Telecom

Sunrise on Tar'tron by Gemini.

In my previous blog post, I got help from both Claude and the Gemini large language models to extend the collaboratively written science fiction story "The Femtobot Smuggler" to include two new scenes (scene 14 and scene 15). I also asked  Gemini to generate some images to illustrate Tar'tron, the planet of the Galactic Core where Eddy and Zeta must construct a new society of immortal telepathic humans.

In scene 14. The femtobot replicoids F. Tyhry, F. Marda and F. Anthony are being taken to Tar'tron by Many Sails, a sentient spaceship. They are given access to a Viewer that allows them to observe what is happening to Tyhry's parents on Tar'tron, but it will take a month for Many Sails to reach Tar'tron.

In scene 15. The zeptite replicoid copies of Eddy and Zeta use their Reality Viewing System to observe Siteq in the far future of the Ekcolir Reality. Siteq is where Manny created the telepathic tryp'At by artificial evolution. Eddy uses the Reality Viewing System to create a new replicoid copy of a tryp'At on Tar'tron, beginning the process of building a society of telepaths on Tar'tron.

Scene 16.

 F. Tyhry, F. Marda and F. Anthony were dazzled by the view of the Galactic core. With each passing day, the view from Many Sails grew increasingly dramatic. Marda was intrigued by a filamentous band of yellow stars that they were passing. "I thought there were no regions of star formation in the Galactic Core."

The view from Many Sails.

 Many Sails explained, "That is a remnant from a collision of a dwarf galaxy with the Milky Way. Some young stars were created during the collision and then gravitationally dragged into the Galactic Core by the central black hole of the dwarf galaxy."

Tyhry was experimenting with the Reality Viewer, but she now looked over her shoulder at the window in order to see the yellow stars. Tyhry turned back the the viewer and continued watching the original biological copy of herself back on Earth. That Tyhry was telling her father, "I going back to my laboratory."

Eddy asked, "Any progress on the zeptite project?"

 Tyhry shook her head. "I'm only now becoming completely satisfied that I have built a nanite containment field that will prevent escape of zeptites. As far as I can tell, the zeptites that I got from Manny are completely inert. Do you remember that finger I told you about?"

Eddy chuckled, "Yes, you scanned one of your fingers as soon as you reprogrammed Yasty's hair nanites."

Tyhry was feels great relief from having told her parents most of her secrets about the vacation on Threy. Tyhry no longer had to expend valuable cognitive resources to remembering what secrets to keep from her parents. "After I made the containment field, I opened the zeptite vial and exposed that finger to the zeptites. I wanted to make sure that the zeptites would not spread into the finger and inactivate its femtobot components." 

What the galactic core
really looks like (source)

Tyhry seemed lost in thought. Eddy gazed at his daughter, amazed by her ever shifting nanite-enhanced hair. After a long minute, Eddy asked, "Well, did they?"

Tyhry seemed to awake from a trance and said, "What?"

"Did the zeptites migrate into the finger?"

"Oh, ya. It is very frustrating. Zeptites are so tiny, I'm not sure that I can reliably detect them." Tyhry was now twisting her hands together nervously. "Today, I'm going to perform a functional assay."

Eddy suggested, "Maybe you should not experiment with these zeptites."

Tyhry shook her head, which made her hair swirl in sparkling waves around her neck. "Why would Manny have given me these zeptites if she did not expect me to play with them?"

"Maybe she simply forgot about them and assumed they would do no harm if left behind in a fork of the Ekcolir Reality Simulation." Knowing that Tyhry wanted to use the controls for the Reality Simulation System, he got out of his chair. He put his arms around Tyhry and gave her a hug. "Don't take any chances."

Tyhry extracted herself from Eddy's reassuring embrace. "I wish you could find it in yourself to trust me." Without sitting down at her father's computer, Tyhry quickly opened a portal to the Simulation of her nanite research laboratory. "I know how to test the zeptites safely." She walked through the portal and disappeared from the Final Reality.

Onboard Many Sails, F. Tyhry continued to watch Eddy for a minute during which she truly missed being with her parents. Then F. Tyhry turned off the Reality Viewer. "It is so frustrating. I can't find a way to observe what happens inside Eddy's Reality Simulation System."

F. Marda asked, "Why bother trying? We are being exiled from Earth to Tar'tron."

F. Tyhry was finding it difficult to maintain interest in the progress that her parents were making on Tar'tron towards forming a society of human telepaths. Tyhry had only ever experienced telepathic links to her copies and to Marda. She was not certain that she wanted to be part of a culture where everyone could examine her thoughts. She was used to keeping secrets when needed. Tyhry had her own new project and obsession: finding a way to communicate with the original biological copy of Tyhry on Earth.

Scene 17.

Tyhry appeared inside of her research laboratory. A replicoid copy of herself along with replicoid copies of Marda and Anthony were there, still performing tests on the finger that had been exposed to zeptites. The Marda replicoid noticed the arrival of Tyhry and said, "Welcome back. Is by bio-copy gone?"

"Yes, Marda and Rylla returned to Australia. I'm now free to devote my full attention to the zeptites."

The Tyhry replicoid said, "We sent the finger into a Simulation fork and then made a copy."

The biological copy of Tyhry looked into the shimmering nanite containment field and could see two copies of the finger laying on a work bench. One of the two fingers looked like it had crumbled to dust. Tyhry continued, "As far as we can tell, the there were no zeptites in the finger that came out of the Simulation System pattern storage buffer through the femtobot exclusion filter. Then we brought the filtered femtobots through. As you can see, they had lost all of their structural organization. I was just about ready to send them a reorganize command.

The biological copy of Tyhry said, "This should be interesting. I'm not at all certain that an isolated finger can correctly reassemble itself from its dis-aggregated femtobots."

"Ya, it did not work on the first try, but I quickly found a bug in my program." The Tyhry replicoid turned to Anthony. "Have you checked my program?"

Anthony was still examining the reassembly algorithm that Tyhry had devised. He said, "These recursive loops are quite complex. I don't see the point of having so many rounds of cross-checking."

The Tyhry replicoid explained, "This is one of the first engineering principles that Manny taught me. Always use far more checks and safeguards that you imagine are needed. Much of that code might be unnecessary, but I've learned through experience not to be a lazy coder and not to cut corners."

The biological copy of Tyhry told her replicoid copy, "I'm glad that Anthony has become so proficient at debugging nanite control programs."

"Yes, he caught a half dozen errors in my first draft of the reassembly algorithm. But he did miss one of my errors that defeated the purpose of the whole program." The Tyhry replicoid pointed at the crumbled copy of the finger. "All the cells are there in the correct numbers, but they failed to stick together. The finger grumbled to cellular dust as soon as we began analyzing it. That was quite a frightening experience. I thought the finger was being dis-assembled by zeptites!"

"That seems quite unlikely. Manny must have programmed these zeptites to ignore macro-scale structure and simply inactivate the sub-nanoscopic femtobot components of F. Tyhry." The biological copy of Tyhry could not remove from her thoughts the image of the inactivated F. Tyhry, still as a statue. Now her worst nightmare was that the zeptites might spread and inactivate other femtobots.

Anthony switched off the display he had been using. "The code looks perfect, now. I'm embarrassed that I missed that error."

The Tyhry replicoid sent a mini-swarm of programmed femtobots through the nanite containment field and into the cell-dust finger. In less than two seconds, the finger was re-assembled and not looked exactly like the original intact copy of the finger. The biological copy of Tyhry said, "It looks good to the naked eye."

Anthony said, "I'll check the tissue structure with the electron microscope."

While Anthony went to work using the microscope, the biological copy of Tyhry said, "Let's do the function test."

The Tyhry replicoid sat down at the control console of the Reality Simulation System and asked, "What should we use as the test subject?" The two copies of Tyhry were telepathically linked to each-other and to Marda. The picked up an argument that they had been having for days. Marda thought that a laboratory mouse should be used. The two Tyhry's were insisting that a human be the test subject. Now the biological copy of Tyhry cut short the discussion and said, "I've decided. I'm going to make another copy of myself."

The Tyhry replicoid said, "We should use a copy of me. I've been doing most of the work on these zeptites."

The biological copy of Tyhry began to tickle the replicoid copy of herself. Soon the two girls were tumbling around on the floor, tickling each-other and slipping in various foul blows and pinches delivered to delicate anatomical structures. One of the rules in these fights was that each pinch had to be followed by a kiss.

Marda said, "Why don't you two get a room."

Often these little tussles between Tyhry copies ended up in a love-making session. Now, the two Tyhry  copies shared a long passionate kiss on the lips and then the biological copy of Tyhry sat in front of the control console and caused a new copy of herself to be generated inside the nanite containment field. The newly-created copy of Tyhry telepathically linked to the others and then she picked up the zeptite containment vial and opened it. Using a syringe, she sucked out the contents of the vial and injected the zeptites into her mouth.

Anthony said, "The tissues of the re-assembled finger look normal."

The biological copy of Tyhry was closely monitoring the telepathic signals coming from the newly created replicoid inside the containment field. She asked the replicoid, "You feel nothing unusual?"

The new replicoid said, "Only envy that you got to take a tumble with her while I was trapped in the pattern buffer." She nodded towards the other Tyhry replicoid. 

Marda said to Tyhry, "I still don't understand how you can hope to program these zeptites. They are apparently inactive, and you have no way of re-programming them. We can barely detect them."

The biological copy of Tyhry loved a challenge. Her thoughts kept returning to the possibility that she could simply ask Manny to teach her zeptite programming, just as Manny had spent years explaining the secrets of femtobot programming. But the mere fact that Tyhry has not been visited by Manny since obtaining the zeptites told Tyhry that she needed to figure this out by herself.

________________

At the end of scene #17, above, there are two outstanding problems facing copies of Tyhry: 1) the original biological Tyhry wants to learn how to program zeptites, and 2) F. Tyhry (soon to be on Tar'tron) wants to find away to communicate with the original biological Tyhry on Earth. I decided that this would be a good time to ask the chatbots for their ideas on interstellar communication (see below).

Me: Gemini, for my science fiction story, I want to have a futuristic technology that allows for near-instantaneous telecommunication across interstellar distances. Gemini, imagine that that this technological challenge has almost been solved. Technology already exists that allows for a person on Earth to View in real time what is happening on a distant exoplanet. Similarly, a person on a distant exoplanet can use that same technology to View what is happening on Earth. Gemini, suggest a method that would allow two such Viewers located on different planets to functionally couple their separate Viewing devices in such a way that it will allow for interstellar two-way spoken communication. 

Gemini: Here's a possible method for two-way spoken communication using existing "Viewing" technology across interstellar distances:
1. Quantum Entanglement:

- Leverage the phenomenon of quantum entanglement, where two particles become linked and share the same fate, regardless of their physical separation.
- Entangle two sets of particles, one set on each planet, specifically designed to react to specific frequencies or vibrations.
2. Voice-to-Frequency Conversion:

- On each planet, integrate the Viewing device with a voice recognition system that converts spoken words into unique audio frequencies.
- These frequencies modulate a carrier signal that is transmitted towards the entangled particles on the other planet.
3. Frequency Detection and Conversion:

- The entangled particles on the receiving planet react to the modulated carrier signal, replicating the specific frequencies encoded within.
- These frequencies are then translated back into their original audio form using a specialized decoder, effectively reconstructing the spoken words.
4. Real-time Synchronization:

- Implement a sophisticated synchronization protocol between the Viewing devices to ensure near-instantaneous exchange of information despite the vast distances involved. This could involve complex algorithms and error correction techniques to account for potential delays and distortions.
5. User Interface Integration:

- Integrate the communication functionality seamlessly within the Viewing interface. Users could activate voice communication mode, speak directly into a microphone, and see the other person's response in real-time through the Viewing device.
Challenges and Limitations:

- Maintaining Entanglement: Maintaining stable quantum entanglement over interstellar distances is a significant technological hurdle. Scientists are still actively researching methods to achieve this feat.
- Signal Degradation: Interstellar travel can degrade the signal carrying the encoded information. Advanced error correction and signal amplification techniques would be crucial for ensuring clear communication.
- Latency: Even with near-instantaneous transmission, there might be a slight delay in communication due to the vast distances involved, impacting the natural flow of conversation.
Alternative Approaches:

Image by Gemini and Mr. Wombo.

 - Wormhole Communication: If the existence of wormholes is confirmed, they could theoretically create shortcuts through space, enabling near-instantaneous communication across vast distances.
- Faster-than-Light Travel: If faster-than-light travel becomes a reality, it could eliminate the need for complex communication methods altogether, allowing for real-time interaction despite the physical separation.

This scenario offers a glimpse into a future where overcoming the vastness of space no longer hinders real-time communication, blurring the lines between physical distance and virtual connection.

Me: Claude, for my science fiction story, I want to have a futuristic technology that allows for near-instantaneous telecommunication across interstellar distances. Claude, imagine that that this technological challenge has almost been solved. Technology already exists that allows for a person on Earth to View in real time what is happening on a distant exoplanet. Similarly, a person on a distant exoplanet can use that same technology to View what is happening on Earth. Claude, suggest a method that would allow two such Viewers located on different planets to functionally couple their separate Viewing devices in such a way that it will allow for interstellar two-way spoken communication.

 Claude: Here is one idea for enabling two-way spoken communication between Viewers on distant planets:

The key technology that makes the Viewers possible is the use of paired quantum entanglement communicators. Each Viewer contains one of these communicators.

The quantum entanglement communicators enable instantaneous transfer of quantum information between the entangled pairs, even when separated by interstellar distances.

So if we call the communicator on Earth A, and the communicator on the exoplanet B, they would be entangled on the quantum level when manufactured. Any change imposed on A is instantly reflected on B regardless of physical distance.

To enable two-way vocal communication, the Viewers could contain very sensitive microphones and speakers. When Person 1 speaks into their mic on Earth, the sound input is digitized and used to modulate the output of Quantum Communicator A. This modulation is instantaneously reflected in the paired Communicator B on the exoplanet. Communicator B then feeds this modulation to the speakers on the alien Viewer used by Person 2.

When Person 2 speaks, the reverse process happens. The modulation of Communicator B is reflected on Communicator A, which drives the speakers that Person 1 listens from.  

So while only quantum information travels faster than light, this entanglement allows for effectively real-time voice transmission across the vast distances of space. The latency would be imperceptible to the speakers. However, significant energy is required to sustain the quantum entanglement links.

 Me: Gemini, please describe how you imagine a "worm hole" could be used as a science fiction story plot device for near-instantaneous communication across interstellar distances.  

Gemini: In science fiction, wormholes are often depicted as theoretical tunnels or shortcuts through space-time, potentially connecting distant regions of the universe. Here's how a wormhole could be used as a plot device for near-instantaneous communication in your story:
1. Accidental Discovery:

- Scientists on Earth stumble upon a naturally occurring wormhole hidden within a specific region of space. This wormhole possesses unique properties that allow for the transmission of information, not just matter, through its connection.
2. Building Communication Infrastructure:

- Recognizing its potential, scientists develop specialized technology to interface with the wormhole. This could involve powerful transmitters and receivers designed to send and receive encoded signals through the wormhole's unstable environment.
3. Establishing Communication Channels:

- By carefully calibrating the technology and understanding the wormhole's properties, scientists establish dedicated communication channels across the wormhole. These channels allow for the transmission of data packets containing audio, video, and even text information.
4. Real-time Communication:

- With the channels established, individuals on opposite sides of the wormhole can communicate in real-time. This could revolutionize interstellar diplomacy, scientific collaboration, and even personal interactions between individuals on distant planets.
Challenges and Plot Twists:

- Wormhole Instability: The wormhole could be inherently unstable, prone to fluctuations or sudden collapses, creating suspense and requiring constant monitoring to maintain communication.
- Limited Capacity: The wormhole might have a limited capacity for information transfer, creating conflicts over who gets to use it and for what purposes.
- Unforeseen Consequences: Utilizing the wormhole for communication could have unforeseen consequences, attracting unwanted attention or potentially disrupting the delicate balance of the wormhole's existence.
Additional Ideas:

- The wormhole could be a two-way passage, allowing travel between the connected locations, not just communication.
- The wormhole's existence could be a closely guarded secret, with different factions vying for control of this valuable interstellar communication gateway.
- The wormhole might be connected to other locations in the universe, creating a complex network of interconnected regions with unique challenges and opportunities.

By incorporating a wormhole as a communication device, you can introduce a fascinating element to your science fiction story, adding layers of intrigue, conflict, and the potential for groundbreaking discoveries and advancements in interstellar communication.

 Me: Claude, please describe how a "worm hole" might be used as a science fiction story plot device for near-instantaneous communication across interstellar distances.

Claude: Here is one way a wormhole could enable near-instantaneous interstellar communication in a science fiction story:

Wormholes are theoretical shortcuts through space-time that could theoretically connect two distant points by bending space itself. While traversing a wormhole, the two points are brought right next to each other through this bending effect.

In the story, humanity discovers how to artificially create traversable wormholes. Scientists build pairs of wormhole portals that are quantum entangled and connected. So anything that enters Portal A would instantly exit from Portal B.

By keeping one portal at Earth and sending the other through space to an exoplanet light-years away, the wormholes become a faster-than-light communication shortcut. To communicate, signals or messages can simply be sent into one portal and they are instantly received at the other end.

So if Portal A is on Earth and Portal B is on an exoplanet, people could hold conversational video calls crossing the light-years of space between the planets almost as if through an instantaneous portal. This wormhole link allows an interstellar version of terrestrial technologies like cell phones, the internet, video conferencing etc.

The swallowing and disgorging effect of objects by the visually circular portals gives scientists small glimpses of activities on the other end. But traveled through, the wormholes are visually tunnel-like, seemingly bending space itself until the other portal appears at the end.

The portals require enormous amounts of exotic matter to maintain so the wormhole links are costly and unstable. But they enable the first faster-than-light interstellar communications in human history. Artists paint grand murals honoring the distant aliens in partnership with humanity through this marvelous invention.

Me: Claude, in your previous message in this conversation you said, "In the story, humanity discovers how to artificially create traversable wormholes." In your imagination, as part of a science fiction story, could the discovery of artificially created wormholes be facilitated if there was a pre-existing technology for generating artificial gravity?

Claude: Definitely! If the humans in this sci-fi world already have technology to generate artificial gravity, I could imagine that helping enable their eventual creation of usable wormholes. Here's a plausible sequence:

The breakthrough comes when Dr. Jennifer Kim is able to refine artificial gravity technology to achieve extremely focused gravity wells - concentrated zones where gravity is intensely strong in one tiny spot.

Further tinkering by Dr. Kim reveals that by carefully arranging several of these ultra-dense gravity wells in a ring pattern and fine-tuning their outputs, isolated circular spots can be created where space-time itself is radically warped by fierce gravitational forces.

At first the warping immediately collapses without vast amounts of energy being constantly fed into the gravity generators. But Dr. Kim has a stunning realization - quantum tunneling allows particles to momentarily blink into existence within the warped space-time circle, stabilized only briefly by the looping gravity wells before vanishing again.

By enhancing and computer-guiding this process, Dr. Kim finds the artificially generated quantum particles can exponentially reinforce the stability of the space-time warping. In just months, the first traversable, human-engineered wormhole springs into existence, connecting points in space previously separated by cosmic distance.

So in this fictional world, having gravity manipulation technology provides the foundation for bending and stabilizing holes in the fabric of space-time itself - enabling faster than light human travel and communication through these wormholes! The stars themselves become bridged by the resulting network of flickering, human-created tunnels through space.

 Me: Gemini, in your imagination, as part of a science fiction story, could the discovery of artificially created wormholes be facilitated if there was a pre-existing technology for generating artificial gravity?

Gemini: While there isn't a direct scientific link between artificial gravity and wormhole creation, in the realm of science fiction, the discovery of one could potentially influence the discovery of the other in several ways:
1. Shared Technological Expertise:

- The successful development of artificial gravity technology could indicate a society with a deep understanding of physics and the manipulation of fundamental forces. This same expertise could be crucial in theorizing, simulating, and potentially even attempting the creation of artificial wormholes.
2. Resource Sharing and Infrastructure:

- The resources and infrastructure used to develop and maintain artificial gravity could be adapted or repurposed for wormhole research. Powerful energy sources, advanced material science, and sophisticated computational capabilities might be crucial for both endeavors.
3. Problem-solving and Inspiration:

- Overcoming the challenges of creating artificial gravity could provide valuable insights and problem-solving techniques applicable to the theoretical challenges of wormhole manipulation. The success of one project could inspire and motivate further exploration into the manipulation of space-time.
4. Ethical and Philosophical Considerations:

- The ethical and philosophical implications surrounding both artificial gravity and wormhole creation could be intertwined. The ability to manipulate gravity raises questions about altering the natural order of the universe, similar to the potential consequences of creating shortcuts through space-time.
5. Societal Impact and Collaboration:

- The societal impact of both technologies could be immense, potentially leading to widespread collaboration and resource allocation towards further exploration of these groundbreaking advancements.
However, it's important to remember that these are purely speculative scenarios:

Zeta on Tar'tron.

 - We currently have no scientific understanding of how to create either artificial gravity or wormholes.
- The connection between these two technologies is entirely hypothetical and serves as a creative springboard for science fiction storytelling.

Incorporating this potential link within your story can add depth and a sense of logical progression to the narrative. The existence of artificial gravity could pave the way for the exploration of even more mind-bending scientific concepts like wormholes, creating a universe rich in technological marvels and their potential consequences.

____________

I think I can modify the suggestion by Gemini (above) that wormholes be used for interstellar telecommunications. For a story set within the Exodemic Fictional Universe, I can use data transmission through either the Sedron Domain or the Hierion Domain for my purposes. I'm tempted to try using the Hierion Domain so that the character Systolina might continue to play a role in the later chapters of "The Nanite Smuggler". However, it may be best to introduce a major new character, a tryp'At scientist from the far future of the Ekcolir Reality who understands sedrons and the Sedron Domain.

Next: changing "The Femtobot Smuggler" into "The Nanite Smuggler" and experimenting with Gemini Advanced.

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