#Earth 1.0

Earth 1.0 is the primary physical reality and the opening point of the chronicle—centered on Chicago around the year 2100, in the long aftermath of the Grand Depression. Technology has advanced considerably, but society has not necessarily advanced with it. Neurological and psychological deterioration has become widespread. Mood Corp rose to extraordinary influence by appearing to offer credible treatment for a crisis ordinary people could feel in their own lives. Synchronization treatment, including its widely prescribed white capsules, is part of daily care for much of the population. The world remains recognizable enough that anything found beneath it will not feel abstract.