The Theory Behind Lumon’s MDR in Severance

There is still some time before Severance Season 2 is released, but a new theory has surfaced regarding Lumon’s MDR and its purpose for using those numbers.

It is crucial for Severance’s second chapter to provide answers to this question among many others. From the very first episode, Mark’s “innie”(Adam Scott) and his enigmatic Macrodata Refinement team have been tirelessly sifting through numerical data without any understanding of its purpose.

Each of them holds their own theories: Dylan (Zach Cherry) speculates that the creatures are getting the ocean ready for humans to inhabit after an apocalypse on Earth, whereas Irving (John Turturro) believes they are responsible for censoring swear words in films.

For now, their only task is to identify which numbers they find “scary”and then separate those digits and deposit them into designated virtual buckets located at the bottom of the screen. This simple task makes up their entire job.

As previously mentioned, we will need to wait until January 2025 when Severance Season 2 is released to learn more about the true motives of the executives at Lumon Industries.

Despite this, there is a fan who has contributed to the widespread belief that they are participating in the development of a sophisticated AI, potentially a synthetic version of Lumon founder Kier Eagan. This involves separate departments training various elements of the brain.

Discussing on Reddit, they explained, “The amygdala, where a lot of psychological trauma and fear is processed, may not be fully impacted by the brain implant.”

Hence, if innies are continuously being reset, it is possible that their emotions would retain a recollection of being extremely fearful just prior to the reset taking place.

“Presenting specific numbers during the reset would cause Lumon to incite fear in MDR innies, leading them to classify them as ‘spooky numbers’. This could serve as a means of training the AI’s emotional intelligence and its corresponding reactions.”

Additionally, the MDR department is not the sole factor supporting the Severance theory. In a past Reddit post, a viewer presented the argument that the refiners separate code based on the Four Tempers that Kier believed were indicative of human behavior: sorrow, joy, fear, and spite.

“It was explained that employees are strictly prohibited from injecting their own personalities and personal lives into Eagan.”

“In order to effectively interpret the numbers, refiners must tap into their emotional understanding. Individuals with an introspective mindset are not influenced by past experiences or emotions, allowing them to approach the code without bias.”

The innies serve as blank slates, and this theory could clarify the reason for their close proximity to Kier relics like his Compliance Handbook and peculiar artwork.

According to them, Lumon impresses Kier into their minds so that his spirit can be channeled into the project. They also clarified that the house is not intended to be a museum, but rather a place for Kier to return to his home and a familiar setting. Additionally, the house is situated in the perpetuity wing, symbolizing Kier’s perpetual existence.

This theory has received a lot of support from fans, with one fan even contributing to it by stating, “I am a huge fan of this theory. It totally makes sense! Do you think they experimented with Gemma Scout for resurrection?”Another fan responded with, “Hmm, bringing Gemma back to life! I can definitely see that happening.”

One person suggested, “Perhaps Mark made a deal with them and it was erased in some way. They promised to bring his wife back to life, but only if he agreed to be separated from her and he would only remember if he specifically requested it.”

Someone mentioned that they make an effort not to delve too deeply into the clues, but they believe that the Severance plot revolves around something sinister, such as determining who lives, who dies, or who is forcibly separated.

At this time, our only option is to make guesses. Additionally, the following is a comprehensive list of what we currently know about the potential release of Squid Game Season 2, Stranger Things Season 5, and The Last of Us Season 2.