George and the Unbreakable Code

by Stephen Hawking

  George peered out of the tree house. Not a single streetlamp or house (apart from his own), office, or restaurant was lit up. The whole town was in darkness.

  “Seriously?” he said. “We are the only house in Foxbridge with power?” In other houses, lights were now gradually going on, but they were dim—the flickering glow of candles rather than the blaze of electric lightbulbs. “What’s happening, Annie?” He turned to her in the darkness. “What’s going on?”

  WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THE LIGHTS WENT OUT?

  What would it be like if all the lights suddenly went out? Can you imagine living in darkness because there was no more electricity? Imagine if you had to go to bed when the sun went down—in some parts of the northern hemisphere, you would be tucked up by 4 p.m. in the winter! Astronomers might be thrilled that a lack of electric light would mean no light pollution spoiling their view of the night sky—but they might find day-to-day life a bit trickier than usual!

  Why we might lose power

  There are all sorts of reasons why a huge power outage could strike the Earth.

  • Terrorist acts—or events in a war—could knock out power stations.

  • We are likely to face problems with supplies as more and more people on Earth want to use lots and lots of electricity.

  • Already, bad weather on Earth also regularly causes thousands of homes to lose their power supply.

  The importance of the Sun

  But it’s not just Earth weather that could make your home go dark—experts now think that space weather could drastically affect our electricity supply over the next few years. We get our light, of course, from our Sun. But the Sun can also disturb our weather. A Coronal Mass Ejection (CME)—when the Sun throws out a great bolt of solar matter and energy—can cause magnetic storms or a rise in radiation levels. These can disrupt electrical power grids and radio communications on Earth.

  CMEs happen most often during a solar maximum—the time of greatest solar activity during the Sun’s eleven-year cycle. Scientists who study the Sun believe that the Earth is in a solar maximum between 2013 and 2015. This is great for viewing the Northern Lights, a spectacular nighttime show of colored lights in the northern sky, caused by electrons and protons from the solar wind interacting with gas in the atmosphere. But the solar maximum could cause problems on Earth with our power supplies.

  So … what might life be like if the lights went out?

  Light

  Human beings existed on the Earth long before the invention of the electric lightbulb! So we should be fine without electric light. We could light our homes with candles or lamps. Modern technology has also provided us with battery-or solar-powered lamps that we could use during a power outage. But we would have far less light than we are used to once the sun has set. And we would have to be careful not to run down our supplies, especially if we had no idea how long the power outage might last.

  Heat

  Many of us rely on electricity for warmth. Even people with gas boilers, which need electricity to ignite, would find themselves with no heat in their homes. Many of us use electricity to cook—so we’d have to think again about how to make a hot meal. And keeping food fresh, even in cold temperatures, would become a challenge without a working refrigerator or freezer. With a wood-burning stove and plenty of logs, we could huddle around it to keep warm. We would have to wear more clothes and go to bed much earlier… .

  Water

  You might not have any water at all! And even if you did still have running water, very quickly that water would not be clean enough to drink. Without electricity, the vast water purification plants and sewage plants would stop working. So you would have to filter and then boil water before it became pure enough to drink. You would have to heat water to wash yourself and your clothes—which you would have to do by hand, as machines won’t be working.

  Entertainment

  We could play Scrabble (the board game, not the online version) by flashlight, wearing our winter coats, sitting around a wood or coal fire in the evenings, eating canned food that we’ve heated up over the fire! But we wouldn’t be able to watch television or play computer games. Your cell phone would lose its charge quite fast, unless you have a solar-powered charger. You might be able to use the landline, as the telephone system’s grid is diffferent from the electric grid. And if you have a windup radio, you could listen to it, which would be a good way of getting news and updates.

  Life without electricity would be very different for most people on Earth! How do you think your life would change if electricity didn’t flow at the flick of a switch?

  “I don’t know … ,” she said, looking very serious. “But I don’t like it. That robot on the Moon as well … What was it? And who did it belong to?”

  “That was so not good!” said George. “It wasn’t friendly, that’s for sure. And it was superweird that it seemed to want me. Why would a robot want me? I’m just a kid! And who—or what—is IAM, and what is it doing in space?”

  “Cosmos said something after you went home,” said Annie. “That’s what I wanted to tell you… . The mission report for our space trip came up on his screen—good job Dad had already left! Anyway, it showed that I’d been on a spacewalk. But when it came to you, it didn’t list you as George Greenby. The report said that Eric Bellis had been in space.”

  “Because I was wearing your dad’s suit, it looked like he’d been into space, right?” said George. “Like I said in the first place.”

  “Yup,” said Annie. “But get this—even Cosmos didn’t seem to realize it wasn’t Dad. So if anyone was watching through Cosmos’s system, they would have seen that Eric Bellis went into space.”

  “So when the robot fixed its sights on me,” George mused, “it was actually after your dad? We need to tell him!”

  “Yeah, but how?” asked Annie. “How we can do that? He’s told us not to use any communication devices.”

  “He said he would only be gone for a few hours”—George sounded doubtful—“so perhaps when he gets back, we can tell him then?”

  “If he hasn’t been captured by a mad ‘IAM’ robot in the meantime,” Annie muttered darkly.

  “Perhaps the robots can’t come to Earth,” said George. “Perhaps they are only allowed to live on the Moon; that means they can’t get your dad, provided he doesn’t go into space… .”

  “But we don’t know that! You’re just making stuff up now!” Annie argued. “And anyway, who put those robots on the Moon in the first place?”

  George puffed out his cheeks. “Who is doing this?”

  “And how is Dad going to find out who it is if we don’t tell him what we know?” said Annie. “That the Moon is now home to some super-angry robots who want to kidnap him. They must be operated by some kind of technical genius—just the sort of person who might mess around with all the computer systems on Earth. Don’t you think that’s a pretty vital clue, as far as Dad is concerned?”

  “Yes, I do!” George wondered why he felt like he was arguing with Annie, when in fact he agreed with her.

  “Then that’s who we need to find,” said Annie in a determined voice. “We need to find out who owns those robots, in case it’s the same person who’s hacking into systems on Earth. We can’t contact Dad to tell him to follow up on IAM, so we’ll have to do it ourselves.”

  At that moment they heard another screech from George’s house. The Moon had now risen behind the roof, where Terence stood outlined against the glowing white orb. George reflected that even more people would now think there were werewolves about!

  “Ouch!” Terence was crying. “Ouch, ouch, ouch!” Suddenly they heard a wail from inside the house as George’s sisters were woken by the commotion.

  Annie peered out of the tree house at Terence. “What is he doing?”

  “I think he must have hit his thumb again,” said George. “I’d better go.”

  “Tomorrow, George … ,” Annie told him. “Tomorrow, we have to sort out a plan. I don
’t know how much worse things can get, but I don’t really want to find out, do you?”

  George nodded. Annie was right: they couldn’t just leave this situation in the hope that Eric would work it out and save the day. Eric didn’t have all the right information—he knew nothing about the robots on the Moon or their attempts to capture him, or that they bore the IAM insignia—the same marking George had seen on the mysterious spaceship he had accidentally photographed. And if Eric didn’t know that a scary robot was on his trail, it might be far too easy to catch him. George couldn’t let that happen—not on his space watch, anyway… .

  The next day Annie appeared, bright and early, at George’s back door, carrying a laptop bag messenger-style across her chest. But she wasn’t alone. Behind her lurked Ebot, a benevolent smile on his robot face. He seemed to be wearing a space suit and was carrying a space helmet under one robot arm.

  “Oh! Come in, Annie,” said Daisy, opening the back door. She was much more subdued than usual. “Come in, Eric! Eric … ?” She looked startled. “Is that really your dad? Why is he wearing a space suit?” she whispered to Annie. “And why does he look so odd? He looks rather … plastic!”

  It was still quiet in George’s house: he was eating breakfast with his mother while the twins slept on upstairs after their disturbed night.

  “Hi, Annie!” said George, who was still in his pajamas. “Hi, Ebot!”

  “No, it’s a personalized robot that Dad customized to look like himself,” Annie explained. “But he’s very convincing—I just took him for a walk to the end of the road and back. A couple of people said ‘Hi, Eric!’ as they passed. Mind you, everyone was in a massive hurry! So many people are rushing around this morning. Can we put on your radio, Mrs. G.? We haven’t got any power at my house, so we can’t check the Internet or anything. Nothing is working!”

  “What about your experiments in the refrigerator?” asked George. “Are they going to be wrecked if they warm up?”

  “Probably,” said Annie sadly. “Some of them have definitely died already. But one of them seems to be growing even faster than before. It’s not very nice—the refrigerator looks pretty yucky inside already.”

  Ebot looked around the room, still smiling pleasantly, and then pulled out a chair and sat down.

  George’s dad arrived, looking pleased with himself. He stroked his beard, one thumb now heavily bandaged. “Well, young Annie,” he exclaimed, “we are one of the few power spots in Foxbridge now. I know your father didn’t think much of my homemade wind generator, but at least we still have electricity.”

  George was already winding up the radio. “We don’t even need power to get the radio working,” he said smugly as he turned the handle and then flipped the switch.

  “There are worldwide food shortages,” came the radio newscaster’s voice. “A complete breakdown in the travel network after airlines accidentally gave away flights for free, combined with a sudden upsurge in the availability of cash globally, have meant that supermarket prices have risen sharply while their stocks have fallen. Reports of hopeful shoppers arriving with wheelbarrows of money to try to buy a sack of potatoes or a loaf of bread …”

  Daisy and Terence looked meaningfully at each other.

  “… have resulted in fierce fighting over meager supplies as hoarders attempt to buy up all remaining food stocks in case of a worsening situation over the next few days.”

  “Daisy,” said George’s dad urgently, “what about all our produce at the cooperative?”

  “Breakins at food warehouses,” continued the announcer, as though answering Terence’s question, “have become common: supermarkets and shops are emptying too fast to provide enough food in these increasingly desperate times. But government officials have begged people not to panic. Blaming an as yet unexplained series of computer glitches worldwide, the Prime Minister has appealed for calm and told the public that she is working with other governments and expects the networks to be restored within the next twenty-four hours. However, in some locations, community leaders have joined together to provide food and shelter for people in need. Safe houses are being set up in schools, churches, and mosques, and local people are trying to help each other deal with this crisis. A group of young people, separated from their parents and unable to get home, have started their own refuge—our reporter is with them but, for reasons of safety, cannot reveal where they are located—”

  At that moment the bulletin was interrupted as a new voice, completely unrelated to the broadcast, emerged from the radio.

  “I am coming to save you … ,” it said.

  The hairs on the back of George’s neck stood up as a chill ran rapidly down his spine.

  “I am the answer… . I am giving you what you need… . I am your salvation… . I am …”

  As abruptly as it had started, the voice disappeared and the radio news started again. But George and Annie were both mesmerized by the interruption to the broadcast. What did it mean? And where had it come from?

  “Apologies for the break in service,” the news reader resumed, sounding a little panicky now. “We have no idea where or whom that transmission came from. We now have an official message from the National Broadcasting Service—please do NOT come to our offices! We do not have much power left from our generator! We have closed our doors now and will not be admitting anyone to the premises. Please do not try to force the doors—we will not be opening them! We don’t have any more—”

  The broadcast stopped very suddenly, breaking the spell that had been gluing George and Annie to their seats. George grabbed the radio and wound it up again, but there was nothing to hear on the airwaves.

  “Daisy,” said Terence urgently, “we must get to the cooperative and collect the food supplies that we delivered there yesterday. We have to get our own food back again—we’re going to need it! We should go now, before people break in and take everything!”

  “What about the kids?” said Daisy. “Shouldn’t I stay here with them? What about finding a safe house and taking our food there? Shouldn’t we do that?”

  “You and I will get the food,” Terence insisted. “Then we’ll look for a safe house, and then we’ll come home to get the kids. Otherwise we won’t have enough in the house to survive until the crisis is sorted out.”

  “Annie, where are your parents?” asked Daisy.

  “Dad’s with the PM,” replied Annie. “And Mom went out really early to stock up at the supermarket—but she went ages ago, so she’ll be back soon, I’m sure.”

  “Can you two look after the little ones while we dash out?” said Daisy.

  Terence was collecting canvas bags so that they could carry their own food back from the cooperative where it was now stored.

  George was thinking about what they had just heard on the radio. There was a clue in those strange statements—the ones that had interrupted the broadcast—he was certain of it.

  “Of course!” said Annie, kicking George.

  “What? Oh yes! Of course.”

  “No time to lose, Daisy.” Terence was halfway out the door already. “Let’s go!”

  With that, George’s parents disappeared into the outside world, leaving George, Annie, and Ebot alone in the kitchen.

  As soon as they heard the front door close, Annie reached into her messenger bag and produced a silver laptop.

  “That’s Cosmos!” said George. It always surprised him how ordinary the little computer looked. “What’s he doing here?”

  “There’s no electricity next door,” said Annie. “He needs to be charged up, so I brought him over. Anyway, I thought he might be useful. I am thinking—”

  “Stop!” cried George. “Say that again!”

  “There’s no electricity next door … ,” Annie repeated slowly.

  “No, the next bit!”

  “I thought he might—”

  “NO! The next thing …”

  “I am thinking—”

  “I AM!” cried George, having a eurek
a moment.

  “You’re what?” said Annie, totally confused now.

  “I AM … like the weird interruption to the radio broadcast,” said George. “I am your salvation. It’s the same as IAM on the spaceship. It’s the link.”

  “I-A-M,” said Annie. “It’s not an acro-thingy. It’s ‘I AM’!”

  “But what does it mean? We still don’t know!”

  “No,” said Annie. “But we do know that I AM is in space. And we think that an I AM robot may have tried to capture you when you were wearing Dad’s space suit on the Moon. And now we know from the radio that I AM thinks that he is giving everyone on Earth what they need. Which means …”

  “Which means … ,” said George, trying to piece it together, “that we guessed right! Someone in space called I AM is messing around with all the computer systems on Earth.”

  “Hang on—all that stuff is encrypted,” said Annie. “It wouldn’t be possible for someone to just walk into absolutely every system on the planet … would it? Unless …”

  “Unless they had a quantum computer,” finished George.

  “Ohmigod!” said Annie. “Are you saying that I AM—whoever that is—has made a quantum computer?”

  “Maybe. So what are we going to do? How are we going to find I AM? We can’t just go into space to look for him—the universe is infinite! We’ll never find him. Or her. Or it. Or whatever I AM really is.”

  “I’ve got an idea,” said Annie. “Ebot—right? He’s like Dad—right? According to Dad, certain technological systems wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between him and Ebot. So if I AM was fooled into thinking that Dad was you when you were wearing his suit, Ebot could easily pass as Dad—at least, well enough to send a robot army after him. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want these bots to trace Dad to Earth and kidnap him—the one we saw didn’t look at all nice to me.”

  “No, it didn’t. But how would we do that? How would we use Ebot as an Eric decoy?” asked George,

  “We send Ebot into space!” said Annie triumphantly. “There’s a good chance—or at least a chance—that I AM will think he’s Dad and use a robot to pick him up!”