<> <> <> <> * Amadeus finishes inputing the last bit of data, then scratches the back of his head. He frowns at that, realizing that it's been ages since he had a shower, and laborously gets to his feet. * Amadeus picks up his datapad and a few other things, tucking them into a bag, and shoulders said bag before going through the process of semi-closing up the lab. Well, and cleaning up. Can't leave empty food containers around, and all. <> * Amadeus smiles a little at the computers. Even with all of this madness, at least something's right with the world. * Amadeus starts heading off for home, closing and locking the door behind him. <> "Amadeus, my boy. Finished with the work already?" * Amadeus blinks, then smiles a little. "Uh... yeah, Dr. Borenstein." There's a pause as he removes his glasses and rubs at his eyes. "Well. Not quite, but the computer's doing all the work, now. I figured I'd go live like a normal person for at least a few hours." "Ah, the joys of modern science. I remember when the university could barely afford the sequencer, let alone the apparatus around it." <> <> * Amadeus laughs. "Those had to be tough times," he says, putting his glasses back on. "Are you off for today, too?" <> "I have office hours, but I'm not teaching anything but special subjects courses this semester, so there's nothing for me to do. Care to get a bite to eat? I know a place in Sleythintown that has some fantastic sushi." Sounds good, I could use some real food. * Amadeus starts heading out, then, now hopefully with a Dr. Borenstein! * Amadeus continues, saying, "And company. It almost feels like the only people I talk to lately are the rest of the- well, the team- and they're..." * Amadeus tries to come up with the right word, then makes a vague gesture and gives up. <> "Laypersons?" * Amadeus laughs. "Yeah, that works. Although with some of them, I feel decidedly normal and sane, and I'm the one who got a PhD. I suppose that's to be expected with chainjumpers." "It is an exciting career, suited for exciting persons and personalities. Hardly surprising that eccentrics gravitate towards it." <> "Not, of course, that I find you that eccentric. No more so than any genius, I suppose." * Amadeus smirks. "No more eccentric than yourself." Funny thing about that, actually. One of the team - Kyle - he was actually in one of the classes I taught as a GA. <> "Kyle ... Maxsimov? The one with the blog?" (There is actually plot to get to here, but this is kind of fun, so. WHenever you're bored.) (However you prefer, sir!) * Amadeus sounds somewhat surprised. "You knew? I didn't think he'd mention it on the blog... I really should check these things." ""I know because it's difficult not to know the members of your crew these days. <> "I also remember the lad. Bright, but always a little excitable. Always did better at group exercises, for some reason." <> * Amadeus frowns a little at Borenstein's first statement, but doesn't comment. "He did terribly on the final exam, too. Didn't matter much to him anyway, I guess... it was just an entry level course." He holds open the door out for Borenstein. <> "I perused your preliminary results on the data from the ... from the Duekti planet. The four planets truly had animals with the same DNA across all four?" * Amadeus walks after him. "Yes, and flora as well. The most noticeable were the primapes, since they're so large... they looked somewhat like gorillas, but with more limbs." He frowns. "I need to come up with a name for them." "Naming was never my strong suit. My co-authors stopped asking me to invent names for things after they puzzled out I was just counting up in sanskrit." <> "It is strange that four planets would be so identical, though. Even after merely a century there would be genetic drift." * Amadeus shakes his head. "Not if we assume the Duekti are far superior, technologically, to us. I have a hunch that they terraformed and imported their preferred ecosystem across the planets... and they *have* to have found a way to keep them that way." "But that would be, if you will excuse the term, nearly impossible!" <> "Think rigorously, Amadeus. Even if you encoded the mechanism inside the organism, the mechanism itself would be corrupted by gene drift." "It is rather like attempting to shore up a sandcastle by telling the sand it should hold itself together." I know, which is why it's fascinating! And why would they go through the trouble to maintain it? Unless they terraformed very recently, but examination of the bug attacks on those planets speaks otherwise... "Hubris, perhaps? Some cosmic sense of superiority? You know more about the subject than I do, dear boy." * Amadeus shrugs a little. "For all that I study aliens these days, I hardly *think* like one. That's what cultural anthropologists are for." "Pfeh! 'Feelings' and 'intuition' have no place in a science. We should just synthesize their brains, and then we'd *know* how they think." <> * Amadeus laughs. "Or get some telepaths on the job? We can do that, these days. The miracle of SCA mutations." He looks down at his bag, pulling out the datapad. <> * Amadeus blinks. "Er... something's happening at the lab. I should check on it." He looks up to Borenstein, somewhat concerned. "An emergency?" * Amadeus turns, now hurrying back for campus. "One of the samples we collected... All of the male specimens have taken ill." <> "Then by all means, dinner can wait. Getting some of those specimens back would be intensely hazardous, I imagine." * Amadeus nods. "First we isolate why. Then we figure out what to do... maybe they've been seperated for too long, or not fed properly..." He continues to theorize while rushing for the right lab. <> "I didn't do anything! I swear! I fed them just what you asked, and ..." I believe you. What's going on? * Amadeus moves to look at the creatures. (Which creatures are these?) <> <> ... Holy shit. * Amadeus starts collecting samples and processing data as fast as he can, because there has to be some common link somewhere. <> * Amadeus totally bends rigor for speed, but that's him. He's frowning, trying to figure out what these symptoms could mean. (Is that a roll of some sort?) (Fuck rolls.) <> A virus, then. But why all of... * Amadeus blinks. "A triggered virus?" he says out loud, then catches himself and looks to Borenstein for the expected "RIGOUR!" shouts. <> "Why all of them, and why now? Yes, this is the question. And as much as I hate to admit it, you may be right." <> "It's not as if there's not precedent." (That precedent being the whole 24 thing.) <> "But a virus? Viruses inject their DNA into the subject. What purpose would a triggered one solve?" * Amadeus starts pacing. "Keeping the specimens in the system. I'd think. Why all of the males? To keep them from reproducing?" He glances at his datapad, half-expecting another alert to happen. <> "You'd want them to reproduce, otherwise they're vulnerable to damage and can't repair. A virus... if it triggers off the Y chromosome that explains the only-male part..." (Sorry, I'm trying to keep up) (It's no problem!) * Amadeus nods, distracted by his own thoughts. "It would practically have to, yes." <> (I could have Borenstein come to the conclusion and it would flow better but you're the genius here, he had his big day.) * Amadeus blinks. "Yes... well, that *does* make a lot of sense. It isn't as though the Y chromosome is particularly vulnerable to mutation..." (He's also a genius! He's my hero! :o But he came to that first realization.) <> "So if... we examine the y chromosomes more closely..." * Amadeus nods and starts getting on it, jacking into a machine so he can work more quickly. "Hey, help me out with this," he tells the grad assistant. <> (I'm amused Borenstein has a TSM jack, for some reason. :D) (I am assuming that for any advanced technical shit it is basically a necessity.) (Using pen and paper or even a datapad straight is just handicapping yourself and delaying how long it takes you to publish.) (It's so true!) <> <> (Wait, so it's... oh snap.) <> "It's ... being backed up. Or ... no, it's being error corrected." * Amadeus is practically gaping at the data. "... Holy shit, our answer. There's one of our answers!" He turns to Borenstein. "How they prevent mutations!" <> "But think bigger... how do they prevent mutations in the virus? That is the *worst* place they could put the code, because of the high number of generations." <> "How big must the error correction system *be*?" Tremendous. Absolutely tremendous. But why... a sense of superiority, I understand, but why... * Amadeus goes back to looking at the data, watching the rewrite. <> <> * Amadeus sits back and pushes his glasses up his nose. "Maybe the virus rewrites itself," he says. "I wonder if that's even possible... to write itself back into the DNA once it triggers." <> * Amadeus frowns. "That's way too regular," he says, suddenly. "Structured." <> "There are two sets of base pairs, Amadeus. That sounds rather like binary data to me." <> "You have me making leaps with you, my boy. This is all speculation, as awesome as it might seem. We have weeks of work yet to confirm our suspicions." Like it's programmed, yeah. Or created - there's almost no way this is the result of normal evolution. * Amadeus sets the equipment to comparing and processing more data. "Only one way to get started." (If that's everything, we can end here and you can concentrate on the main chan.) (That's all I had in both places, actually!) <>