Chapter 12 12. Screen language

"Tell me again," said Dr. Oliver Payne, in the little laboratory overlooking the park, "either I didn't hear you, or you were talking nonsense, and someone from another A child from the world?" "That's what she said. Well, it's nonsense, but listen to me, Oliver, will you?" said Dr. Mary Malone. "She knows shadow matter. She calls them—it—she puts It's called dust, but it's the same thing, our shadow particles. I tell you, when she put on the electrodes connecting her to the cave, there was the most amazing display on the screen: patterns, symbols... She also had an instrument, made of gold like a compass, with different symbols bordered around it. She said she could read it the same way, and she knew states of consciousness—she was very familiar with it."

It was morning, and Dr. Malone's eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep.Her colleague, who had just returned from Geneva, was suspicious and absent-minded, and he was already impatient to listen. "The thing is, Oliver, she communicates with them, they're conscious, they respond. Do you remember those heads of yours? Oh, she told me about the heads in the Pete Rivers Museum, she used her compass Something like that found them older than the museum said, and shadow matter-" "Wait a minute, can you get organized? What are you talking about? Are you saying she confirmed what we already knew, or did she tell us something new?"

"Both, I don't know. But imagine that this happened 30,000 to 40,000 years ago, so shadow matter existed before, obviously - they existed before the Big Bang - but At that time, there were no physical methods at our human level to magnify them. Something happened after that, I can't imagine what it is, but it participated in the evolution of human beings. Hence the skulls you study —remember? Before that there was no shadow matter, but after that there was a lot? And that kid's skulls found in the museum, and she checked them with that compass thing. She told me the same thing.

I would say that during that time, the human brain became the ideal vehicle for this amplification process, and we suddenly became conscious. " Dr. Payne raised his large plastic cup and drank the last drop of coffee. "Why did it happen then?" he asked. "Why all of a sudden thirty-five thousand years ago?" "Oh, who knows? We're not paleontologists. I don't know, Oliver, I'm just speculating. Don't you think that's at least possible? " "And the policeman, tell me about this man." Dr. Malone rubbed his eyes. "His name is Walters," she said. "He says he's from the Special Service. I suppose that has something to do with politics or something?"

"Terrorism, subversion, intelligence... that's all. Go on, what does he want? Why is he here?" "Because of the girl. He said he was looking for a boy of her own age--he didn't tell me why--and this boy had been with the girl who came here. He had other things on his mind, Oliver. .He knew about the study, he even asked—” When the phone rang, she stopped and shrugged.Dr. Payne went to answer the phone, he said a few words before hanging up, and said, "We have a guest here." "Who?" "I don't know, it's like some kind of sir. Look, Mary, I'm quitting, you understand?"

"They gave you the job." "Yes, I've got to accept it, and I'm sure you know that too." "Okay, that's all for now." He spread his hands helplessly, and said, "Frankly... I don't think what you just said makes any sense. Children from another world and ancient shadows... it's all absurd. I can't participate .I still have a job, Mary." "Then what happened to the head you verified? What about the shadowy substance around the ivory statue?" He shook his head and turned away.Before he could answer, there was a knock on the door outside, and he opened the door almost in relief.

Sir Charles said: "Hi, Dr Payne? Dr Malone? I'm Charles Latrome. It's a good thing for you that you can see me without announcing. " "Come in," said Dr. Malone, wearily and perplexed. "Is Oliver talking about Sir Charles? What can we do for you?" "Maybe there's something I can do for you," he said, "I know you're waiting for the results of your grant application." "How do you know?" asked Dr. Payne. "I was originally a civil servant. In fact, I care about the policy that guides scientific research. I still have some connections in this field, I heard... May I sit down?"

"Oh, sit down, please," Dr. Malone said, pulling out a chair.So he sat down as if to chair a meeting. "Thank you. I heard it from a friend - I'd better not mention his name, the Official Secrets Act covers up a lot of stupidity - I heard they were looking at your application and I'm sorry to hear that Interesting. I must admit that I was the one who requested that I come and see some of the research you've done. I know it has nothing to do with me, but I'm an unofficial consultant of sorts, so I take it As a reason, and what I saw was really amazing." "Does that mean you think we'll be successful?" asked Dr. Malone, leaning forward, eager to believe him.

"Unfortunately, no. I have to tell you straight up that they have no intention of extending your funding." Dr. Malone's shoulders slumped.Dr. Payne watched the old man with vigilance and curiosity. "Then what are you doing here?" he asked. "Oh, you know, they haven't made a formal decision yet. I'll tell you frankly, it's not looking good. They don't think there's going to be much benefit in funding this kind of research in the future. If you could get someone to argue it for you, though, they'd There are different opinions." "An advocate? You mean yourself? I don't think that's okay," Dr. Malone said, straightening up. "I think they're only relying on the reports of their peers."

"Of course that is in principle," said Sir Charles, "but it is also very helpful to know how these committees work in detail, and who runs them. So here I am, and I am very interested in your work, and I think it Potentially valuable, this work should certainly continue. Would you like me to make a statement on your behalf informally?" Dr. Malone grabbed the lifebuoy like a drowning sailor, "why... oh yes! God, of course! Thank you... I mean, do you really think it's going to be useful? I don't mean to Suggestion... I don't know what I mean. Yes, of course!"

"So what do we need to do?" asked Dr. Payne. Dr. Malone looked at him in surprise.Didn't Oliver just say that he was going to work in Geneva?But he seemed to understand Sir Charles better than she did, for a little understanding passed between them, and Oliver sat down too. "I'm glad you get my point," said the old man. "You're right. I'd be happier if you could go in a certain research direction. If we both agreed, I could even raise more money for you from other sources." Lots of money." "Wait, wait," said Dr. Malone, "wait a minute. The direction of the work is our business. I'm perfectly willing to discuss the results with you, but not the direction. You must understand—" Sir Charles spread his hands, and with a gesture of regret, rose to his feet.Oliver Penn also stood up anxiously. "No, please, Sir Charles," he said, "I trust that Dr. Malone will hear you to the end. Mary, it wouldn't hurt to hear him talk, maybe things would be quite different. " "I thought you were going to Geneva?" she asked. "Geneva?" said Sir Charles. "Good place. There's plenty of opportunity and money. Don't let me stop you." "No, no, it's not settled," said Dr. Payne hurriedly. "There's a lot to discuss—it's still pending, Sir Charles, please sit down. May I get you a cup of coffee?" ?” "Thank you," said Sir Charles, sitting down again with the air of a contented cat. For the first time Dr. Malone looked him over carefully.What she saw was an old man of nearly seventy, rich, self-confident, richly dressed, accustomed to the finest things, associating with powerful men, whispering in the ear of dignitaries.Oliver was right: he did want something.No support from him unless they please him. She folded her arms. Dr. Payne handed him a cup of coffee and said, "Sorry, it's too simple..." "Not at all, can I continue what I was going to say?" "Go ahead," said Dr. Payne. "Oh, I know you've made amazing discoveries in your research on consciousness. Yes, I know, you haven't released anything yet, and judging by your subjects - it seems - the research is still a long way off. Anyway , then again, I am very interested in this. I would be very happy if, for example, you focused your research on controlling consciousness. Second, the hypothesis of multiple worlds - Everett [Hugh E. Hugh Everett, a physicist who studies quantum mechanics, came up with the theory of many worlds in 1957], you remember, around 1957 -- I'm sure you're going to take that theory a big step forward. The research would even attract defense funding, which is still plentiful even today, though it's certainly not tied to those tedious application procedures. "Don't expect me to disclose the source of the funding," he continued.Dr. Malone leaned forward and was about to speak when he raised his hand, "I mentioned the Official Secrets Act, it's a tedious piece of legislation, but we can't play around with it, I have Confidence to make some progress in the field of research on multiple worlds, I think you are the right people to do this work. Third, there is a special thing related to a person, a child." He stops for coffee.Dr. Malone was speechless, she was pale, and though she could not have known it, she knew she was a little faint. "For a number of reasons," continued Sir Charles, "I have contacts with the intelligence services. They are interested in a child, a girl, who has an unusual apparatus - an old scientific apparatus, stolen of course. Yes, it should have been more securely run by someone else. There was also a boy about her age—about twelve—who was wanted by the police in connection with a murder. Of course, would a child that age Being able to murder people is open to debate, but he must have killed someone. He was seen with that girl once. "Now, Dr. Malone, maybe you've met one of them. Maybe you'd like to report everything you know to the police. But you'd be doing a greater service if you could tell me this in private. I'm sure the agencies involved It will be dealt with quickly and efficiently, and there will be no sensational side stories. I know Officer Walters was there yesterday, and I know the girl was there. You see, I know exactly what I'm talking about. I want to know, for example, if you've seen her again, and if you don't tell me, I'll know.You should be smart and think about this and recall what she has said and done here.This is a matter of national security, and you should know what I mean. "Okay, I'll stop here. Here is my business card, you can contact me. This matter cannot be delayed, the foundation committee meets tomorrow, you know. However, you can find me any time you call this number. " He handed Oliver Payne a card, and seeing Dr. Malone still folded his arms, he put her card on the bench.Dr Payne opened the door for him, and Sir Charles put on his Panama hat, patted them both, smiled, and left. Dr. Payne closed the door again and said, "Mary, are you crazy? What's wrong with your behavior?" "I'm sorry, what did you say? You weren't fooled by that old guy, were you?" "You can't refuse that kind of help! Do you want to keep this research project going?" "That's no help," she said vehemently. "It's an ultimatum, do as he says or close. And, Oliver, for God's sake, all those not-so-clever things about Threats and insinuations of national security and all that — can't you see what that means?" "Oh, I think I see that more clearly than you do. If you say no, they're not going to close the place, they're going to take it over. If they're really as interested as he says they're going to be willing to keep it going." study, but on their terms." "But their terms will be... I mean, defense, for God's sake, they want to find new ways to kill people. You heard his talk about consciousness too: He wants to manipulate it. I don't want to get involved , Oliver, never." "They'll do it anyway, and you'll lose your job. If you stay here, maybe you can influence it for the better. You're still doing the research! You're still doing the research!" "But what does that have to do with you?" she asked. "Isn't everything settled in Geneva?" He ran his hands through his hair and said, "Oh, it hasn't been settled, nothing has been signed. Anyway, things are different now, I think we have something to do now, and if I leave here now, I will regret it. " "what are you saying?" "I didn't say—" "You're hinting. What are you trying to say?" "Oh..." He paced around the laboratory, spread his hands, shrugged, and shook his head. "Oh, if you don't get in touch with him, I will," he said finally. She was silent, and then she said, "Oh, I see." "Mary, I consider—" "Of course you have considered it." "It's not that—" "no no." "You do not understand--" "No, I understand, it's simple. You agree to do what he says, so you get the funding, I leave, you take over as director, it's easy to understand. You'll have a bigger budget, a lot of brand new Nice machine, half a dozen Doctors at your command. Good idea, you do it, Oliver, you do it. But for me, that's about it, I quit, I hate it. " "You haven't..." But her expression made him stop abruptly.She took off her white coat, hung it on the door, put away some documents, put them in her bag, and left without saying a word.No sooner had she gone than he picked up Sir Charles' card and began dialing. A few hours later, just before midnight, Dr. Malone parked his car outside the science building and entered through a side door.As soon as she stepped up the stairs, a person came out from another corridor. She was so startled that she almost dropped her handbag on the floor.The man was in uniform. "Where are you going?" he asked. He was in the way, tall and with a hat so low that she could barely see his eyes. "I'm going to my lab, where I work. Who are you?" she said, a little annoyed and a little scared. "I'm a security guard. Do you have a pass?" "What security? When I left the building at three o'clock this afternoon, there was only one guard, as usual. I'm going to ask you who you are. Who sent you? Why?" "This is my ID." The man showed her the ID, so fast that she didn't even have time to read it. "Where's your ID?" She noticed a holster hanging behind him with a cell phone, maybe a gun?Certainly not, she was suspicious.He didn't answer her question either.But if she insisted, it would definitely make him suspicious. The most important thing now was to go to the laboratory.Like coaxing a dog to coax him, she thought.She fumbled in her bag and found her wallet. "Will this work?" she asked, showing him the magnetic card used to activate the parking lot barrier. He took a cursory look. "What are you doing here so late?" he asked. "I'm doing an experiment and I have to check the computer regularly." He seems to be looking for a reason to stop her, maybe he's just using his power.At last he nodded and stepped aside.She smiled at him and walked past him, but he remained expressionless. When she got to the lab, she was still shaking.This building has never had any "security" before, except for a lock on the gate and an elderly doorman.She understood what the change was about, it meant she didn't have much time, and she had to act now, because once they realized what she was doing, she couldn't come back here. She locked the door behind her and lowered the blinds.She turned on the detector, took out a floppy disk from her pocket, and stuffed it into the computer that controlled the "cave". After a while, she was manipulating the numbers on the screen, half by logic, half by guesswork, and half by spending the whole night. The program she worked on at home, the complexity of her task puzzled her as much as turning the three "halfs" into one "one." Finally she brushed the hair out of her eyes, attached the electrodes to her head, and then she moved her fingers and began to type on the keyboard, her sense of self-awareness was very strong.Hello, I don't know what I'm doing, maybe it's absurd. The words are automatically arranged on the left side of the screen, which is the first surprise.She didn't use any word processing programs—in fact, she bypassed most of the operating system—and whatever the format of those sentences was, it wasn't hers.She felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end, and she became aware of the whole building that surrounded her: the dark corridors, the machines in motion, the experiments running automatically, the computers monitoring the experiments and recording the results, taking samples and regulating the humidity. And the air conditioner, all the nerves and arteries of the building were awake, alert...almost conscious, in fact. She tried again. I was trying the sentence I used in a certain state of consciousness before, but before she finished the sentence, the indicator flashed to the right of the screen quickly, and wrote: Ask a question. It's almost an instant thing. She felt as if she had stepped into a space that didn't exist, her whole body tilted in shock. It took her a while to calm down and start trying again.When she started, her question was barely over, and the answer flashed across the right side of the screen. Are you shadow matter?Yes. Are you the same dust as Lyra?Yes. Is that dark matter?Yes. Is dark matter conscious?Obviously there is. What I said to Oliver this morning was true.But you need more than a view of human evolution, does it?Ask some questions. She stopped, took a deep breath, pushed the chair back, and flexed her fingers.She could feel her heart beating wildly, and everything that happened was incredible.All her education, her habits of mind, her sanity as a scientist screamed at her: This is wrong!It didn't happen!you are dreaming! But they were there on the screen: her questions, and answers from other minds. She picked herself up again and started typing, and the answers appeared on the screen again without interruption. It is not human consciousness that answers these questions, but human beings have always been conscious, haven't they?know us. us?Are you more than one?There are millions of them, too many to count. But who are you?Angel. Mary Malone's head was buzzing.She had been raised Catholic, and not only that—as Lyra discovered, she had been a nun.Those beliefs she had had were gone now, but she knew angels.St. Augustine once said: "The word angel refers to the office, not the nature. If asked the name of this nature, he answered that it was a god; if asked about the office, he answered that it was an angel. According to his nature, he is a god , According to the office he performs, he is an angel." [Quoted from the Christian theologian Saint Augustine (st. Made of dark matter?Complex structure from dust.Yes. Angstrom composition? Is the shadow matter what we call the gods that our nature is, the gods?The functions we perform are material.Matter and spirit are one. She shivered.They were listening to her thoughts. Are you involved in the evolution of humanity?Yes.revenge. Why? Revenge - oh!Rebel Angel!After the war in heaven - Satan and Eden - but that's not true, is it?Is that you - but why? Go find that girl and that boy.Don't waste any more time asking.You have to play the role of the snake. .She lifted her hand from the keyboard, rubbed her eyes, and when she looked at the screen again, the sentences were still there. Where to go to a high street called Sunderland and find a tent.Trick the guards into it.Prepare supplies for long-term travel.You will be protected.The monster won't touch you. But before you leave, I want to destroy this device. I do not understand. why me?What kind of trip was that?And you've lived to prepare for it.Your work here is over.The last thing you must do in this world is stop the enemy from taking control of it.Destroy this device.Do it now and leave immediately. Mary Malone pushed back her chair and stood up, shaking.Pressing her fingers into her temples, she noticed that the electrodes were still stuck to her skin, so she casually removed them.Maybe she had doubted what she had done, doubted what she could still see on the screen now, but what she had experienced in the last half hour had transcended doubt and certainty.Something happened and she was shocked. She turned off the detectors and amplifiers, bypassed all security codes, formatted the computer's hard drive, and wiped all data.Then she removed the connectors for the detector and the amplifier, and that was on a special adapter card, and she put the card on the bench and crushed it with the heel of her shoe, and now there was nothing more important to hand.Next she removed the wires connecting the electromagnetic board to the detector, and she found a copy of the wiring instructions in a filing cabinet drawer, so she set it on fire.What else is there for her to do?There was nothing she could do about Oliver Payne's knowledge of the project, but the particular hardware was effectively destroyed by her. She stuffed some papers from a drawer into her bag.Finally, she took off the poster with the I Ching pattern, folded it up and put it in her pocket.Then she turned off the lights and left. The security guard was standing at the bottom of the stairs, talking to someone on his phone.When she came downstairs, he put the phone aside and followed her silently to the side door, watching her drive away through the glass. An hour and a half later she parked the car on the road near Sunderland Avenue.She found this place after checking the map, she was not familiar with this part of the city.Until just now she had been in a state of pent-up excitement, but when she got out of the car, in the early morning darkness, surrounded by the cool and lonely night, she felt a sudden pang of apprehension.What if she was dreaming?What if it was all just an elaborate joke? It's too late to worry, though, and she's taken on the task.She mentioned the backpack she used to take on camping trips to Scotland and the Alps and it reminded her that at least she knows how to survive in the wild and if the worst happens she can run away and go up the mountains... ridiculous up. When she slung her backpack on her back, got out of the car, walked the two or three hundred yards to Bunbury Road, and came to Sunderland Avenue on the left of the roundabout, she felt absurd as never before. But when she turned the corner and saw those strange boyish trees Will had seen, she knew there was at least some truth to it all.On the other side of the road, in the grass under the trees, there is a red and white nylon tent, the kind that electricians use to keep out the rain when they work, and next to it is an unmarked delivery vehicle , the glass of the window is black. It's best not to hesitate any longer.She went straight to the tent.When she was almost there, the back door of the transport van opened suddenly, and a policeman stepped out.He looked young without his helmet, his face illuminated by street lamps under thick foliage. "May I ask where you're going, ma'am?" he asked. "Into that tent." "I'm afraid you can't go, ma'am. I have orders that no one should come near it." "Very well," she said, "I'm glad they're protecting the place. I'm from the Physics Department—Charles Latrome asked us to do a preliminary investigation and report to him, and then they'll take a look. There's no one around, and I have to do the work now. I think you can see why." "Oh, yes," he said, "but do you have anything to prove your identity?" "Oh, of course." She said as she took the backpack off her shoulders and took out her wallet. Among the things she took from the laboratory drawer was an expired library card for Dr. Oliver Payne.She hoped that her fifteen minutes of hard work at the kitchen table and her passport photo would pass inspection.The policeman took the thin card and looked closely at it. "Dr. Oliver Payne," he read, "do you know a Dr. Mary Malone?" "Oh, yes, she is my colleague." "Do you know where she is now?" "If she's okay, she should be sleeping at home by now. What's wrong?" "Oh, it is my understanding that her position with your institution has been terminated and she is not allowed to be here. In fact, we had orders that if she tried to get in, we would detain her.I looked like a lady, so I automatically assumed you were her, you know what I mean?Please excuse me, Dr. Payne. " "Oh, I see," said Mary Malone. The policeman looked at the card again. "However, it seems to be no problem." He said and handed her the card.He was a little nervous and wanted to say something, so he asked again: "Do you know what's in that tent?" "Oh, it's not first-hand news," she said. "That's why I'm here." "I think so. Well then, Dr. Payne." He stood back and let her unfasten the curtain on the tent.She hoped he hadn't noticed her shaking hands. Clutching her backpack to her chest, she stepped inside.Tricked the guards—well, she'd done that, but she had no idea what was in the tent.She was mentally prepared for an archaeological excavation site, a dead body, or a meteorite, but whether she was awake or dreaming, she never expected this window in mid-air, or On the other side of the window is the sleeping seaside city she will set foot on.