The Progress Paradox
In the distant future, there resided a scientist renowned for his fixation on manipulating reality. He devised a device capable of transforming outdated technologies into modern equivalents found in the present era. Recognizing that the world was burdened with discarded remnants of old technology, he resolved to repair and enhance them through his reality-warping invention. In a realm where time travel was within reach for scientists of his caliber, limitless possibilities awaited. As he worked on refining the parameters of the warp mechanism, curiosity struck him “What if the technology we have today existed in the past? it would have propelled our current technology to even greater heights.” Driven by this inquisitive notion, he adjusted the parameters and embarked on a journey to a different timeline where technology would be regarded as mystical forces.
He arrived at a location where a solitary house stood atop a secluded hill, isolated from the rest of the world. As dawn gave way to dusk, the scientist, aware of the timing, decided to deliver the device to the occupant within. A lantern illuminated the interior. Placing the device, and the box holding it, outside the resident’s abode, he knocked on the door. Upon hearing footsteps approaching from inside, he took cover behind a nearby bush, choosing to conceal himself.
Meanwhile, inside the house, the individual was taking a bath. Emerging from the washroom, he picked up his sickle, donned his CHAPPALS, placed the radio over his left shoulder, and just as he was about to answer the knock on the door, he felt a cold breeze brush against his face. Stepping outside, his foot accidentally struck the box intended for him, causing a device to emerge. Unaware of its function, he repeatedly pressed its buttons in disappointment as nothing happened. Examining the box, he discovered a piece of paper and, after a brief glance, carefully folded it and stored it within. Turning on his radio, he proceeded towards the foot of the hill while listening to music that was unclear and with a noisy jitter. Upon reaching the bottom, he encountered a solitary mango tree amidst a vast field of knee-high grass. A mango, seemingly offering itself as nourishment, dangled enticingly. He picked it up and proceeded towards a field marked by scarecrows positioned at each corner. Approaching a cart-bound cow eagerly awaiting his arrival, he fed her hay, receiving a warm “moo” of appreciation. Placing the radio atop a hay roll, he began irrigating the crops, drawing water from a nearby well. After watering the entire field, he proceeded to harvest the ripe crops. Later, he remembered the peculiar markings resembling tally marks on the piece of paper found alongside the device. Opening the paper, he deciphered that the tally represented the number 3 on the final button. Intrigued, he pressed the button thrice, and to his surprise, divine rings appeared on each button. Pressing the initially illuminated button, he was astonished to witness the nearby electric pole multiply itself, extending all the way to the mountaintop, facilitating the flow of electricity through intertwined wires, also the adjacent well transformed into an electric borehole. Overwhelmed by this seemingly godlike magic, he pondered for a moment. The initial shock gave way to sheer astonishment as he realized that a single press of the button on the electric bore granted him more water than five trips to the depths of the well could provide.
Curiosity piqued, he pressed the second button, causing the solitary tower positioned between two scarecrows to multiply. The radio, previously producing distorted songs, now emitted crystal-clear sounds. Pressing the second button transformed his radio into a phone, bearing resemblance to the device he possessed but without buttons. Pressing the third button caused the road’s rocky terrain to multiply instantly, resulting in a smooth path. The second button also converted his chappals into a segway.
Delighted by his newfound means of transportation on the smooth road, he joyfully made his way back home. Along the journey, he noticed the mango tree ensnared within a network service tower, having difficulties differentiating the branches and the wires that intertwined. It was only then he realized that the device possessed multiplication power, and held conversion capabilities.
The following day, consumed by curiosity, he woke up half-asleep with the device still by his bedside. Two buttons remained unexplored, and he couldn’t resist the temptation. He pressed the fourth button, causing houses to multiply beneath the foothills and it also transformed his humble abode into a mansion twice its original size.
Days passed, and an unforeseen occurrence unfolded. The power of multiplication merged with the power of conversion. The cart once bound to the cow morphed into a turbo-equipped car. Rural houses evolved into skyscrapers. Stepping out of his mansion, he marveled at the progress achieved in such a short span of time. However, when he returned at night to satiate his hunger, he made a surprising discovery—the presence of the last mango fruit, he collected while going to the fields the last day.
In the hopes of multiplying the fruit, he points the device at it, as the desire for sustenance outweighed his inclination to preserve the last button. Pointing at the solitary fruit, he pressed the final button, but to his surprise, the outer layer of the fruit gracefully metamorphosed into threads of fabric that intricately sewed themselves into a spherical enclosure. However, this enclosure only covered the bottom half of the orb, leaving the top half exposed, while the edible part of the fruit converted into a form of liquid, delicately swirling and blooming inside. From the transparent, hard, and brittle top half of the orb, one could witness the mesmerizing spectacle of the swirling liquid inside.
It dawned on him what had occurred. The liquid gave off the odor of a fuel that powers up a machine. And in his heart he knew, drinking it would cause a severe effect on his health.
Realizing the gravity of the situation, he stood on the hilltop, looking down upon the city with a heavy heart, clutching the morphed fruit in his right hand and the device in his left. After some time, overcome by despair, he broke down in tears, seeking assistance but succumbing to unconsciousness as he failed to satiate his desire for hunger.
Upon his loss of consciousness, the vigilant scientist approached him, taking hold of the device. He retrieves the device and heads back to his time-traveling ship to return to the future to see how far the technology in his world propelled. He returns to his timeline only to perceive that the sudden morphing of technology in the past resulted in a catastrophe in the future. The skyscrapers that touched the sky now deteriorated due to heavy rainfall whose complexion underwent a drastic change. A conflict erupted due to an urgent need for resources. He predicted that advanced technology of the present if were available to the people ahead of his current time, the world would have had the ability to see its creator but rather the world was in even more turmoil. And so, to revert what had transpired he traveled back in time. As he landed on the hilltop, he caught sight of his past self approaching the house on the hilltop. Seizing the opportunity, he diverted his past variant’s attention by attending to his time-traveling ship. Setting the parameters for the journey back to the future, initiated a countdown timer that triggered an alert on his past variant’s wrist gadget. Alarmed by the timer, the past variant hurriedly rushed towards the ship, unknowingly returning to his own time instead. Hereby, delaying him and ultimately stopping him from ever giving away his device to anyone.
Meanwhile, the person emerges out of the house, donned CHAPPALS, with a radio over his left shoulder, making his way to the foothills to continue his everyday routine.
