Mindware

[Strangelove]

The Deoradh are a very digitally-oriented race for three reasons:

* The first is their aesthetic and impoverished lifestyle. This is caused by their lack material synthesis technology, and the fact they are surrounded by a hostile environment (in outer space with no habitable planets). So every inch of farmland must be manufactured in the form of ships, every drop of water and scrap of metal must be mined. Virtual reality provides a cheap, nearly free way to keep the populace content without the need to waste precious resources on consumer goods.

* The second reason is their nomadic lifestyle, which means information networks are the only way to interact with the rest of the race. Virtual reality worlds would allow them to interact together at a single place. This would keep them united culturally and politically, and would help prevent them from degrading into tribalism like most nomadic societies.

* Finally, their natural lifespan is little over two decades. This means a high-end education at standard pace would take up nearly their entire lives. But high-end education is required to build and maintain starships, so the loss of intelligence would mean certainly mean extinction of the race. Thus, methods of increasing mental capacities, or accelerating learning through mind-machine connections would be highly sought after.

The reason I'm explaining this is because some of the aspects of Mindware technology may seem 'overpowered' or too advanced (realistic simulated worlds, mind-enhancing implants, download-and-learn technology), especially in comparison to their very crude starships. But when your race's happiness, political stability, and even physical survival are all based on the same field of technology, it can create a very powerful incentive to improve upon it.

Well, without further ado, here's the actual concept itself:

https://wiki.stararmy.com/doku.php?id=mindware

Thoughts, comments, approval?

 

[Fred]

Wait, let me get this straight.

Paper takes trees to make. Trees could be used to make homes and furniture instead. Trees are rare but those Freespacers still need to draw... so, instead of drawing on real paper they draw on illusory paper inside a race-wide access to virtual reality?

Your point is that instead of making all that stuff that's for leisure (going on a skiing trip, planning a birthday party, going to play at the game arcade, getting a new toy and playing with it) they insert all that stuff and their enjoyment in their virtual reality space and then, in real life, only expend efforts to further their survival with the little resources they have?

I... think I get it... though in some way it makes me think the Freespacers might only be living for continuing to make their own fantasies - well, if I got it right.

 

[Strangelove]

Yeah, its pretty much escapism. You have to understand, they were basically thrust into a completely hostile environment without the proper starship technology level to support themselves. Even nations like Yamatai or Nepleslia have yet to migrate completely into a space-dwelling lifestyle, because the cost of supporting a population on starships is far greater than that of supporting one on a planet.

Yet the Deoradh have to support such a lifestyle for their entire species (hence material scarcity), with only a fraction of the technology. Thus they had to make great sacrifices to survive (shortened lifespans, overspecialized biology and evolution, self-mutilation with vast amounts of biotechnology, 'child manufacturing,' high mortality rates, and so on). The Deoradh society is certainly not a happy or prosperous one, which is their main reason for their heavy use of virtual reality, religion, and other non-material means for escapism.

 

[Fred]

It took 20 years to train me into an individual whom could supposedly pursue a profession (and I could live around 80 years old). If you use a sort of enhanced internet/virtual reality as a mental holodeck/classroom to allow the people leisure and earning skills in 5 years of a 20 year life... I think its pretty reasonable.

I'd like details on how the Freespacers handled the escapism issue versus working to keep alive - I think it'd be an interesting detail to flesh out (I haven't read all there is to read on the race, though, so if this was done already, I beg your pardon).

Also, since 5 years of training is a long time within a 20 year life (I mean, Deoradh start as babies and have to grow up, right? They can't just spend the first 5 years - they'd only come to be capable of working around 7-9 years old since they still have to mature) - there probably would be junior functions in which the Freespacers would be able to practice their fledging skills too.

Argh, I don't know enough about them to make good suggestions - why am I trying? ^_^;

However, try to flesh out some of the points I mentiond above and I think this would be worthy of approval.

 

[Strangelove]

Actually, I was going to add information on childhood and life cycle to the main Deoradh article, but since the childhood relies on the functionality of Mindware itself, I was waiting for approval first.

I was imagining something along the lines of mostly hypnopaedia (sleep learning) for a most of childhood, with breaks in between to develop social skills and prevent muscle degeneration. All inside a communal nurseries of Motherships (hence their name). They would finish about high school education by the time they hit physical adolescence, on account of the accelerated learning and mind-enhancing implants. After this they would be released from their nurseries for proper release into society as 'real' people, and would likely take up work as apprentice workers. From there, the apprenticeship training and self-teaching Mindware would take care of the rest of the education.

As for how they handle the mass escapism and such, I was planning on writing that up along with the national government article ("The Free State"), since society-related stuff should go there rather than in a technology article. Of course, I need to actually get off my lazy rear and do it sometime. >.<

 

[Fred]

Well, the work you've done on the race has been pretty good so far, so, I'll make a leap of faith and trust you on filling some of that detail later.

that said, Mindware is Approved.

 

[ArsenicJohn]

Added OOC Notes https://wiki.stararmy.com/doku.php?id=faction:freespacers:mindware