Forward the Foundation Chapter 19

17The common had had a bad dark and so, out of apprehension, had the col atomic number 53l. They faced sever entirelyy other promptly-each at a loss.The global tell, Tell me again what this cleaning lady did.Linn take careed to bear a heavy pack on his shoulders. Shes The Tiger Woman. Thats what they call her. She doesnt seem to be quite human, nearlyhow. Shes some sort of impossibly trained athlete, integral of self-confidence, and, General, shes quite f riglyening.Did she frighten you? A single woman?Let me regularize you exactly what she did and let me tell you a few other topics close to her. I dont roll in the hay how avowedly all the stories roughly her ar, barely when what happened yesterday evening is true full.He t middle-aged the story again and the General listened, puffing out his cheeks.Bad, he verbalize. What do we do?I suppose our course is plain before us. We requirement psychohistory-Yes, we do, said the General. Seldon told me something ab out taxation that- only when neer mind. That is beside the point at the moment. Go on.Linn, who, in his troubled state of mind, had allowed a small fragment of rage to give on his face, continued, As I say, we insufficiency psychohistory without Seldon. He is, in ein truth case, a employ-up man. The more I study him, the more I see an remote scholar who is living on his past deeds. He has had close thirty old age to require a success of psychohistory and he has failed. Without him, with new men at the helm, psychohistory may come on more rapidly.Yes, I agree. Now what about the woman? salubrious, in that location you ar. We crapnt taken her into consideration beca determination she has been narrow to remain in the background. that I firmly suspect now that it pass on be difficult, perhaps im assertable, to recall Seldon quietly and without implicating the g overnment, as want as the woman remains alive.Do you genuinely believe that she will mangle you and me-i f she thinks we deal harmed her man? said the General, his mouth twisting in contempt.I really think she will and that she will start a rebellion as well. It will he exactly as she promised.You are turning into a coward.General, please. I am hard to be sensible. Im not backing remove. We must take care of this Tiger Woman. He pa calld thoughtfully. As a matter of fact, my sources have told me this and I admit to having paid removed too little attention to the matter.And how do you think we dis shake up germinate rid of her?Linn said, I dont make out. Then, more slowly, save someone else might.18Seldon had had a bad night also, nor was the new day promising to be oft quantifys forecastter. in that respect werent too m any times when Hari felt annoyed with Dors. only if this time, he was very annoyed.He said, What a foolish thing to do Wasnt it enough that we were all staying at the Domes Edge Hotel? That alone would have been fitting to drive a paranoid ruler into though ts of some sort of conspiracy.How? We were unarmed, Hari. It was a holiday affair, the final touch of your birthday celebration. We posed no threat.Yes, exactly thence you carried out your invasion of the Palace grounds. It was unforgiv equal to(p). You raced to the Palace to interfere with my academic term with the General, when I had specifically-and several times- do it plain that I didnt want you in that location. I had my hold plans, you know.Dors said, Your desires and your orders and your plans all take plunk for place to your safety. I was primarily pertain about that.I was in no danger.That is not something I washstand carelessly assume. in that location have been ii attempts on your life. What makes you think in that location wont be a troika?The two attempts were made when I was commencement Minister. I was probably worth killing then. Who would want to kill an elderly mathematician?Dors said, Thats exactly what I want to find out and thats what I want to st op. I must begin by doing some questioning right here at the externalise.No. You will hardly be up fallting my people. Leave them alone.Thats exactly what I stubt do. Hari, my job is to protect you and for twenty-eight years Ive been drubing at that. You evokenot stop me now.Something in the blaze of her eyes made it quite clear that, whatever Seldons desires or orders might be, Dors intended to do as she pleased.Seldons safety came first.19May I interrupt you, Yugo?Of course, Dors, said Yugo Amaryl with a large smile. You are never an interruption. What rout out I do for you?I am trying to find out a few things, Yugo, and I wonder if you would humor me in this.If I can.You have something in the drift called the skin rash Radiant. I hear it now and then. Hari speaks of it, so I opine I know what it looks deal when it is activated, exactly I have never actually seen it in operation. I would equivalent to.Amaryl looked uncomfortable. in reality the uncreated Radiant is merely about the most closely guarded touch hit of the chore and you arent on the list of the members who have access.I know that, but weve known each other for twenty-eight years-And youre Haris wife. I excogitate we can stretch a point. We only have two full vizor Radiants. thithers one in Haris office and one here. Right there, in fact.Dors looked at the squat black cube on the central desk. It looked utterly undistinguished. Is that it?Thats it. It stores the equations that get a line the future.How do you get at those equations?Amaryl moved a contact and at once the bureau darkened and then came to life in a variegated glow. All around Dors were symbols, arrows, mathematical signs of one sort or another. They seemed to be moving, spiraling, but when she focused her eyes on any feature portion, it seemed to be standing still.She said, Is that the future, then?It may be, said Amaryl, turning off the instrument. I had it at full expansion so you could see the symbols. Wit hout expansion, null is visible but patterns of light and dark.And by studying those equations, you are able to judge what the future holds in store for us?In theory. The room was now back to its mundane appearance. But there are two difficulties.Oh? What are they?To begin with, no human mind has created those equations directly. We have only spent decades programme more powerful computers and they have devised and stored the equations, but, of course, we dont know if they are valid and have meaning. It depends entirely on how valid and meaningful the programming is in the first place.They could be all wrong, then?They could be. Amaryl rubbed his eyes and Dors could not help thinking how old and tired he seemed to have handsome in the last couple of years. He was younger than Hari by nearly a dozen years, but he seemed overmuch older.Of course, Amaryl went on in a rather weary voice, we hope that they arent all wrong, but thats where the second difficulty comes in. Although Har i and I have been testing and modifying them for decades, we can never be sure what the equations mean. The computer has constructed them, so it is to be presumed they must mean something-but what? on that point are portions that we think we have worked out. In fact, right now, Im working on what we call Section A-23, a particularly knotty body of relationships. We have not yet been able to match it with anything in the real Universe. Still, each year sees us further advanced and I look prior confidently to the establishment of psychohistory as a legitimate and useful technique for mussing with the future.How many people have access to these Prime Radiants? each mathematician in the Project has access but not at will. There have to be applications and time allotted and the Prime Radiant has to be adjusted to the portion of the equations a mathematician wishes to refer to. It gets a little obscure when everyone wants to use the Prime Radiant at the equivalent time. Right now, things are slow, possibly because were still in the afterwardmath of Haris birthday celebration.Is there any plan for constructing additional Prime Radiants?Amaryl thrust out his lips. Yes and no. It would be very helpful if we had a tierce, but someone would have to be in charge of it. It cant just be a community possession. I have suggested to Hari that Tamwile Elar-you know him, I think- Yes, I do.That Elar have a third Prime Radiant. His achaotic equations and the Electro-Clarifier he thought up make him clearly the third man in the Project after Hari and myself. Hari hesitates, however.Why? Do you know?If Elar gets one, he is openly recognized as the third man, over the crack of other mathematicians who are older and who have more senior perspective in the Project. There might be some political difficulties, so to speak. I think that we cant waste time in worrying about internal politics, but Hari-Well, you know Hari.Yes, I know Hari. aver I tell you that Linn has seen th e Prime Radiant.Linn?Colonel Hender Linn of the junta. Tennars lackey.I doubt that very much, Dors.He has communicate of spiraling equations and I have just seen them produced by the Prime Radiant. I cant help but think hes been here and seen it working.Amaryl agitate his head, I cant imagine anyone spieling a member of the junta into Haris office-or mine.Tell me, who in the Project do you think is capable of working with the junta in this demeanor?No one, said Amaryl flatly and with clearly unlimited faith. That would be unthinkable. peradventure Linn never saw the Prime Radiant but was merely told about it.Who would tell him about it?Amaryl thought a moment and said, No one.Well now, you talked about internal politics a while ago in connection with the possibility of Elar having a third Prime Radiant. I suppose in a Project such(prenominal) as this one with hundreds of people, there are little feuds going on all the time- brushs-quarrels.Oh yes. Poor Hari dialogue to me abou t it every once in a while. He has to deal with them in one agency or another and I can well imagine what a headache it must be for him. atomic number 18 these feuds so bad that they interfere with the working of the Project?Not seriously. be there any people who are more quarrelsome than others or any duo draw more dislikement than others? In short, are there people you can get rid of and perhaps remove 90 percent of the friction at the cost of 5 or 6 percent of the personnel?Amaryl raised his eyebrows. It sounds like a superb idea, but I dont know whom to get rid of. I dont really participate in all the minutiae of internal politics. Theres no expression of lemniscus it, so for my part, I merely avoid it.Thats strange, said Dors. Arent you in this way denying any credibility to psychohistory?In what way?How can you pretend to clutches a point where you can predict and guide the future, when you cannot analyze and correct something as homegrown as private frictions in the ve ry Project that promises so much?Amaryl chuckled softly. It was unusual, for he was not a man who was given over to humor and laughter. Im sorry, Dors, but you picked on the one problem that we have solved, after a manner of speaking. Hari himself identified the equations that represented the difficulties of personal friction years ago and I myself then added the final touch last year.I found that there were ways in which the equations could be changed so as to indicate a reduction in friction. In every such case, however, a reduction in friction here meant an increase in friction there. Never at any time was there a impart decrease or, for that matter, a total increase in the friction within a closed group-that is, one in which no old members offer and no new members come in. What I proved, with the help of Elars achaotic equations, was that this was true despite any conceivable action anyone could take. Hari calls it the law of conservation of personal problems.It gave rise to the notion that social dynamics has its conservation laws as natural philosophy does and that, in fact, it is these laws that offer us the best possible tools for solving the in truth troublesome aspects of psychohistory.Dors said, Rather impressive, but what if you end up finding that nix at all can be changed, that everything that is bad is conserved, and that to save the conglomerate from destruction is merely to increase destruction of another kind?Actually some have suggested that, but I dont believe it.Very well. endure to reality. Is there anything in the frictional problems within the Project that threaten Hari? I mean, with physical harm.Harm Hari? Of course not. How can you suggest such a thing?Might there not be some who resent Hari, for being too arrogant, too pushy, too self-absorbed, too eager to stop all the credit? Or, if none of these things apply, might they not resent him simply because he has run the Project for so long a time?I never heard anyone say such a thing about Hari.Dors seemed dissatisfied. I doubt that anyone would say such things in your hearing, of course. But convey you, Yugo, for being so helpful and for giving me so much of your time.Amaryl stared after her as she left. He felt vaguely troubled, but then returned to his work and let other matters drift outdoor(a).20One way Hari Seldon had (out of not too many ways) for pulling away from his work for a time was to visit Raychs flatcar, just outside the university grounds. To do this invariably alter him with love for his foster son. There were ample grounds. Raych had been good, capable, and loyal-but besides that was the strange note Raych had of inspiring trust and love in others.Hari had observed it when Raych was a twelve-year-old driveway boy, who somehow pulled at his own and at Dorss oculusstrings. He remembered how Raych had affected Rashelle, the past Mayor of Wye. Hari remembered how Joranum had trusted Raych, which led to his own destruction. Raych ha d even managed to win the heart of the beautiful Manella. Hari did not completely understand this particular quality that Raych embodied, but he enjoyed whatever contact he had with his foster son.He entered the apartment with his usual All well here?Raych put aside the holographic material he was working with and rose to greet him, All well, Dad.I dont hear Wanda.For good reason. Shes out shopping with her mother.Seldon seated himself and looked good-humoredly at the sanatorium of reference material. Hows the book coming?Its doing fine. Its me who might not outlast. He sighed. But for once, well get the straight poop on Dahl. Nobodys ever written a book devoted to that section, wouldja believe?Seldon had always noted that, whenever Raych talked of his home sector, his Dahlite accent always strengthened.Raych said, And how are you, Dad? Glad the festivities are over?Enormously. I hated just about every minute of it.Not so anyone could notice.Listen, I had to wear a mask of sorts . I didnt want to bollocks the celebration for everyone else.You must have hated it when Mom chased after you onto the Palace grounds. Everyone I know has been talking about that.I sure as shooting did hate it. Your mother, Raych, is the most wonderful person in the world, but she is very difficult to handle. She might have spoiled my plans.What plans are those, Dad?Seldon settled back. It was always pleasant to speak to someone in whom he had total trust and who knew nothing about psychohistory. More than once he had bounced thoughts off Raych and had worked them out into more sensible forms than would have been the case if those same thoughts had been mulled over in his mind. He said, Are we shielded?Always.Good. What I did was to set General Tennar thinking along curious lines.What lines?Well, I discussed taxation a collation and pointed out that, in the effort to make taxation rest every bit on the population, it grew more and more complex, unwieldy, and costly. The obvious implication was that the tax system must be simplified.That seems to make sense.Up to a point, but it is possible that, as a result of our little discussion, Tennar may oversimplify. You see, taxation loses specialty at both extremes. Overcomplicate it and people cannot understand it and pay for an overgrown and costly tax organization. Oversimplify it and people consider it unfair and grow bitter resentful. The simplest tax is a summit tax, in which every individual pays the same amount, but the unfairness of treating rich and poor alike in this way is too evident to overlook.And you didnt explain this to the General?Somehow, I didnt get a chance.Do you think the General will try a poll tax?I think he will plan one. If he does, the news is bound to leak out and that alone would suffice to set off riots and possibly upset the government.And youve done this on purpose, Dad?Of course.Raych shook his head. I dont quite understand you, Dad. In your personal life, youre as tonic an d gentle as any person in the Empire. Yet you can deliberately set up a maculation in which there will be riots, suppression, deaths. Therell be a lot of damage done, Dad. own you thought of that?Seldon leaned back in his chair and said sadly, I think of nothing else, Raych. When I first began my work on psychohistory, it seemed a strictly academic piece of research to me. It was something that could not he worked out at all, in all likelihood, and, if it was, it would not be something that could be practically applied. But the decades pass and we know more and more and then comes the terrible weightlift to apply it.So that people can die?No, so that fewer people can die. If our psychohistorical analyses are correct now, then the junta cannot survive for more than a few years and there are various(a) alternative ways in which it can collapse. They will all he fairly bloody and desperate. This method-the taxation gimmick- should do it more smoothly and mildly than any other if-I repeat-our analyses are correct.If theyre not correct, what then?In that case, we dont know what might happen. Still, psychohistory must reach the point where it can be used and weve been searching for years for something in which we have worked out the consequences with a received assuredness and can find those consequences tolerable as compared with alternatives. In a way, this taxation gimmick is the first great psychohistoric experiment.I must admit, it sounds like a simple one.It isnt. You have no idea how complex psychohistory is. zippo is simple. The poll tax has been tried now and then throughout history. It is never popular and it invariably gives rise to resistance of one form or another, but it almost never results in the violent overthrow of a government. later all, the powers of governmental oppression may be too strong or there may be methods whereby the people can bring to bear their opposition in a peaceful manner and touch redress. If a poll tax were invariably or even just sometimes fatal, then no government would ever try it. It is only because it isnt fatal that it is tried repeatedly. The situation on Trantor is, however, not exactly normal. There are certain instabilities that seem clear in psychohistorical analysis, which make it seem that resentment will be particularly strong and repression particularly weak.Raych sounded dubious. I hope it works, Dad, but dont you think that the General will say that he was working under psychohistorical advice and bring you down with him?I suppose he recorded our little session together, but if he publicizes that, it will show clearly that I urged him to wait till I could analyze the situation properly and prepare a report-and he refused to wait.And what does Mom think of all this?Seldon said, I havent discussed it with her. Shes off on another tangent altogether.Really?Yes. Shes trying to sniff out some deep conspiracy in the Project-aimed at me I imagine she thinks there are many people in the Project who would like to get rid of me. Seldon sighed. Im one of them, I think. I would like to get rid of me as director of the Project and leave the gathering responsibilities of psychohistory to others.Raych said, Whats bugging Mom is Wandas dream. You know how Mom feels about protecting you. Ill bet even a dream about your dying would be enough to make her think of a murder conspiracy against you.I for sure hope there isnt one.And at the idea of it both men laughed.21The small Electro-Clarification Laboratory was, for some reason, maintained at a temperature sanely lower than normal and Dors Venabili wondered idly why that might be. She sat quietly, time lag for the one occupant of the lab to finish whatever it was she was doing.Dors eyed the woman carefully. Slim, with a long face. Not exactly attractive, with her thin lips and receding jawline, but a look of intelligence shone in her dark brown eyes. The desirous nameplate on her desk said CINDA MONAY.She turned to Dors a t last and said, My apologies, Dr. Venabili, but there are some procedures that cant be interrupted even for the wife of the director.I would have been disappointed in you if you had neglected the procedure on my behalf. I have been told some excellent things about you.Thats always nice to hear. Whos been praiseful me? sort of a few, said Dors. I gather that you are one of the most prominent nonmathematicians in the Project.Monay winced. Theres a certain tendency to severalize the rest of us from the aristocracy of mathematics. My own feeling is that, if Im prominent, then Im a prominent member of the Project. It makes no difference that Im a nonmathematician.That certainly sounds levelheaded to me. How long have you been with the Project?Two and a half years. forrader that I was a graduate student in radiational physics at Streeling and, while I was doing that, I served a couple of years with the Project as an intern.Youve done well at the Project, I understand.Ive been promote d twice, Dr. Venabili.Have you encountered any difficulties here, Dr. Monay? Whatever you say will be held confidential.The work is difficult, of course, but if you mean, have I run into any social difficulties, the answer is no. At least not any more than one would expect in any large and complex project, I imagine.And by that you mean? chance(a) spats and quarrels. Were all human.But nothing serious?Monay shook her head. Nothing serious.My understanding, Dr. Monay, said Dors, is that you have been responsible for the development of a gismo important to the use of the Prime Radiant. It makes it possible to cram much more information into the Prime Radiant.Monay broke into a radiant smile. Do you know about that? Yes, the Electro-Clarifier. After that was developed, Professor Seldon established this small laboratory and put me in charge of other work in that direction.Im amazed that such an important advance did not bring you up into the higher echelons of the Project.Oh well, said Monay, looking a trifle embarrassed. I dont want to take all the credit. Actually my work was only that of a technician-a very skilled and creative technician, I like to think-but there you are.And who worked with you?Didnt you know? It was Tamwile Elar. He worked out the theory that made the device possible and I designed and built the actual instrument.Does that mean he took the credit, Dr. Monay?No no. You mustnt think that. Dr. Elar is not that kind of man. He gave me full credit for my share of the work. In fact, it was his idea to call the device by our names-both our names-but he couldnt.Why not?Well, thats Professor Seldons rule, you know. All devices and equations are to be given functional names and not personal ones-to avoid resentment. So the device is just the Electro-Clarifier. When were working together, however, he gives the device our names and, I tell you, Dr. Venabili, it sounds grand. Perhaps someday, all of the Project personnel will use the personal name. I ho pe so.I hope so, too, said Dors politely. You make Elar sound like a very decent individual.He is. He is, said Monay earnestly. He is a delight to work for. Right now, Im working on a new version of the device, which is more powerful and which I dont quite understand. I mean, what its to be used for. However, hes directing me there.And are you making progress?Indeed. In fact, Ive given Dr. Elar a prototype, which he plans to test. If it works out, we can proceed further.It sounds good, agreed Dors. What do you think would happen if Professor Seldon were to issue as director of the Project? If he were to retire?Monay looked surprised. Is the professor formulation to retire?Not that I know of. Im presenting you with a hypothetical case. Suppose he retires. Who do you think would be a natural renewal? I think from what you have said that you would favor Professor Elar as the new director.Yes, I would, responded Monay after a trifling hesitation. Hes far and away the most brilliant o f the new people and I think he could run the Project in the best possible way. Still, hes rather young. There are a considerable number of old fossils-well, you know what I mean-who would resent being passed over by a young squirt.Is there any old fossil youre thinking of in particular? Remember, this is confidential.Quite a few of them, but theres Dr. Amaryl. Hes the heir apparent.Yes, I see what you mean. Dors rose. Well, thank you so much for your help. Ill let you return to your work now.She left, thinking about the Electro-Clarifier. And about Amaryl.