The Age of Spiritual Machines: When Computers Exceed Human Intelligence (37 page)

OKAY, I’M HERE NOW SORRY ABOUT BEING DISTRACTED TEN YEARS AGO.

 

 

No problem. How’ve you been?

 

I’M FINE—BUSY—BUT HOLDING UP. GETTING READY FOR MY SON’S TENTH BIRTHDAY PARTY.

 

Oh, so you were pregnant last time we spoke.

 

I WASN’T SHOWING YET, BUT PEOPLE DID NOTICE AT THE WEDDING.

 

How’s he doing?

 

OKAY, BUT JEREMY’S A LOT TO KEEP UP WITH.

Doesn’t sound too unusual.

 

ANYWAY, I FOUND JEREMY WITH THIS OLDER WOMAN, LIKE MY AGE, LAST WEEK. LET’S JUST SAY, SHE DIDN’T HAVE ALL OF HER CLOTHES ON.

 

Oh, really.

 

TURNED OUT TO BE HIS FOURTH-GRADE TEACHER.

 

Gee, what was she doing?

 

WELL, HE’D BEEN OUT SICK, SO SHE WAS GIVING HIM HIS HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT.

 

Without all her clothes on?

 

OH, SHE HAD NO IDEA.

 

Of course, the image transformers, I forgot.

 

HE’S NOT SUPPOSED TO HAVE ACCESS TO THOSE PARTICULAR TRANSFORMERS. BUT HE APPARENTLY GOT A CHILD-BLOCK OVERRIDE PATCH FROM ONE OF HIS FRIENDS. HE WON’T SAY WHO.

 

Some things never change.

 

I THINK WE HAVE THE BLOCK BACK ON NOW.

 

So did you discuss this with his teacher?

 

MISS SIMON? OH GOD, NO.

 

Any punishment?

 

ACTIVATING THE CHILD-BLOCK OVERRIDE IS JUST NOT TOLERATED IN OUR HOME. HE’S RESTRICTED FROM THE SENSORIUM FOR A MONTH.

 

That does sound serious. Sensorium? That’s a virtual reality thing?

 

ACTUALLY, SENSORIUM IS A BRAND NAME FOR THE TOTAL TOUCH ENVIRONMENT WE HAVE. IT’S A NEW MODEL WITH SOME IMPROVED OLFACTORY TECHNOLOGY. FOR JUST VISUAL-AUDITORY VIRTUAL REALITY—THAT’S PRETTY MUCH ON ALL THE TIME USING THE LENSES, YOU DON’T NEED TO USE ANYTHING SPECIAL.

 

So what does he do in the Sensorium?

 

OH, KICK BOXING, GALACTIC WRESTLING, THE USUAL TEN-YEAR-OLD STUFF. LATELY, HE’S BEEN PLAYING DOCTOR.

 

Uh oh, he sounds precocious.

 

I THINK HE’S JUST TRYING TO TEST OUR PATIENCE.

So this incident with Miss Simon, that was in the Sensorium?

 

NO, THAT WAS JUST A VIRTUAL REALITY PHONE CALL. JEREMY WAS HERE IN THE KITCHEN. HE HAD MISS SIMON SITTING ON THE KITCHEN TABLE.

 

So if he’s looking at her transformed image using his virtual reality lenses, how were you able to see her?

WELL, WE HAVE ACCESS TO OUR KIDS’ VIRTUAL REALITY ENVIRONMENTS UP UNTIL AGE FOURTEEN.

 

I see, so you’re simultaneously in your own virtual reality environment, and those of your children?

 

YES, AND DON’T FORGET REAL REALITY, NOT THAT VIRTUAL REALITY ISN’T REAL.

 

Isn’t that confusing, seeing and hearing all these different environments overlaying each other?

 

WE DON’T HEAR OUR KIDS’ VIRTUAL REALITY ENVIRONMENTS. THE NOISE WOULD DRIVE US CRAZY, AND KIDS NEED TO HAVE SOME PRIVACY, TOO. WE CAN ONLY HEAR REAL REALITY AND OUR OWN VIRTUAL REALITY. AND, WE CAN TUNE IN AND OUT OF OUR KIDS’ VIRTUAL VISUAL REALITIES. SO I TUNED IN, AND THERE WAS MISS SIMON.

 

What else has he been punished for?

 

THREE MONTHS AGO, HE WAS BLOCKING OUR CHILD VIRTUAL REALITY ACCESS. I THINK HE OT THAT FROM THE SAME FRIEND.

 

I’m not sure I blame him. I don’t think I would want my mother looking in on my virtual reality all the time.

 

WE DON’T LOOK IN ALL THE TIME; WE’RE REALLY QUITE SELECTIVE. BUT YOU HAVE TO KEEP TRACK OF KIDS NOWADAYS. WE DON’T HAVE THIS PROBLEM WITH OUR DAUGHTER, EMILY.

 

She’s ...

 

SIX YEARS OLD LAST MONTH. SHE’S A REAL SWEETHEART. SHE JUST DEVOURS BOOKS.

 

At six, that’s impressive. She reads them by herself?

 

BY HERSELF? HOW ELSE WOULD SHE READ THEM?

 

Well, you could read them to her.

 

I DO THAT SOMETIMES. BUT EMILY FEELS I’M NOT ACCOMMODATING ENOUGH. SO SHE HAS HARRY HIPPO READ THEM TO HER, AND HE DOES EXACTLY WHAT SHE WANTS, AND DOESN’T TALK BACK.

This all takes place in virtual reality, I assume?

 

OF COURSE. I WOULDN’T WANT A REAL HIPPOPOTAMUS SITTING ON MY KITCHEN TABLE.

 

Not with a partially clad Miss Simon there also.

 

IT DOES GET TO BE A CROWDED TABLE.

 

So when Harry Hippo reads to Emily, she follows along in her virtual book.

 

SHE CAN EITHER FOLLOW ALONG HERSELF, OR SHE CAN TURN THE HIGHLIGHTING ON. THE KIDS LET THEIR FAVORITE VIRTUAL FRIEND READ TO THEM, WHILE THEY WATCH THEIR VIRTUAL BOOKS WITH THE HIGHLIGHTING FEATURE. LATER ON, THEY TURN THE HIGHLIGHTING OFF, AND EVENTUALLY, THEY DON’T NEED HARRY HIPPO, EITHER.

 

Kind of like taking off the training wheels.

 

RIGHT. Now, ONE THING THAT DOES GIVE ME COMFORT IS THAT I ALWAYS KNOW WHERE MY KIDS ARE.

 

In virtual reality?

 

No, I’M TALKING ABOUT REAL REALITY NOW. FOR EXAMPLE, I CAN SEE THAT JEREMY IS TWO BLOCKS AWAY, HEADED IN THIS DIRECTION.

 

An embedded chip?

 

THAT’S A REASONABLE GUESS. BUT IT’S NOT A CHIP EXACTLY. IT’S ONE OF THE FIRST USEFUL NANOTECHNOLOGY APPLICATIONS. YOU EAT THIS STUFF.

 

Stuff?

 

YEAH, IT’S A PASTE, TASTES PRETTY GOOD, ACTUALLY. IT HAS MILLIONS OF LITTLE COMPUTERS—WE CALL THEM TRACKERS—WHICH WORK THEIR WAY INTO YOUR CELLS.

 

Some of them must get passed through.

 

THAT’S TRUE, AND THE TRACKERS THAT GET TOO FAR AWAY FROM THE REST OF THE TRACKERS THAT ARE STILL IN THE BODY JUST TURN THEMSELVES OFF. THE ONES THAT STAY IN YOUR BODY COMMUNICATE WITH EACH OTHER, AND WITH THE WEB.

 

The wireless Web?

 

YES, IT’S EVERYWHERE. SO I ALWAYS KNOW WHERE MY KIDS ARE. NEAT, HUH?

 

So does everybody have this?

 

KIDS ARE REQUIRED TO, SO I GUESS EVERYONE WILL HAVE IT EVENTUALLY. MANY ADULTS DO, BUT ADULTS CAN BLOCK THE TRACKING TRANSMISSION IF THEY WISH.

 

Kids can’t?

TRACKER BLOCKING IS SOMETHING WE REALLY DO MANAGE TO KEEP FROM OUR KIDS.

 

So Jeremy hasn’t gotten his hands on any tracker-blocking software?

 

I CERTAINLY HOPE NOT. ALTHOUGH, COME TO THINK OF IT, WE DID HAVE A TRACKER LAPSE LAST YEAR. THE TECHNICIAN SAID IT WAS A TEMPORARY PROTOCOL CONFLICT. I DOUBT THAT WAS JEREMY’S DOING. BUT NOW YOU’VE GOT ME WORRIED.

 

I doubt Jeremy would do something like that.

 

I THINK YOU’RE RIGHT.

 

This technician was human?

 

NO, THE PROBLEM WASN’T THAT SERIOUS. WE JUST USED A LEVEL-B TECHNICIAN.

 

I see. So is your husband plugged into the tracking system?

 

YEAH, BUT HE BLOCKS IT A LOT, WHICH IS ANNOYING.

 

Well, husbands are entitled to some privacy, too, don’t you think?

 

YES, DEFINITELY.

 

So, any other relatives you want to tell me about?

 

THERE’S MY TWENTY-FIVE-YEAR-OLD NEPHEW, STEPHEN. HE’S A BIT RECLUSIVE; I KNOW MY SISTER IS WORRIED ABOUT HIM. HE SPENDS ALMOST ALL OF HIS TIME IN EITHER TOTAL TOUCH OR IN VIRTUAL-REALITY BLOCKING-DISPLAY MODE.

 

That’s a problem?

 

IT’S NOT JUST THAT HE BLOCKS OUT REAL REALITY, IT’S THAT HE SEEMS TO AVOID INTERACTING WITH REAL PEOPLE, EVEN IN VIRTUAL REALITY IT SEEMS TO BE AN INCREASINGLY COMMON PROBLEM.

 

I guess simulated people are more accommodating.

 

THEY CAN BE. I MEAN, MY OWN ASSISTANTS AND COMPANIONS ARE, BUT TRY DEALING WITH OTHER PEOPLE’S ASSISTANTS, AND THAT’S A DIFFERENT MATTER. ANYWAY, MY SISTER WAS TELLING ME HOW SHE THOUGHT THAT STEPHEN WAS A CYBER VIRGIN, OR DID SHE SAY VIRTUAL VIRGIN?

 

Oh dear, now what was the distinction again?

 

YOU KNOW, A CYBER VIRGIN HAS NEVER HAD INTERCOURSE OUTSIDE OF VIRTUAL REALITY, WHEREAS A VIRTUAL VIRGIN HAS NEVER HAD INTERCOURSE WITH A REAL PERSON, EVEN IN VIRTUAL REALITY.

 

How about someone who has never been intimate with a real or simulated person in real or virtual reality?

HMM, WE DON’T SEEM TO HAVE A TERM FOR THAT.

 

So what are the statistics on this?

 

WELL, LET’S SEE, GEORGE WILL GET THAT FOR US.

 

George is your virtual assistant?

 

YEAH, YOU CATCH ON QUICKLY.

 

Gee, thanks.

 

SO, FOR ADULTS OVER TWENTY-FIVE, 11 PERCENT ARE VIRTUAL VIRGINS, AND 19 PERCENT ARE CYBER VIRGINS.

 

So I guess virtual sex is catching on. How about you and Ben?

 

WELL, I DEFINITELY PREFER THE REAL THING!

 

Real, as in ...

 

REAL REALITY, RIGHT.

 

So you prefer intimacy in real reality, meaning you don’t avoid the virtual alternative?

 

WELL, IT’S RIGHT THERE, I MEAN WE’D HAVE TO GO OUT OF OUR WAY TO AVOID IT. IT’S CERTAINLY CONVENIENT IF I’M TRAVELING, OR IF WE DON’T WANT TO WORRY ABOUT BIRTH CONTROL.

 

Or STDs.

 

WELL, THAT SHOULDN’T BE AN ISSUE.

 

Hey, you never know.

 

WELL, TO BE PERFECTLY HONEST, VIRTUAL SEX IS MUCH MORE SATISFACTORY IN MANY WAYS. I MEAN IT’S DEFINITELY MORE INTENSE, PRETTY INCREDIBLE ACTUALLY.

 

This is in the Sensorium, I assume.

 

YEAH, SURE. THIS RECENT MODEL HAS REALLY ADDRESSED THE OLFACTORY ISSUE.

 

Meaning it has an olfactory capability?

 

RIGHT. IT’S A LITTLE DIFFERENT THAN THE OTHER SENSES, THOUGH. WITH THE VISUAL AND AUDITORY SENSE, JUST PLAIN OLD UBIQUITOUS VIRTUAL REALITY IS EXTREMELY ACCURATE. IN THE SENSORIUM, WE GET THE TACTILE ENVIRONMENT, WHICH ALSO PROVIDES AN EXTREMELY LIFELIKE RE-CREATION. BUT WE CAN’T DO THAT YET WITH THE SENSE OF SMELL. SO THE SENSORIUM 2000 HAS PROGRAMMED SCENTS, WHICH YOU CAN CHOOSE, OR THAT ARE AUTOMATICALLY SELECTED IN THE COURSE OF AN EXPERIENCE. THEY’RE STILL PRETTY EFFECTIVE.

How do you feel about your husband interacting sexually with a simulated partner?

 

YOU MEAN, A SIMULATED PERSON IN VIRTUAL REALITY?

 

Yeah, in virtual reality or in the Sensorium.

 

THAT’S FINE. I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THAT.

 

You don’t mind?

 

THERE’S REALLY NO WAY I COULD KEEP TRACK OF IT.

 

Virtual lipstick on his collar?

 

YEAH, RIGHT, ON HIS VIRTUAL COLLAR. VIRTUAL SEX WITH SIMULATED PARTNERS IS GENERALLY ACCEPTED NOWADAYS. IT’S REALLY REGARDED AS A FORM OF FANTASY—IT’S JUST ASSISTED FANTASY.

 

And if the partner’s a real person in virtual reality?

 

I’D BREAK HIS LEGS.

 

His virtual legs?

 

THAT’S NOT WHAT I HAD IN MIND.

 

So what’s the difference between a real person in virtual reality and a simulated person?

 

AS SENSUAL PARTNERS?

 

Right.

 

OH, THERE’S A DIFFERENCE—THE SIMULATED PARTNERS ARE PRETTY GOOD, BUT IT’S JUST NOT THE SAME.

 

Sounds like you’ve had some experience with this yourself.

 

PRETTY NOSY, AREN’T YOU?