Some Things Should Be Better
Left Unknown
By
Mario V. Farina
Copyright 2016 Mario V. Farina
All Rights Reserved
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Mario V. Farina
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[email protected] From what I had seen on the screen, I had thought that I would not survive the attack. Thankfully, I did. At that time, I felt well enough to write this account of what had happened.
After months of preparation, the moment of truth had arrived. I sat at the workstation in my study and turned the swivel chair so that it faced the TV which was set on a small table about six feet away. On the table, to the right of the TV, was a large office clock with a sweep-second hand. There was a twin of this clock on the wall to my left. Both clocks were set to exactly the same time. At my back, high up on the wall, was a video camera that looked at my back and at the table in front of me.
In the foot well of my large desk was a conglomeration of electronic devices loosely connected with a messy array of wires, gears, and cables. Some of the cables were connected to a PC on the desk. A dozen small devices that I had invented, force sensors of various kinds, were located around the circumference of the stalk that held the video camera upfront near the lens. I had named this assortment of parts, Force Sensing Equipment (FSE).
I turned on the FSE by flipping a toggle, then used a TV remote to turn on the set. I stared at the screen intently as it came to life. The image showed me staring at the TV on the table in front of me. It also showed the time on the large clock on the same table. The screen did not show the time on the wall clock. After about a minute had passed, I detected what I had expected to see. The time showing on the TVs screen and the time showing on the wall clock were different. After another minute or two, it became clear that the time showing on the screen was changing at a rate about fifty percent faster than the time on the wall clock. This meant that the TV was showing what was going to happen in the future.
I continued to scrutinize the screen for about five minutes. The image gradually turned grainy, and, slowly, it became unclear. The computer had reached the limit of its ability to forecast the future. I turned off both the FSE and the TV. Everything had gone about as I had expected, but the equipment was much too slow. I need a speed of at least four times what I had witnessed. More computer power was needed. Despite the fact that my funds were limited, I was able to purchase another PC within a few days. With another machine, the analysis of forces could be shared between them. I planned the next test for some time during the coming month.
A word about myself: My name is James Morton. I'm a retired Professor of Physics from Fulton College in Brooklyn. I'm in my late 60s and in excellent health. For the last several months, I have been working on the system that I call FSE.
FSE was intended to forecast the future by evaluating current existing forces in the immediate area. The principle is simple. At any given time, all the forces that are extant in a given area pre-determine the future. If the computer knows what those forces are, it is theoretically possible for it to exactly predict the future. The human mind is capable of making predictions to a limited degree. All of us have that ability! The problem is that humans don't know everything that is happening around us. The better the forces are known, the better the accuracy. That's where the sensors and the computers come in. Carried to an extreme, if all the forces in the universe were known, all future events could be predicted with absolute accuracy.
FSE couldn't possibly know everything about the local forces, but it could know enough to forecast the future several minutes, maybe more, into the unknown.
Because of my age, I had been required to retire from my position at the college. But I wasn't ready to quit working. I felt that investigating the ability of a computer to predict the future could be a useful project with which I could occupy my mind. Eventually, I felt, others could take over my work from where I have left off.
One computer had worked well; two should do much better. My apartment was located at the intersection of Stanley and Livingstone in Brooklyn. It was about two in the morning. I turned the camera so that it looked out the window to the street twelve stories below. Next, I flipped a toggle to turn on the FSE and used the remote to turn on the TV. Much to my pleasure, I estimated that my view of the activity on the street was coursing at about four times faster than normal. The scene on the screen was rapidly advancing a great deal into the future. It was very dark, but lights from passing autos could easily be observed.
After watching the passage of cars for about fifteen minutes, I approximated that what I was looking at on the screen was occurring about an hour into the future. Then, an extraordinary thing happened. A large semi arrived below, stopped, then backed to a large overhead door of the Walmart warehouse at the intersection. The headlights were kept burning. A tall, thickset man hopped from the truck and opened the warehouse door. Three other men joined him and the group began carrying pieces of furniture from the warehouse to the truck.
Feeling that a theft was in progress, I turned to my desk, picked up the phone, and dialed zero. I asked for the police department.
"Hello," I said. "I believe there may be a robbery in progress at Stanley and Livingstone – at the big Walmart warehouse."
"Who's this?"
Rather than answer, I hung up. Then I turned my attention to the screen. After several minutes, numerous police vans arrived. At least a dozen officers jumped from the vehicles and dashed into the building. After a few minutes, they came out with the four individuals, who were now in handcuffs. The screen began to get blurry, then snowy. The scene ended.
I turned off the FSE and the TV; walked to the window and looked out. I waited for about an hour. My expectation was realized. What I had seen on the screen of the TV began to happen. The truck that I had seen on the screen appeared and the robbery began. In the midst of this activity, the police arrived and apprehended the thieves. I had been the one who had called the police. I had witnessed a portion of the future, and had taken an action that had changed the outcome.
I was on the right track but still needed more power. During the next several days, maxing out my credit cards, I purchased and installed two more PCs. Then I prepared for the next test. Because of the newly installed power, I should be able to see much further into the future.
It was about nine o'clock in the evening. I started the FSE and the TV. The camera was pointing into my study as it had during the first test. As I examined the clock, I could see that it was racing ahead, probably eight fold actual time. On the screen, the phone rang and I turned to my desk to pick it up. The phone conversation was very short. My voice was so fast I could not understand what I was saying. After I hung up, I made a phone call of my own. As before, I could not grasp why I was doing this. Next, I pulled out one of the drawers, took out a bottle of aspirin, and swallowed several tablets without water. Then I picked up a piece of paper and wrote something on it. A few minutes later, I turned off the FSE and TV. There were a few moments of quiet. Suddenly I clutched at my chest and fell to the floor. A few more moments passed. Several men entered the room from an unseen door and began working on me. One of them shook his head sadly as they placed me on a gurney and carried me away. The screen began to turn course, then faded to black.
What I had seen had been most unsettling. As
I was pondering the events, the phone rang.
"James Martin?"
"This is Dr. Martin. I'm a retired professor."
"Dr. Morton, this is Officer Pilsner with the Police. Last night, you called and gave us some information. We got your name and phone From the Caller ID equipment on our phone system."
"Yes?" My heart was pounding.
"The information you gave, enabled us to stop a robbery that was in progress. We know you had nothing to do with it. Were convinced the suspects did not know you. All we need to do is find out more about what you knew and when you knew it. Would it be convenient for you to visit the Fifth Precinct tomorrow at ten?"
"Yes, I can do that."
"Shall we expect you, then?"
"I'll be there unless something unexpected comes up."
"Something unexpected?"
"You know, something that can't be foreseen – a heart attack, perhaps. Something like that."
"You're all right now, aren't you?"
"Oh, yes, I'm fine."
"Good. I'm sure nothing unexpected will occur."
The conversation was over. I waited a minute, then dialed 911.
"Nine one one! What is your emergency?"
"I'm having a heart attack and need help. This Is Professor Morton. I live in apartment 12A, 1325 Livingston Avenue. The door is open."
"Help is on the way!"
I hung up the phone, pulled open the top right-hand drawer of my desk. There, I had a bottle of aspirin. I opened it, took out three tablets, and, though it was difficult, swallowed them. I had heard that aspirin is helpful if one is having a heart attack.
I picked up a piece of paper and wrote, "To whomever it may concern, please destroy the electronic apparatus in this room. It is part of a failed experiment and has absolutely no value to anyone." Listlessly, I dropped the paper on the desk. Then I turned off the FSE and the TV. I sat quietly for several minutes dreading what was going to happen. "Some things should be better left unknown," I thought as I waited.
I was not surprised when I experienced the pressure on my chest which felt as if someone were driving a truck over it. I could not breathe. There was intense pain on the right side of my neck; a pain that radiated down my right arm. I sensed the deep despair. Consciousness began to fade and I felt myself dropping to the floor.
From what I had seen on the screen, I had thought that I would not survive the attack. Thankfully, I did. At that time, I felt well enough to write this account of what had happened.
Some things should be better left unknown!