The first show ever shown on the SciFi Channel, FTL Newsfeeds were 30 second snippets of fictitious news info that were supposed to have come from the year 2142. 2142 has several numerical meanings for the year 2142 see 22nd century, or 2140s the number 2142 see 2000 (number This future timeline was fraught with stories of genetic engineering issues, technology trends, space exploration, future entertainment, right to privacy issues and geopolitical intrigue. The series was created by F. Paul Wilson and Matthew J. Costello and was filmed in New York. Francis Paul Wilson (b May 17, 1946 in Jersey City) is an American Author, primarily in the Science fiction and Matthew J Costello (born 1948 is the author or coauthor of numerous novels and nonfiction works Costello's daughter Nora Costello appeared in one episode as Keva Handley, a child delinquent arrested for genetically mutating her little brother into a puff-rock lizard. The series ended in a cliffhanger in late 1996. A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a Plot device in which a movie, Novel, or other work of fiction contains an abrupt ending often leaving
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The World of 2142
The World of 2142 is markedly different from our own. Europe has combined into the EC or European Community which has given it enormous economic and political sway. The United States has combined with Canada to form the NAU or North American Union, still very bold and ambitious though not as economically powerful. Japan, the Pacific Rim and all other East Asian nations excluding Australia combined into the NACPS or New Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere, a new isolationist Combine centered on improving itself from within. The Holy Islamic Federation controls the Middle East and African regions.
The economy is controlled by a global banking entity called CenBank, short for Central Bank and was based in Geneva, Switzerland, and all transfers were electronic and highly monitored by the bank's AI and President Barton Poole. President is a Title leaders of Organizations companies, Trade unions universities, and countries. The "FTL Newsfeed" came from this future world's "Commlink" system which acted as an interactive global information network that merges the internet, television programming of all sorts and virtual reality entertainment into one entertainment center. There was even a special voting message shown during the 1992 Presidential Elections that has all "Commlink" functions suspended until the following day as if to coincide with the elections of 2142.
Life on Earth is often interesting with Virtual Reality simulations so real that worldwide addiction is very common. Virtual reality ( VR) is a technology which allows a user to interact with a Computer-simulated environment be it a real or imagined one Holography allows users to modify the appearance of their dwellings or selves into more appealing facades. Holography (from the Greek, ὅλος - hólos whole + γραφή - grafē writing drawing is a technique that allows the Violent "future-sports" enable fast paced thrills with life and death consequences that keep the crowds coming back for more. Cloning has brought the extinct back to life and enabled mankind to create a subclass of humans that not only fill the need for cheap labor and exotic entertainment, but have now become a social cause for clone rights groups. Cloning in Biology is the process of producing populations of genetically-identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as Bacteria, Insects In addition to earthbound life there are The O'Neills -- a network of space stations and microwave generators that orbit the Earth and Moon bases, representing the major economic Combines. Lastly, there is the great, if economically devastating, experiment of terraforming Mars. The terraforming (literally "Earth-shaping" of a Planet, moon, or other body is the hypothetical process of deliberately modifying its
CommLink
CommLink is the information hub for Earth, The Moon bases, Mars and the O'Neills. Based in a solar powered space platform bound to Earth's orbit, Commlink operates 24hrs a day with all the information, entertainment and communication needs required by citizens in the 22nd century. The news also known as "FTL Newsfeed" is delivered by a "virtual news anchor" (a disembodied photorealistic human male head that has been processed with visual effects to accentuate the mood of the messages it conveys). Whether this news anchor is a true virtual construct that is controlled by an Artificial Intelligence or if this is a real human that is visually augmented is not revealed. However, due to the fact that virtual reality and holograms play a big part of everyday life in 2142 the news anchor could indeed be a computer controlled construct.
World Combines
The 22nd century globe has undergone a geopolitical change. Various major nations have all undergone economic changes and united, allowing them greater financial stability and an increase in political cachet. They are as follows: (Taken from FTL Guide to the 22nd Century)
North American Union (NAU)
Leader: President Madeleine Clarke
Flag: the red & white stripes of USA with a white maple leaf of Canada alone on the blue corner field. The North American Union (NAU is a theoretical Continental union of Canada, Mexico and the United States similar in structure to the The word leadership can refer to Those entities that perform one or more acts of leading President is a Title leaders of Organizations companies, Trade unions universities, and countries. Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page
The United States and Canada fused to form the gigantic North American Union (NAU). The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page This Union has failed to compete successfully with either the European Community (EC) or the Hispanic Commonwealth (HC) economically, but can cause massive devastation in terms of military power. Hispanic (hispano hispánico hispânico Hispānus adjective from ''Hispānia'', the Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula) is a term that historically A military is an Organization authorized by its Nation to use force usually including use of Weapons in defending its Country (or by attacking In a bold effort, the NAU committed itself to the terraforming of Mars, the Red Planet, an on-going project that drained, and continues to drain, billions of credits and resources from the Union. The terraforming (literally "Earth-shaping" of a Planet, moon, or other body is the hypothetical process of deliberately modifying its
If "Habitat Mars" succeeds, then the result will provide the NAU with a new world to populate, mine, construct and exploit. A habitat (which is Latin for "it inhabits" is an Ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular Species. "The world " is a proper noun for the planet Earth envisioned from an Anthropocentric or Human Worldview, as a place But hidden from the citizens of the Union are the many setbacks, delays, disasters and the true cost.
The North American Union uses the democratic system of elections to fill the post of President. Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system An election is a Decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold formal office The only change is the removal of the archaic Electoral College. An electoral college is a set of many electors who are empowered to elect a candidate to a particular Office. There are still senators, congressmen and, in functioning cities, mayors. A Member of Congress is a Politician who is a member of a Congress. A mayor (from the Latin māior, meaning "greater" is a modern title used in many countries for the highest ranking officer in a municipal government
European Community (EC)
Leader: Georges Favreau
Capital: Brussels
Flag: crossed gold swords in a circle of white stars centered on a field of Swiss blue. The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in Brussels (Bruxelles pronounced; Brussel pronounced) officially the Brussels Capital-Region, is
The politically and economically unified European Community (EC) now stretches from Ireland to Russia.
Winner of the 21st Century's economic wars, the powerful EC glories in a revived medievalism, reflected in the culture, the sports, the architecture, and in some cases, their attitude toward the other Combines. In academic usage medievalism is the study of the Middle Ages, also referred to as medieval studies. Culture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate" generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic Sport is an Activity that is governed by a set of rules or Customs and often engaged in competitively The term architecture (from Greek αρχιτεκτονικήarchitektoniki) can be used to mean a process a profession or documentation However, they are suspectible to full-scale military attacks - the reason why the EC is heavily fortified to defend itself against NAU attacks.
The politically and economically unified EC uses a parliamentary system similar to that of the old UK. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The former independent countries of the EC have elected ministers and various parties which reflect concern over local trade issues, the size and power of the Hispanic Combine, and the need for a greater presence in space. Independence is the Self-government of a Nation, Country, or State by its residents and population or some portion thereof generally exercising
New Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere (NACPS)
Leader: Prince Sato Uchida
Capital: Singapore
Flag: the five gold stars of the present PRC flag centered on the red circle of the Japanese flag, on a white field surrounded by the I-Ching symbols from the present South Korean flag
Japan, in an effort to remain competitive with the EC, established the New Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere (which includes all the nations of the Pacific Rim and East Asia, save Australia). Prince, from the Latin root Princeps, is a general term for a Monarch, for a member of a monarch's or former monarch's family and is a Singapore Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES The national flag of Japan is a white Flag with a large red circle (representing the rising sun) in the center This resurrection of a Japanese hegemony in the Pacific quickly prompted other blocs to form combines.
Despite the size of the New Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere (NACPS), it has failed to compete against the EC. In reaction, the NACPS has turned inward, resorting to a new Closed Door policy like that faced by Admiral Peary in the 19th Century.
The NACPS is led by Japan, which has fully revived the old Shinto religion compete with ancestor worship and the rule of the royal family. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. is the native religion of Japan and was once its State religion. Prince Uchida, therefore, functions as sole head of the vast empire, advised by representatives from the various countries. An empire (from the Latin " Imperium " denoting military Command within the ancient Roman government) is a State that
Holy Islamic Federation (HIF)
Leader: Mullah Mohammed Zaganada
Capital: Cairo (HQ'd in a huge golden pyramid). SACRED was a Cubesat built by the Student Satellite Program of the University of Arizona. For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. A federation ( Latin: foedus, covenant is a union comprising a number of partially self-governing states or regions united by a central ("federal" Mullah ( ملا) is a Muslim learned in Islamic theology and sacred law Cairo () which means "the Vanquisher" or "the Triumphant" is the capital and largest city of Egypt.
Flag: a crescent and three stars (borrowed from the flag of the Kingdom of Egypt of 1922–1953) centered on the stripes of the current Ghana flag. The Kingdom of Egypt ( المملكة المصرية) was the first modern Egyptian state, lasting from 1922 to 1953
The Mid-eastern Islamic nations formed The Holy Islamic Federation (HIF) and, using oil as leverage, tried to become a major power. For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. But the passing of the internal combustion engine (see POWER SOURCES) undercut their attempt.
The geographic region of the HIF includes all of Africa under HIF's very loose control. An increase in rain to the arid regions due to climactic changes and regional weather modification has led to a greening of the Sahara and a burgeoning agriculture in this region. HIF now supplies common and exotic fruits -- including genetically altered fruit -- to the world's wealthy.
The Holy Islamic Federation is a strict, fundamentalist theocracy. Fundamentalism refers to a "deep and totalistic commitment" to a belief in and strict adherence to a set of basic principles (often Religious in nature a reaction Theocracy is a form of government in which a god or deity is recognized as the supreme civil ruler The HIF trades freely with the other Combines, but regards them as infidels. Infidel (literally "one without faith" is an English word meaning "one who doubts or rejects central tenets of a Religion or Zaganada lets his Combine vacillate between cautious acceptance and a nearly war-like paranoia. The other combines give the HIF a wide berth.
Hispanic Commonwealth (HC)
Leader: General Antonio Rodriguez
Capital: Bogotá (in buildings modeled on the Mayan pyramids)
Flag: a sun face (borrowed from the current flags of either Uruguay or Argentina) centered on a field of green from the Brazil flag. Hispanic (hispano hispánico hispânico Hispānus adjective from ''Hispānia'', the Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula) is a term that historically The English noun commonwealth dates from the fifteenth century. Bogotá —officially named Bogotá DC (DC for " Distrito Capital " which means "Capital District" formerly called Santa Fe de Bogotá Uruguay.(official full name in República Oriental del Uruguay;, Oriental Republic of Uruguay) is a country located in the southeastern part of South America For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld
The Hispanic Commonwealth (HC) was built on the strength, money, and power of the Medellín Cartel which unified the Central and South American republics into a potent economic unit. Hispanic (hispano hispánico hispânico Hispānus adjective from ''Hispānia'', the Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula) is a term that historically But as drug use became decriminalized around the globe, the center of power shifted from Medellín. In what many consider an over-reaction, the HC is now the only combine with penalties for drug abuse.
One of the major tasks the HC has set for itself is the reforestation of the Amazon basin.
The Hispanic Commonwealth is a dictatorship - in other words, the Commonwealth does as their Leader says, headed by General Rodriguez. A dictatorship is usually defined as an autocratic Form of government in which the Government is ruled by a Dictator. Despite this fact, Rodriguez is loved and admired by the many members of the HC for the prosperity they currently enjoy. Such loyalty and financial success will embolden him to attempt to place a surcharge on all HC goods and services -- even a 'tax' for the air produced by the great jungles. Rodriguez's attempt at global extortion will fail. Extortion, outwresting, or exaction is a criminal offense, which occurs when a person Unlawfully obtains either money property or services
Fortress Israel (FI)
Leader: Prime Minister Yakov Kanter
Capital: Jerusalem
Needless to say, Israel was uninvited into the HIF and it became increasingly isolated from the rest of the economic combines. This article is about the government position For other uses see Prime Minister (disambiguation. Jerusalem (יְרוּשָׁלַיִם, he-Latn Yerushaláyim; Arabic: ar القُدس, ar-Latn al-Quds) is the For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. After a number of skirmishes with its neighbors, Israel was referred to as 'Fortress Israel' (FI) -- small, yet determined, armed to the teeth with the latest laser-based Missile Defense and armed Floater Stations guarding its borders. Fortifications are Military Constructions and Buildings designed for defense in Warfare Humans have constructed defensive works for Missile defense is a system weapon or technology involved in the detection tracking interception and destruction of attacking Missiles Originally conceived as a defence against It is an extremely dangerous place to live - unless someone has been fighting here for a long time for the Isrealians.
Israel's government remains as it is today, with the parliamentary structure altered by the tremendous power reserved by the head of the military. There is a possibility that a dramatic gesture by the Israeli premier towards the HIF could lead to peace '
India
The crowded, starving sub-continent of India also remains unaligned. No combine wants India to be part of it, and so it is isolated, helped sporadically by the Combines and idealists touched by the magnitude of its human misery.
CenBank
Director: Barton Poole
Home office: Geneva (CenBank's HQ floats over Lake Geneva)
Each of the 5 major economic World Combines of the 22nd Century has its own currency. Geneva (Genève is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and is the most populous city of Romandy (the French -speaking An economy is the realized social system of production exchange distribution and consumption of goods and services of a country or other area A currency is a unit of exchange, facilitating the transfer of Goods and/or services It is one form of Money, where money is Years ago they got together and set up CenBank - Central Bank - to act as a clearinghouse for all economic transactions between the powers and as arbiter of economic disputes. CenBank sets all currency exchange rates.
Over the years, CenBank (also known as CB) has spread its tentacles and tried to insinuate them into the internal finances of each of the combines, bidding to take responsibility for the money supply, interest rates, credit records, etc. The field of finance refers to the concepts of Time, Money and Risk and how they are interrelated Through this gradual, insidious process, CB has accrued varying degrees of influence within each combine. But it wants more. It wants to be the sixth economic combine -- and the most powerful. The tail yearns to wag the dog.
No one says so openly, but all the world leaders are wary of CenBank and are keeping a close watch on it. Only the Privacy Party has declared itself anti-CenBank. Here's why:
One of the ongoing projects of the CB is to completely centralize individual credit within each of the combines. It's been moderately successful in the NACPS and the HC, but has met with stiff resistance in the EC and NAU.
To attain this goal, it introduced the Credit Chip. Here's how it works: The Credit Chip is a micro-processor implanted in the flesh of your left fifth digit. This is electronically linked to your CenBank credit account. Your employer makes deposits directly to your account in CenBank; when you purchase something, you insert your pinky into a slot and the price of the purchase is withdrawn immediately from your account and transferred to the seller's.
The Credit Chip has caught on, but it has serious consequences in regard to privacy since CB then has a record of every purchase you've made: every book you buy, every virtual reality program you rent, every place you go, every meal you eat out, etc. , etc. You might as well have someone vid-recording your every move. It is feared that the CB sells information from its individual data cache back to participating governments and their intelligence agencies. Naturally, wherever this system is in place, a thriving underground economy based on barter and hard currency results.
In 2142, at CenBank's instigation, Identity Chips (actually, the Credit Chip taken to its extreme) have become mandatory in the NAU.
CenBank's programs do not go unopposed. Aboveground there's the Privacy Party, but there's also an underground movement. The radical privatists want CenBank dismantled and do not hesitate to resort to violent means -- sabotage and even terrorism -- to make their point and draw attention to the potential abuses of CenBank's growing data cache. Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening an enemy oppressor or employer through subversion obstruction disruption and/or destruction Terrorism is the systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion
But there's something else going on at CenBank. Its board of directors does not seem to be completely in control. Decisions are made, plans are executed without their authorization. Some think there may be an artificial intelligence (AI) program nestled in the heart of the CB's huge mother boards. The actions of the CB bear close scrutiny.
Populations control
The Population of 2142 is in the area of 15 billion. In Biology a population is the collection of inter-breeding organisms of a particular Species; in Sociology Technologically advanced combines have instituted rigid population control measures. Reproduction is limited to self-replacement, i. Reproduction is the Biological process by which new individual Organisms are produced e. , one child per person. This has been named. . . The One Life/One Birth Law. Theoretically this will stabilize the population, but actually it reduces it through early death of the child or premature death of an adult before he or she has reproduced. Stability can refer to Aircraft flight Stability (aircraft In atmospheric fluid dynamics atmospheric stability, a measure of the turbulence Death is the termination of the biological functions that define living Organisms It refers both to a specific This guarantees a gradual decline in the population. But it also requires mandatory sterilization immediately after the permitted off-spring is born. A citizen who goes beyond the One Life/One Birth limit will be forcibly sterilized and risks having all assets seized in order to support the extra child. Sterilization (also spelled sterilisation) is a surgical technique leaving a male or female unable to reproduce.
Of course there is opposition to this. Some dissenters are the Papist wing of the Catholic Church, various surviving Hasidic sects, and secular members of the Birthright movement. Papist is a term usually disparaging or an Anti-Catholic slur referring to a member of the Catholic Church. Hasidic Judaism (also Chasidic, etc from the Hebrew: he '''''חסידות''''', Chassidus, meaning "piety" from the Hebrew
The One Life/One Birth Law was probably the most controversial - and population-costing - in history.
Food
In the world of 2142 the global population totals fifteen billion, arable land is scarce and there have been many shortages and a couple of severe famines. The HC and HIF have become the breadbaskets of the world, but they cannot supply nearly enough.
One of the most practical solutions has been TFP -- textured fungal protein -- grown in huge underground vats (no light is needed) by the Yamagata method. TFP is a nutritionally balanced source of protein and complex carbohydrates, enriched with essential amino acids, and can be shaped, textured, colored, and flavored into reasonable facsimiles of tomatoes, steaks, potatoes, linguine, broccoli, etc. Proteins are large Organic compounds made of Amino acids arranged in a linear chain and joined together by Peptide bonds between the Carboxyl Carbohydrates (from ' Hydrates of Carbon ' or saccharides ( Greek σάκχαρον meaning " Sugar " are the most In Chemistry, an amino acid is a Molecule containing both Amine and Carboxyl Functional groups In Biochemistry, this The tomato ( Solanum lycopersicum, syn Lycopersicon lycopersicum) is a herbaceous usually sprawling plant in the Solanaceae or nightshade family A steak (from Old Norse steik, "roast" is a slice of meat typically Beef. The potato is a Starchy Tuberous crop Vegetable from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae Linguine (also spelled linguini, which is an anglicisation are a form of Pasta — flat like Fettuccine and Trenette, but narrow like Spaghetti Broccoli is a plant of the Cabbage family Brassicaceae (formerly Cruciferae (The meats are more real than the vegetables. In modern English usage meat most often refers to Animal tissue used as food mostly Skeletal muscle and associated Fat, but it may also refer ) But most people agree it's just not the same thing.
People get by on TFP but never pass up an opportunity to grow their own veggies. That's why every rooftop is a garden, and outside every window with a sunny exposure hangs a windowbox sprouting vegetables. During the growing seasons the southern flanks of most dwellings are festooned with window gardens, like the hanging gardens of Babylon.
And what you don't eat you barter in the credit-free underground economy.
Drugs
Since most anti-drug laws were abolished a century ago (except in the HC which still restricts their use), recreational drug use is now fairly common. Opiate use surged briefly after legalization, then dropped off precipitously. As the price dropped, so did production. No one was pushing it due to the low profit margin. Besides, new designer drugs with a much higher mark-up were evolving all the time. No one shoots up any more. Drugs are administered nasally via vapors or sprays, or intradermally through patches.
Some bestsellers:
OSOVIRTUOSO
One of the most popular perceptual enhancement drugs used during virtual reality trips.
ECSTAPHORIA
-- the most popular endorphomimetic.
HHELL
The infamous horror hallucinogenic. A dose of this is the 22nd Century equivalent of bridge chuting, thus the name HHELL.
Genetic Engineering
DNA manipulation in 2142 is pretty much ubiquitous. Deoxyribonucleic acid ( DNA) is a Nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known Medical DNA purification techniques have allowed humanity to rid themselves of the once pesky and sometimes fatal hereditary illnesses like, Marfan's Syndrome, Down's Syndrome and Muscular Dystrophy creating areas of the world where these diseases are entirely extinct. Medicine is the art and science of healing It encompasses a range of Health care practices evolved to maintain and restore Human Health by the Illness (sometimes referred to as ill-health or ail) can be defined as a state of poor Health. Marfan syndrome (or Marfan's syndrome is a genetic disorder of the Connective tissue. Down syndrome, Down's syndrome, or trisomy 21 is a Chromosomal disorder caused by the presence of all or part of an extra 21st chromosome. Muscular dystrophy (MD refers to a group of genetic, Hereditary Muscle diseases that cause progressive muscle weakness DNA alteration of simple racial and physical features is also very common, allowing you to manipulate your skin tone, eye color, breast size and more all without surgery. In Music alteration, an example of Chromaticism, is the use of a neighboring pitch in the Chromatic scale in place of its Diatonic neighbor such Cloning is an accepted practice for creating extinct animals and humans for a variety of desires from the subtle to the lavish. Cloning in Biology is the process of producing populations of genetically-identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as Bacteria, Insects The newest alteration fad is NANO-BIOMORPHING (NBR) which can turn an individual into an entirely different looking lifeform or object if desired. NBR uses nano-biochip circuits to alter the body's organ systems at the cellular level, taking the existing flesh and sculpting it into new shapes like it was made out of clay. In Biology, a system is a group of organs that work together to perform a certain task Clay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained Minerals which show plasticity through a variable range of Water content, and The only real concern is maintaining a blood supply to these newly shaped tissues, other than that the user is only limited by their imagination. Blood is a specialized Bodily fluid that delivers necessary substances to the body's cells such as nutrients and oxygen—and transports Waste products Tissue is a cellular organizational level intermediate between cells and a complete organism
See also
Futures Studies, Foresight, or Futurology is the science art and practice of postulating possible probable and preferable futures and the worldviewsDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic