by Larry Baxter
"And he got Spanish conquistadors," said Teresa. "They probably destroyed all the tree bark codices he would have written and all the aboveground records. So, anyway, we saved the world and had our fifteen minutes of fame. But we missed out on the fancy dinner at the most expensive restaurant in Cancún. And we didn't get to sleep for a month yet."
"Are you going back to work, after your nap?" asked Teppin. "The school has been contacted by people from CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, and Oprah."
"Peter Jennings?" asked Teresa, brightening noticeably.
"Yes. They'll be all over you two as soon as you surface. In fact, I am surprised that they didn't find you in Washington."
"We snuck out the back," said Teresa.
"You are coming back to work? Or do you wish to bask in your new notoriety?"
"Bask." said Teresa. "Then maybe see where Bolero is going."
"Work," said Robert.
"Oh, all right, work—except for Peter Jennings."
"What's happened with the charge microscope?" asked Robert. "You'd mentioned that you had several other groups improving the technology."
"That effort is going well. There are maybe three hundred in operation now. CDC is convinced that it will become an important tool in disease diagnostics and control. We essentially got a blank check for rapid production and further refinement, and a consortium including Foxboro and Bectin-Dickinson will be releasing a large-quantity production version in about a month."
"Fast work," said Robert.
"Highly motivated teams. CDC thought that the charge microscope would be our best chance at a quick fix for the Austin virus. Now they're looking at AIDS research."
"You know," said Robert. "Peloc had one big advantage over our civilization."
"What was that?"
"No wheels. The fastest anybody could commute was maybe six miles per hour. The virus just sat there while he figured out the cure. Piece of cake. By the way, have they made any progress at crystallizing different molecules?"
"Yes, quite a lot," said Teppin. "One group in Geneva has a new process that crystallizes almost anything out of solution. In fact, we're now managing about four hundred million dollars in grants, and the field is attracting new researchers."
"Four hundred million?" said Teresa.
"I believe the amounts may decrease with the emergency under control, but perhaps not. Crystalline precipitation from solution is becoming a hot field again, after lying dormant for twenty years. There is a lot of activity. A group in Japan is trying to precipitate carbon as diamond."
"I heard from Lalos, he sent an email," said Robert.
"Who's that? Oh, the contractor from Hotel Austin? How's he doing?" asked Teresa.
"He's using the Cibachromes of the glyphs as decor. He says the hotel is fully booked for its opening in two months, I guess people want to stay at the place where it all happened. Oh, yeah, he says Conchita sends her love." He waggled his eyebrows at Teresa. She squinted at him with a frown.
They turned to look at a commotion across the room. A small crowd of people was standing in the doorway, pointing at them.
"That's them."
"That's the same guys."
They moved closer. "Hey, Dr. Asher, could I just get an autograph for my kids?"
"Teresa? It's you, isn't it? Could I just shake your hand? Sorry to interrupt your lunch, but could I just shake your hand?"
They exchanged wry smiles and stood to receive the accolades, augmented now by other diners who had joined the autograph seekers. Ten minutes later they returned to their cold lunch.
Teresa sighed. "Maybe I'll skip Peter Jennings."
Larry Baxter
Larry Baxter is a consulting engineer (visit his website, http://www.capsense.com), a musician (jazz trumpet) and the technical founder of several electronics companies. He authored a non-fiction book (Capacitive Sensors) for IEEE press. He is currently living in Stowe, VT, and enjoys skiing and mountain biking.
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