Lemuria

by Burt Clinchandhill

  “Anywhere you can watch the screen.”

  Jennifer walked in and glanced at the sticky notes on the walls. Most of them were filled with chemical formulas and abbreviations she had never seen before.

  “Don’t mind the walls.” Mulder smiled. “Sometimes I’m tempted to look at them, but I don’t understand ninety percent of them. I’m an engineer so....”

  Jennifer sat down at the end of the table, as far away from the gigantic screen as she could. Sitting too close to the television or behind a computer screen often gave her headaches.

  Mulder sat halfway down the table.

  In front of each seat was a computer screen and a keyboard placed on the table. Mulder switched his screen on, pressed some keys, and the big screen came on. “Thank you for coming in. I’m glad you could make it. As I understand, we’re not far away from your home?”

  “It’s my mother’s home where I’m staying since my discharge from the hospital.” She tapped her fingers on the table. “Actually, I’m kind of curious as to why you brought me here.”

  “Okay, sure, I’m sorry. Where to start? Um... Let me start by saying I read all your work on linguistic anthropology and was especially intrigued by your work on the future of Artificial Intelligence.”

  “Thank you,” Jennifer replied.

  “I personally believe you were absolutely right when you said that evolution equals extinction. That with every major upgrade, the older version is obsolete. So, I’ve become convinced that evolution of a more advanced AI needs to be carefully introduced. I believe you also pointed out that human evolution in the past always went side by side, at an equal pace, with technological evolution. I agree with you when you say that this equilibrium threatens to get out of sync. Technology will not only catch up with us but will surpass us if we’re not careful. What did you call it again? AI evolution is at its infancy, but is snowballing?”

  Jennifer nodded and frowned, not sure where this was going.

  “Almost there,” he assured her. “I believe you’re right on all accounts, but there’s more. I’m also convinced that we can harness the power of AI if—and that’s a big if—we can get technological and human evolution in sync again.”

  Jennifer shifted to the front of her seat, leaned forward and folded her hands on the table. “What are you talking about?”

  “You said it yourself. Humankind and the human body adapted to the circumstances throughout history. I believe we simply need to do so again. Once we’re able to make a computer as smart as we are, it won’t take long before it outsmarts us, so we need to develop other skills to deal with that situation.”

  “How?”

  “That’s the big question, isn’t it?” Mulder paused for a long moment. “Let me ask you this. Have you ever theorized about what would be the next step in human evolution if we were to let nature run its course?”

  “Sure,” Jennifer replied. “What scientist that ever theorized about evolution, hasn’t also thought about where humanity is going, and what we will grow into?”

  “Well, there are still a lot of people and scientists who don’t believe in evolution so....”

  “True, but even so.”

  “All right, well, suppose there was a way to know what the next steps in human evolution would be.” Mulder's eyes now pierced Jennifer’s. He fell silent again and gave a full, closed smile.

  Jennifer narrowed her eyes as she tilted her head. “You’re saying...? You have...?”

  Mulder laughed softly. “Do I have your attention now?”

  Jennifer nodded.

  “But no, not yet. Or not yet completely.”

  ***

  As the automatic doors opened to let De Cremonese out of the building, Lea called out behind him. “Have a nice day.” The avatar sounded enthusiastic.

  Without looking back, he swung one arm in the air and called out, “You too.” He stepped onto the curb and looked left and right for a taxi. “Taxi,” he called out then whistled on his fingers when he saw a cab turn the corner of Prospect and Trumbull Streets. When the cab stopped, he crossed the otherwise empty street and climbed into the back. As the cabby set the car in motion, he felt his cellphone vibrate in his pocket.

  “Where to?” the cabby asked.

  He quickly took the phone from his pocket. Unknown caller. He pressed the green button. “One moment please,” he said into the phone and then addressed the cabby. “800 Whitney Avenue.”

  “No problem. Thank you, sir,” the cabby replied.

  “Yes, I’m back,” De Cremonese said into his phone.

  “Hi. I’m sorry to call you unannounced. My name is Amie Coleman. I work for Eldin Mulder. Do you have a moment?”

  “No problem. As a matter of fact, I just left Mr. Mulder’s office at the Logynous Lab location in New Haven.”

  “I know. I was there too, in the office next to you when you met.”

  “And what is it you do for Mr. Mulder?”

  “I’m his personal assistant. Again, I’m sorry to bother you, but please hear me out. I couldn’t help overhearing your concerns about some of Mr. Mulder’s enterprises of late.” Amie fell silent for a moment.

  De Cremonese wondered if she was waiting for him to confirm, but he kept quiet.

  “Are you still there?” she asked after a long moment.

  “I am,” was De Cremonese’s only response.

  “You don’t have to confirm,” Amie said, “but I could tell you have similar concerns, and I fear for Eldin’s... um, Mr. Mulder’s well-being, should he continue in this way. You must understand that as his assistant and confidant, there aren’t many people I can share these concerns with so....”

  “And what do you expect of me, Ms. Coleman?”

  “Please call me Amie. You see, since you’re a priest, I figured maybe I could share my concerns and maybe even get some advice.”

  “I’m a priest, but I’m also a scientist, ma’am. Generally, I don’t take confessions, and I have a problem talking behind people’s backs.”

  “Even if it can save their life and possibly the lives of hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of others?”

  They both stayed silent for a long moment.

  After a minute or so, De Cremonese said, “What do you suggest?”

  “Maybe we can meet.”

  “When?”

  “Today, maybe later this afternoon. I can leave here around five.”

  De Cremonese thought for a moment. “Do you know the Three Sheets on Elm Street?”

  “I do. See you at five,” Amie said, followed by a click and silence.

  De Cremonese looked at his phone for a second. Weird.

  ***

  “Let me explain,” Mulder said. “Lea, show me map E1, please.”

  “Just a moment.” Lea appeared on the screen for a moment, followed by a map of the world.

  “You see those red dots?” Mulder moved his laser pointer over the screen from Bolivia, Colombia and Venezuela in South America to the Congo in Africa and India. “Any ideas?”

  “Not yet.”

  “Each of those red dots represents uncontacted people—indigenous people or tribes—that have lived in isolation all their lives and never had any contact with modern men or women. There are over a hundred.”

  Jennifer nodded slowly.

  “You see where I’m going with this?”

  “I think so,” Jennifer answered. “It’s assumed that our evolution more or less stopped because there are no more real challenges. Those isolated tribes, however, still face those challenges we did thousands of years ago.”

  “Exactly,” Mulder confirmed. “So, if you want to observe evolution in actual progress, where better to look for it than....”

  “Sure.” Jennifer curled one corner of her mouth. “But what would you look for, and how would you do that in a non-evasive way?”

  “There are ways, and we’ve been doing it.” Mulder pushed a key on the keyboard, and on the screen, a handful of red dots turned green
. “Those are the first five locations where we started our study over two years ago.”

  Jennifer leaned back again, her hands palms up in front of her. “How?”

  “As I said, we’ve developed procedures. Basically, we observe and, when possible, take samples from feces and other trash wherever we can find it without interfering.”

  “I gather this isn’t public knowledge?”

  “It isn’t,” Mulder agreed. “Although we have permits in place at the local official communities, I’ve also decided not to go public with any of this at the time.”

  “Why not?”

  “To be honest, there simply would be too much debate, too much negative publicity. That would slow down my progress and have a negative impact on my other endeavors.”

  “And that would have a negative influence on your commercial activities.”

  Mulder smiled. “I like your directness. And, of course, you’re right. But it’s also simple. Without my commercial activities, I wouldn’t be able to do my research.”

  Mulder’s words sounded sincere, yet she felt uneasy, a discomfort she couldn’t describe to herself. “All right, I understand,” she said after a short silence. “But why tell me?”

  “There’s one more thing you need to know. I told you we assumed evolution in modern men has come to a standstill.”

  Jennifer nodded again.

  “Look at this.” On the big screen, the image changed to a cross-section of a brain with small parts lit up alternately in green, blue and red.

  “You see?” Mulder asked. “This is an MRI cross-section of a brain of a person who is asleep. All the glowing parts come from a geodesic sensor net’s overlay. They are brain cells that fire up when this person has a dream. Without dreaming, we wouldn’t see many colors.”

  “A net like the one I was wearing in the hospital?” Jennifer asked.

  “Same thing.”

  “Okay, go on.” Jennifer looked at her watch.

  “You need to be somewhere?”

  “No,” Jennifer said, opening her hands. “Please go on.”

  “I’m sorry. But it’s a lot of information, so please hang on for a few moments longer.” He pointed the laser pointer at the screen again. “You see this here, the structure just below the frontal lobe, on top of the nasal cavity?” He pointed to two small green glowing stripes straight between the eyes.

  “What’s that?” Jennifer asked curiously.

  “That’s a good question. One that had many medical professionals stumped for some time now. You see, that part of the brain shouldn’t be lit up. It never did before. In humans, that is. In animals—like dogs, monkeys and snakes—however, it’s quite different. It’s called the vomeronasal organ, or VNO. An accessory olfactory organ. It was first discovered in the seventeenth century by Dutchman Frederik Ruysch, but it’s more associated with Danish surgeon Ludwig Jacobson, who described the structure in mammals a century later, and gave it its popular name, the Jacobson’s organ.”

  “What does it do?”

  “That’s an even better question, and one that’s been up for debate with scientists for many years. In humans, it’s kind of like an appendix of the brain. It’s there but doesn’t seem to do anything. Not anymore, that is. Or, that’s what we thought until this brain scan showed the organ lit up like a Christmas tree. But generally, in humans, the VNO lacks sensory neurons and nerve fibers. At some point, the genes coding the receptor proteins and ionic channels mutated and made it nonfunctional in humans. In animals, however, the VNO is functional and secretes the hormone gonadotropin. This hormone plays a role in the formation of social and sexual behavior.”

  “They smell attraction?”

  “It’s always hard to ask animals, but it’s generally believed that animals use the VNO to communicate things like readiness for sexual activity, how they feel, aggression and territoriality. They call that chemoreception.”

  “So essentially, it’s a form of communication without talking?”

  “Yes.” Mulder clapped his hands. “I believe it’s precisely that. And that would also explain why it’s nonfunctional in humans. We humans have learned to communicate in many other ways. We have gestures, speech and writing, so somewhere during evolution, our Jacobson’s organ shut down.” Mulder’s face brightened, and his eyes shined. “Wouldn’t it be something if we could get back some of our primordial instincts and capabilities? Could that possibly help us to start evolving again?”

  “Big questions,” Jennifer concluded. “And what about the person on the scan? Is he showing signs of chemoreception?”

  Mulder took a deep breath. “I don’t know. You tell me?”

  Jennifer’s face contorted as she felt a shiver start in her neck, move through her shoulders, then rolled down her spine, all the way down to her toes.

  Mulder simply shook his head. “I’m sorry.” He paused for a moment. “But, if I am really truthful, I have to admit I am not.”

  “Not what?” Jennifer asked, still getting her thoughts together.

  “I’m not sorry. I mean, you agreed to an experimental treatment at the hospital, and of all the things that could have happened, I think this isn’t one of the bad ones.”

  “Wait, what? Wait for a second. Back up, please.” Jennifer waved her hands in the air. “Two questions first. Do you mean to tell me this is from the treatment at the hospital? And, if so, why am I talking to you about it, and not with a doctor?”

  “Fair enough. Let me explain the first question. Yes, we are quite positive this happened to you because of the treatment in the hospital. Of course, we didn’t know this would happen. The modified G2 quiescent stem cells that were injected into your brain seem to have done more than we anticipated. We believe the modified stem cells identified the non-functional vomeronasal organ as a defect and repaired it. It’s quite amazing when you think about it.”

  “And the second question?” Jennifer asked, still working on grasping what Mulder was revealing.

  “Logynous Labs is one of the hospital’s primary benefactors, and we especially sponsor the Center for Genomic Medicine. More specifically, we sponsored the research done for the G2 quiescent stem cell therapy you received. When you signed the waiver for the experimental therapy, you also gave permission to share the results with us. And since you’re physically healthy, I asked the hospital to be the one to tell you about this.”

  Jennifer shook her head a couple of times like a dog recovering from a bump on the head.

  “Listen,” Mulder continued. “This doesn’t have to be a bad thing.”

  “Third question,” Jennifer said as if she didn’t hear him.

  “Sure.”

  “What does this mean?”

  “To be honest, we don’t know. You were the first to get the treatment, so there’s no precedent. We don’t know what will happen or how this will develop. The hospital checked you out a couple of times over the past few weeks and, physically, you’re fine. But more important, perhaps, is how you feel. Do you feel any different?”

  Jennifer searched her mind for a long moment. “I don’t think so.” She paused. “Perhaps there were a few moments where I felt different... emotionally. I think I might have blamed the whole experience of getting sick. I’m not sure.”

  “Well, maybe it’s something, maybe it’s nothing. We can’t be sure.”

  “So, what now?” A combination of fear and anger boiled up inside her. “I’m not planning on becoming one of your lab rats.”

  “No worries.” Mulder tried to use his most reassuring voice. “In fact, I have what I think to be quite an attractive proposition for you.”

  Jennifer winced. “A proposition?”

  “Yes, and before you say no, please think about it. Now, I could ask you to make yourself available for tests from time to time and possibly even pay you for it, but I think I have a better proposition. I will leave the country soon for an expedition across the globe.”

  “An expedition,” Jennifer sputtered w
hen Mulder fell silent.

  “Yes. You know I told you about our research with the isolated tribes?”

  Jennifer nodded, reluctant.

  “Well, I’m planning to visit my researchers in the field, witness the research firsthand and collect information about the evolutionary development at the sites. So, we’re going to visit each of the five locations for a few days and be back in no time. I would like you to join me.”

  Jennifer’s face turned from pink to white and back. “What? Why?”

  “Think about it. It’s a win-win proposition. A team of medical experts is going to be around all the time who can follow your progress and act if needed. I get to witness your progress firsthand should anything happen, and you get to see how evolution develops in humans. Information you can use for your own studies.”

  Mulder switched off his computer and leaned back as the big screen powered down. Except for the humming of the air conditioning, the room was silent for a long two minutes.

  Mulder broke the silence. “So, what do you think?”

  “To be honest? I don’t know if I can trust you.”

  Mulder took a deep breath. “I understand. And trust isn’t something anyone can give you. You need to feel it in your heart and soul. No problem. Listen, can I at least convince you to think about?”

  “Where to first?”

  “Excuses me?”

  “Where were you planning to go first? What country?”

  Chapter 18 – The Theater

  Granite Bay, CA, The Present

  A silver Buick Verano snaked its way through the Granite Bay Forest. De Cremonese followed the narrow road and wondered if he was still on the right track. The last sign that showed him to the Logynous headquarters had been a few miles back, but to his knowledge, he hadn’t missed an exit. “How far is it to my destination?” he asked his phone, clipped to the dash.

  The GPS map on the screen disappeared, and the Lea avatar materialized. “You are less than one mile away from your destination.”

  In the email invitation he received for the meeting today, he had clicked on a link that automatically installed an app on his phone. Seconds later, Lea had appeared and introduced herself as his personal assistant who would help him with everything regarding this meeting. If he wanted, she would book his flight, reserve a hotel nearby, and arrange a rental car—with or without a chauffeur—to get to the location. All he had to do was ask. Although he usually liked to be in control, this time he was fascinated by the technology. He had asked Lea if she would arrange a rental car for him. The only thing she’d asked was if he wanted a fully autonomous driving car, or if he would prefer to drive himself. When he confirmed he’d like to drive himself, she confirmed his choice of vehicle, based on the history she found about De Cremonese on the Internet in social media posts, blogs and interviews. When he got off the plane at McClellan Airport, his phone had automatically switched on. Lea had pointed him from the terminal to the car waiting for him in front of the building. She’d told him the keys would be behind the visor. Until now, he’d been quite impressed by all that intelligence in technology, but now he was developing serious doubts as the trees began to crowd the narrow road. Was he still on the right track? Then he passed a small cabin with a sign that read, ‘Welcome to Logynous.’