Answering 5 questions posts from the smolnet in 2022

FEBRUARY
From: gemini://multiverse.thruhere.net/5q/202202-1.gmi

> 1. If you had to live in an inner-city area for the next 10 years - where would that be, and in what type of domicile.
Probably just stay here in Glasgow, would be convenient to live in the middle of the city, near the places I go regularly, but it won't be peaceful.

> 2. Have you lived in many places, or few? What was your favourite?
Never left the Greater Glasgow Area, with the exception of briefly living in Yorkshire when I first started school. I can't see myself leaving the Glasgow area, except maybe if we don't get independence in the next referendum. I don't want to be living in a place that shoves English culture and "The United Kindom" down your throat. Maybe I'd move to Ireland. Or Italy.

> 3. What do you love about where you live now?
It's peaceful, crime rates are low.

> 4. Circumstances force you to move to a place in a historical time for the remainder of your life. Where and when is this?
I honestly don't know. I can't name a place or time specifically that I'd want to go to. Maybe live in the 90s, in the midst of all of the emerging technologies, the web 1.0 and such. Sounded exciting!

> 5. Describe your dream-home. What is your favourite thing about it? Where is it?
A dedicated storage room for all of my games, films and music, tuned to the right temporatures and humidity levels for long term storage, A sitting room with a 4K Blu-Ray player, a Laserdisc player and a VCR, A room thet recreates the 90s feel with the appropriate wallpaper, era appropriate tech, TVs, posters, albums, etc, and a dedicated studio room where I go to make stuff!

JANUARY
From: gemini://multiverse.thruhere.net/5q/202201-1.gmi

> 1. What year will mankind next set (human) foot on the moon, and who (nation state, corporate entity, etc) will it be?
I dunno. I get the feeling that China will try, and fail, but in terms of succeeding, I'm not sure. Would probably not be in this century.

> 2. Stephenson's "Diamond Age" or Doctorow's "Walkaway"?
Huh?

> 3. Will artificial general intelligence be achieved, and if so, when is that likely to be? What will it change about our lives?
I saw someone on Reddit/Remini bring up a good point where AI probably won't outright rebel against us like in Terminator and such-like, but they will be advanced enough to be able to manipulate people into supporting whatever suits the vested interests of the elites controlling the AI. We've already seen a version of this with Brexit and Donald Trump's election. I fear it's only going to get worse if we don't step in...

> 4. (When/ will) the COVID-19 pandemic be declared over - ie "endemic", seasonal and no longer an emergency situation? 
I actually think that Omicron is going to be the last major variant that justifies lockdown/restrictions. We're seeing that the variants, though spread way quicker, are much milder. I think the next variant that comes up might gives us some restrictions still, but after that, I think we'll go back to normal. So I think we're at the tail end already.

> 5. What does the year 2072 look like in your mind's eye?
I don't like imagining the future like that, being someone who likes old tech and having to deal with maintaining them and dealing with higher costs, and I fear that will be even worse by 2072. If we're even alive by then...

What I do hope, and trends today are showing as such, that Scotland will be independent, and the UK as we know it will have dissolved. Leaving England and Wales as their own countries. Hopefully by then, Scots will be the dominant language of Scotland, with Gaelic a close second. Wishful thinking, maybe, but that's what I want to work towards.

I also think we'll see a more generally accepting society towards minorities, like people who aren't heterosexual or cisgender.

I think society itself has 3 potential roads. First is death by climate change, nothing to be said there.
Second is where we become totally reliant on corporations, more so than today, to the point that perhaps our lives will be maintained by them, and we need to pay subscriptions to even live.
Third, is humanity finally turns on corporations, and perhaps Capitalism as a whole, and we live in a more fair and just society. By far the most optimistic, but perhaps the most unlikely...