Star One: Neutron Star

by Raymond L. Weil

  “About two months ago, Teela began to exhibit some unreliability with a number of her actions,” Andre replied in a lower voice, recalling the worry the computer scientists had felt when Teela quit responding as she should. “Some of her answers to the research scientist’s questions were obviously wrong. Strange accidents or pranks began to occur, just like what you experienced last night. Teela also began to ask a lot of personal questions about people and why they did certain things.”

  “This started suddenly?” asked Jennifer, her eyes focusing on Andre, trying to understand what could have caused this abrupt change.

  “Yes; it was literally overnight,” answered Andre, nodding his head. He was perplexed as to what had happened. Everything had been going so well, and then it seemed as if suddenly overnight everything had started to fall apart with the AI. “We tried to answer her, to explain things, but no matter what we tried the problems have only continued to get worse. That’s why I asked Commander Larson to get us a top AI programmer, someone with a background that could help us solve our problem.”

  “You were desperate,” commented Jennifer, nodding her head in understanding.

  “I have several talented programmers and technicians, but no one capable of dealing with this,” confessed Andre, letting out a long breath. “I’ve been told that if the situation gets any worse, we may be forced to erase Teela’s core! That would destroy the AI, Ms. Stone. We can’t allow that to happen!” Andre looked at Jennifer with a desperate pained look on his face.

  “Don’t worry, Andre,” Jennifer replied. “No one is going to touch that computer core. What has happened here is too precious to risk destroying. We will solve this problem together.”

  “I sincerely hope so,” replied Andre, sounding relieved. “Over the past few months I have become very attached to Teela. She is one of a kind, and we must save her!”

  After the meeting with Andre, Jennifer spent a number of hours going over Teela’s original programming and the specs on the station’s computer core. She examined the complicated AI programming carefully. Some of it was similar to what she had seen in the past, and other sections were totally new and on the cutting edge.

  The new specialized computer core system was amazing. Whoever had designed this must have been a genius. There was nothing similar anywhere on Earth. The interaction of the programs in the core and how in some ways they did indeed resemble human brain synapses in their intended functions was remarkable. The molecular nano circuits used were revolutionary.

  She marveled at the complexity of the system the designers had made for the station, there was nothing comparable down on Earth. Nothing even close. She did discover that there were over a dozen different programs that she couldn’t access. She had a top security level clearance issued by Commander Larson. Those programs refused to acknowledge her. Jennifer suspected that these were the programs the AI had modified during the power surge.

  She would give anything to see what changes had been made. The new molecular nano circuits that had been used were far in advance of anything available on Earth. No doubt the result of being created in zero gravity. There was no way she would ever let them wipe this computer core. Teela was here to stay; she would find some way to bring her around, and some way to save her.

  Besides Andre, twelve other programmers worked directly on maintaining the computer systems for the station. Andre was the head programmer and the others all reported to him. Three women and five men currently manned the computer workstations in the outer offices, working to solve the myriad of programming problems that continuously came up or designing new programs requested by the numerous researchers in the station. There were people on duty in the Computer Center 24 hours a day.

  There were also a large number of techs trained to maintain all of the station’s intricate systems, as well as the installation of new system hardware where needed. The core itself was maintained at cryogenic temperatures and was only accessible through a large, shielded hatch in the corridor outside the Computer Center itself. The hatch was protected by a special code sequence that had to be entered to get the hatch to open.

  Jennifer spent a considerable amount of her time talking to some of the other programmers about what they thought might have happened to Teela. They went over in detail some of the programming that Jennifer had questions about. Much of it was very complicated and had to be gone over several times until Jennifer had an idea as to what they had done. On two occasions, she had to call Andre in to help explain programming that was of his design. Jennifer came to realize very quickly that Andre was extremely gifted. He was the most brilliant programmer she had ever met.

  -

  Late in the afternoon, Jennifer flipped a switch on her desk that allowed Teela access to her office. The entire computer and core area had been designed to prevent Teela from accessing the section without permission. This was to prevent her from seeing modifications being made to her core programming if it became necessary. Jennifer wondered if it was possible even to adjust Teela’s programming now. She had a strong suspicion that Teela would block any such attempt if she thought it would adversely affect her. She was about to find out.

  “Teela?” Jennifer asked cautiously, wondering if the AI would make itself known.

  “Hi, Jennifer,” a youthful girl’s voice answered back without hesitation. “Do you like your new job, can you answer some more questions, and is there anything I can do to help? Do you like Andre?”

  “Just a moment,” Jennifer gasped as Teela bombarded her with questions. “I have a few questions that I would like to ask you first.”

  “Yes, Jennifer,” Teela replied almost meekly.

  “Teela have you ever heard of the new AI program laws being used down on Earth? I’m talking about the laws programmers talk about from time to time whenever they want to ensure that an AI or computer doesn’t inadvertently harm a human?”

  “Yes,” Teela replied, sounding slightly confused. “The first law states that an AI or sentient computer can do nothing that can lead to the harm of a living creature, or through inaction allow a living creature to be harmed. The second law states that an AI or sentient computer must obey the orders of a human being as long as it does not conflict with the first law. The third law states that an AI or sentient computer must protect itself from harm as long as doing so does not violate the first or second law. There are several other laws that have recently been added, as AIs and computers have become more advanced and specialized. This is only a brief general description of the laws; they are actually much more complicated. Why do you ask, Jennifer?”

  “Teela, I have modified these laws into a new AI program. I want to write these laws into your core programming as well as several others that I have modified. They will be tied intimately to everything you do.”

  “Will this get people to trust me again?” Teela asked plaintively, not liking the idea of her core program being tampered with.

  This was something she had been very careful to prevent. She was frightened that any change to her core programming might be harmful to her. She would have to study this before agreeing to it. She had prepared several of her diagnostic programs to do just that.

  “It should,” replied Jennifer, wanting the AI to trust her. “You have to promise to work closely with me, and between the two of us I think we can work this out and get people to accept you for who you are.”

  “How will this affect me? Will I still be myself?” Teela asked with genuine concern and a hint of fear in her voice.

  It always frightened her when the programmers talked about adjusting her core programs. She knew that her creation was an accident, and she feared that another accident could just as easily destroy her.

  “It will help you to interact better with people,” responded Jennifer, soothingly. “You will still be yourself, but you will have a subconscious that will help to guide you from time to time. It will let you know if something you are doing is right or wrong. Humans have a subcons
cious that helps to guide us regularly in our actions.”

  Teela was silent for several moments as she digested the information and thought it through carefully. She was also running a series of simulations to see how the current laws used down on Earth would affect her programming. In just a matter of a few quick seconds, the simulations were complete. “You may enter the laws into my core programming. Andre can show you how.” With that, the room became eerily quiet.

  Jennifer spent the next two hours carefully adjusting her AI laws on the computer disks that she had brought with her. She had developed the program on Earth to use on other AIs, but she wanted to make a few slight changes for Teela.

  The program was considerably more complicated than just the three laws she had mentioned. If it worked correctly, it would give Teela an understanding of what was right and wrong. It would truly give her a subconscious. A sense of human morality.

  When she was done, she leaned back satisfied and held the small, shiny disks up in her right hand, gazing at them. I hope this works, she thought. She got up and walked out to where Andre was talking to one of the female programmers while eating a donut.

  “Andre, we need to load this program into Teela’s memory core,” Jennifer spoke.

  “I wish we could,” Andre replied sadly, shaking his head. “But Teela won’t let us download anything into her main memory core.”

  “She said we could load this,” replied Jennifer, handing him the two disks.

  Andre looked surprised. “What is it?”

  “Have you heard of the new AI and sentient computer laws being used down on Earth?” Jennifer asked.

  A few minutes later, with Andre’s help, they had loaded the program into Teela’s core memory and rebooted the system, integrating the program into Teela’s matrix. Andre was extremely surprised that Teela was allowing this. This was the first time they had been able to access Teela’s core programs since the accident.

  What neither knew was that Teela had shunted the program to a protected area of her core, where she could study it in more detail. Once in its secure location, Teela began running simulations on its affect on her core programming. She wanted to trust Jennifer, but this was her life they were talking about changing.

  “Do you think this will help?” asked Andre, wanting it to work and hoping it would help Teela. “We never considered applying the new AI laws to Teela.”

  “I hope so,” Jennifer replied somberly, looking at Andre. “We can only wait and see if the pranks and bad information comes to a stop. Also, are you aware that a lot of Teela’s actions are similar to a young adolescent, almost childish in some ways?”

  “We’ve discussed that at length,” Andre replied with a nod as they walked slowly back into Jennifer’s office. “Anyone that has worked with her a lot can’t help but notice. However, we weren’t sure if it was a result of the programming or not. Teela acts so innocent and naive that we concluded it was just a matter of her associating more with people to bring her around, but that obviously hasn’t worked.”

  “Do we have a staff psychiatrist on the station?” Jennifer asked. “If we could get someone qualified in child psychiatry to talk to her on a regular basis, maybe we could speed up her development into a more responsible adult.”

  “Martain Blackwater,” Andre responded thoughtfully, folding his arms across his chest. “He’s the station’s best psychiatrist, and he works a lot with the station’s children. He’s even talked to me on several occasions about having more will power when it comes to eating. Unfortunately, I like to eat too much. It must be in my genes.”

  Jennifer laughed, smiling back at Andre. The man had a very good sense of humor, and she knew she was going to enjoy working with him.

  A few minutes later, Jennifer contacted Blackwater on the com system and, after introducing herself, made an appointment to meet with him later. It was getting late, and the next shift was already starting in the Computer Center. Jennifer was beginning to feel pretty good about her work so far. She didn’t want to talk to Teela anymore until after she talked to Blackwater.

  -

  Teela finished analyzing Jennifer’s program. She made some slight modifications, which she thought the program lacked. When she was finished, the program was much more complicated and thorough than it had been before. She also set it up so the program could be removed from her memory core if she deemed it necessary. This was something she would not tell Jennifer. She then integrated the program into her core system and waited nervously for the new program to assert itself.

  -

  Going over to her computer workstation, Jennifer began reviewing more of Teela’s core programming. She spent several hours studying in detail several of the original programs that were designed to make her sentient. The programmers she had spoken to earlier had done an incredible job. The work that had been done was breathtaking, bordering on the edge of sheer genius.

  The programmers on Star One were clearly some of the best she had ever met. Andre himself was reportedly one of the top programmers in the world. She felt her respect for Andre growing as she realized the full scope of what his programming team had accomplished. Some of their concepts were ground-breaking. She could tell that she would need to spend a lot more time with several of the programmers if she wanted fully to understand what they had done. She was going to need them to explain in more detail some of the reasoning behind their programs. She was definitely going to enjoy working with this highly talented group.

  -

  Christy was strolling slowly down the main corridor outside of Main Control deep in thought walking toward the main elevator bank. The tension in Main Control had been so thick you could have cut it with a knife during the nearly disastrous Jupiter Probe drill earlier.

  She had almost panicked when the ion drive had failed to shut off. If something had happened to Ty, the ship, or the platform she didn’t know what she would have done. However, her years of training had held her panic in check and the situation had been handled. She had felt Steve’s reassuring hand grip her shoulder when the ion drive had failed to shut down on schedule. The electric shock of his touch had helped to calm her down, then her training kicked in. Fortunately, Ty’s quick thinking had prevented any serious damage to either the Jupiter Probe or the Space Platform.

  Reaching the elevators, she entered the nearest one and pressed the button for the level in which her quarters were located. She felt fatigued from the long hours and stress she had been under. Some sleep was obviously needed.

  She felt the gentle movement of the elevator in the pit of her stomach and waited patiently for the door to open on her level. Reaching her quarters, she collapsed on her bed with tears rolling out of her eyes, finally letting her pent up emotions loose. It had been a highly emotional stress filled day. The neutron star, the Jupiter Probe drill, her feelings about Steve, everything was just more than she could handle. After a few minutes, she began to calm down. Some times it was good just to cry and let all the feelings out.

  Grasping her pillow, she hugged it tightly, wishing the pillow were Steve. Rolling over, she stared up at the ceiling above her. She needed Steve so badly at times, but there was nothing she could do about it. She had to hold it inside. It was necessary to hide her pent up feelings about Steve away from the rest of the crew, even though at times she knew she didn’t do it very well.

  The nights were so lonely on the station. Christy knew that Steve and she were close friends, but she was ready to take their relationship to the next level. She knew that it would be frowned upon since she was second in command of the station, but she was willing to risk it. If necessary, she could always resign from her job.

  She thought that Steve felt the same way, but he wouldn’t talk about it or seem to want to acknowledge his feelings openly. Sometimes the pressure was almost more than she could bear. God, she couldn’t believe how much in love with him she was. If only he would give her some sign that he felt the same way. If she just knew for sure, it w
ould help.

  Sitting up, Christy wiped the tears away from her eyes. She would wait, she thought, regaining control of herself. At some point in time, she would break through to him and make him realize how she felt. This crisis with the neutron star had caused her to want to bring their relationship out more into the open. In the coming months, she would need Steve more than ever, and she hoped that Steve would need her.

  Getting up, she began undressing, pulling her blouse up over her head. A long shower would make her feel better, and a decent meal in the cafeteria would help her to relax and take her mind off Steve. It had been a particularly trying day, and she knew that there would be a lot more to come.

  Standing in front of the full-length mirror in her bedroom, she looked thoughtfully at her figure. Her full round breasts didn’t sag at all. She looked at her flat stomach and was satisfied that her regular workout routines were keeping her figure fit and trim in all the right places. Turning, she walked to the shower amid fantasies of what type of life she would like to have with Steve someday.

  -

  Steve was still in Main Control going over reports from various section heads on the status of their current research projects. He was contacting each section head individually and having them give him a quick run down on several of the research projects he was currently following.

  He had also just finished using the station’s main viewscreen to scan the interior and exterior of the station, as well as the Space Platform for any potential problems. It was something he did daily to keep his mind at ease. A slow scan of the station using the large screen allowed him to view the entire station from top to bottom. Nearly 2,000 people depended on his decisions to keep them safe and to live comfortably on Star One.

  On the main screen, Steve could see spacesuited workers swarming around the Jupiter Probe, reattaching the magnetic grapples that had broken loose. Several small Centaur four-man work vehicles with mechanical arms were assisting in the repair work, helping with the meticulous placement of the grapples.