Bob: i can i i everything else . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Alice: balls have zero to me to me to me to me to me to me to me to me to
Bob: you i everything else . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Alice: balls have a ball to me to me to me to me to me to me to me
Bob: i i can i i i everything else . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Alice: balls have a ball to me to me to me to me to me to me to me

With artificial intelligence being the next bog thing in tech circles, industrialist are looking at its applications in the next wave of the past successive industrial revolutions - tentatively called "IR 4.0". But what about its application onto the other side of the human condition - aesthetics and beauty - may they be in the form of words, sounds or sights?

Can robot be truly creative? To create, and even appreciate, beauty? Because that would truly be revolutionary!

Humanity has always pride itself of it's position in nature. We have been preconditioned by society to see ourselves as special, unique, or chosen. How about non-human animals? How much can we identify ourselves with them? Even considering the lack of communication and understanding. David Armstrong's short story is about bridging that gap...and the ethical consequences thereof.

How much are animals like us, and how much are we like animals?

By now you should be familiar with the quantum mechanics concept of superposition - where an elementary particle can occupy multiple places at one time; a flip side to this have been a staple of science fiction - occupying multiple periods. Brandon Crilly's Moments is one of those stories, but it makes you think of all those precious moments and missed opportunities.

Although the story is brief, it's depth can be felt by anyone wishing to turn back the clock for a second chance...

Sometimes, when we discover something absolutely new, it challenges every conceivable view of our universe. And when this happens, it can be unsettling. Humanity is again on the brink of what we now call a "paradigm shift": artificial intelligence, applied quantum mechanics, and the rest. Sometimes we try to resist, and run back towards the familiar.

The Hidden Plague is a epistolary view of one person of such an occurrence...