Post by Monopod on Jul 2, 2010 22:00:30 GMT -5
Fall semester 2012 begins in the most developed nation in the first world. Welcome to Kanazawa: A city disconnected from itself. A splendid, well-maintained city on the cutting edge of research and education, host to more than a dozen universities and other educational institutions, ensconced by hundreds of years of history, and free of the pollution and overcrowding of nearby Tokyo. There is no place with a better standard of living for the typical member of mainstream society. But a worrisome trend is spreading...
The majority of the population of Japan is reaching retirement age, and the number of young people entering society diminishes every year. With the decreasing cost of technology, electronic networking has replaced personal interaction - it is now entirely reasonable to have a flourishing social life online, and yet avoid speaking to, or even touching, anyone for days, weeks, months on end. Into this milieu enters your everyday student.
Thus far, you've heard rumors of it--students in other schools, friends' second cousins, that weird kid from 10th grade's class - slipping into comas suddenly, never to return. What had seemed like a tasteless online joke is only too real.
The power of friendship will aid your battle against the growing threat to you, your friends, and eventually all of Kanazawa. Forging new links with the people around you will grow your arsenal. Maintaining and improving your existing relationships will strengthen you immensely. And for some who truly understand what it means to connect with others, there might be an opportunity to wield the greatest power of all: nukes....er, love.
The majority of the population of Japan is reaching retirement age, and the number of young people entering society diminishes every year. With the decreasing cost of technology, electronic networking has replaced personal interaction - it is now entirely reasonable to have a flourishing social life online, and yet avoid speaking to, or even touching, anyone for days, weeks, months on end. Into this milieu enters your everyday student.
Thus far, you've heard rumors of it--students in other schools, friends' second cousins, that weird kid from 10th grade's class - slipping into comas suddenly, never to return. What had seemed like a tasteless online joke is only too real.
The power of friendship will aid your battle against the growing threat to you, your friends, and eventually all of Kanazawa. Forging new links with the people around you will grow your arsenal. Maintaining and improving your existing relationships will strengthen you immensely. And for some who truly understand what it means to connect with others, there might be an opportunity to wield the greatest power of all: nukes....er, love.