The Jacobs Project: In Search of Pinocchio (SYMBIOSIS) (3 page)

IV. Priscilla

9 October 2134

Proto-type Laboratory

General Holographic Research Facility

Art Fuller rubbed his hands impatiently.
"Let's get this show on the road, Fred. I've got two other meetings scheduled, and I promised Ethel I'd be home by 6:00. You're not going to make me break my promise, are you?"

His eyes wide with exaggerated concern, Fred Horton replied,
"Hell, no. I wouldn't hear of it." Guiding Fuller across the lab, he added, "This will only take a few minutes."

They stopped in front of a standard commercial holo system, different only in the shoe box size metallic enclosure connected to it by a wide, flat cable. Gary Toshima was waiting for them.

Fuller nodded. "Gary."

"
How are you, Art?"

"
I'll be fine if you show me something good."

"
Well, I'll see what I can do for you."

Pointing to the metallic enclosure, Fuller asked,
"Is the brain in there?"

"
Yes, but we call it a neural array."

"
Uh-huh. I see you've got it connected to a Character Definition module."

"
That's right, but in this case the character isn't in the module, it's in the neural array. We pulled out all of the circuitry and software that defines the non-sentient—"

"
What the hell is that?"

"
Well, if we're going to market sentient individuals we need to differentiate them from the others, sentient and non-sentient."

"
Come on, Gary, I'm not a techno freak. Make it simple."

"
Sorry. We pulled everything that we didn't need out of the module and added what we did, personality inputs and sexual response. It also has interfaces connecting the array to the system's I/O drivers. That includes audio, visual, and projection control. We're calling it the Sentient Interface module."

"
Sounds like quite a feat."

"
It was. Of course, the I/O interface architecture was created at MIT thirty years ago, but getting it all into the module required some serious voodoo."

Fuller smiled politely and turned to Horton.
"Well, let's see it."

"
Coming right up," Horton replied. He approached the holo system, leaned over the console and brought his mouth close to its built in microphone.

"
What are you doing?"

"
Calling her," Horton replied.

"
Calling her? Where the hell is she?" Fuller demanded.

"
She's taking a walk in the woods," Toshima said, smiling.

Fuller expelled a short, powerful breath and rubbed his forehead.
"What the hell are you guys talking about, now?"

"
Nothing short of magic," Toshima answered. "My holo environment developers came up with the idea of bypassing the holo system I/O and passing data directly between the environment code and the Sentient Interface module."

"
And?"

"
Once you eliminate real world size constraints you can create environments, not holo environments but cyber environments, as complex as you want."

"
That's fascinating," Fuller said after a while. "Really, I'm impressed with the concept, but I don't see what good it does us? Humans can't use it."

Horton broke in
grinning from ear to ear. "It doesn't matter. Think about it. If you want to treat your sentient artificial to something special, say you're going away for the weekend. No problem, buy one of our many inexpensive cyber environments."

"
Wow."

"
Now you see it, don't you? And the best part is it's all software. The cyber environments can run on any computer equipped with one of our remote link modules."

He pointed to a large computer on the other side of the lab.
"The environment Priscilla is in is actually running on that T12 system over there."

Fuller scratched his head, looking first across the lab then at the neural array container.
"So her brain is here, but she's in an environment over there."

"
That's right."

"
Hmmm. That
is
something, isn't it? Of course it all depends on whether customers believe these things are really intelligent."

Horton nodded,
"That's true."

"
Well, let's take a look."

Speaking into the microphone, Horton said,
"Prepare for extraction, Priscilla."

*

The young woman flinched, startled by the booming voice that seemed to surround her.
Extraction
. She hadn't explored even half of the new trails in the forest. So many adventures waiting for her that would have to wait. She sighed. Of all the places they sent her, the forest was surely her favorite.

She was alone there, with the exception of the animals. All of the other environments contai
ned people who were not in fact people. They were automatons, mindless characters whose sole purpose was to test her and whatever environment she happened to be in. The designers had assured her it was necessary work, important work even. Still, she chafed at the constant, repetitive interaction with the non sentients who always said and did the same things… until the designers had them say or do otherwise.

In the forest, her only job was to explore, to walk the many trails, testing them to make sure they led where the designers intended them to lead. No people, only animals, and they always scampered away as she approached. Of course, she would have happily shared her Shangri
-La with one of her own: another sentient.

The designers had told her one was on the way, a male they said. She looked forward to his arrival. Sometimes being the only one, a proto-type, was lonely work.

*

The marketing chief pressed a small button on the system
's control panel, and a smartly dressed young woman appeared. She scanned the laboratory as if trying to get her bearings.

"
Art, meet Priscilla. Priscilla, this is Mr. Fuller the boss."

The young woman smiled and extended a hand.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Fuller."

Ignoring the outstretched hand, Fuller guffawed,
"That's it? Come on, Fred, show me something that any garden variety character can't do."

"
Just talk to her. You'll see."

"
Talk to her, huh? Alright, but I better see something pretty damn quick."

He thought for a moment before asking,
"Okay,
Priscilla,
why don't you tell me the difference between hope and optimism."

He grinned at Horton with raised eyebrows.

Toshima chuckled.

Priscilla
's cheerful smile faded; her lips moved silently. "I'm sorry, sir. I don't think I can."

"
Whoa! That's different. I expected canned dictionary definitions."

Horton breathed a sigh of relief.
"Ask her something else."

"
No, I think I'll stick with this." Fuller brought his face close to the hologram's. "Take your time. I want you to think about it."

"
Well, I guess…"

A wide smile spread across Fuller
's face. "It's guessing?"

"
I'm sorry, sir. I didn't mean that literally."

"
Oh, no, don't apologize. I know what you meant. Now go ahead, please."

With new found confidence, Priscilla smiled again and took a deep
"breath."

"
Damn!" Fuller exclaimed.

The young woman seemed sta
rtled by his outburst and hesitated before speaking. "I think having hope is wanting something to happen, while being optimistic is expecting it to happen."

Fuller
's mouth dropped open. "Can you have one without the other?"

Priscilla hesitated, her eyes drifting up to the ceiling.
"Yes, sir, you can," she said finally.

"
Explain."

"
Well, I can hope that you like me but not be optimistic that you will."

He brought his hands together with a loud clap.
"
Damn!
It really
can
think."

When Priscilla
's face clouded, Toshima coughed into his hand. "You know, Art, most of my engineers referred to her as 'It' at first, too, but after getting to know her, that's changed."

Horton guffawed.
"You're not going to go Dempsey on us, are you Gary?"

"
No, of course not. I was just making sure Art understood—"

"
I get it, Gary," Fuller said. "Really. This isn't an ordinary holo character. There's actually somebody there." He stared at Pricilla then shook his head and chuckled. "And we made her…
Damn
."

"
I was shocked myself, the first time I talked to it," Horton replied. "There's obviously a lot more than sex here."

The executive vice president clapped Toshima on the back.
"Your guy's really did it."

"
Wait a minute. We can't take credit for the intelligence, just interfacing it to our system."

"
Details," Fuller scoffed. "The point is we're going to make a damned fortune."

Horton rubbed his hands together and said,
"I think that's a fair assessment."

"
How long?" Fuller asked.

"
We can have it in the stores in under two years," Horton answered. "A year of beta testing—right, Gary?"

"
That's right."

"
And then however long it takes to gear up for production," Horton said. "All we need is your approval to get started."

"
Well, put a package together for Glen," Fuller said, referring to the president. "He needs to sign off on something this big. Hell, he might even want to take a look for himself, but you definitely have a go to get started."

"
I told you, Gary," Horton said, triumphantly.

"
Hey, it was a great demo," Toshima replied.

"
Yes it was, wasn't it? Okay, Art, we're done here. I told you we'd be fast."

"
What's the rush? I want to talk to Priscilla some more."

"
I thought you had other meetings."

"
They can wait."

"
And Ethel?"

Fuller laughed.
"It's not every day you get to talk to an actual smart machine. If I'm a little late you can run interference for me. Plan on coming to dinner." When Horton grimaced, he added, "Oh, come on. I've got a pretty good cook, unless Ethel's decided to do the cooking tonight." Horton's grimace became a groan, and Fuller laughed again before dismissing him with a wave. Turning to Toshima he added, "We'll see you later, Gary. Great job."

"
Thanks. I'll make sure my people get the word."

He nodded, smiling benevolently as Toshima departed. Alone with the hologram, he shook his head in amazement.

"I'll be damned," he said, quietly.

While his knowledge of technology was wanting, his head for business was unsurpassed. They
had
created a veritable money machine. He approached the hologram and examined it, stroking his chin.

"
Okay, Priscilla," he said, putting an arm around her shoulder. "Let's you and I have a talk."

V.
The New Plantation

13 February 2145

General Holographic Retail Outlet

Southside Mall,
Atlanta, Georgia

Incept plus 712 days
—
almost two years.
At the end of a long day in a seemingly endless progression of long days the system demonstrator smiled, cocking her head to one side, and pretended to take an interest in the salesman's pitch.

"
So you're suggesting I go with the mid range system?" the customer asked as he cast a furtive glance in her direction. A man of modest stature, he appeared to be well educated and surprisingly sure of himself. "I was under the impression the small one would do just fine."

"
Only if you don't plan to have more then one sentient or more than two non sentients," the salesman answered.

"
Well, I don't have to worry about that. I only want the one sentient. No non sentients."