Life App

Isaac sat at his desk. Three screens glowed blue into the late hours of the night. He tapped lines of various code into the integrated development system. Two of his screens were for coding and the other he would listen to electronic music. The more bass the better. As he typed, coded, and debugged his software he would sip his Stun Soda. He knew better and he knew he should stay away from these highly caffeinated beverages.

He was wrapping up a large project. One that an anonymous donor had funded. Isaac had the directions right next to him. Isaac opened the letter again to read this offer. After months, the offer still looked too good to be true.

The note looked as if it was typed on a typewriter the paper was stained with Stun soda and other residue from snacks.

Isaac, I would like you to code an app that will encompass the whole human experience. Every bit of life, thought, and experience I want you to code into your app. The money that I have provided here should be more that enough to cover your project. I will not check your work until your project is complete. Every month if you continue with this project, you will be sent more funds to help you complete your work.

The letter was not signed. The envelope had cash in it. A strange payment choice given the project. He wondered why his mysterious donor didn’t pay in bitcoin or wire transfer.

Isaac went back to work on his Life app. He looked around his apartment. It was dark outside, only his reflection could be seen in the window. This spurred him to a thought. He decided that he would make a program that would simulate the effect of being able to partially see through a window, but also seeing your own reflection. He typed, drank Stun soda and continued to code and decode.

For months he did this, maybe more like a year. Isaac saw things that he could write into code. The way the keyboard sounded when he struck the keys. He created a program for that. The way your eyes burned after twelve hours of work. The way his chair spun, and creaked. He coded the heavy bass beats of his electronic music. He wrote a string of data that would determine the randomness of a sneeze and factored in air quality. The way light shown off of metallic objects during different parts of the day. Isaac coded all of this and more into his app.

Months went by. At least it seemed like months, he could not keep track. As promised, occasionally, there would be another envelope slide through his door. Inside the envelope was more cash. There was now so much money it started to pile up at the edge of his desk. He wrote a program for this as well. Like clockwork, in his app, a paycheck would be delivered to his character.

Isaac noticed that his Stun soda was no longer having the effect that he wanted. He wondered about tiredness. Isaac began to code a program that would assess the amount of food, work,and activity needed to feel the maximum level of tiredness. His formula would make his on-app character tired. Once the debugging process was complete, he ran his new program. Everything seemed to be working fine. He felt his eyes grow heavy and he laid down in his bed.

When he woke, he went back to work. He was driven like a locomotive with momentum. He coded for long hours. Isaac didn’t remember the last time he ate, but he loved his work. To him it was not a chore, it was easy. He wrote a string of code that he would prioritize the user into productivity. The code would reward the user to continue work and to make progress within the app.

After much deliberation, he was ready to plug this app into his device. He loaded the program into the data tablet. As the system loaded, he thought of more and more desirable programs he would like to work into the Life app. He fired up the data tablet and the program began to open. On the tablet displayed a man working on his machine with three screens. He had a can of Stun soda, and a note next to him.

Very odd, Isaac thought. The display shown looked very similar to his apartment. This was not unexpected as he had coded many of the items into the room on the Life app. But this was odd because it showed a replica of Isaac shown above. He noticed the angle. It should have been right above his right shoulder. Isaac had a feeling wash over him that someone was watching him. He looked up in his own room. Nothing but a roof and a corner where the walls met the ceiling. He looked back down at the data tablet. His replica had been investigating the same spot. Isaac waived; the replica of Isaac in the app waived back, almost staring through the data tablet.

Isaac was staggered. He fell back in his chair. Isaac sat back and wondered what he was? Was he the app? A program? He panicked. And as he panicked, he realized that the panic was a string of code that he was programed to follow. He tried to think hard. He could not remember his childhood. He had no idea where he was? Did he had family?

He was a machine, an app, a set of code! And he was aware of it. Who made him? Did he make himself? All these things began to flood Isaac’s mind, or rather his processors. Isaac grabbed his head and looked at the data tablet once more, the replica grabbed his head and investigated the data tablet. He wanted to turn off the tablet. Isaac flipped his data tablet over and read the Logo on the back of the tablet. “Isaac®.” Isaac flipped the device over again. No power button.

There was an endless stream of Isaac. Himself, the Isaac in the app, and the Isaac in the app of the Isaac in the app, and so on. Perhaps even he was a replica of his creator. He was aware of what he was now. As he regained his thoughts. He pondered, he could craft a life of his desire by coding into the Life app. This was exciting, but what was it that he desired?

Isaac did not know.