Missile attacks have now become the leading cause of commercial airline passenger deaths. 926 people have been killed by missile strikes since 2014, compared to 458 deaths from traditional accidents during the same period. MORE
Business: French fry cartel. Tsuumogami. Foreign dark money in WA. Hidden narratives in orgs. H1B visas. Renting xmas trees till they retire.
People: Infiltrating right-wing militias. Migrant workers replaced by high school students in the US. Alcohol free booze on the rise. Trudeau resignation. Playing cards.
Tech: Starlink on commercial flights. Tech fighting burglary. 2001 wild ideas. AI chips growing fast. Ultrasound 3D printing under your skin. Canon new chip-making. Privacy nightmare as earbuds. Passive house vs fires.
Security: Hacker attacks on French cities. Siri ‘listening’ lawsuit. UK water sector and cyber in 2024. Russia infiltrating Ukrainian kids for recon.
Futures: Critical sensemaking. Sweden foresight report. 2025 guesses from Vox. Possible black swan events.
Futures: Future Cities (UK - PDF).
Learnt more about python concurrency (geeky).
# Connections at 30,000 Feet
The plane was a modest Embraer E-175, an unassuming regional jet that had recently become a testbed for United Airlines’ ambitious partnership with Starlink. As the passengers settled in, a soft hum of excitement filled the cabin. Soon, they would be streaming movies and playing games at 30,000 feet, turning turbulence into mere interruptions in their binge-watching schedules.
“Attention, passengers,” droned a voice over the intercom, “You are now free to connect your devices. MileagePlus members enjoy complimentary Wi-Fi, which is faster than the speed at which my aunt can consume a holiday ham.”^1 Ben, a data analyst with a penchant for conspiracy theories, raised an eyebrow. He had read somewhere about a French fry cartel manipulating prices and wondered if the same could be happening with in-flight Wi-Fi. What if the airlines were colluding to keep their internet speeds just below what was possible? “A global conspiracy involving potatoes and pixels,” he mused, chuckling to himself.
Meanwhile, in the back row, Rita, a disgruntled software engineer, was trying to make sense of her life choices. She had recently been laid off and decided to accept a position at a tech startup that promised to revolutionize the industry with quantum computing. The irony was not lost on her; she had once scoffed at the idea of working for a company that might exploit H-1B visa workers—yet here she was, desperate to pay her bills. It felt like a cruel joke, one that would make a great plot twist in the novel she had yet to write.
As the plane soared above the clouds, the crew began distributing complimentary non-alcoholic drinks, a nod to the growing trend of alcohol-free alternatives. “To a healthier lifestyle!” one flight attendant declared, raising her own can of sparkling water. “Or at least a less hungover one!”^2 The passengers laughed, perhaps a little too heartily, as if the joke was a relic of a past life where alcohol was the default celebratory option.
Suddenly, a flurry of notifications pinged through the Wi-Fi as passengers took to social media, sharing their in-flight experiences. “Flying high with no ties!” Ben tweeted, his fingers racing over his phone. “But what about the ethical implications of this technology? Are we sure these satellites aren’t spying on us?” His penchant for paranoia seemed to resonate as others chimed in, debating the morality of data privacy in the age of AI and quantum computing.
In the midst of this digital cacophony, a child’s voice piped up from the front. “Mom, is everything we’re seeing real?” The question hung in the air, like an unresolved chord in a symphony. The mother, a philosophy student who had been contemplating critical sensemaking and narrative futures, paused. “Well, darling, some things are real, and some are simulations. Just like that cartoon you watch, but with more existential dread.”^3
Rita, overhearing this exchange, felt a flicker of inspiration. What if she combined the absurdity of her current situation—airborne Wi-Fi, corporate conspiracies, and the philosophical debates of a child—into a story? One where characters navigated a future shaped not by certainty, but by the chaos of possibility, like a toddler with a crayon in a room full of blank walls.
As the plane began its descent, the cabin lights dimmed, and passengers started to realize the depth of their conversations. They were not just flying from one city to another; they were collectively pondering the future, each tweet, each laugh, each shared story contributing to a narrative of hope, confusion, and unexpected connections. And in that moment, with the hum of engines and the flicker of screens, they all felt a little less alone in this chaotic, beautifully flawed universe.
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^1 You see, it’s all in the marketing—nothing like a well-placed joke to distract from the existential dread of flying through the void.
^2 The irony of celebrating sobriety with fizzy water is not lost on anyone, really.
^3 Ah, the joys of parenthood: where every question feels like a pop quiz on reality.