Idea for a Pervasive Game to Save the World

[Zanthius]

In 2011 humans were much better than computers both to recognize voices and visual objects. However, machine learning algorithms have improved significantly since then. In 2015 computers surpassed humans in visual recognition, and in 2017 computers surpassed humans in voice recognition. During the next decade's computers are expected to surpass humans in many professions, and since it is less expensive for corporations to use computers, lots of people are expected to become unemployed. Unless all these unemployed individuals are taken care of, they might cause civil unrest. Prosperous countries might be able to temporarily take care of these individuals by providing something like a universal basic income. It is, however, going to be extremely challenging even for the most prosperous countries. Corporations are probably going to resist paying more taxes, and most politicians are too stuck in the old socioeconomic narrative to realize the seriousness of the situation.

What we need is something like a pervasive game to engage us to save the world:

https://www.archania.org/game/

[davidm]

I've not yet read your link so don't know if this point is addressed, but if corporations replace us all with machines and throw everyone of work, and then resist some kind universal income, then no one will have any money to buy the goods and services that the corporations produce, and the corporations themselves will go out of business, won't they?

[Zanthius]

I've not yet read your link so don't know if this point is addressed, but if corporations replace us all with machines and throw everyone of work, and then resist some kind universal income, then no one will have any money to buy the goods and services that the corporations produce, and the corporations themselves will go out of business, won't they?

Sure, but I don't think all people will ever get unemployed. I am expecting maybe 10-20% during the next decade in western democracies. But that might be enough to create civil unrest.

Also. Since automatization isn't going to happen at the same speed everywhere in the world, countries where automatization has come very far, could have a very high level of unemployment and just sell to countries where automatization hasn't come very far.

[TheVat]

Your cell phone can presumably be used to prove that you have completed assignments. For example, to prove that you have delivered propaganda to a residence, you can give the game access to your GPS coordinates, and the game can tell you to take a photo of the mailbox you have delivered propaganda to. The more mailboxes you deliver propaganda to, the more orange points you will earn.

(quoted from the link)

I hope this doesn't sound like an editorial nitpick, but you may wish to look up "propaganda" in the dictionary and ask if this term best promotes your idea. When I first encountered the word, I was inclined to stop reading and leave the website. I strongly suspect I am not the only reader to get a chill from your usage of that word.

[Zanthius]

I hope this doesn't sound like an editorial nitpick, but you may wish to look up "propaganda" in the dictionary and ask if this term best promotes your idea. When I first encountered the word, I was inclined to stop reading and leave the website. I strongly suspect I am not the only reader to get a chill from your usage of that word.

I understand. Do you have a better recommendation? I was thinking about replacing it with "information", but it seemed to be a bit less accurate. It is after all information spreading a particular agenda. I would say a good agenda, but other people might disagree....

[davidm]

I've not yet read your link so don't know if this point is addressed, but if corporations replace us all with machines and throw everyone of work, and then resist some kind universal income, then no one will have any money to buy the goods and services that the corporations produce, and the corporations themselves will go out of business, won't they?

Sure, but I don't think all people will ever get unemployed. I am expecting maybe 10-20% during the next decade in western democracies. But that might be enough to create civil unrest.

Also. Since automatization isn't going to happen at the same speed everywhere in the world, countries where automatization has come very far, could have a very high level of unemployment and just sell to countries where automatization hasn't come very far.

Quite possibly. During the Great Depression, when U.S. unemployment peaked at 25 percent in 1932, this was the precise problem, a vicious circle: People didn’t have money to buy stuff, so the places that made stuff had to lay off workers or shut their doors, a vicious circle. But at the time Smoot-Hawley tariffs were in effect and there was no global overseas market to supplant the moribund domestic market, as there is today thanks to globalization. In addition to that, the rest of the world was in depression. too.

However back then, everyone had been indoctrinated to believe everything was their own personal fault. If you were unemployed you were to blame, not the system that had failed you. But even so by 1932 there was rising unrest. Today, if the unemployment rate hit 20 percent because machines had replaced workers, I believe there would be a violent revolution.

[Zanthius]

Your cell phone can presumably be used to prove that you have completed assignments. For example, to prove that you have delivered propaganda to a residence, you can give the game access to your GPS coordinates, and the game can tell you to take a photo of the mailbox you have delivered propaganda to. The more mailboxes you deliver propaganda to, the more orange points you will earn.

(quoted from the link)

I hope this doesn't sound like an editorial nitpick, but you may wish to look up "propaganda" in the dictionary and ask if this term best promotes your idea. When I first encountered the word, I was inclined to stop reading and leave the website. I strongly suspect I am not the only reader to get a chill from your usage of that word.

I have fixed it now.

[Zanthius]

To compete with other players in these missions can also facilitate trust between participants. People competing to earn points in these missions might feel like they are doing something virtuous together. If you are an American and you are generally skeptical of Russians, you might have more trust in a Russian that has earned a lot of points. Similarly, if you are a Russian and you are generally skeptical of Americans, you might have more trust in an American that has earned a lot of points.

https://www.archania.org/game/#facilitating_trust