alone all day." β-Qiu blinked, "I went to experience the new virtual city game with them, Super interesting, you should try it too!"

"what game?"

"'Family in the 21st Century', the theme is family life before the Third World War. You can play different female roles in it and experience their day in the family."

"You're actually interested in this kind of historical theme?" I'm a little surprised, β-Qiu has always only liked the kind of stupid games where he conquers the universe and falls in love with creatures from various planets—this kind of plot is automatically generated by the system Yes, it combines all kinds of bridges that human beings love most, and it can be continuously generated. As long as the player is not bored, he can receive new surprises every day from birth to death.

"Because everyone is playing it!" β-Qiubai glanced at me, as if he thought I asked a stupid question, "76% of the citizens (h) have played this game, and it is even popular on news channels every day. Talk about it. Everyone is playing, if I don’t play, I won’t be able to chat with others, and the community evaluation score will drop.”

The community evaluation score is a part of the social value score system that reflects the interpersonal relationship. It represents whether the emotional effect that a person brings to others is positive or negative. As social creatures, we should maintain harmony within the group.As you can imagine, those promiscuous people who always hurt other people's feelings, cold and irascible mothers, and pessimists who complain constantly don't usually get high marks.

And me, as a person who never participates in group activities, this score will always hover below the global average score.

I chimed in disapprovingly: "Okay, I'm behind hot spots again."

β-Qiu obviously took this issue very seriously: "You must have not read the prompts given to you by the system, and you have not chatted with others. Sigh, you should correct your unsocial problem."

"If you don't fit in, you don't fit in. Anyway, even if my social evaluation score drops to 0, and thousands of people hate it, I should still be considered a useful person to society."

"Okay, I know you're good at work. But being in a group can make you happier." β-Qiu always babbled at me whenever he seized the opportunity.I hurriedly stopped her and brought the topic back: "So, what's so interesting about this historical documentary-like game?"

"It's shocking, and I highly recommend it!" β-Qiu said solemnly, "After experiencing the life of a woman in the 21st century, you will definitely sigh how absurd and irrational the previous society was."

"Oh why?"

"Can you imagine that many women used to choose to stay with a man who is of no use to society for the rest of their lives just to have children."

"What's so strange about this? Didn't you learn it in history class? At that time, there was no such a developed intelligent system. It was difficult for women to raise their offspring by themselves. They needed to find a man to help them."

"No no. You'll know when you play that game. It wasn't like that before World War III. Those male helpers for women—what's it called?"

"Husband." I reminded her.

"Yes, they are the so-called husbands. Some husbands actually don't put any effort into raising their children. They are not even as good as a sweeping robot. If you want to say that they provide material conditions for the family, they don't actually provide much. I tried That role has to bear children, raise children, and manage the family, and her husband is similar to the current sperm (l) donor, and has no use except to provide sperm—but, I find it very strange, Since they are all looking for a sperm (l) donor, why would she go for that man who is mediocre in every way, instead of someone with a good looks and IQ?"

"Based on her conditions, she may not be able to find it. After all, the vast majority of women are extremely mediocre, and high-quality reproductive (l) resources are so limited, and they are not in their turn."

"Having said that, it is always much easier for females to obtain reproductive (l) resources than males. Could it be that there was no sperm (l) bank in that era?"

When it comes to this, I can say a few words.When I wrote my graduation thesis, I checked a lot of historical materials, which gave me a little understanding of the absurd 21st century.

"No, there was also a sperm (l) bank at that time, called a sperm (l) bank. But firstly, the management is not scientific enough, and secondly, the government (h) has strict control and procedures, and not all women can get these Sperm (l). For example, some countries (h) state that artificial insemination (l) can only be done for medical purposes.”

"My God! How can the government (h) government waste reproductive resources like this! Doesn't it care about the improvement of human quality?"

"No, there were so many men back then, and if many were not eligible to have children, they would be disaffected and threaten social stability."

"It's so strange. If you don't let them be born, don't you get it? Just like now, people who are useless to society don't need to be born at all. Humans actually only need a very small number of high-quality males."

"At that time, the industry was not yet developed, men were an important labor force, and the social value was still very high."

"However, as I said, things were changing by the time of the war. A lot of people were not really useful to society physically, culturally and emotionally, and sometimes even more so - if there had been In terms of the social value scoring system, I estimate that their score will not exceed 1000-but the government (f) still does not give up on them, which is really illogical. The government at that time turned the cart before the horse to such an extent, and would rather use various means to force childbearing age Women combine with these useless people; they are also unwilling to disclose high-quality sperm resources to improve fertility and population quality!"

I agree with this point, I also saw this crisis in pre-war society when I was writing my graduation thesis.But I know that for the age when there is no system, any absurd things can happen.Its absurdity often shocks people today.

I thought for a while and explained: "Before the emergence of the system, people could only rely on ideas as the standard of conduct. Unfortunately, the ideas of the public always lag behind the development of society. Things that seem absurd today, but people in the past may I took it for granted. At that time, many women had limited thinking, thinking that if they could not find a husband, they could not have children, but they did not see that the social division of labor of husbands had gradually lost their usefulness. This is actually like after the 18th century. Society is useless, but the masses still retain the blind worship of the aristocracy until the 21st century."

"Ah, your comment should be on the current review channel." β-Qiu laughed, "Why don't you start a history channel, maybe it will become popular in no time!"

"Come on. This is a high-risk industry, and I don't want to be accidentally exiled to the northern hemisphere."

I have also met many people who run current commentary channels. If they do well, they will be of great benefit to society, and their social value points will gradually increase.If it is not done well, it will cause great harm to society. Some people's points will drop to single digits overnight, and they can only go to the northern hemisphere to open up wasteland.

While talking, we have come to the entrance of the medical examination center. β-Autumn went in alone under the guidance of the service robot, while I stayed in the rest area and waited.

Looking at her back, I was filled with emotion: I lost my mother at the age of 14, and the system arranged for β-Qiu’s mother, γ-Li Auntie, to be my guardian.I still remember that when I first arrived at their home, β-Qiu was still a chubby child.And in the blink of an eye, this little sister was going to be a mother too.

Systems are everywhere.It instructs the seat to adjust to the most comfortable height and angle according to my height and sitting posture; it also orders the service robot to automatically serve my favorite lemon-flavored cold drink at a temperature of 4°C, which is my consistent choice.I just sat in front of the huge floor-to-ceiling windows on the 42nd floor, overlooking our city leisurely.

This is a city in the southern hemisphere, numbered 501.It was named Lilongwe before World War III and was the capital (h) of Malawi, a country (h) in southeastern Africa. 100 years ago, it was little known; today, it is the third largest city in the world.

Although the Third World War broke out in 2030, although it only lasted for eight months, it was enough to turn the entire northern hemisphere into wasteland.However, the so-called nuclear winter is not as terrible as meteorologists predicted. In less than 100 years, the radiation intensity on the surface of the earth has dropped to a range that the human body can bear.Although water and soil pollution is still serious, and desertification is also a big problem, human beings are not at risk of extinction.The survivors moved to the southern hemisphere and quickly built a splendid civilization.

Today's weather is fine, the sky is clear, only the northern skyline has a hazy yellow layer, which is the end of a big dust storm that has just passed.The 501 lake in the distance is shining in the sun, like a brilliant sapphire.

In the city, the buildings in pure white tone are scattered and scattered, and they are all uniform geometry.With a simple aesthetic, they allow people to see reason, harmony and order.

From time to time, colorful images emerge from the white, one after another, like colorful foam in the white ocean.This is pomp above order, the other side of our civilization.

The superconducting maglev light rail runs vertically and horizontally between high-rise buildings, and adopts optimal planning to ensure that residents in every corner of the city can travel conveniently; under the unified command of the system, the unmanned vehicles on the elevated road flow continuously without congestion; soaring in the sky System controlled airship.Pedestrians on the high-speed pedestrian walkway look so small, like a dense colony of ants.

What a great and tenacious civilization!It rose from the ashes of the kalpa, and died in the fire.Humanity must survive forever because we have such a strong will to live.

"Play me a piece of background music, preferably a new work I haven't heard before." I opened my mouth, seemingly talking to myself, but actually passed the order to me through the walls, chairs, water glasses, glass windows, and everything around me. system.

Immediately, a long list of songs appeared in front of my eyes.

This is an image projected directly onto my retina by a smart contact lens, only for me to see.

In the list floating in front of my eyes, the number one song is called "I'm Not Elegant".The name is a bit strange, but since it was recommended to me by the system, it was in line with my taste, so I chose it anyway.The sound of the symphony reaches the cochlea through tiny earphones implanted in the ear-it really is a beautiful melody.

It seems that there is a river meandering in the mist.The setting sun shines through the jungle, creating ever-changing light and shadow in the mist.Everything is so quiet, but there is a fascinating power hidden.The pure white city is gradually fading from my vision, I just want to follow this mysterious river and walk into the deepest part of the jungle hidden in the darkness...

I just closed my eyes intoxicated, but the music stopped abruptly.

A hurried female voice from the system rang in my ears: "Emergency! Emergency! δ-63080491-rou, please return to the Vulnerability Management Bureau!"

What's wrong?It's rare to take a vacation, and these "worms" really know how to pick their time.

Complaints belong to complaints, and I immediately got rid of my leisurely mood and replaced it with professional vigilance.