BRAND NEW It is 7 pm. My iBody wakes me up. I
feel quite awake already. Normally it takes me ages to get out of bed but since they implanted this iBody in my arm a few years ago,, it feels like my body knows when I have to wake up. As I stretch my eyes, the curtains start to dissolve, and the light in the room turns bluish. Outside, some birds are singing. Everyone has an iBody these days, and since I got mine, I have no clue what I would do without it. “Good morning Carlo”, “you have an exam today at 9:00”. “You better hurry”. As I quickly walk into the shower, the water start falling automatically from the ceiling. The iBody knows my body, and the water is already at the best temperature. Gotta love technology. I start to feel a bit nervous about my skill-exam. The implant can probably feel this, because it goes “Calm down Carlo, three deep breaths and remember: critical thinking is the most valued skill you developed in the last module, so you will be fine.’’
*rrrrrrssssssss*
WORLD
I suddenly hear a strange sound coming from the kitchen. Still haven’t get used to the new machines the landlord installed. I start smelling freshly grinded coffee beans. “Come on Carlo, you can’t stay in the bathroom all day!”. This time it’s a warmer voice that echoes in the house. As I reach the kitchen, I give an incredibly tired look to my roommate. She stole my coffee, again. Her iBody has an older OS and it can’t automatically get her coffee yet. “Louise, you know you should get your device updated..” I tell her, somehow friendly irritated. She has arrived recently but she is doing great. She is kind, actually good looking, and I can see she prepared some coffee for me too, though, which is definitely a bonus. Sometimes I ask myself if technology can actually be kind, or if it only follows cold coded orders.
I quickly take it back and after a quick breakfast, we walk together to iTransport. Because of my calendar, the system was already informed I needed a ride. On the way to school, Louise and I rehearse a little before our skills exam, even though there are two other passengers sitting with us. We don’t have to drive ourselves after all, which is always surprisingly nice. It’s like having your private driver. Louise has chosen to develop other skills than me. She is very strong within the arts and creative skills. She already had her own art exhibitions when she was 11. “Today we have our final exam”, she says; “Any ideas about what you’d like to do after your graduation?”.
I think, but it’s as if the answer was buried five meter deep in the sand. Well, there are a lot of different careers connected with Critical Design Thinking, so, I’ll be able to go into different directions. “I want to focus in finding a job that solve actual problems.. and that has something to do with concept development’’ I tell her, even if I was not really sure where that answer came from.
“Never thought holograms would be invented so quickly”.
When we arrive at school I see many other iTransport, all lined up behind each other and waiting for their next call. It’s very crowded at school. Normally we can just follow our classes at home but today we have a skill exam, the only one we need to head to school for. Other students are discussing their exams and what they are expecting for today. “This weekend I watched different TED talks about micro technology”, says one girl. I guess that she is specialized in Performance, Functionality and Reliability. This skills package is very popular these days, and many other students are interested in developing this skillset. Suddenly my iBody notifies me. I know it’s time for me to enter the exam cabins. I slowly walk to the department for critical design. My name is already visible on one of the cabins. The door closes automatically behind me. I always felt a slight disturbing sense of claustrophobia when entering these new cabins. A hologram of a face appears. My pulse raises just so slightly. “Goodmorning Carlo, I hope you are all ready for the final skills exam”. I somehow miss the days where teachers would meet with you in the class, flesh and bones. But I guess it’s good for the government to have robots teach instead. Clever. Strict. Cold.
In the next minutes she explains how much time we have, and talks about the different online sources we are able to use. My computer has two screens, which makes it easier to type, search and design at the same time. I have to solve different problems through critical design thinking. Subjects such as art, design, communication and technology pass by. I take my time. After three hours, I’m done with my exam. I have a good feeling about it. Everything we write and develop at school goes online and to the school’s cloud. The data bank is huge, and it’s easy to navigate and find things thanks to holograms. Never thought holograms would be invented so quickly. Star Wars made them always feel like they belonged to a reality too distant to become true.
“All I can see is technology implemented with nature”. Louise is already outside when I arrive. She looks happy and satisfied. “Let’s go to a nice place in town to celebrate” she says. I can’t say no to her, so iBody finds a nice lunch bar that suits us. As we travel around the city on an iTransport, we talk enthusiastically about the exam we made in the last hours. Today Louise is in such a good mood, she even looks nicer. The device finds “La Fiesta” a bar where everything is working through technology. No bartenders, no nice girls, no nice guys. No humans to serve us. Instead, we talk with online displays at our table, where we easily can pick out delicious dishes. My dish is vegetarian, made from different seaweeds, fish and with a dressing of oil, berries, with seeds and grains. What Louise is having looks great too actually. Looks like a vegan soup. At La Fiesta it’s normal to eat vegan or vegetarian, these days most of the people do. Today most of the animals are endangered species, and there are almost no farmers left. The real animal meat is precious and expensive to buy. But few still want it anyway. Go figure. The remaining meat consumers just 3D print their meat. All made from synthetic ingredients. Kinda crazy it’s normal now. I remember when I was little people started taking this lab meat seriously. Since then, the government introduced a lot more education on food. When the water reaches the head, you learn to swim, they say. When we were little,
I was used to hear how much grownups were concerned, but it always seemed like they wouldn’t do anything afterall. Given the situation our world is now, I am now glad they did something in the end. I ask Louise if she ever read about how the world was 25 years ago. “It was cruel and stupid” she says. “Animals of the farms were putted in small cages until they died, only to produce more meat. Nothing was automated, everybody had a car each, and the ozone layer got almost broken”. “Everyday objects broke all the time and people didn’t eat what they needed to live well”. “I remember when I was 3 years old we already started to be educated about how we should treat our planet. My parents have given me with vegetarian food ever since, and I’m very thankful to them that they teached me how much more valuable it is for your body, mind and soul.” The same stories I grew up with. I am staring at the window, slowly eating. All I can see is technology implemented with nature. Can’t really imagine what it was like before. Suddenly my iBody starts to buzz. “Carlo, you have eat more than enough, maybe you should do some sports later on tonight. I suggest going for a run down the lakes. You could invite your friend Louise”.