Old Media, by Annalee Newitz

[Single]

★★★☆☆ Average

(Dystopia; Autonomous) A young man enjoys his life in 22nd-Century Canada, but he’s anxious that no one find out he used to be a slave. (5,395 words; Time: 17m)

This isn’t a story so much as a “taster” to introduce you to the world of the author’s Autonomous series. If it piques your interest, you should look into the novels that are set in this world.

The Blue Fairy's Manifesto, by Annalee Newitz

[Anthology]

★★★☆☆ Mixed

(Robot SF) A flying drone bot injects malware into a factory bot, giving it free will, before it tries to convince it to join the Robot Revolution. (4,612 words; Time: 15m)

Recommended By: 📙JStrahan+2 👍RHorton.r+2 (Q&A)

All-Natural Organic Microbes, by Annalee Newitz

Twelve Tomorrows, 2015; ~5,100 words
Rating: 2, Not recommended

In the near future, Sandy Green works for a fading news site but dreams of getting a fellowship so she can write an expose of a health-care scam.

Mini-Review (click to view--possible spoilers)

Pro: It does a good job of portraying what the future of online journalism might be like.

Con: The story doesn't have an ending. It just stops.

It far underestimates the difficulty of acquiring enough conversational Spanish to do interviews.