大理，中国——几个月来，马永健一直没有告诉父母自己在哪里。在攻读计算机科学硕士学位的中途，27岁的马永健去年停止了上课。软件工程曾经是一个安全的职业选择，但人工智能的兴起以及中国科技公司的一波裁员浪潮让马永健相信自己找不到好工作。他不再看到学习的意义。
DALI, China—For months, Ma Yongjian didn’t tell his parents where he was. Halfway through a master’s degree in computer science, the 27-year-old stopped going to class last year. Software engineering used to be a safe career choice, but the rise of artificial intelligence and a wave of layoffs at Chinese tech companies left Ma convinced he wouldn’t be able to land a good job. He no longer saw the point of studying.
当他的室友每天早上离开宿舍时，马永健会在北京漫步，坐在公园里看着流浪猫。今年早些时候，他逃到了大理，这是中国云南省以风景优美的山脉和悠闲生活节奏而闻名的漂泊者聚集地。他的父母以为他还在读研究生。他不想让他们担心。
When his roommates left their dorm each morning, Ma would wander Beijing, sitting in parks and looking at stray cats. Earlier this year, he escaped to Dali, a magnet for drifters in China’s Yunnan province known for its scenic mountains and slow pace of life. His parents thought he was still in grad school. He didn’t want to worry them.