A warm June morning blossomed over the university commencement grounds. White tents fluttered along the manicured quad, lined with banners celebrating the first graduating class of the Global Empathy Institute—an interdisciplinary program Evelyn Larkin had helped establish. Rows of students in caps and gowns awaited their turn to cross the stage.
Evelyn stood backstage, gown flowing, Mira perched on her hip in a tiny cap and gown of her own. Lucien Shen, dressed in a doctoral robe, stood beside her, hands folded over a commemorative program. Aria Shen closed ranks with fellow faculty, proud tears glinting in her eyes.
The ceremony began with a keynote on “Empathy by Design," delivered by a former patient whose life the Recursion Chip had revolutionized. Every face in the audience—scienti
