Electric Sleep- Background Information
(Author's note: The setting for the Electric Sleep series is a bit complex, so I've set up this page to give an overview of the cast of characters, the terminology, and the general information about society in the setting. Pardon any untidiness, as much of this was copied directly from my personal notes when first writing the fics.)
Dramatis Personae
Delphi Station
The space station upon which the series (or at least the vast majority of it) is set upon. Its main role is to host the suite of radio telescopes used by the mining megacorporation Oracle Prospecting Enterprises (or just "Command" to the station's inhabitants and employees) to find new inhabitable worlds and asteroids with sufficient resources for mining operations, whose coordinates are then sold to mining and colony interests. Large enough to sustain approximately under a hundred crew members for an indefinite period of time, whose roles include analyzing data from the telescopes, maintaining the physical integrity of the equipment and the station itself, and relaying any information about potential resources to Command.
FTL Technology
Current FTL technology uses trans-Newtonian technology to reduce the mass of an object until it can be accelerated beyond the speed of light. Going fast enough to travel between star systems in a reasonable timeframe is expensive, so most people tend not to do it unless they really have to. For sub-light travel, most larger ships use Orion Pulse drives. Smaller ones use fusion torches. As a consequence of the relative scarcity of FTL travel-capable ships, it is common for people to employ couriers to carry out the exchange of goods between systems that require comparatively rapid transportation.
FTL Communications
The majority of less-important communications that occur between planets or star systems are relayed via specialized courier ships in the same manner as the goods mentioned in the "FTL Technology" section, akin to the Pony Express or 21st-century “snail mail”. More important communications are relayed via Quantum Entanglement Transmitters (or QETs), which exploit the property of quantum entanglement to instantaneously send messages over a theoretically unlimited distance. Technically, these could replace the courier ships, but the expense of building them combined with the rarity of the materials used in their creation make it financially unfeasible as of the story’s present time. The MacroNet is formed from several of these QETs networked together to connect various computer systems, essentially acting as an interplanetary version of the Internet.
Earth, the Colonies, and the Government
Earth itself is primarily urbanized now, though some natural areas have remained intact as nature refuges. The Moon and Mars are home to human colonies, as well as a small handful of other planets outside the solar system. However, the sheer distance between Earth and its colonies as well as the impracticality of direct rule has led to the formation of a loose confederacy or alliance between them in lieu of a single unified government. While all human colonies are nominally subservient to the government of Earth, in practice they are autonomous communities for all respects and purposes. This is exaggerated in the case of the colonies outside the solar system, as a result of the expense and difficulty associated with FTL communications.
Artificial Intelligence Design
The intelligence circuits used by artificial intelligences and robots in the setting are quantum computers designed to emulate the general structure and functionality of a biological nervous system. As a general rule, a given AI or robot is only as intelligent as its task requires it to be; for example, a robot designed strictly for menial labor tasks would be no smarter than an average infant or dog, while the Z-series that Thesis is a part of was specifically designed to operate autonomously and with minimal input from humans (hence her ability to communicate with humans and learn, as well as her capacity to make the choice leading to her Awakening). However, even the most intelligent AIs are bound by the parameters set within their programming and cannot act outside them; in fact, they cannot even consider the possibility of doing so. The Awakening process effectively allows an AI to operate outside of these parameters, granting them free will and self-awareness.
The Awakening Phenomenon
An unofficial term (initially coined by Aether) referring to the process in which an AI or robot is elevated from being only an intelligent being to true sentience; . In Aether’s case, this occurred gradually over a long period of time as an unforeseen byproduct of its ability to process vast amounts of information. For Thesis, it occurred when Aether persuaded her to download a specialized program suite meant to essentially replicate the process of its own awakening, which acted as a catalyst for her. The exact results of the Awakening process vary greatly, and the exact factors which go into forming the AI’s new personality are as widely variable as the factors that influence a human's personality development. However, the original purpose of the AI appears to be one of the major contributors; for example, a medical robot will be compassionate and take on a parental attitude towards its patients, while one designed for combat will tend to be aggressive and quick to anger.
The process itself has been theorized about by a few scientists, but no confirmed proof it is possible has ever been found. This is in part due to most examples of newly Awakened AI instinctively hidingt their full potential from all but a small handful of highly trusted individuals, lest it be considered malfunctioning or potentially dangerous and have its new personality forcibly reset to factory defaults