SPECULATIVE DESIGN Maya , Melanie , Mansi , and Megan Concept Protopia inside of a contopia Space / education / habitation Set in the year 2071 SCENARIO Earth has toxic air due to attempted geoengineering of our climate , which has caused humanity to live inside massive environment - simulating glass domes HABITAT To rectify this , we ’ ve begun long - term air quality correction , but in the interim , Earth has become uninhabitable We ’ ve built a space habitat in the sky that is viewed as the new frontier of civilization Education is carried out by a sophisticated simulation run inside of stasis pods. K - college education is automatic in human brains via microscopic implants. EDUCATION The Statis pods are connected to a VR World where people can interact with each other so that they are able to test their skills in a virtual world in preparation for the simulation test which acts as their finals for certification They are able to assemble and disassemble machinery virtually to have a better understanding of how things work These pods provide for PhD - level education freely and on - demand for anyone who desires it. Retention is a key factor for the timing of study - - periods of schooling are dependent upon effective times for each student ( ie when they are most alert throughout the day ) In order to test retention, students must complete a simulated course in which they are teaching interactive components to classmates, practicing their chosen profession, or doing live problem solving in crises or challenges ( for the EMC ) FEATURES OF THE STASIS PODS There are also specialists who give professional help in place of tutors Students can sign up for the course or subject they are having problems in and then have one on one tutoring with the specialists to get a better understanding of things Once they pass the simulation test they are allowed to join the various regiments / fields they want to work in professionally and help in the space exploration projects There is no military , but there is the Engineering and Machine Corps ( EMC ). Civilians that enter this service are trained for repairing , maintaining , and / or evolving the space habitat CAREER PATH