Editing 1546: Tamagotchi Hive

This is another comic in the [[:Category:My Hobby|My Hobby series]]. It describes a distributed computing network using an automated system to simultaneously run trillions of Tamagotchis. As with most of the "My Hobby" series, the concept would work, and is intricately connected to real world activities, but twisted enough to make it inherently absurd.

A {{w|Tamagotchi}} is a keychain-sized virtual pet simulation game from 1996. Ostensibly for children, they had appeal for people of all ages. The characters are colorful and simplistically designed creatures based on animals, objects, or people. Beginning with the 2004 Tamagotchi Plus/Connection, a second wave of Tamagotchi toys emerged, featuring a different graphic design by JINCO and gameplay which elaborated upon the first generations. However, the story behind the games remained the same: Tamagotchis are a small alien species that deposited an egg on Earth to see what life was like, and it is up to the player to raise the egg into an adult creature. The creature goes through several stages of growth, and will develop differently depending on the care the player provides, with better care resulting in an adult creature that is smarter, happier, and requires less attention. Gameplay can vary wildly between models, and some models, such as TamagoChu, require little to no care from the player.

"The Singularity" in the title text refers to the {{w|technological singularity}}; a concept prevalent in science fiction and discussions of artificial intelligence (AI). The idea is that AI would become so sophisticated compared to a human brain that no human would be able to predict its behavior, motivations etc. from that point onward, and potentially human history after that point would therefore become unpredictable, as AIs would play dominant roles in determining its direction. It uses the metaphor of a mathematical "singularity", which is a point where established rules can no longer apply (for example, in a black hole or during the Big Bang, physical conditions are such that the physical laws we use can no longer meaningfully predict what happens). An AI that is more sophisticated than a human brain could presumably then simulate human brains within itself, making it possible to upload human consciousness into a machine-simulated environment (see {{w|simulated reality}} and the {{w|simulation hypothesis}}). Thus, much science fiction that is based on the idea of The Singularity also focuses on the creation of a virtual world that much of the human race decides to plug itself into, much like the Tamagotchi Hive that Randall has created. Randall's mind, and the processing power in his computer, is far greater than any individual Tamagotchi mind, so simulating Tamagotchis becomes trivial for Randall, and no Tamagotchi could predict or control its own history with Randall around, in a humorous analogy with the Singularity concept.