At Least I Know I’m Broken
Damn, Mike. Tell it like it is!
Another week goes by for me, and we enter another design season. Autumn and Winter are both traditionally very busy times for me when new work is on hand, because to maintain a construction schedule in the spring, which usually begins about the third week of February, you have to cram in a lot of paperwork, submittals, construction documents, and assorted materials between October and January. And so it is for me, right now – I’ve nothing to complain about, though. Work is good. I only ever really get edgy when there’s nothing to do, and right now I have as full a schedule as I can hope for.
It also leaves me dreadfully fatigued, though. Still! For those of you who are gaming-inclined, it may interest you to know that I just completed a bit of work in collaboration with the team over at Vanguard Miniatures in the UK – a short rulebook for a new game being developed there called “Dominion.” It’s a unique project in that it’s being released episodically, much like a serial story, and has a brand new line of miniatures to go with it. You can find out more from Vanguard Miniatures’ website, and download the rules for free if you’re interested!
Oh, and since, unfortunately, I neglected to post these wonderful new SpiderForest Comics last week, here are more lovely new additions to our team! Check them out!
Obscurato: Retired warrior Dionisia’s quiet life as a grandmother is interrupted when an old friend is in need of saving. With her past catching up to her she is about to discover just how magic left her world, and have to decide if it is worth bringing back.
Hex Lovers (NSFW): A comedic tale of romance, depression and magic users! Follow the adventures of Blue Wizard & Hex Witch as they survive dungeons, goblins, and long term relationships! Along the way they will encounter both friend, foe and ex-boyfriends.
Bonabyl: In a world where human fears can take on terrifying physical shapes, a blind boy’s intense fear of Darkness becomes a danger not only to himself but everyone around him. Welcome to Bonabyl.
Little Light Asylum: In a strange orphanage where the little monsters really are little monsters, three friends are constantly getting themselves in supernatural misadventures.
The Magpie (NSFW): There is no escape from Pinewood, this is the one thing Amanda knows. At least she thought she knew, until Trixie, the new girl came to town. As the rules she once believed fall apart, Amanda soon faces the truth of her town. She isn’t the only one that wants out.
Solid burn, Mike. 🙂
😀
Just submit Sarah’s bugreport to her developers – I assure you, it’ll be solved in no time 😛
Yeah, I wish I had my own tech support team, that’s for sure.
who doesn’t tho? 🙂
Mike-One-Echo and its amazing epiphanies. As if she hasn’t known that since the moment her father died. Here’s a better one Mike, more profound: you’re easier to repair.
Well, he’s going to see things his own way, regardless, I suppose. He’s got his own kind of common sense.
Given the apparently unforseen emergent behaviours Mike has exhibited in this storyline, I suspect that he is *not* easier to repair than a human. In fact, any high-order cognitive disfunction on his part is likely *far* harder to diagnose and repair, since there is *no* prior body of knowledge to work with, as opposed to the millenia of observation and investigation we humans have spent figuring out how our brains/minds/psyches work (and don’t). That knowledge is incomplete and often flawed to be sure, but it’s far more than anyone trying to fix/heal Mike would have.
And of course, in purely mechanical/physiological terms, machines built by humans are far harder to repair than humans themselves – after all, just give someone enough calories, nutrients and time, and they will repair or ameliorate (sometimes profound) physical injuries without any concious effort or intent at all.
Well, if we follow the logic of humans only needing a supply of protein to heal, then all we need to do is replace Mike’s parts from storage. Presto, he’s fixed. And if “emergent behavior” includes mind-rape, the sooner, the better. But I could be wrong. It might be that Mike can’t be fixed because, well, it’s not broken. Just like cats and dogs and hamsters aren’t broken, but they’ll never be human either. We’ll have to see where the author takes us…
Your syllogism is incorrect, as Mike ≠ human.
Also, not to be too flip, but ‘mind-rape’ is perhaps too hyperbolic, and also misdirected.