Utopia

[close] This global discussion group has been designed to encourage debates about important and underreported issues of our era. All you need is an enquiring mind and a desire to gain or share “underground knowledge”. This is also a place for readers to discuss the controversial topics explored in The Underground Knowledge Series (non-fiction books) by James Morcan & Lance Morcan as well as the Underground Knowledge podcast show.

[close] This group explores, discusses, and provides a forum for humanist science fiction. Humanist science fiction and, by extension, transhumanist science fiction explore themes central to human improvement, expansion, and transcendence. While humanist science fiction, like all good storytelling, pits characters agains great challenges, its drama derives from the challenges inherent in being human in a complex universe; it needn't reach for tropes of petty villainy, the forced drama of poor choices, or readymade dystopias. It expressly avoids the supernatural or, at least, declares that the supernatural is natural. Discuss futurist ideas, works of humanist science fiction, and the challenges of humanist storytelling.

[close] Reading group for exploring concepts arising from the Coursera MOOC "E-learning and Digital Cultures" Topics include: 1. humans, machines and animals 2. surveillance 3. communication technologies 4. ubiquity 5. open (and opening) education 6. human nature 7. the meaning(s) of learning 8. the evolution of information technology 9. the future of learning institutions (source: Coursera EDCMOOC2 digital artefact criteria) profile photo: Bird Houses by See-ming Lee: Birdhouses http://www.flickr.com/photos/seeminglee/2149309015/ ~ 'Twitter' chat member(ship) masthead photo: Fireworks 1 by Robbie Biller http://www.flickr.com/photos/robbie_biller/5940170219/ ~ Twitter chat activity visualisation

[close] There are only 6 towns left in the world now, all others have disappeared mysteriously, along with all of the population over the age of 20, and under the age of 2. The people in these towns have stopped aging, too. Nobody knows what happened to the missing people, or the rest of the world, since they're too busy trying to survive. Everybody lives in one of the 6 towns: January, May, July, October, December, and Utopia. Each of the towns is unique, and has something that helps everyone survive.