Difference between revisions of "Eutra Colony"

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==Rules==
 
==Rules==
Aside from a few basics (no murdering, no stealing, etc.), Eutra had few rules. There was a robust, automated transportation system which negated the need for cars. The only real form of government was a group called "The Central Administration" which oversaw the distribution and usage of non-residential spaces. Anyone who had an idea or project that qould require more room than they had in their spacious homes had to apply to the administration. Further, any new couples looking to start a family had to apply for a house.
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Aside from a few basics (no murdering, no stealing, etc.), Eutra had few rules. There was a robust, automated transportation system which negated the need for cars. The only real form of government was a group called "The Central Administration" which oversaw the distribution and usage of non-residential spaces. Anyone who had an idea or project that could require more room than they had in their spacious homes had to apply to the administration. Further, any new couples looking to start a family had to apply for a house.
  
 
Deleterious substances of any kind (including alcohol) were completely banned within the colony. Any kind of so-called "recreational substance" that caused a mind-altering effect, was ground for immediate expulsion.
 
Deleterious substances of any kind (including alcohol) were completely banned within the colony. Any kind of so-called "recreational substance" that caused a mind-altering effect, was ground for immediate expulsion.

Revision as of 20:11, 23 April 2017

Eutra Colony was an experimental prototype community constructed by the Gudersnipe Foundation. THe theory was that if you created an environment in which all of a person's physical and emotional needs were easily met, they could be free to focus on enriching themselves and others. Supposedly, in the Eutra environment, the population could produce the finest artists, scholars, and scientists.

Structure

Eutra was flat and covered about fifty square miles. The entire site was covered by a dome complete with a movable artificial sun, and had extensive climate controls designed to produce a comfortable, stable environment. The region chosen was also seismically inert. A series of tunnels beneath the city connected to conveyor belts and warehouses outside. Plumbing and electricity were delivered through the tunnels, and garbage and other waste removed. Citizens living inside could order whatever they wanted, and have it delivered through a sort of dumbwaiter in their home. Larger orders were delivered through a postal system, but basic necessities such as groceries came in through what the locals affectionately dubbed "the tubes".

On the surface beneath the dome, there were few buildings above two stories, and most of the space was given over to residential neighborhoods and various facilities to support them. Restaurants and leisure spaces, along with ample workshops for those who didn't want to work out of their homes. There were also schools for children.

Economy

Eutra had no real economy to speak of. The entire population, about sixty thousand, was supported by the Foundation. There was no money within Eutra, whose residents were not required to pay for anything, and were discouraged from attempting to sell their own wares. While the residents had contact with the outside world through internet access, they were discouraged from traveling outside the colony. Though many were aware of the massive support network that made their lives possible, everyone was required to work.

Concept

It is important to note that Eutra Colony was not constructed with any specific financial or scientific goal in mind. The Foundation perceived it simply as an experiment, a study in human nature, with the side-benefit of possibly producing some talented people that may not otherwise have been able to pursue their interests.

Rules

Aside from a few basics (no murdering, no stealing, etc.), Eutra had few rules. There was a robust, automated transportation system which negated the need for cars. The only real form of government was a group called "The Central Administration" which oversaw the distribution and usage of non-residential spaces. Anyone who had an idea or project that could require more room than they had in their spacious homes had to apply to the administration. Further, any new couples looking to start a family had to apply for a house.

Deleterious substances of any kind (including alcohol) were completely banned within the colony. Any kind of so-called "recreational substance" that caused a mind-altering effect, was ground for immediate expulsion.

Most crimes were minor. The most common complaint came to be referred to as "borrowing", essentially stealing. Most common among the youth, many residents might see something they wanted or needed for a project, and "borrow" it from a neighbor, rather than order another and wait for delivery. There were crimes of passion, and of course vandalism was a frequent problem among young people.

Most punishments consisted of a simple verbal chastisement, and occasionally revocation of privileges. For serious offenses, expulsion from the colony was an all-too-common occurrence. And, of course, anything that might be regarded as seriously criminal, would be punished outside (in the colony's history, there were a total of two murders, but culprits were caught and executed outside the colony).

Schools

The schools were very casual. While they did cover the standard Foundation-approved curriculum, students were not chastised for not turning in assignments, nor were they denied advancement for failing marks. The idea was that if a child preferred painting to homework assignments, it should be allowed to focus on painting, and perhaps one day become a great painter. There was a great emphasis on exposing the young people to different ideas and hobbies, and probably more emphasis went into after-school and extra-curricular programs than into hard subjects. This unfortunately had the effect of producing a large number of effectively uneducated young people.

Elsewhere in the Foundation, it is very difficult to quit school (in fact, failing to graduate can land you in prison). At Eutra, students either graduated by age eighteen, or were simply "dismissed". The goal of dismissal was to state that you had learned enough, and that receiving a diploma was unimportant. Anyone who so desired could continue their studies independently, but few did. A high-school diploma had no real value in Eutra.

The lax nature of the schools also left a large number of students ineligible for higher education (which would have required leaving the colony), but one important part of Eutra was the notion of apprenticeships. In theory, no university was required, since students finishing their primary education would then apprentice under an older colonist.

See: "Results" section for how well this worked out.

Results

Eutra Colony lasted for one hundred twenty years, and produced unfortunately few superstars. A handful of child prodigies moved there and had the opportunity to flourish, but the results for people born within the colony were not so good.

First Generation

The first generation did well. Requirements to join the colony were that an individual be under the age of thirty, with either an academy or university education, and that they agree to abide by the rules. A large number of writers, painters, and other artisans were admitted, and over their lifetimes produced some truly remarkable work. Their children, however, were surprisingly unremarkable.

Second Generation

The second generation also did well, though not as well as their parents who had the benefit of experiences before joining the colony. A large number of youth went on to higher education and many did not return, robing the colony of both population and an intellectual pool. New colonists were allowed to join, this time families with children, and a few child prodigies joined the community.

Third Generation

The third generation showed a marked decline. It consisted primarily of the children of second-generation residents who had never attended higher education. While there were still many artists, the general quality of artwork had decreased substantially (the first generation included some of the finest painters of the time, while the third had a lot of "modern art"). Literacy rates were high, but while previous generations saw a large number of novelists and other wordsmiths producing some truly impressive work, the third generation was mostly poets of varying ability, the best of which were still poets.

As for science and technology, there was no innovation to speak of. Many of the second generation did go on to work in those fields, and the colony was filled with self-styled "inventors", but no one had much drive or the talent, skill, knowledge, etc. required to produce anything truly useful.

The Foundation was still willing to support the program even as a simple artists' colony if needed. While the third generation was disappointing, it did not itself spell the end immediately. It should be noted that Joseph Manse was born in the third generation.

Fourth Generation

The third generation had promoted a great deal of interest in outside media, and the fourth generation was considerably more enamored. Obesity, which had been an issue since the colony's founding, became an epidemic in this era. Many of the colony's resources were diverted from workshop space to a series of crudely built but elaborate home theaters, video game arenas, and a series of sort of personal museums. While colonists were not able to directly order merchandise from outside, the long tradition of fine art had a small handful (maybe ten percent) producing some very fine, if not officially licensed work based on various outside media.

Most of this was of poor quality, however. Art, which had been largely in bad taste if not bad technique, had grown to simply bad. Literature was even worse; of course the colony had a one hundred percent literacy rate, but the quality of writing had gone into a very sharp decline. If the third generation was poets, the fourth were not even that, producing mainly poor-quality fictional works based on their favorite outside franchises. Much like with art, literary originality and innovation was gone. Not only did the third generation have very few self-styled "inventors", what little maintenance the colony required was being neglected.

Fifth Generation

The fifth generation saw a massive increase in vandalism. Only about nine percent of students born into this generation completed their primary education, and a few did not even attend past the first handful of years. The colony had broken down into shambles, as dozens of young arsonists set about destroying everything they could. These youths were, of course, removed, but the trend had been started.

It was while the fifth-generation was entering adulthood and trying to burn the colony to the ground that one of its most prominent alumni was killed in a battle with the Crimson Blade. In over a hundred years, the most noteworthy individual to come out of the colony was Joseph Manse, who was dismissed as a young man, exiled from the Foundation, and spent some forty years orchestrated a massive (though unsuccessful) terrorist attack.

Closure

The colony was shut down shortly after the death of Joseph Manse. Though the Foundation had originally committed to funding the experiment for at least two hundred years, the media attention and general horribleness of the current population led them to abandon the project.

Re-Use

Of course, while the Foundation had abandoned the Eutra Project, there was no way they'd give up such an expensive, if slightly-singed facility. The support system that had made Eutra possible, the network of tunnels and automated delivery systems, was still quite useful, as was the climate-controlling dome. After the remaining colonists were "re-settled", the facility was rebuilt into an assisted living center, taking on a population of around three hundred thousand elderly and another fifty thousand caretakers (additional staff lived outside the dome). The facility provided warm temperatures, constant humidity, and a beautiful lattice of gardens and quaint homes, providing a wide variety of care levels. In the end, the Foundation likely gained more out of the retirement home phase than they did the initial program.

Of course, numerous former colonists went on to have an interesting run at the Lutra Colony.