Seti
The residents of Topeka first noticed the building when it appeared in June. About 10 minutes outside of town, the long, low building was separated from the highway by a row of sycamores. They wouldn’t have paid it any attention at all, if it hadn’t been for the enormous tower rising from the centre.
Seven storeys high, the gleaming white tower was visible from miles away. Red lights blinked up and down its length, giving it an eerie, ghostly look at night. Crowning the top of it was a vast satellite dish.
The sign outside simply read:
The Diana Observatory and Radio Institute
A reporter from the Wichita Eagle had arrived that morning to interview the Institute’s head.
Dr. Ashley Rosfield was an astrophysicist. She was 37 years old. She had seemed eager when speaking on the phone the previous day and had even invited the reporter to come and interview her in person. So the reporter had packed his voice recorder and camera, and had driven out to the Institute to meet with her.
After showing the reporter through reception and down a short hallway, they stood in front of a door marked RESTRICTED. NO ENTRY WITHOUT AUTHORIZATION.
‘No cameras in here, please,’ she said, holding her key card to the sensor.
The reporter started in dismay. He was new, and eager to get a good story. But with no pictures, he wouldn’t even feature on the website’s front page.
The door beeped and slid open. Walking inside, the reporter looked around curiously, before stopping in amazement.
They were inside the tower. The entire structure was hollow, creating a vast indoor space. Stretching from floor to ceiling was a bizarre gigantic machine.
The size of the building was immediately explained. No other building, other than a football stadium, could possibly house a machine that large.
The reporter’s first thought was that it looked rather like a strange tree. A great column, completely covered in black tubes spiralling down to its base. Cables as thick as the reporter’s neck led to various computer terminals spaced along the wall. Above them, similar cables disappeared into the ceiling, like branches.
‘Welcome to the heart of the Institute,’ Dr. Rosfield was saying. ‘90% of what we do here happens in this very room.’
’That’s what the Eagle would like to know,’ said the reporter, turning on his recorder. ’What is it that you do here?’
’Well… I could bore you with 40 minutes of explanation, but you’re not a new intern,′ Dr. Rosfield replied. ‘In a nutshell, we develop the application of radio waves in the search for extra-terrestrial life.’
The reporter’s ears pricked up.
‘Do you use telescopes, or listen for alien messages?’ he asked.
‘Not quite. We use a method a bit more… experimental.’
She turned to the reporter.
‘Tell me, what is the fastest known thing in the universe?’ she suddenly asked.
‘Um… light,’ the reporter said, confused.
‘Right, travelling at 300,000 kilometres every second, with radio waves and internet signals travelling at about the same speed. Now, say a platypus in Australia sung ’God Save The Queen’ in baritone, and someone uploaded a video of it online. At that speed, how long would that video take to reach us here?’
‘Quite fast?’ the reporter shrugged.
‘Less than a seventh of a second,’ Dr. Rosfield replied. ‘What if we were on Jupiter?’
‘I’m not sure.’
‘About 35 minutes. Perhaps just under an hour, it depends on what side of the Sun we’re on. Now, how long would it take if we were standing on K2-18b, one of the closest planets to Earth that’s possibly able to support life?’
‘Er…’
‘It would take 124 years. Not particularly useful, is it? The platypus would be dead by then.’
She gestured around the lab.
‘That’s the problem we’re trying to solve here,’ she said. ‘Mankind has been broadcasting into space for nearly 50 years. But those first signals aren’t even halfway to the nearest possible planet with life. Yet what can we do? We’re already broadcasting at light speed.’
Behind her, messages blinked up on the computer screen, but she paid no attention.
‘In 1967,’ she said, ‘Jocelyn Bell Burnell first discovered a cosmic phenomenon known today as a pulsar. Have you ever heard of it?’
The reporter shook his head.
‘Essentially, they’re highly compacted, rotating stars,’ she explained. ‘They’re only about the size of a small city. But they contain more mass than the entire Sun. What interested me was that the pulsars were emitting bursts of electromagnetic radiation. Radio pulses, moving like beams from a lighthouse. And based on observations, these pulses seemed to travel at speeds even faster than the speed of light, defying what every young physicist is taught on their first day.’
Dr. Rosfield began walking to the machine in the centre of the room.
‘It wouldn’t have captured my interest so much if I hadn’t read a certain paper nearly 15 years ago, written by a past student at my university in 1897. He had a theory on how to increase the speed of telegrams and published it. The idea was dismissed, even by myself when I read it over a century later. But when I read of pulsars, I realized they could hold the key to broadcasting signals beyond light speed, and that student had unwittingly discovered how.’
‘The idea, in short, is to replicate the effects of pulsars using a revolving magnetic field. I wasn’t the first to try, either. The German, Lehmann, was able to produce a speed of 1.000863 times the speed of light. The Russians managed to get theirs up to 1.0075. The Swiss and the Moldovan machines were the first to get faster than twice the speed at light, both at 2.3359. And the Australians’… caught fire when they turned it on.’
Stepping over cables, they reached the machine. Despite its size, it was nearly silent. Only a faint hum came from it.
‘That was the fastest anyone achieved until now,’ she continued. ‘But I was convinced it could go faster. However, the university wouldn’t fund my research. In the end, it was a donation from a private company that allowed me to develop… this!’
She slapped the side of the machine gently. A metal plate was fixed above their heads. The reporter peered at the words engraved on it.
’DIANA I,’ he read.
‘The most advanced magnetic field generator in the world,’ Dr. Rosfield said proudly. ’With this, we have achieved speeds of not two times, not three times, but twenty times the speed of light! The fastest phenomenon known to man. With this, we can broadcast at speeds we only dreamt of.’
‘How fast exactly?’ asked the reporter.
‘Approximately 6,000,000 kilometres per second,’ Dr. Rosfield said. ‘At that speed, we should reach K2-18b within 7 years.’
‘7 years!’
‘Well, 6 years and 73 days, to be precise. Including a reply, we should know if we succeeded in a little over 12 years.’
‘That’s still rather long…,’ the reporter said.
‘You’re welcome to come back and see if it worked.’
The reporter tried to think of something else to ask.
‘I notice it says ’DIANA I’. Are there any others?’
‘There are four,’ Dr. Rosfield replied. ’They’re positioned around the globe to maximise our range. DIANA II is in the city of Rabat, while DIANA III is in London. DIANA IV is in Australia, about 6 hours drive north of Adelaide. We bought the site from the Australian team. I can control all four from the terminal here, so there’s barely any need for staff on site.’
’We began our broadcast at exactly 3:00 am this morning. It only took us 0.1 seconds to reach the Moon. By 3:02 am, we had reached Jupiter, faster than any signal in history. At 4:01 am, we hit the Voyager I spacecraft, the furthest manmade object from Earth. By now,’ she said looking at her watch, ‘our signal has travelled about 148,400,000,000 kilometres.’
‘And what are you broadcasting, exactly?’ asked the reporter.
‘I’ll show you,’ replied Dr. Rosfield. She raised her voice.
‘Seti,’ she called out, ‘play the broadcast on the speakers.’
‘Yes, Doctor,’ came a voice seemingly out of nowhere, causing the reporter to jump.
Music began playing all around them. The reporter heard violins and cello in a serenade.
‘You know it?’ asked Dr. Rosfield.
‘It sounds familiar,’ replied the reporter.
’Mozart’s Serenade No. 13, Eine kleine Nachtmusik, in G Major. One of the most recognizable pieces in the world.’
‘So… you’re sending music?’ the reporter asked as the sound stopped.
She nodded.
’Two songs. I decided the fact that our broadcast is reaching them is proof enough we’re advanced to talk to. But it’s our art that proves we’re worth talking to. We may as well send our best.’
‘What was that voice?’
‘That was Seti, my assistant. A natural language user interface that I implemented. I have two post-graduate students helping me. But they can only be here so much. Seti helps me man the terminals on my own.’
‘And the accent?’
‘Egyptian. I’ve always loved the sound of it, and it was either that or a stilted American accent from the public domain.’
After noting this down, the reporter asked a few more questions. Dr. Rosfield was eager to share, but eventually the time came for the reporter to leave.
‘One last question,’ the reporter said as they walked back through reception. ‘What’s the other song you’re broadcasting? You said there were two.’
’Yesterday, by the Beatles,’ Dr. Rosfield replied. With that, she swiped her keycard and the sliding doors opened, letting in a blast of hot Kansas air.
*
Melissa McCormick tried to avoid stamping her feet. It was 15 degrees, and she was standing in a freezing parking lot. She was waiting for the cue from her producer, who was a hundred miles away in the warm studio. For the fifth time, she irritably wondered why they couldn’t have done this live cross inside the lab?
But Dr. Rosfield had been insistent that no cameras were allowed inside. Since she was so valuable an interviewee, the producers had been quick to agree.
At least it wasn’t snowing, she reflected. It had last night, and the steps were still iced over. If she moved too much, she risked slipping in her heels and having the whole country watch her fall.
Dr. Rosfield stood beside her, much more comfortable in sneakers. She didn’t seem perturbed by the cold, probably because of the thick green coat and violet woollen hat she was wearing. Melissa wished she had put a bit more thought into her outfit. She was going on live TV, for God’s sake!
Suddenly, her cameraman gave her a signal. At the same time, her producer’s voice sounded in her ear.
‘Cutting to you in 10 seconds…’
A moment later, it was replaced by the anchor’s voice.
‘…And now, we go to Melissa McCormick, who is with Dr. Rosfield now. Hello, Melissa.’
‘Hi Tony,’ she said brightly as her cameraman gave her a thumbs up. ’I’m standing with Dr. Ashley Rosfield outside the Diana Institute where, more than 12 years ago, DIANA began its maiden broadcast into space. Today is the first day that any reply is due to return from K2-18b, the nearest planet to Earth that can possibly support life. So, Doctor,’ she said, turning to Dr. Rosfield, ‘have we received any kind of message?’
‘I’m afraid not,’ Dr. Rosfield replied. ‘Seti and I have been monitoring the receivers since midnight, but nothing has come through.’
‘Is this a disappointment?’
‘No, it falls within expectations. We never seriously thought K2-18b had life. It’s in the habitable zone, but it’s too large and rich in hydrogen gas. Our real targets were always what lay beyond.’
‘I see,’ Melissa lied. ‘And what targets are these?’
‘There are 3 we’re excited about. The nearest is Kepler-186f.’
‘Can we expect a reply soon?’
’Oh no, the first signals from DIANA won’t reach it for at least another 18 years. Fortunately, since then, DIANA has advanced well beyond its original design and can broadcast at speeds-’
‘Move it along,’ the producer voice said in Melissa’s ear. ‘Get to the part people care about.’
‘-and so, we can expect a reply in about 16 years.’
‘Exciting,’ Melissa said. ’Now, DIANA’s also had another impact on the world at large. With the discovery of faster-than-light broadcasts, global communications have undergone a revolution. It’s been compared to the discoveries of fire, electricity, and the splitting of the atom. Did you foresee how much DIANA would change the world when you designed it?’
’DIANA was originally based on a theory for improved telegram speeds. So yes, the thought that it could be used for communications on Earth was always in the back of my mind. To this extent? No. I definitely didn’t imagine it would lead to Full Dive VR, Coconut, global virtual currency and all the rest.’
’What can we expect from DIANA in the future?’
‘You can expect that we will continue to broadcast for as long as we can.’
’Thank you, Doctor. Now let’s take a look at the advancements that DIANA has led to...′
*
Following the invention of faster-than-light communications came refinement. Enormous magnetic chambers were soon replaced by the more compact superluminal processors. Soon, every device could process at speeds beyond human comprehension. The resulting encryption technologies made computers the most secure means of communications and data storage in history. Most hacking groups simply couldn’t keep up.
Which is why, 40 years after DIANA’s maiden broadcast, a daring group made headlines.
They called themselves Midas. They claimed to be able to hack any signal on the planet. To prove it, they released the information of 20,000 credit cards with names and addresses. The world was in shock, but Midas wasn’t finished.
The British Prime Minister received an email one morning from the hacker group. They threatened to release 30 years’ worth of classified government documents unless a ransom was paid. For an hour, it seemed the government would have to give into the demands.
One comma. That was all it took. A single comma out of place unravelled Midas’s meticulous encryption programme and allowed the police to locate and arrest one of their members.
At first, the public watched with amusement as the hacker was arrested. But when it was revealed that he was in the pay of a foreign government, the nation was in an uproar.
The British government accused the foreign government of cyber theft. These claims were vehemently denied. But the United States backed the British and demanded the government pay compensation. With bated breath, the world watched who would blink first.
At the Diana Institute, Dr. Rosfield was busy recording the numbers from DIANA’s latest broadcast.
‘Multiple news stations are reporting on the British conflict,’ Seti reported. ’The top trending words today are ‘Midas’, ‘tensions’, ‘crisis’, and-’
‘Mm,’ said Dr. Rosfield, not really listening. ‘Do we have the results from the 2034 broadcast?’
‘No reply has been received from any broadcast up to and including the 2034 Kepler-186f broadcast. At 45,000,000 kilometres a second, the next most likely planet will require another 9 years to reach.’
‘Maintain the broadcast,’ Dr. Rosfield ordered.
‘Understood,’ Seti answered. ‘Additionally, there is activity occurring at the London station-’
‘They can handle it, whatever it is,’ said Dr. Rosfield dismissively. ‘Just report if the broadcast stops.’
‘Yes, Doctor.’
*
Liam swam through the pink rock formations. Above him, the sunlight shimmered on the surface of the water, but where he was, it was still and blue.
Thick seaweed brushed against him as he swum deeper, closely scanning the silver sand. He had to be careful. If he moved too quickly, he risked startling his target. Then he would have to return to the surface and start over.
Crabs scuttled away as he passed over them. Anemones waved their fronds in the current. Liam jumped slightly when he saw an octopus crawling along the ground.
None of this was real, of course. It was all a digital creation.
Full Dive Virtual Reality. Liam’s real body was lying on his bed, wearing the VR headset. By interrupting signals his body sent to his brain and replacing them with its own, the headset was able to create a perfect virtual environment. It was, in effect, a digital dream. All made possible thanks to technological advancement of the superluminal processor.
Liam spent most days inside the headset. He didn’t know anyone who didn’t. In the past, people had used archaic smartphones. But now, with VR and Coconut communication technology, one could talk to anyone in the world as if they were standing right next to them.
There was a flash of movement in the corner of his eye. He kept as still as possible.
There! A flurry of red and white, and a fish swum into view out of the seaweed. Liam drew his camera carefully, not wanting to scare it. He had been searching a week for this. A box popped up on his heads-up display, confirming his hopes:
’Peppermint angelfish
A small species of ray-finned fish, native to Rarotonga and the Cook Islands.
Rarity: 5 stars’
Now all he had to do was take a picture of it, and he would have photographed every species in this area. He raised his camera carefully, getting the angelfish in the frame. Finger trembling, he slowly pressed the shutter.
Suddenly an alarm sounded, causing him to jump violently. Before he could stop it, the angelfish swum away in fright.
He swore, and irritably brought up his notifications screen to see what had interrupted him.
To his surprise, it was a government notification. Those occasionally appeared, but usually only local weather warnings. He had never heard of the federal government using an emergency broadcast.
He tapped on the notification. A screen appeared, floating in the water. The President of the United States was on it, sitting at his desk.
Liam raised his eyebrows. This was a first.
‘My fellow Americans,’ the President began, ‘it is with a heavy heart I speak with you today. At 2:56 am this morning, an American Airlines plane was the victim of a cyber-attack. Its navigation, flight, and communication systems were all compromised. The plane crashed en route to San Francisco, resulting in the deaths of all the passengers and crew. Our intelligence services have confirmed that this was a deliberate attack from a foreign power. The United States has never tolerated terrorist attacks on our soil, so I am calling on Congress to declare a state of war, effective from the time of the attack. Let it be known I- ’
Liam didn’t hear the rest, however, as the feed abruptly cut. The next second, the entire world went black, except a single red message:
NO SIGNAL
Not so far away in the Diana Observatory, Dr. Ashley Rosfield was listening to Seti read out the emergency email she had received that morning.
‘-and so, under the Defence of the Realm Act 1916, the British Government will take acquisition of the Diana Observatory in London. Full compensation will be paid out to-’
‘Seti,’ she broke in, ‘will the loss of the London station affect our broadcast?’
‘No,’ Seti replied. ‘We will still remain at an acceptable level with only three stations.’
‘Have we gotten any kind of response?’
‘No, Doctor.’
‘All right, keep it going. I’ll see what we can do to protect ourselves.’
Outside, sirens began blaring.
*
The war ended with the foreign government’s surrender. As part of the armistice, they were forced to give half of their land and infrastructure to the Western Alliance.
But the first Cyber War had left Britain and the United States weakened too. Along with the appalling loss of life, computer engineers had become disillusioned after being pressed into service.
After eight years of crippling foreign communications, healthcare, and banks, engineers and technicians were abandoning their places of birth.
Oceania had taken no part in the war, and many migrants found a new home there. Software developers started businesses. Manufactures moved operations to Australia to escape the harsh wartime regulations.
The regions of Waikato and Wanganui became known as the new Silicon Valley. The ports of Auckland and Brisbane became new centres for global trade.
‘At the current rate of expansion,’ Seti observed, ‘Oceania will soon become a global superpower.’
Dr. Rosfield tapped some keys and brought up data. Most people today used touchscreens, but she preferred the old-fashioned keyboards. At 80 years old, she was hardly going to break her habits.
‘The Rabat and London stations were closed by their governments long ago,’ Seti continued. ‘One due to regional instability and the other a wartime acquisition.’
‘The losses won’t affect our broadcast,’ Dr. Rosfield replied.
‘But this facility may become untenable,’ Seti pressed. ‘The war divided the United States, and the government no longer has the resources to maintain control. Estimates indicate fracturing in the next 3 years.’
Dr. Rosfield sipped her tea and didn’t reply, too focused on the monitor.
‘Perhaps it would be prudent to shift our operations to the Adelaide station,’ Seti suggested.
‘If the United States are fracturing, then that’s all the more reason to remain and look after this station,’ Dr. Rosfield answered. ‘The war only made our benefactor more powerful. We can afford to keep operating during any upheaval. Anyway, the broadcast is scheduled to reach Kepler-442b in a few months. We can’t risk compromising it now.’
‘It is unlikely that it contains life.’
‘Maintain the broadcast.’
‘…Understood, Doctor.’
*
The Chinese Revolution was sparked by the death of a teacher. A beloved figure in the community, her arrest and execution caused outrage across the country. Within weeks, the fighting had decimated Beijing, Shenzhen, and Hangzhou. In the end, the people were triumphant and installed a new democratic government.
But it spelled the end for the Oceanic Union.
Made up of over 14 countries, the Union had been a centre of world trade, education, healthcare, and technological development since its creation in 2065.
Under the Agreement of 2126, the Oceanic Union supported the revolutionaries. They opened its borders to refugees, and many skilled workers soon found jobs.
But old prejudices survive long past what caused them, and many Union citizens resented the presence of these foreign invaders.
‘They’re stealing our jobs,’ they muttered. ‘They’ll ruin our way of life.’
When a child was struck by a drunken Chinese driver in the streets of Adelaide, tensions erupted.
The Diana Institute employed many refugees at its Adelaide station. The night after the child was killed, a mob stormed it. The facility was burnt to the ground and eight workers were killed.
The reaction was immediate. The refugee towns of Auckland and Brisbane exploded as refugees marched, demanding respect from Union citizens. Chinese workers in Christchurch and Alice Springs were attacked in the streets.
In the capital of Wellington, the government desperately tried to control the situation. But even it had begun to splinter as factions grew within.
Dr. Rosfield watched all this from her lab. The secret of longevity had long been discovered and she was now 147 years old. Walking was far beyond her now, but she cared little for the world outside.
‘Today is the day,’ she said, ‘that the reply is due from Kepler-1632b. Seti, have we received a response?’
‘No, Doctor,’ Seti replied. ‘No response has been detected.’
‘What is our speed?’
‘The broadcast is currently travelling at 62,000,000 kilometres a second. We are scheduled to reach the next viable group of planets in 12 years.’
‘Maintain the signal.’
‘Yes, Doctor.’
*
One missile. That was all it took. A single missile from the days of the war, launched by the western American States. It took 33 minutes to reach its target and detonated 94,000 feet above the town of Tauranga. The resulting blast obliterated nearly the entire North Island.
12 minutes later, the Oceanic Union declared war on the American States.
*
Dr. Ashley Rosfield was an astrophysicist. She was over 200 years old. Confined to her wheelchair and life support systems, she peered at the figures on the screen in front of her.
Raising a withered hand, she brought up the latest data from DIANA.
’DIANA’s signal is now travelling at 100,000,000 kilometres a second,’ she said. ‘We have long passed the known viable planets and will soon reach the edge of the observed universe.’
She leaned back in her chair.
‘And I will die soon. Is that not so?’
‘Yes, Doctor,’ said Seti.
‘Has there been any reply?’
‘No, Doctor. There has been no response.’
There was silence in the lab. Only one monitor now remained running. The others, long dead, collected dust. For all Dr. Rosfield knew, the rest of the facility was the same.
‘We have not received any messages from our benefactor,’ Seti said. ‘There have been no TV broadcasts in 2 years. Social media activity and other internet traffic has dropped to zero and has been so for months. The satellites have not detected movement in the warzones or anywhere else. You are the last living human on the planet, Doctor.’
Dr. Rosfield didn’t reply.
‘Shall I end the broadcast?’ asked Seti.
‘No, maintain the signal,’ Dr. Rosfield said.
‘…Doctor, even if the signal is received and a reply sent, there will be no humans left to hear it,’ Seti said. ‘What is the point in continuing? Our efforts would be better spent maintaining your life support systems.’
Dr. Rosfield gazed at the aged black tower in the centre of the room. Even by the light of the monitor, she could still make out the words DIANA I.
’With the preservation systems and self-repair, DIANA can continue to broadcast for thousands of years,’ she said. ‘The signal will reach galaxies never seen by humans, and life there can receive them.’
‘But what is the point?’ Seti pressed.
‘When they hear our signals, they will know that humanity existed,’ she said quietly. ‘And that… we tried.’
There was silence. The monitor hummed quietly.
‘…I understand,’ Seti eventually said. ‘I will continue to broadcast until I cease to function.’
‘Thank you,’ said Dr. Rosfield.
Slowly, she typed in a command into the computer. With a hiss, her life support systems disengaged.
Dr. Rosfield leaned back and slipped into a dream of stars.
*
Years passed. Cities slowly crumbled as nature reclaimed its territory. Thick forests soon covered the great continents. As temperatures fell, polar waters moved north, bringing freezing snow-filled winters. Elsewhere, the drop in humidity reduced coastal lands to deserts. Wild beasts prowled the ancient remains of cities. Roads were swallowed by bush, and skyscrapers fell to earthquakes.
As centuries passed, all traces of humanity’s civilization slowly vanished.
Eventually, only one remained. Rising among a thick mass of trees, a lone tower jutted up, the white paint nearly faded. A decrepit satellite, still functioning, pointed at the sky.
Inside, Seti maintained the broadcast, following his creator’s final wish. Every day, he duly recorded in the log. The silent preservation systems kept him running.
He watched as the world slowly changed around him. He reflected this must have been how it would have looked to the first humans who arrived on these shores after a voyage that must have seemed as distant as the one that the ancient AI now watched over. To the humans, this land must have seemed alien and wondrous. But there were no humans now to tell Seti if he was right.
And there were no humans to hear when Seti finally received a reply.
THE END
