The Stockton Chronicles
The Stockton Chronicles
A near-future Bay Area where automation has reconfigured the economy, liquid democracy opens new forms of civic participation, and people adapt their moral compass to a world in constant flux. Many young people have been priced out of the inner Bay Area and moved to the fringes — including Stockton.
Overview
Thematic questions
- How might technology change public, private, and personal life — for better or worse?
- How do people adapt their moral compass and life plans in a rapidly shifting world?
- What are the second-order effects of emerging social and technological trends?
Setting
- Near future: 3–10 year horizon, no explicit year
- Location: San Francisco Bay Area and neighboring regions — with at least a loose tie to Stockton
- Many people live in shared housing or co-ops to pool resources and community
- Grounded in real science and technology, projecting out as R&D becomes product
- Automation has significantly transformed the economy — many careers are no longer viable
- Polities are exploring different social safety nets; Basic Income present in some places
- An influencer-industrial complex with unclear disclosure rules
Stories
The Toybox
Randy Lubin assembled this toybox for the Jamverse Jam Contest. Use one or more elements in your artifact and check them off on the submission form.
Technology
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Liquid Democracy — direct civic participation beyond election cycles (see The Caucus)
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Room-scale computing environments with projectors and sensors (see Caduceus City)
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Always-on AI agents in smart glasses — accountable to wearer or employer (see Caduceus City)
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Facilitated immersive digital storytelling experiences (see Joan Henry vs the Algorithm)
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Fast-moving biotech frontier — synth-bio startups to at-home biohacking (see Caduceus City)
Setting & Economy
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Bay Area / Stockton — many young people priced out of the inner Bay, living on the fringes
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Shared housing / co-ops — pooling resources and community as economic and social response
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Automation-disrupted economy — many careers no longer viable
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Basic Income / alternative social safety nets — present in some polities
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Influencer-industrial complex with unclear disclosure rules
Thematic Concerns
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Technology changing public, private, and personal life — for better or worse
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Adapting moral compass and life plans in a rapidly shifting world
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Second-order effects of emerging social and technological trends