In Michigan, a recently divorced professor reflects on what it means to exist, first alone in his empty apartment and then alongside his student in a mission to find a missing girl.

In a future where technology has advanced to the point where humans can undergo "optimization" to rid themselves of emotions and increase their mental functions, one man decides to cling to his humanity in an effort to atone for his sins and appreciate the beauty of being human.

A college student and his former dissertain advisor use their knowledge of anthropology to survive the zombie apocalypse and theorize about the evolution of humans and zombies.

Following a messy breakup, an MIT graduate and a PhD student at Indiana University separately talk about the problems in their former relationship in two spliced-together conversations, exploring conflicts surrounding language, intimacy, commitment, and intellectualism.

When a scientist discovers science-based information that negates his world's established creation myth and belief system, he sends the world into chaos, with some zealots clinging desperately to their dogma, while others attempt to embrace the unknown future.

Is it better to have a human civilization devoid of art and culture than to have none at all? Three Earth ambassadors must whether to annihilate a space colony that has traded away human consciousness for a hive mind that feels nothing but the need for survival. In the distant future, three humans in possession of nuclear warheads must decide whether to allow a remarkable human variant species without consciousness to dominate the galaxy or destroy them forever.

On the campus of Pembleton College, a fierce debate arises. Should the student body mandate calliagnosia, a neurological imposition that prevents one from seeing and evaluating the beauty of others? Hear what students, professors, lobbyists, and others have to say regarding the matter right before the consequential vote.

A man working at the Met is given an interesting—and daring—proposition regarding one of the museum’s artifacts.

When a distant relative dies, a professor receives cryptic messages from an elusive stranger.

A catalog of the tools different alien species use to read and write, leading to fundamental questions about what it means to make patterns of knowledge against the noise of the universe.