Apps could simulate cities like massively-multiplayer online (MMO) games sharded player populations. You can "move" from one shard to another, but you leave your connections behind.<p>If we could stratify the app, we could observe whether different shards have their own "personality" or culture, or how "immigration" is affected by influencers (or not).<p>What was once a load-balancing scheme for performance becomes a way to observe common algorithms across different contexts.<p>You'd have to somehow segment links though. A link takes you back out to the Internet, so we may find homogenization or flattening as the same links are shared among shards.<p>One solution is only in-app links work, and only within the shard.<p>Basically, any features to enforce "physical separation" that enables cities to grow "on their own."