Post by papaof2 on Sept 17, 2021 18:23:00 GMT -6
A short one that has been gathering dust for a while. Really wish a muse would run with it but that doesn't seem to be happening. For now, enjoy the bit that's here.
Chapter 1
Tuesday, 9:30AM
"Jack?"
"Yes, Troy?"
"We have the 'pain recorder' and the playback device completed - well, the prototypes anyway. We've recorded several people's responses to the chest rub and the toenail pinch but we'd like to have a larger input - as from a larger area of pain - and something that lasts longer. Any ideas?"
"John Carroll."
"Who?"
"The founder of Carroll Medical Equipment. You've probably never paid any attention to the gray-haired guy in the power wheelchair who spends most of his time at a desk in R&D."
"Why?"
"Because he probably carries more pain than your equipment is designed to handle. He has arthritis in his feet and ankles which put him in that wheelchair some years ago and he's been fighting some level of arthritis in his hands for the past 40 years. When he was in his 30's he'd be wearing insulated gloves in 55F weather."
"How can I ask the boss to be a guinea pig?"
"Because he has been his own guinea pig for almost every device the company has produced. His outlook of 'If it's not safe for me, it's not safe for our customers' means he'll likely be enthusiastic about being a guinea pig."
"You'll introduce me?"
"Sure, Troy. John will probably be breaking for hot chocolate about now/"
---
knock! knock!
"Enter."
"John, we need a guinea pig."
"Tell me more, Jack."
"John Carroll, this is Troy Baker, one of newer engineers."
"Pleased to meet you, Troy. You got your Master's from Georgia Tech about two years ago?"
"Uh... yes sir."
"Relax, Troy. Jack can confirm that my bark is worse than my bite - and Jack, don't grin and rub your left butt cheek as you usually do."
"Yes, boss."
"Troy, tell me about your need for a guinea pig..."
---
"Electrodes are all in place and signal levels are nominal, Troy."
"Thanks, Janice. Mr. Carroll..."
"For the third time, Troy - 'Mr. Carroll' is my father. My name is John."
"Yes, Mr... John. You'd shouldn't feel anything while the recording takes place. I would like to have you do things that cause you pain..."
"Just about everything but breathing. Start your recording."
"It's running. All the indicators are at half scale or higher and he hasn't moved!"
"But... But..."
"Troy, did you get a baseline from people in your group?"
"Yes, Mr... John."
"All of them are within ten years of your age?"
"Probably."
"Then your starting sample is too limited. Can you attenuate the levels from your sensors?"
"In steps of one-half, one-fifth or one-tenth."
"Set them to one-half and put my laptop in front of me."
"Yes sir."
"Your email address?"
"t.baker@carrollmed.com."
"Then let me send you a 20 word email."
"Everything goes into the red on every keystroke!"
"Set them to one-tenth."
"No one deals with pain like that!"
"Almost no one in your base age group. Change the settings."
"Done."
"Shake my hand with your normal grip."
"OK, but..."
"Just do it."
"OK. Shake..."
"They're all in the red!"
"How..."
"Troy, unless you've had a broken bone or major surgery, you have no idea of how much pain some people have had to deal with. Can you reduce the sensitivity more?"
"There's a 'Calibration' setting that's 1%..."
"Use that."
"Done."
"Now give me your hand and help me to my feet."
"OK. Here's my hand..."
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
"System overload!"
---
11:20AM
"Jack, Mr. Carroll told me to be in his office after lunch. Am I about to be fired?"
"I don't think so, Troy. You're not the first bio-interface engineer to have failed to consider how important the Wilson-Carroll Effect was in your design..."
"Wilson-Carroll? You're the 'Wilson'..."
"Yes - and he's the 'Carroll'. John and I discovered how little was known about how the body handled pain when we started designing TENS units some years ago. The more we learned, the more we knew that no one actually knew much about pain. If the level of pain develops slowly, it's the 'frog in boiling water' effect. If you toss a frog in a pot of hot water, he'll jump out because of the discomfort. If you put that frog in a pot of water from his favorite pond and heat it very slowly, you'll get frog soup because he develops a tolerance to the heat. There are limits to pain tolerance and every person's tolerance is different. I think John will probably steer you to a wider selection of subjects to be recorded."
---
1:30PM
knock. knock.
"Enter."
"You said after lunch, sir?"
"Troy, I'm John. No 'sir' needed. Your mission, if you decide to accept it, is to visit the Shriners' Children's Hospital, the County General Burn Unit and their SICU - the Surgery Intensive Care Unit - and record some people there. These are your authorizations for payment - we do pay outside guinea pigs, even if they are just sleeping off the anesthesia - and these are the permission forms already signed by the patients or a family member."
"I don't know what to say."
"Perhaps 'Thank you' and 'We'll have the new version a week after making these recordings' would be appropriate?"
"Thank you. We may need more than a week because of the computer time needed to analyze the recordings."
"Take this card. Call Mark and ask him whether they can process the data format your recordings are in."
"Yes sir. Thank you."
"You're welcome. And Troy, my name is John."
"Yes si... John."
---
2:00PM
Ring. Ring.
"NSA, Mark Thomas. You obviously know someone important or you wouldn't have this number, so what can I do for you?"
"I'm Troy Baker with Carroll Med..."
"John referred you?"
"Yes."
"How much data and in what format?"
---
Chapter 2
Wednesday, 11:15AM
Ring. Ring.
"Carroll Medical, this is Troy."
"Troy, it's Mark. You want that data on thumb drive or DVD, or do you want to download it?"
"Download is fine. Thank you."
"No thanks needed, just making a small payment on a debt I can never repay. I'll email the link, the ID and the one-time password."
"I'm bringing up my email."
---
2:00PM
knock. knock.
"Enter."
"We have the analyzed data back. How'd we get such fast service from anyone?"
"I think some of the three-letter agencies see a use for the playback of your recordings."
"Interrogation?"
"Considering the level of pain some people live with daily, probably better pronounced 'in-terror-gation'. You do remember what most of your early guinea pigs classed as 'severe' pain?"
"Not even out of the green compared to some of the burn victims."
"Could the playback of what you recorded from me be considered a 'truth serum' that leaves no marks on, and no chemical traces in, the body?"
"That's scary!"
"It is, but the NSA and the CIA provide us computer time - and sometimes lucrative contracts - in exchange for improved 'tools' for their operations."
"What do I do now?"
"Use the new data to improve the current recording and playback equipment. If your initial design couldn't record real-world pain levels, your playback equipment is probably at the same level. Fix it. Then work out a way to block the use of the recorder for anything other than pain levels. Then work out a way for a person to block the use of the playback device on himself. If word of this gets out, someone WILL try to steal it and use it to extract other secrets from people who work here. Be certain that block is safe for your children because they might torture your child in order to get information from you."
"That's even scarier! Who can I get to help me? I don't know anything about blocking pain."
"Jack and I will both be available anytime."
"Jack?"
"You've never noticed his prosthetic leg?"
"No. He just seems to move like anyone else."
"You also can't see the shrapnel along his spinal column. When you have the new version of the recorder ready for test, ask him to be your guinea pig."
"I think I'm beginning to see where the initial Carroll Medical products originated."
"We've sold a lot of things to the VA hospitals and a number of employees are users of our equipment - some of them the designers of the equipment they use."
"I think I may be in over my head..."
"No, you're in uncharted waters - the same as most of them when they started here. I think your idea will be very useful in designing and fitting all types of prosthetics - things which will fit and work well over the long term. Remember to keep the low-level sensitivity available - little bits of irritation can be the path to failure of a prosthesis for a given user. Your device should be able to pinpoint each 'little bit' and work out how to eliminate it."
"That's a big challenge!"
"You wouldn't be here if I didn't think you could handle it. Go get busy."
"Yes boss."
---
Chapter 1
Tuesday, 9:30AM
"Jack?"
"Yes, Troy?"
"We have the 'pain recorder' and the playback device completed - well, the prototypes anyway. We've recorded several people's responses to the chest rub and the toenail pinch but we'd like to have a larger input - as from a larger area of pain - and something that lasts longer. Any ideas?"
"John Carroll."
"Who?"
"The founder of Carroll Medical Equipment. You've probably never paid any attention to the gray-haired guy in the power wheelchair who spends most of his time at a desk in R&D."
"Why?"
"Because he probably carries more pain than your equipment is designed to handle. He has arthritis in his feet and ankles which put him in that wheelchair some years ago and he's been fighting some level of arthritis in his hands for the past 40 years. When he was in his 30's he'd be wearing insulated gloves in 55F weather."
"How can I ask the boss to be a guinea pig?"
"Because he has been his own guinea pig for almost every device the company has produced. His outlook of 'If it's not safe for me, it's not safe for our customers' means he'll likely be enthusiastic about being a guinea pig."
"You'll introduce me?"
"Sure, Troy. John will probably be breaking for hot chocolate about now/"
---
knock! knock!
"Enter."
"John, we need a guinea pig."
"Tell me more, Jack."
"John Carroll, this is Troy Baker, one of newer engineers."
"Pleased to meet you, Troy. You got your Master's from Georgia Tech about two years ago?"
"Uh... yes sir."
"Relax, Troy. Jack can confirm that my bark is worse than my bite - and Jack, don't grin and rub your left butt cheek as you usually do."
"Yes, boss."
"Troy, tell me about your need for a guinea pig..."
---
"Electrodes are all in place and signal levels are nominal, Troy."
"Thanks, Janice. Mr. Carroll..."
"For the third time, Troy - 'Mr. Carroll' is my father. My name is John."
"Yes, Mr... John. You'd shouldn't feel anything while the recording takes place. I would like to have you do things that cause you pain..."
"Just about everything but breathing. Start your recording."
"It's running. All the indicators are at half scale or higher and he hasn't moved!"
"But... But..."
"Troy, did you get a baseline from people in your group?"
"Yes, Mr... John."
"All of them are within ten years of your age?"
"Probably."
"Then your starting sample is too limited. Can you attenuate the levels from your sensors?"
"In steps of one-half, one-fifth or one-tenth."
"Set them to one-half and put my laptop in front of me."
"Yes sir."
"Your email address?"
"t.baker@carrollmed.com."
"Then let me send you a 20 word email."
"Everything goes into the red on every keystroke!"
"Set them to one-tenth."
"No one deals with pain like that!"
"Almost no one in your base age group. Change the settings."
"Done."
"Shake my hand with your normal grip."
"OK, but..."
"Just do it."
"OK. Shake..."
"They're all in the red!"
"How..."
"Troy, unless you've had a broken bone or major surgery, you have no idea of how much pain some people have had to deal with. Can you reduce the sensitivity more?"
"There's a 'Calibration' setting that's 1%..."
"Use that."
"Done."
"Now give me your hand and help me to my feet."
"OK. Here's my hand..."
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
"System overload!"
---
11:20AM
"Jack, Mr. Carroll told me to be in his office after lunch. Am I about to be fired?"
"I don't think so, Troy. You're not the first bio-interface engineer to have failed to consider how important the Wilson-Carroll Effect was in your design..."
"Wilson-Carroll? You're the 'Wilson'..."
"Yes - and he's the 'Carroll'. John and I discovered how little was known about how the body handled pain when we started designing TENS units some years ago. The more we learned, the more we knew that no one actually knew much about pain. If the level of pain develops slowly, it's the 'frog in boiling water' effect. If you toss a frog in a pot of hot water, he'll jump out because of the discomfort. If you put that frog in a pot of water from his favorite pond and heat it very slowly, you'll get frog soup because he develops a tolerance to the heat. There are limits to pain tolerance and every person's tolerance is different. I think John will probably steer you to a wider selection of subjects to be recorded."
---
1:30PM
knock. knock.
"Enter."
"You said after lunch, sir?"
"Troy, I'm John. No 'sir' needed. Your mission, if you decide to accept it, is to visit the Shriners' Children's Hospital, the County General Burn Unit and their SICU - the Surgery Intensive Care Unit - and record some people there. These are your authorizations for payment - we do pay outside guinea pigs, even if they are just sleeping off the anesthesia - and these are the permission forms already signed by the patients or a family member."
"I don't know what to say."
"Perhaps 'Thank you' and 'We'll have the new version a week after making these recordings' would be appropriate?"
"Thank you. We may need more than a week because of the computer time needed to analyze the recordings."
"Take this card. Call Mark and ask him whether they can process the data format your recordings are in."
"Yes sir. Thank you."
"You're welcome. And Troy, my name is John."
"Yes si... John."
---
2:00PM
Ring. Ring.
"NSA, Mark Thomas. You obviously know someone important or you wouldn't have this number, so what can I do for you?"
"I'm Troy Baker with Carroll Med..."
"John referred you?"
"Yes."
"How much data and in what format?"
---
Chapter 2
Wednesday, 11:15AM
Ring. Ring.
"Carroll Medical, this is Troy."
"Troy, it's Mark. You want that data on thumb drive or DVD, or do you want to download it?"
"Download is fine. Thank you."
"No thanks needed, just making a small payment on a debt I can never repay. I'll email the link, the ID and the one-time password."
"I'm bringing up my email."
---
2:00PM
knock. knock.
"Enter."
"We have the analyzed data back. How'd we get such fast service from anyone?"
"I think some of the three-letter agencies see a use for the playback of your recordings."
"Interrogation?"
"Considering the level of pain some people live with daily, probably better pronounced 'in-terror-gation'. You do remember what most of your early guinea pigs classed as 'severe' pain?"
"Not even out of the green compared to some of the burn victims."
"Could the playback of what you recorded from me be considered a 'truth serum' that leaves no marks on, and no chemical traces in, the body?"
"That's scary!"
"It is, but the NSA and the CIA provide us computer time - and sometimes lucrative contracts - in exchange for improved 'tools' for their operations."
"What do I do now?"
"Use the new data to improve the current recording and playback equipment. If your initial design couldn't record real-world pain levels, your playback equipment is probably at the same level. Fix it. Then work out a way to block the use of the recorder for anything other than pain levels. Then work out a way for a person to block the use of the playback device on himself. If word of this gets out, someone WILL try to steal it and use it to extract other secrets from people who work here. Be certain that block is safe for your children because they might torture your child in order to get information from you."
"That's even scarier! Who can I get to help me? I don't know anything about blocking pain."
"Jack and I will both be available anytime."
"Jack?"
"You've never noticed his prosthetic leg?"
"No. He just seems to move like anyone else."
"You also can't see the shrapnel along his spinal column. When you have the new version of the recorder ready for test, ask him to be your guinea pig."
"I think I'm beginning to see where the initial Carroll Medical products originated."
"We've sold a lot of things to the VA hospitals and a number of employees are users of our equipment - some of them the designers of the equipment they use."
"I think I may be in over my head..."
"No, you're in uncharted waters - the same as most of them when they started here. I think your idea will be very useful in designing and fitting all types of prosthetics - things which will fit and work well over the long term. Remember to keep the low-level sensitivity available - little bits of irritation can be the path to failure of a prosthesis for a given user. Your device should be able to pinpoint each 'little bit' and work out how to eliminate it."
"That's a big challenge!"
"You wouldn't be here if I didn't think you could handle it. Go get busy."
"Yes boss."
---