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.:JA04 Arcology:.
Located between Hokkaido, Japan and the southern tip of Siberia, JA04, or Ark, is one of the most prominent and powerful of the supercities due to its housing of Ton Systems Incorporated, one of the world’s foremost producers of computer hardware and software. Constructed in the new reckoning year 58, Ark was built in the pyramid style, a design first introduced in the early old reckoning third millennium by the Shimizu Corporation as a means of reducing the crowding of Tokyo, Japan. Over the years, this design has become incredibly durable, efficient, and resistant to the elements, despite being the first arcology design.
JA04 houses two and a half million people of a multitude of nationalities. As in the business world, Ark recognizes three official languages: English, Japanese, and German, these being the foremost languages of business; however, a great many other languages are spoken in the Ark. Russian is a common language due to JA04’s proximity to the country, as are Chinese, Korean, and the major languages of Europe. Ark is truly an international city.
Ark supports three districts within its pyramidal wire-frame: residential, commercial, and industrial, in order from lowest to highest altitude. The residential district is composed primarily of simulated environments, some of which cycle through the seasons as in the world beyond and some of which remain constant. It can certainly be said that some sectors of the residential district are wealthier than others. In addition to housing, this district contains schools and small shops. Directly above the residential district sits the industrial district, a veritable maze of streets and shops, marketplaces and malls in which one can find nearly anything, legal or not. This district also features a large number of restaurants, clubs, and recreational facilities, including Eden, the amusement park of JA04. The industrial district consists of little more than factories and skyscrapers suspended in the air and connected by highways encased in extremely durable glass tubes. At the uppermost point of the pyramid sits the corporate headquarters of Ton Systems Inc.; it is from this massive structure that both company and city are run.
The massive supports that keep the city standing serve two purposes. They are hollow, so as to allow the passage of the high-speed trains that transport the majority of the city’s population from place to place; through the supports, a train can travel about the levels, as well as travel up and down from level to level. The stations for these trains are located in the spherical meeting points of the supports, called nodes. In addition, the supports are coated with a highly conductive substance that collects solar energy. This, in addition to wind power and thermal power derived from burning non-recyclable garbage, provides power to the entire Ark.
As in all arcologies, every computer user in JA04 is connected to ArkNet, the arcology’s intranet. ArkNet is a network of information so extensive that users often do not have to access the worldwide internet. It is through ArkNet that the internet is accessed, allowing Ton Systems to track all users at any given time; however, skilled hackers are able to block the tracking software, or simply access the internet independent of ArkNet. Hacking is a very dangerous profession, as Ton employs hackers of its own to track down and eliminate transgressors. Penalties for violation of the hacking laws of Ark could range from permanent disconnection to a public execution at the hands of a Ton grunt.
The economy of the Ark is relatively stable, due to its extensive business influences. As in most arcologies, the currency of JA04 is the United States dollar, but certain shops will accept other currencies as well. Monetary exchanges are generally not a problem due to the arcology's abundance of banks.
Religion is nearly dead in the modern world. Religious groups do exist in JA04, however, the most common practices being Christianity, Buddhism, and Shinto. In addition, a new pseudo-religion devoted to the worship of the collective human mind as defined by technomancy has begun to accumulate popularity. In this day and age, it is quite possible that religion can be scientifically proven.
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