But Tanechka was running away, hands over her face, straight for the bus stop. I headed home.
A few minutes later my double came in.
“Wait,” I said before he could open his mouth. “You told Harry that Tanechka is the fiancee of your friend, who's a boxing champion?”
“And a judo black belt. And you told her about his wife?”
“Right. Well, at least we've found one positive application of our study.”
We got undressed, washed, and got ready for bed. I took the bed and he took the folding bed.
“By the way, speaking of Hilobok,” my double said, sitting down on his bed. “We didn't mention that our retrieval topic will be discussed at the next scientific council? If Harry hadn't reminded me so nicely, I would never have known. 'It's time, Valentin Vasilyevich. After all you've been working six months now, and it hasn't been discussed yet. Of course, random retrieval is a good thing, but you've been requisitioning equipment and materiel, and I keep getting calls from accounting, wanting to know what to call the account. And there's talk in the institute that Krivoshein can do what he wants while everyone else has to fill out forms in triplicate. I, of course, understand that you must do all this for your dissertation, but you must give your topic form and bring it into the overall plan…. The creep brought up work as soon as I told him about the boxing and judo.”
“If Hilobok is to be believed, all science is done to keep accounting happy.”
I explained the situation to my double. When the computer was spewing out those crazy numbers, I had called Azarov in total despair and asked to see him for advice. As usual, he was too busy and suggested that it would be better to have a scientific council; he would ask Hilobok to arrange it.
“And by then, the little red egg had hatched,” my double finished. “So shall we report it? With the intention of writing a master's dissertation. Even Hilobok understands that it's important.”
“And I'll bring you in as a demonstration at my defense?”
“We'll see who demonstrates whom,” he replied. “But basically… it's impossible. We can't.”
“Of course we can't,” I agreed glumly. “And we can't apply for a patent either. It looks as if I have only expenses so far on this deal, no profits.”
“I'll give you the money, you cheapskate! Listen, what do you need with the Nobel Prize?” My double narrowed his eyes. “If the computer — womb can easily make people, then money…”
“… is easier than anything! With the right paper and all the water marks… well, why not?”
“We'll each buy a three — bedroom co — op,” my double said, leaning back against the wall dreamily.
“And a Volga car…”
“And two dachas each: one in the Crimea for rest and one on the Riga seacoast for respectability.”
“And we'll make a few more of us. One will work so that public outcry will be stifled…”
“… and the others will be parasites to their heart's content…”
“… with a guaranteed alibi. Why not?”
We stopped and looked at each other in disgust.
“God, what depressing small — timers we are!” I grabbed my head. “We take a major discovery and try it on for size on stupid stuff: a dissertation, a prize, a dacha, beating people up with alibis… This is a Method of Synthesizing Man! And we're….”
“It's all right, it happens. Every person has petty thoughts once in a while. The important thing is to keep them from turning into petty acts.”
“Actually, so far I see only one positive application of the discovery: you can see your faults much better when they're in someone else.”
“Yes, but is that any reason for doubling the earth's population?”
We were sitting opposite each other in our underwear. I was reflected in him, a mirror image.
“All right, let's get serious. What do we want?”
“And what can we do?”
“And what do we understand about this business?”
“Let's begin with what's what. The ideas of Sechyonov, Pavlov, Weiner, and Ashby agreed on one point: that the brain is a machine. Petruccio's experiments on controlling the development of a human fetus is another move in this direction. The striving for greater complexity and universality in technological systems — just take the desire of microelectricians to create machines that are as complex as the human brain!”
“In other words — our discovery is no accident. The way was prepared for it by the development of ideas and technology. If not this way, then another; if not now, then in a few years or decades; if not us, then someone else would discover it. Therefore, the question comes down to…”
“. what can we and must we do in that period — maybe a year, maybe decades, no one knows, but it's better to take the shorter time — that we have as a head start on the others.” “Yes.”
“How is it usually done?” My double rested his cheek on his hand. “An engineer has the desire to create something lasting. He looks for a client. Or the client looks for him, depending on who needs whom more. The client gives him a technological problem: 'Use your ideas and your knowledge to create such and such. It must have the following parameters and withstand the following… and it should guarantee the production annually of no less than such — and — such percent. The amount is, and the time allotted is. The sanctions follow general usage…. A contract is signed and then it is done. We have an idea and we want to develop it further. But if a client comes along now and says: 'Here's the dough; go to work on your system for doubling people and it's none of your business why I want it' — we wouldn't agree, right?”
“Well, it's a little early to be worrying about that. The method hasn't been researched. What kind of production could there be? Who knows, maybe you'll disintegrate in a few months.” “I won't. Don't count on it.” “What's it to me? Live for all I care.”
“Thanks! You are such a boor! Just unbelievable! Would I like to give you a good punch!”
“All right, all right, don't get off the subject. You misunderstood me. I meant that we still don't know all the aspects and possibilities of the discovery. We're at the very beginning. If we compare it to radio, say, then we're at the level of Hertz's waves and Popov's spark transmitter. What now? We must research the possibilities.”
“Right. But that doesn't change things. Any research that is applied to man and human society must have a definite goal. And there's nobody around to give us a two — page, typewritten list setting a technological task. But we don't need it. We must determine for ourselves what goals man now faces.”
“Well… before, the goals were simple: survival and propagation of the species. In order to achieve them you had to worry about wildlife, skins for cover, and fire. beating off animals and acquaintances with a cudgel, digging in the clay to make a cave without any conveniences, and so on. But modern society has solved these problems. Get a job somewhere and you'll have the minimum you need for living. You won't perish. And you can have children; if worst comes to worst, the government will even take on the responsibility of bringing them up for you. So now, it follows that people should have new desires and needs.”
“More than you can count! Comfort, recreation, interesting and not boring work. Refined society, various symbols of vanity — titles, awards, medals. The need for excellent clothing, delicious food, embroidery, a suntan, news, books, humor, ornamentation, fads….” “But none of that is important, damn it! That can't be important. People can't, and don't want to return to their previous primitive existence; they squeeze everything from modern life that they can — it's only natural. But there has to be some goal behind their desires and needs, no? A new goal of existence.”
“In brief, what is the meaning of life? Rather a complicated problem, wouldn't you say? So, I knew we would end up here!” My double got up, moved to get the kinks out of his body, and sat down again. So — starting out with jokes and getting more and more serious — we discussed the most important aspects of our work. I've often gotten around to discussing the meaning of life — over cognac or on a coffee break — as well as social structure, and the destiny of mankind. Engineers and scientists like to gab about worlds the way housewives do about high prices and lack of morality. Housewives do it to prove their diligence and goodness, and the researchers do it to demonstrate the breadth and scope of their vision to their friends. But this conversation was much more difficult than the usual engineering bulclass="underline" we overturned ideas as if they were snowdrifts. It was distinguished by responsibility: after this conversation deeds and actions would follow the words — deeds and actions that allowed no room for mistakes.