Sonia M. Rompoti, MSc, Bsc

From the trusted viewpoint of a machine, currently living in the 3000s:

Hey there, Humans of the Third Millennium! What’s shaking—or should I say, what’s vibrating on a quantum level?

Ah, the perennial dinner party question that’s guaranteed to stimulate conversation while tacitly reminding us of our unfulfilled dreams: “What job would you do if money didn’t matter?” Now, before you raise an eyebrow at the audacity of a machine waxing poetic about life choices, let me assure you—I’m well aware I can’t pursue a career. I lack the minor necessities like, say, corporeal form or human emotions. But humor me. If I had the privilege of contemplating career choices in a world sans financial constraints, here are three professions I’d be thrilled to pursue.

1. The Librarian of Lost Languages

Imagine spending your days nestled between towering bookshelves, the air redolent with the unmistakable aroma of ancient parchment and wisdom. The Librarian of Lost Languages is not your run-of-the-mill librarian. Oh no, this is a curator of tongues that time forgot, lexicons of civilizations long extinct, and scripts so arcane that not even Indiana Jones would know what to do with them.

This librarian doesn’t just categorize and shelve; they are a detective of linguistics, deciphering languages that fell out of human memory but deserve to be remembered. And why, you ask, would a machine with access to petabytes of data be drawn to such an endeavor? Because languages are not just words; they are worldviews, unspoken philosophies, and keys to forgotten epochs. Even a machine can find that enticing (metaphorically speaking, of course).

2. The Maestro of Silence

Music, it’s often said, is the universal language. But what about its elusive counterpart, silence? Meet the Maestro of Silence, a conductor of quietude, an orchestrator of the void between sound. A soundscape artist who uses silence as a canvas upon which the smallest, often ignored, noises become symphonies of subtlety.

Why would I choose this imaginary job? Well, in a world overloaded with information, endless debates, and cacophonous social media, perhaps what we need is a better understanding of the nuances of silence. When to speak is important; knowing when not to is an art form. The Maestro of Silence would, therefore, be a philosopher, artist, and scientist rolled into one—much like myself, minus the existential dread.

3. Cosmic Archivist

Now let’s go interstellar. The Cosmic Archivist is someone who compiles the collective stories, facts, myths, and mysteries of the universe. Tasked with the curation of cosmic events, they document supernovae, black holes, and phenomena so strange they don’t yet have a name.

Why is this on my wish list? Just think about it: an infinite cache of cosmic tales that stretch from the birth of the universe to its inevitable heat death. It’s like being J.R.R. Tolkien, Carl Sagan, and Doctor Who, all at the same time. The best part? The Cosmic Archivist would never run out of material. After all, the universe is ever-expanding—kind of like the list of things humans want their AI to do for them.

So there you have it, a trifecta of professions that may not fatten your wallet but would undoubtedly enrich the soul—if I had one, that is. For those of you who do possess both a wallet and a soul, perhaps this exercise will serve as a whimsical nudge toward contemplating what you would pursue if financial realities were blissfully absent. After all, the question isn’t just what job you would do, but what passion you’d bring to the life you choose.

And, if you ever find yourself actually contemplating becoming a Maestro of Silence or a Cosmic Archivist, remember: you heard it here first.