This short note explains what The 0.5 Chronicles is trying to document: the long transition from the mechanical era to the AI era, from 1980 to 2045.

“0.5” names the unstable middle period in which old systems still organize daily life while new systems quietly begin to rewrite it.

How posts are structured

• Context: what the world looked like across technology, economy, and culture
• Signals: small events that later became big historical shifts
• Mechanisms: why change happened, not only what happened
• Artifacts: notes, photos, links, model numbers, and primary traces when possible
• Takeaway: what changed in how people worked and lived

What to expect next

The project proceeds chronologically from 1980 onward, while also adding topic pages on software, manufacturing, media, trade, and everyday life when they help clarify the bigger transition.