Isogai was speaking too fast for anyone to process what he was saying. Hashiba was becoming increasingly frustrated at Isogai’s inability to spell out the problem.
“Right, okay. But doesn’t that just mean that he got the numbers wrong?” Hashiba still couldn’t see what the two men were getting so worked up about.
“Thousands of mathematical theorems depend on the Riemann hypothesis being correct. They were all based on assumptions it made. If it falls down, they all do, like dominos. It’s a disaster, a nightmare scenario.”
“So you’re saying, basically, that patterns have appeared where they didn’t exist before, and where patterns should exist they have stopped doing so,” Hashiba summarized as best he could regarding Pi and the hypothesis.
“Exactly! And in both cases there’s this ominous recurrence of zeros.”
Hashiba shook his head and sighed. “But even so …” He was still unable to fathom the terror that was obviously gripping Isogai. What possible repercussions could there be?
“Don’t forget that all of our physical laws are built on the foundations of mathematical theory. Our very existence relies on the stability of these laws, but in all cases there is no guarantee that they’re infallible. The fact that everything has the potential to be disproved is a fundamental principle of science.
“Don’t you see? The mathematical terms I’m talking about can be equated to elements in our physical universe. You can represent any number through mixing these elements. When mathematicians were studying the occurrence of prime numbers, they noticed that the behavior was mirrored in quantum theory. In other words, the conceptual, abstract world of numbers is somehow connected to our physical world.
“The collapse of the Riemann hypothesis, the appearance of zeros outside the boundary of 1/2 + ti … It’s possible that this is a precursor of a coming change in the number of dimensions in the real world. Just a possibility, that is. The world we know could cease to exist — all it would take is a slight warping of the numbers.
“If, for example, the strong nuclear force were strengthened in relation to the other natural forces — if the balance were to change even slightly — that alone would be enough to cause our sun to begin to expand and go supernova. Conversely, if it were to weaken — again, even slightly — then that would be enough to cause the sun to die out. The link is clear. A pattern has appeared in the value of Pi. Something has altered the base of our mathematical theory. There are bound to be repercussions for us. What I’m trying to say is that these changes will translate into physical changes in our world.”
As Isogai spoke, Hashiba watched Kagayama’s expression flit from open disbelief to frustration to something approaching fear. He was twitching slightly. Whether or not the implications of Isogai’s discourse had been grasped by the laymen in the room, the mood in it was significantly darker.
“Fucking nonsense.”
Kagayama finally seemed to lose his temper. He reached for the saucer at the edge of the table but Hashiba moved it out of his reach. Kagayama stood and marched to the window in a sulk.
Isogai frowned at the hysterics and waited for the moment to pass. After a moment, he continued, “I assure you, this problem is real. The President of the United States has already begun to gather a group of elite scientific advisors.”
Isogai looked over for Chris to back him up. Chris’ mouth quivered, and he looked like he might burst into tears at any moment. He nodded.
“One of the President’s scientific advisors, David Fontana, used to teach one of Chris’ good friends,” Isogai continued. “Just two days ago, Chris received an email from that friend claiming that the President was rounding up advisors from a number of fields. The list started with David himself and included other luminaries in elementary particle physics and quantum gravity theory. People like Dine Parker-Holmes and Landau are all being taken to Washington. The Director General of NASA is already there; I guess it was NASA that initially apprised the President of the situation. NASA must have come across some incredible information, that much is clear.
“As you know, I’ve worked with the U.S. government, and I know how the flow of information works. There’s a gag order in place, and no one’s allowed to talk about whatever is going on. They’re extremely thorough in this kind of situation. Communications with the outside world are under a blanket ban, and no one can use phones or email to discuss the situation.
“It’s pretty clear what’s going on. NASA must have advised the President of a potential security threat. Given this information, the President would have decided that he needed further input from his advisors and other top minds in physics. He would have called an emergency meeting of the National Security Council. It’s terrifying to even consider what they must have discovered to merit an operation of this scale; this is a crisis-level response. The fact that there’s a gag order in place says it all. It’s in place because any leaked information has the potential to cause widespread panic.”
Even knowing Isogai could only speculate as to what the problem was, Hashiba couldn’t help but ask, “What is it that they’ve discovered? I don’t care if it’s just a guess, what do you think? That’s what you’re here for.”
Ignoring Hashiba’s question, Isogai exchanged a few words with Chris in English that sounded like an intimate exchange of endearments between lovers.
“Okay. We’ll need a little time,” Isogai finally answered. “We’ll try our best to get some information together.”
“Of course,” Hashiba nodded in agreement. He understood that they would have to search for more information in order to even come close to a possible answer.
Hashiba could see that reports that changes had occurred in mathematical theory were cropping up worldwide. Even so, it was still not clear to Hashiba why that should bring about such an extreme reaction. It was frustrating being unable to comprehend the full implications of the information.
Isogai had begun to sweat copiously, his jaw line distorted by the tension in his face. He looked as though he was trying his best to disguise his fear so as not to frighten Chris further. It wasn’t working. Hashiba just wanted to know what it actually meant. What happened to the world if a transcendental number revealed a pattern and the so-called Riemann hypothesis broke down?
Hashiba had studied some basic math in order to pass his university entrance exams, but his heart had never been in it. He was pursuing a degree in sociology, after all, and what good would differentials and the like serve him in the real world? For that reason, he’d covered just the minimum material necessary, never applying himself to a deeper pursuit of the subject beyond the equations he’d memorized for the exams. Tonight was the first time Hashiba had ever considered that mathematics could have dangerous real-life implications.