“Man, this USB data transfer is really speeding things up. Thanks again for all the help, Bai.”
Bai smiled. “You’re welcome, Mr. Brown. Happy to be of service.”
Paul stretched his flabby arms high and wide and yawned like a bear coming out of hibernation. “Man, I’m tired.”
“You want some tea, maybe?”
“Oh, wow. That would be great. Something sweet, too, if you can find it.”
Bai nodded. “Be right back.”
“Thanks, Bai.”
Paul turned back to his laptop, pretending to be focused on the screen but desperately trying to keep Bai in his peripheral vision, waiting for him to turn the corner into the kitchen and—
Hurry!
Paul whipped his fingers across the mouse pad and keyboard, opening the CIA file and dragging the contents over to the Dalfan USB to copy them. The progress bar popped up. Two minutes and counting. Just like last night.
It would take Bai at least that long to brew a cup of hot tea and find a pastry or something, and another thirty seconds for him to walk back to the office.
Unless the hot water machine was broken and the pastry box was empty.
A minute passed, then ninety seconds. Thirty seconds to go.
“Hope you like doughnuts, Mr. Brown.”
Paul nearly jumped out of his skin. He swiveled around in his chair, using his wide body to block the screen from Bai, who stood in front of him, smiling and holding out a cup of tea and a chocolate doughnut with brightly colored sprinkles.
Paul forced a wide smile. “Outstanding, sir. Thank you.”
Bai frowned, lifted his chin, trying to see over Paul’s shoulder.
“Something wrong, Bai?”
“What’s on your—”
“OW!” Paul jumped out of his chair, his pants drenched.
“What’s wrong?”
“I spilled hot tea on my trousers! Quick, get me some paper towels! Please.”
“Oh, yes, of course. Be right back!” Bai scurried out the door.
Paul spun around to face the computer. His scalded thighs screamed with pain, but he ignored it. He set the half-empty cup down with his left hand and shook it off, then jammed the doughnut into his mouth with his right as he checked his screen.
The USB message read INSUFFICIENT STORAGE CAPACITY.
“Thit,” Paul breathed through his doughnut. His fingers flew again. The USB drive only had one gig of storage. He heard Bai’s softly padding feet running toward the door.
“Thit!” Paul trashed the CIA file just as Bai yanked the door open, wads of paper towels from the men’s restroom balled up in his fists.
“Here, Mr. Brown!”
Paul turned around, the doughnut still in his mouth. He pulled it out. “Thanks.” He took a bite of doughnut and started blotting the hot tea from his trousers. Out of the corner of his eye he watched as Bai cast a glance at his empty laptop screen.
“Anything else, Mr. Brown?”
“No, thanks. This should do the trick. Sorry for the trouble.”
“No trouble, Mr. Brown. More tea?”
“Eh, no, thanks. I think I’ve worn enough tea this morning.”
“Yeah, lah.”
Paul was glad he’d dodged a bullet, but his plan was shot to hell.
How in the heck am I going to get around Dalfan security now?
30
Jack arrived at the second floor with Lian on his hip and processed through the security desk, where they were met by Dr. Chen Tao. A smile creased her round, pleasant face as she extended her right hand to Jack; her other hand held a tablet. Jack noticed a bulge in one of her jacket pockets.
“A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Ryan. Please, follow me.”
The third floor was divided into three sections separated by security glass and passcodes like the floor below, but this place looked like a Hollywood production studio — which essentially it was.
After leaving the security station, Dr. Tao led them through the central section with video-editing bays in the offices and software programming stations on the floor.
Jack passed a workstation where three earnest programmers argued passionately over the densely packed lines of code on the screen. Jack felt the energy in the room all around him, full of creative and brilliant young minds attacking problems he could barely understand.
Dr. Tao pointed out graphic designers, artists, mathematicians, software developers, and even a few physicists as they walked by. She asked Jack, “What do you know about VR — virtual reality?”
“It’s the next big thing in video gaming.”
“Why do you suppose that is?”
“Obviously because it makes games seem more realistic.”
“And it does. The challenge all VR programmers face is this: Is there a way to make virtual reality so realistic that it’s no longer possible to discriminate between the virtual and the real?”
Dr. Tao slid her pass card into the reader for the glass door leading to the rear section of the floor.
“Is that even possible?” Jack asked. “By definition, ‘real’ means that which actually exists. How can software and sensors ever be as ‘real’ as reality?”
Dr. Tao pulled open the door and pointed them through a blackout curtain. “I suppose that depends upon your definition of reality.”
“You sound more like a philosopher than a computer programmer.”
“One of my undergraduate degrees was in psychology, actually. I’ve found it to be extraordinarily useful in my present position.”
“How so?”
“Psychology is the study of the human mind. The whole point of computer programming is to mimic the mind and when possible, exceed it, in order to improve the human condition.”
“Exceed the mind? You mean artificial intelligence,” Jack said.
“Yes. AI and machine learning are transforming everything, from simple devices like home thermostats to combat technologies on the battlefield. AI is central to our VR and AR development.”
“AR — augmented reality?”
“Exactly. Between you and me? I think AR will be much bigger than VR in the coming years.”
“Because AR is an overlay of reality, and easier to create?” Jack offered.
Dr. Tao nodded approvingly. “You catch on quickly, Mr. Ryan. Ever considered a career change?” She opened the security door and led them into the third section of the floor. It was an open area divided in two by a thick curtain. The first part of the open area was a high-tech movie theater with luxurious recliners and a massive 4K monitor on the wall.
“Sometimes it’s better to see the work you’ve created on a small monitor put up on the big screen,” Dr. Tao said. “And it’s always useful to hear and see an audience react to your work.”
“So your work is focused on entertainment?”
“Not primarily. We’re developing tools that will make any virtual reality experience entirely real. That might include entertainment like video games and movies, but the primary application we’re making with our VR tools is with simulators.”
“I’m sorry, but there’s that dichotomy again. How can ‘virtually real’ be ‘entirely real,’ Dr. Tao? That’s not logically possible.”
“Like I said, it depends on your definition of ‘real.’ My definition of reality is that which is grounded in human psychology and physiology. The brain is real. The central nervous system is real. The five senses are real. Do you agree?”
“Of course.”
“We interact with the real world through our experience of it by means of our senses and the way our brains process those interactions. In other words, reality is data, and how our brains interpret those sensory data inputs is what we perceive as reality.”
“In other words, you’re saying perception is reality.”