Darwin's Paradox (34 page)

DresseD
for bed in a warm nightdress, Julie stood barefoot by the window of their bedroom, looking out at the December moon. She heard Daniel shuffle in from the bathroom with a yawn. The dog stirred at their bedside and she heard it wriggling and whimpering to be patted. Daniel murmured to the golden retriever puppy, ruffled its fur and told it to lie down. Victor had presented Ben as his house-warming gift, for this house he’d built for them a few months ago.

Julie heard Daniel slide into bed. The dog let out a long, dramatic sigh and settled down. The moon was large and still hung low over the horizon, cutting a swath of jewels through the lake that sparkled back into the deep night. Lake Ontario, they’d called it once. Long ago, she and Daniel had walked its shores for miles and eventually fallen in love there. Now, as she gazed out over the heath to the lake from their newly furnished home outfitted with Icaria’s amenities, she felt a tug on her heart. Not a longing tug like she’d felt in the past, but rather the blissful serenity that came with completion and a sense of home. No regrets.

Daniel pulled her out of her reverie by saying softly, “There’s a full moon out, honey.”

“I know, dear. I’m looking at it.”

“Come to bed, darling.”

“In a minute,” she replied. Yes, she was finally at peace. But there was one final thing...

She didn’t turn when she heard Daniel get out of bed and approach her from behind. She felt his body gently lean up against hers. Then he slipped his arms around her waist and softly caressed her distended belly. “How’s Willy today?”

“We’re not calling him Willy,” she said rather sternly, still facing the moon.

“Well,” he began in a voice that suggested to her that he was smiling, “you’ve shot down all my other suggestions.”

“I don’t consider ‘Buddy’ or ‘Breezy’ to be serious efforts at naming our son,” she scoffed. Daniel laughed softly and she pictured his dimpled face and eyes crinkling with amusement. Through Proteus she knew the five-month old unborn child she was carrying was a healthy boy. As for his destiny in the world, she wisely left that to God. She’d learned from her experience with Angel that she could never prepare for the bizarreness of reality.

“Angel ‘called’ today,” she said, referring to her communication with her daughter through Proteus.

“What’d she say?”

“It’s tough running a city when you’re a twelve year old. Actually, she was dealing with Zane’s latest tizzy fit,” Julie said, smiling as Daniel chuckled. “He doesn’t want to use his dream-device on her class, says it’s too dangerous. I think that last time he and I did it scared him witless.”

Daniel squeezed her. “Do you blame him?”

“No. It scared me too, but from the start, Angel chose a different path with Proteus. Anyway, she also said that Victor would drop by tomorrow with some data on the latest Proteus inoculations.”

Victor’s house was only a few kilometers away. At one time it was the only house on the heath. Daniel had stumbled upon it on one of his outdoor hikes twelve years ago, when going outside wasn’t fashionable. Now, along with their modest home, it was one of a dozen or so houses that dotted the heath near the city. Mostly Circle members, like herself. Preferring to live amiably with nature in zero-polluting and 100% self-sufficient units amidst the sounds, smells and sights of the heath.

She remembered the day Victor had appeared at the doorstep of their cabin five hundred kilometers away, looking exhausted from his long skyship journey but beaming with a wonderful conspiratorial smile. He’d come with a message from Aileen Rourke and all the other Circle members, unanimously inviting Julie into the Circle. The invitation had come with one condition: that they move closer to Icaria. Victor had prepared a well-rehearsed speech about the advantages to them, including services for their coming child and the fact that he’d already built them a wonderful house, complete with a house-warming gift.

“Victor told Angel that by April, all of Icaria will carry Proteus,” Julie added with a little smile. She thought of the irony of her legacy with Darwin.

“You know, you said something very wise to me a long time ago,” Daniel roused her from her reverie.

“Oh?” She smiled lopsidedly and leaned her head back over his shoulder so she could see his face in the moonlight. “And not since?”

He chuckled and kissed her exposed neck. “This one I remember particularly. I was too foolish and preoccupied to listen then but you were right when you said twelve years ago that it isn’t what or who you are that’s important but the choices you make with what and who you are.”

“I said that?” Julie stroked his stubbly cheek with her hand. He was growing his beard back.

“Yup,” he smiled down at her and, clasping her hand in his, kissed it tenderly and brought it down to her belly. Then his face grew serious again. “During our life together out here I never before faced my feelings about veemelds and the fact that you are one. I didn’t think I had to, but I’ve been living with that, not realizing that it kept us apart, this whole time until we returned to Icaria. Until I was forced to deal with it.”

She folded her arms over his and squeezed. “So, have you dealt with it?” she challenged.

He squeezed her back. “My big fear was that veemelds would help machines take over the human world, that they’d become some machine-like race and let the machines wipe out the rest of us like what the inner-city was starting to become. I never took into account that veemelds were people like me, with hearts and souls and a conscience. That they wouldn’t—that you wouldn’t—let something like that happen.”

Julie bent her head forward and gazed up at the moon again. “Now Angel’s making sure of that. Your sweet, wise daughter, who also happens to be a veemeld,” she ended pointedly.

He laughed sharply. “Yes. Life’s full of paradoxes, isn’t it. I’d never have thought that I would one day be glad that a veemeld would play a major role in Icaria’s welfare. And my own daughter at that.” He pulled her closer. “I used to think you were always holding back a little, but it was me holding us back. I’m sorry, Julie. Can you forgive me? Forgive me for my prejudice against veemelds? For not trusting them not trusting you?”

Julie twisted inside his arms to face him and saw her own reflection, lit by the moon, carried in his dark eyes. “I forgive you, Daniel. And I love you.” She wrapped her hands behind his neck and pulled him closer, feeling her belly against him. Then she kissed him hard and long.

As she finally pulled away from Daniel’s lips and let him draw her to bed, Julie thought about another person she had yet to forgive her father. With that thought came another paradox, Darwin’s paradox. The paradox of what Proteus turned out to be and its link to Angel’s new responsibility in Icaria. Like Daniel with veemelds, Julie had never thought that she would one day be glad to leave her twelve-year old child behind in Icaria, much less to help revive Icaria with the aid of the virus inside her - Darwin’s paradox: a virus that had killed her sister now promised to save a whole race.

Daniel pulled her into bed with him and wrapped himself around her with a long sigh. After some moments of letting his eyes roam over her face, he gazed intensely into her eyes and breathed, “You’re so beautiful.”

“No, you’re the one who’s beautiful,” she said with a crooked smile.

“That’s what you said the first night we made love.”

“And I’ll keep saying it.”

He brushed a few strands of hair from her face. “What were you thinking about before? You looked so far away.”

“I was just thinking about the paradox of being a mother and citizen of the world. As a mother, I wanted nothing but to protect my child from all the ills and pains of the world, to the point where I tried to keep her from growing up. As a citizen, I needed to let her go, to feel the pains of growing up, make mistakes, take responsibility and learn to fulfill what destiny holds for her.”

“You were a great mother. You still are. I’m proud of you. Letting Angel stay in Icaria was probably the hardest thing you’ve done in your life.”

“Thanks,” she said, pressing her face into his neck and inhaling his wonderful scent. “It was.” Then she thought some more. “And, like Angel, I had a great father, too.” Like her, he also had to deal with the paradox of parental responsibilities and those to Icaria. To risk his child, who he loved dearly in an experiment dedicated to a greater cause, to help the world, was an obvious choice for him. Nevertheless, it carried with it a terrible personal pain. One he had to live with for the rest of his life, particularly when it looked as though all they’d done was cause the worst plague human kind had experienced, killing one daughter, while the other hadn’t benefited at all from their experiment. But she had, Julie thought, and she wished she could have shown him before he’d died, heartbroken.

The paradox finally made sense. It took her own experience with her daughter for it to become clear. Although she’d intellectually forgiven her father a long time ago for his actions, her wounded guilty heart had held back, not understanding. Now she finally understood what her father had done and knew she had finally and completely forgiven him.

Daniel stroked her hair. “I know your dad was a good father. Like you just did with Angel, he gave you to science not because he didn’t love you but because he believed in you.”

Julie looked up suddenly, tears pooling in her eyes. How she loved Daniel! He understood her so completely. He’d patiently and quietly let her find her way without interfering, showing a deep trust in her character that he probably didn’t even realize he possessed.

Daniel’s eyes glinted with sudden inspiration. “Hey, let’s call our son Leonard, after your dad.”

“I always liked that name. And the gesture is wonderful, Daniel. But I have a better idea. Neo. Let’s call him Neo Leonard Woods.”

Daniel smiled, dimples transforming his rugged face into something irresistible. Then they were kissing and he was caressing her belly. She wondered briefly what was in store for little Neo, when Daniel slipped his hand beneath her nightdress and she felt the electrifying touch of his hand on her skin. He tucked his arm deliciously between her thighs, once again sending with its sensual touch a resonating message of deep love that traveled up the core of her being as she wrapped herself around it.

Then she thought no more and felt only the exquisite joy of finally and completely letting go.

Aggressive symbiont: When two organisms engage in a symbiotic relationship wherein one of the partners directs aggression outward (exogenously) at a potential rival of the symbiotic partner. Examples abound, including the ant and acacia plant, herpes-B viruses, malaria and yellow fever. The trypanosome that causes epidemics of sleeping sickness is symbiotic with ungulates and its devastation to the human population may be the major reason that the ungulate herds of the African savanna have survived to the present. See symbiosis and co-evolution.

Anadromous: An organism (usually a fish) that lives in salt water and migrates to a freshwater tributary to reproduce (spawn).

Autopoiesis Autoproduction: The process whereby an organization produces itself. An autonomous and self-maintaining unity which contains component-producing processes; examples being a cell, an organism, and perhaps a corporation. An autopoeietic system achieves self-organization, order out of chaos. It is simultaneously producer and product.

Butterfly effect: Edward Lorenz described the butterfly effect as “the sensitive dependence on initial conditions”; the notion that a butterfly flapping its wings in Peking could cause a tornado in Texas.

Chaos theory: A field of scientific inquiry to explain unstable aperiodic behavior in deterministic nonlinear dynamical systems; a kind of order without periodicity, examples being weather, the spread of epidemics, metabolism of cells, the propagation of impulses along our nerves, changing populations of insects and birds, the rise and fall of civilizations.

Co-evolution: A dynamic process of change, where two very different species evolve in parallel; in the case of a virus and his host, the host responds to its environment and the virus to the changing genome of the host.

Creative destruction*: A term taken from the work of C.S. Holling (University of Florida). A theoretical model developed by scientist, Leonard Crane, to explain the natural cycle of animate and inanimate systems. Crane’s model is based on the theoretical and empirical paradigm of ecological behavior proposed by C.S. (Buzz) Holling, which recognizes ecosystems as non-linear self-organizing and continually adapting through cycles of change from expansion and prosperity to creative destruction and reorganization.

Darwin Disease*: A fatal neural disease caused by the mutation of an artificially produced retrovirus, Proteus. Proteus was designed to co-exist in a mutually symbiotic relationship with its human host to enhance cognitive A.I. communication. Transmitted sexually, once in non-target hosts the virus takes on the role of aggressive symbiont and selectively interferes with several neurotransmitters, eventually destroying cholinergic neurons of both peripheral and central nerves. Due to their genetic makeup, veemelds were immune.

Dentate gyrus: A part of the hippocampus, roughly in the shape of a V, which consists of granule neurons thought to be the site of neurogenesis and where theta rhythm is produced.

Dystopian, dystopian*: The term dystopian, coined by revolutionaries in 2056, describes any thought, philosophy or argument that is counter to the current linear order of the current Icarian regime. This includes promotion of chaos theory, stable chaos and other related theories. The term Dystopian is the name of a terrorist-anarchist organization formed during the height of the Darwin plague in response to perceived unwillingness by government to act. Dystopians took the term already in existence since 2056 as their icon to hallmark their force of destructive chaos against the sham of an “orderly” government.

Entorhinal cortex: The EC is located in the temporal lobe of the brain and considered an important memory center, forming the input to the hippocampus and the pre-processing of the input signals. The EC-hippocampus system plays an important role in memory consolidation and optimization in sleep. The EC has been implicated in synchronizing theta rhythm during REM sleep.

Endogenous virus: A virus that inserts its genetic material into the DNA of a host. The integrated provirus lies dormant for a time. See also: retrovirus.

Fractal: Fractals are complicated geometric patterns made up of the same motif repeated on ever-smaller scales. Examples include circulatory and nervous systems. Trees and mountains are other examples. Mathematician, Benoit Mandelbrot, coined the word in 1975 from the latin word fractus. All fractals are self-similar - that is, they look the same when examined from far away or nearby.

Hantavirus: The hantavirus provides an example of an aggressive symbiotic host/virus relationship through co-evolution over millennia between the rodent host and the virus. This virus also enters the ovaries of the mouse where it is vertically transmitted to her offspring.

Hippocampus: The hippocampus is part of the limbic system and forms part of the temporal lobe of the brain. Together with the neocortex, the hippocampus is believed to provide the neural basis for memory storage in addition to regulating emotions.

Interact-SYM*: A device intended to permit a veemeld to communicate directly with the neural network of a single A.I. or the A.I.-core, via a retinal scan.

Mitochondria: Organelles within every cell that process sugars to make ATP. Mitochondria are thought to have co-evolved as ancient bacteria with host cells of metazoans millions of years ago and contain their own DNA.

Multiple Independent Discoveries: Also known as simultaneous discoveries, MID describes when scientists or inventors in the same society arrive at the same innovation independently of each other at approximately the same time. For example, Elisha Gray and Alexander Graham Bell developed the phone simultaneously. Sociologists argue this is a function of either social context (deterministic view) or to the qualities of the individuals making the discovery (inventive genius). The deterministic view suggests that the time was ripe and someone would eventually have made the discovery.

Niche-partitioning: A process by which two very similar and potentially competitive species are able to co-exist through either spatial or temporal-sharing of habitat or role in the ecosystem.

Non-local interaction: Based on J.S. Bell’s theorem of non-local connection, this refers to the ability of biological systems to utilize quantum non-locality. According to Bell: if nature behaves in accordance with the statistical predictors of quantum mechanics then “there must be a mechanism whereby the setting of one measuring device can influence the reading of another instrument, however remote.” Brian Josephson, Nobel-laureate physicist, postulates extensions into areas of paranormal phenomena: “Quantum theory is now being fruitfully combined with theories of information and computation. These developments may lead to an explanation of processes still not understood within conventional science such as telepathy…”

Nuergery*: Nuergery is a procedure of nano-technology in cosmetic surgery to permanently change aspects of a human’s form and structure (e.g., bone structure, fatty tissue, etc.). Often done in conjunction with nuyu.

Nuyu*: Nuyu is a temporary nano-technological cosmetic procedure to change superficial aspects of a person’s anatomy (e.g., eye or hair colour; skin tone, facial hair, etc.). See nuergery.

Paradox: A situation in which something seems both true and false. A form of self-contradiction as in “when my knowledge increases, I realize how little I know”. When I know a lot I can say, “I know that I know nothing.” Examples of paradox abound, including rich coral reefs in nutrient-poor water. In physics the EPR paradox, developed by Einstein, Podolsky and Rosen, describes an apparent lack of completeness in quantum mechanics. Views of non-locality may provide solutions to the paradox. See non-local interaction.

Provirus: A retrovirus that has integrated itself in the DNA of the host cell. The provirus remains inactive while integrated. It is passed on to the cell’s offspring, which will bear proviruses in their genomes.

REM sleep: Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep may stimulate nerve growth. REM sleep is also known as paradoxical sleep, perhaps because during this time the brain is very active, generating theta rhythm, involved in the processing of information in the hippocampus.

Retrovirus: A virus possessing a unique cellular enzyme, reverse transcriptase, which uses the viral RNA as a template to make a DNA copy, which is then incorporated into the chromosomes of the infected cell. Endogenous retroviruses (proviruses) may lie dormant inside the chromosomes, until they manifest once more. They may seek out the germ cells (eggs or sperm) and be subsequently passed on from parent to offspring. See trasposon and provirus.

Stable chaos*: A precept within chaos theory, which suggests that order emerges spontaneously from chaos as synchronous self-organization. Dr. Leonard Crane used this concept in his model to explain the natural cycle of creative destruction in both ecological and societal behavior. The concept originated partially from the 1974 Gaia Hypothesis by Lovelock and Margulis, which proposed that the planet is a self-regulating organism. Stable chaos was first coined by Gleick in his 1989 bestseller, “Chaos”, which provided an excellent example—Jupiter’s Great Red Spot. “The spot is a self-organizing system, created and regulated by the same nonlinear twists that create the unpredictable turmoil around it. It is stable chaos.”

Strange attractor: A term used among chaoticists and mathematicians, an attractor is the property of complex systems that represents the state to which the system eventually settles. Strange attractors, coined by David Ruelle, professor of theoretical physics, are attractors that consist of infinite dimensions. These fractal objects describe how order can dwell within chaos and represent the outward manifestation of organizational autopoiesis.

Sympatric speciation: This refers to the formation of two or more descendant species from a single ancestral species all occupying the same geographic location; most evolutionary biologists don’t believe this ever occurs and support allopatric speciation, which occurs through geographic isolation of the original species. Evidence for the former exists in the form of the three-spined stickleback, through the mechanism of disruptive selection and assertive mating.

Symbiosis: In context with co-evolution, symbiosis is the state of equilibrium that results from two co-evolving organisms over a long time and many generations.

Theta rhythm: During REM sleep, neural control is centered in the brain stem in which neurons initiate a sinusoidal wave in the hippocampus called theta rhythm. Theta rhythm reflects a neural process by which information essential to the survival of a species, gathered during the day, is reprocessed (encoded) into memory during REM sleep. Long-term potentation (LTP), a change in neural behavior that reflects previous activity, depends on the presence and phase of theta rhythm.

Transposon: A movable element (“jumping gene”) that can move or have its DNA copied from chromosome to chromosome and inferentially from cell to cell. Transposons may contribute to variation in all genomes. See provirus.

Veemeld*: Noun: A person whose unique genetic makeup permits them to communicate directly with the A.I.-network through a retinal scan (Interact-SYM). Julie Crane and her daughter, Angel Woods, are capable of spontaneous communication with machines via the symbiotic virus, Proteus, inside them. Verb: the act of communicating with the A.I.-network via a retinal scan or through the symbiotic virus, Proteus.

Vee-radicator*: A member of a violent subversive organization, originating in the Luddite counter-culture of the outer-city fringes, where “outer beauty” represents the weakness of a technophile society. Vee-radicator individuals typically undergo self-mutilation.

Believing that technology is ruining our ability to think and feel like humans and fearing other ill-effects of technology, Vee-radicators are dedicated to the elimination of all technological devices (vee-coms, vee-sets, vee-pads, etc.) from Icaria. They particularly seek to eradicate all veemelds, who they consider machine-people and traitors to humanity.

* A term or concept created by the author, or modified or expanded from another source by the author.