
The Happiness Variant
From Original Science Fiction - Makeshift Stories by Vern Hume
March 2, 2026 · 36 min · Episode 319
About this episode
Hana Grabowski, a genetic engineer, faces a crisis when a gene-mod business contract leads to a pandemic of happiness.
Hana Grabowski, a genetic engineer with a failing gene-mod business, takes a secretive contract to restore humanity’s appetite for impulsive behaviour. When her staff threatens to revolt, she uses a variant to alter their attitude. However, the mosquitoes she uses to infect them escape, unleashing a fast-spreading contagion that rewires human reward centers. The world slips into a pandemic of happiness, and no one cares except Hana. CONNECT WITH US makeshiftstories@gmail.com SHARE THE PODCAST If you liked this episode, tell your friends to head over to Apple Podcasts and subscribe . CREDITS Written by Vern Hume (AKA Alan V Hare). Read by Cathleen Connelly. Opening and closing were composed and created by Matthew Erdmann. Produced by Vecada Studios. Makeshift Stories is released under a creative commons non-commercial attribution, no derivative license.
People in this episode
Host: Vern Hume
Guest: Cathleen Connelly
Topics covered
- genetic engineering
- pandemic
- human behavior
- impulsivity
- happiness
- science fiction
Keywords
- genetic engineer
- happiness variant
- impulsive behavior
- contagion
- reward centers
- gene-mod business
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Vecada Studios
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