Thinking about Cyberpunk

Full disclosure: the only cyberpunk stories I'm familiar with are Ghost in the Shell (all of it), Deus Ex (okay, I never finished Invisible War, but whatever) and E.Y.E.: Divine Cybermancy. I would add Matrix to this list, but that's more sci-fi/fantasy/wankery.
Also, everything I know about Memory Palaces I learned from the Taskmaster mini-series.

Two ideas which would only make sense against a cyberpunk background and which I've never seen used before:
1. Knowledge monopolies. If every person has to be connected to a global network at all times (civil registries, health monitors etc.), schools would presumably become obsolete. Information could be directly accessed and teaching would only be necessary to facilitate understanding rather than an actual passing on of knowledge. Private tutors on commission instead of mandatory school/learning.

Now, we already have sites which host scientific articles and require payment to access the information. Extend that concept through complacency and corruption and even basic knowledge could be stored on protected servers with a subscription fee. Essentially, rather than equalizing people of different financial spheres, this would increase social polarization by guaranteeing that the poor can't learn and the rich can't fail. Any attempts at teaching or spreading information beyond those secure networks would be met with lawsuits by the companies holding rights to the specific information.

This could seem like a very simple case of oppression of the poor by the rich, but that information is also withheld. In other words, the poor wouldn't know how much information is being withheld from them and the rich would be kept ignorant of the discrepancy. Access to information would be regulated by a (government?) group based on automatic payment (taxes?).

Eventually found out (details irrelevant) and information spread physically. Poor decide to acquire access through alternative means. First off, living in dumps: word re-appropriated. Many disconnect from main servers, lose human rights and basic privileges/functionality. Instead, pool resources to allow one person to have more money and thus more information. Dumper uploads info to local network to which the rest are connected. They dump money and get information. Not a popular practice and illegal, but preferred by some.

Some dumps could resemble churches functionally. Members try to convert people to join them, so the overall money pool will increase. Information as their 'God' and a fanatical drive to acquire more by both membership and theft/mugging. In trying to solidify this concept, an image appears in my head that makes me smile: combine Jehovahs witnesses with bandit groups, highwaymen and thieves chasing after an attainable approximation of divinity like drug addicts. The inevitable conclusion of people obsessed with a delusion of equality which translates to more power for them.

Sudden fall in population in short period of time due to disconnects. Explained to the rich as contagious sickness in poor areas. Further separates social spheres in reaction to contact between rich and poor leading to discovery of information segregation.

Less pleasant method: 'milking' rich people for information. Breaking and entering/threats/blackmail. Basically, whatever it takes to get them to share their data. Possible focal point of story as group milks important, rich person by breaking in and taking family hostage. Pro- and antagonist? Lack of villain/ global victimization/ lesser evil? Story could work out any which way, really.



Idea 2: Recycled brains.
Mostly related to Divine Cybermancy and most usefull for a videogame structure (which is to say: in first person and with interaction). Requires brains being fully mechanical or in some way accessible mechanically. Erasing the majority of memories, but not acquired skills, would allow for the same functioning person to be remade (in a new body, if necessary) after either severe damage, compromised security or unacceptable/rebellious behaviour.

Could lead to vague shreds of memories lingering from one round to the next. Lights/sounds/regocnition of objects and places. Over time, memories linked strongly to sensory input could carry over. Player character could find pieces of previous memory palaces (not sure if there's an actual term for the individual pieces, but I personally refer to them as "relics"), which would allow for varying information to be acquired based on what is recovered and in what order.

This one's hard to explain and really makes much more sense if one has played Divine Cybermancy. Player character perhaps problematic. Repeatedly finds out about recycled brains. Other characters could also have memories sparked by PC.


I think that's the basics. Well, back to work