Forbes magazine (!) recently asked five authors to tackle this scenario:

"It's the year 2027, and the world is undergoing a global financial crisis. The scene is an American workplace."

Here are the responses:

• "Abstract" by Michael Bagnulo: "This paper argues that at least one of the following propositions is true: (1) the human species is very likely to go extinct before reaching a 'posthuman' stage; (2) any posthuman civilization is extremely unlikely to run a significant number of simulations of their evolutionary history (or variations thereof); (3) we are almost certainly living in a computer simulation."
• "Springtide" by Max Barry: "'This is it, baby,' he said, easing his hands inside her shirt. 'End of the world.'"
• "Other People's Money" by Cory Doctorow: "Gretl's stall in the dead WalMart off the I-5 in Pico Rivera was not the busiest spot in the place, but that was how she liked it."
• "The Position" by Warren Ellis: "'We can't possibly send that man on to the floor of the Stock Exchange. He's got no clothes on.'"
• "Factory" by Lowell Yaeger: "I got my pink slip last week. It wasn't pink, but bright orange, and it didn't say anything but to report to my supervisor at the end of the shift."

[via secritcrush]

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Posted by John DeNardo at Monday October 22, 2007 at 12:58 AM
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