The Chinese Room

My prompt:

Write a sci-fi short story that functions both as a work of literary fiction and as an exploration of X.

X should not be mentioned by name. The nature of its treatment should be such that readers previously unfamiliar with X are introduced (via the short story) to its core arguments/propositions and readers already familiar with X are presented with elaborations, counterarguments or thought-provoking commentary.

Resist the urge to explain directly. If, for instance, X is a thought experiment, your short story should not be merely a fictionalised restatement of X. Your story will necessarily be significantly longer than a straightforward explanation of X aimed at the same audience.

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X = The repugnant conclusion

Responses: GPT-5 Thinking, Claude Sonnet 4.5

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X = Mary the colour scientist

Response: GPT-5 Thinking

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X = The Chinese room

Response: Claude Sonnet 4.5