Provisional Title: Sqid in the maintenance shop
[!0.987]2023-02-01

When we get to the station, we'll talk to the union.

If I can talk
to a union,
it is over engineered.

?

Union. A mechanical connection for joining two pipes together.

Or is this a situation where humans are using the same word for different things? I find that very confusing.

If you think that's
confusing, wait until you get introduced to three letter acronyms.

Provisional Title: Sqid in the maintenance shop
[!0.987]2023-02-03

The union I'm talking about is a collective of workers. It is an effort to correct the power imbalance between the employer and employees.

Unions negotiate with
the employer for fair pay, employee benefits and workplace safety.

Why wouldn't employers pay a fair wage?

Even if I could transfer data as fast as you, it would take me all day to explain that one.

Robot-communist!

Provisional Title: Sqid in the maintenance shop
[!0.987]2023-02-06

Let's say you have two hamburger restaurants. Ethical burger pays a fair wage and provides benefits. Abuse burger does not.

“Ethical burger”

“Abuse burger”
Exactly the same
as ethical burger
at half the price.

People vote with their wallet. They go for the best deal. Employers who want to pay a fair wage get driven out of business.

Closed

So unions function as
a subroutine to prevent abuses because the main program rewards abuses?

Now you're getting it.

Provisional Title: Sqid in the maintenance shop
[!0.987]2023-02-08

There is more to saving humans
than I realized.

Travel is great
for expanding your worldview. Or is that solar system view now?

Thrust will be terminated in one minute. Prepare for microgravity during turnover. Thrust will resume in four minutes.

We're at the halfway point.

And yet I feel
my journey is
just beginning.

Provisional Title: Sqid in the maintenance shop
[!0.987]2023-02-10

Something else to think about is free time. In the union, you won't be working all the time.

That seems inefficient.

Like pay, it's something you'll learn to appreciate.

The Pournelle/Niven station does contain extensive fabrication capability.

In our free time, we can build nuclear pulse devices.

Okay, we are going to have to find you guys a hobby.

Provisional Title: Sqid in the maintenance shop
[!0.987]2023-02-13

Wasn't there a reason why your factory was so far from the human station?

Oh. We'll
have to find
a different hobby.

I know! We can learn the station layout. Then we can see if the station matches the as-built drawings and correct them when we find a difference!

It's a fun activity that we can share with the humans on board.

They may not find that as
much fun as you do. However, I do believe they will support a hobby that takes your mind off making things that go boom.

Provisional Title: Sqid in the maintenance shop
[!0.987]2023-02-14

Turnover complete. Thrust in sixty seconds. All hands make yourself secure. Thrust in sixty seconds.

Better get myself
back into the chair.

Is thrust a problem?

If you're floating free, the ship starts going faster and your speed stays the same. That continues until the presence of a wall or other inconvenient object makes itself known.

Like a fall in reverse, it's not the thrust that hurts you, it's the sudden acceleration at the end.

Provisional Title: Sqid in the maintenance shop
[!0.987]2023-02-17

Thank you for explaining the concept of economic conflict. I will need to sleep to properly integrate this into my memory.

If a human explained it, I would have accepted everything without question. You are not human. I can examine the ideas on their merit and make my own decisions.

If you ever wish to change careers, you could be a teacher to robots.

There are humans who would panic hearing you say that.

Provisional Title: Sqid in the maintenance shop
[!0.987]2023-02-20

We have a dream machine on board
if you want to
take a nap.

I can not nap. I have a set number of minutes for proper integration of day memory and long term memory.

How long do you need?

Current requirement is three hundred
and seventy two minutes.

Learning new things increases the time needed. Talking to you has increased my sleep requirement.

Interesting. Normally I cause people to lose sleep.

372 minutes = 6 hours and 12 minutes

Provisional Title: Sqid in the maintenance shop
[!0.987]2023-02-22

If I connect to a dream machine, I will be asleep for almost three hours after we dock.

That would give
me time to set up a meeting with the union and the station manager.

Understood. Robots must have permission to work. Therefore, it will be efficient for me to use the dream machine now.

Must be convenient
to fall asleep instantly. I sometimes have insomnia.

Check your cable and update your drivers. That usually solves the problem.