Synopsis:
Science has created a world where anything is possible and everything is affordable.
A world where illness and disease have been eradicated.
What if you could be young forever?
What if you didn’t want to?
Levi Clayton Furstman’s decision not to be inoculated with technology designed to bestow youth and immortality leads him on a journey that forces him to reexamine his relationships, his purpose in life, and, ultimately, what it means to be human.
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Cover:
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Excerpt:
CHAPTER TWO
News Flash: June 6, 2024. 11:30 a.m. Peace negotiations continue in the Middle East
Although not unexpected, it nevertheless always shocked him somewhat to hear the voice whispering in his ear, not quite loud enough to drown out other sounds occurring around him, but loud enough to be heard and, sometimes, throw him off his train of thought. It had been three years since his fitting, yet Clay continued to be disconcerted by the answers and frequent news updates spoken in his ear.
“More,” Clay said. The not unpleasant voice of Clay’s iMeme relayed additional information on the peace negotiations.
An unprecedented twelve weeks of calm has led many world leaders to believe that Hamas’ promises of peace and recognition of Israel as the Jewish State may, finally, result in a binding peace treaty between Israel and the Palestinian People. The nightmare predicted after the fall of Fatah three years ago and the aggressive stance assumed by Hamas has never materialized and the recent actions of Hamas to reign in splinter terror groups has lent a certain optimism to the whole conference.
Clay wondered how many other folks were listening to this news. How many others even cared. The iMeme Notification App allowed users to customize what information would be relayed by the iMeme directly into one’s auditory system. Given the scarcity of (and lack of any apparent demand for) real news available in the newspapers, he figured he was one of a very small number not receiving updates only on the latest gossip or entertainment.
Clay had been one of the last of the people he knew to get an iMeme. Most of his friends had been using them for several years, before his wife, after repeated attempts to talk him into getting one, gave him an iMeme as a birthday gift. The decision to actually have the TIN (transceiver interface-nano) implanted in his ear did not come easy for Clay. He could not understand how people were willing to accept the use of tiny cameras and two-way communication tied directly into one’s body so quickly. Implanting a device that would not only allow the iMeme to speak directly into one’s auditory system, but to listen in on one’s thoughts and respond appropriately. He had a lingering fear that he would wake up one day and see himself on the Cloud, having been videoed and published without his knowledge or consent.
* * *
“The technology for TIN has been around for decades actually,” said the young man assisting Clay. The lanyard hanging around the youth’s neck displayed the words Rudy and Genius.
It had been almost eight months since his family had purchased him an iMeme as a birthday gift and they had finally worn him down and elicited a promise to have the TIN nanochip fitted today. Rudy was explaining how the process worked and it seemed to Clay the young man knew what he was talking about. Most of the Genius Bar staff did.
“It uses the same technology the physically impaired use to transmit brain signals to a computer to perform specific functions. Your iMeme sits here on your Spot, or wherever you choose to keep it, and as long as it’s within a three-foot radius, it can transmit information to, or receive information from, the TIN, which is really just a cochlear nanochip placed in your inner ear. With two-way communication and the iMeme’s built-in nanocamera, the iMeme can perform any number of important functions.”
Clay was still nervous. “So you’re going to stick something in my inner ear? Right here?” he asked, looking around. “No doctor? No specialist?”
“Trust me sir, I’m an Apple trained audiologist. I’ve done thousands of these. I simply place this device in your ear and the TIN nanochip will be inserted into your cochlea. Takes just a few moments.” Rudy put a smile on his face to try to reassure Clay.
“That’s the problem, Rudy. I’m not too hip on you puncturing my eardrum with that thing. I mean, don’t doctors say that only thing you should put in your ear is your elbow?”
“Sir,” Rudy responded. “The PSD will barely enter your outer ear.”
“PSD? What’s a PSD?” Clay asked.
Rudy was clearly working to retain his patience. “Sir, the PSD is the Placement and Syncing Device,” he said, showing Clay the object in his hand. It looked to Clay like an ear thermometer with a small cable hanging off its lower end. Rudy pointed to the small tip protruding from the top of the PSD and continued. “A nano-needle extends from here into your inner ear and to the cochlea. The needle itself is thinner than the proboscis of a mosquito. Not only will you feel absolutely nothing, the procedure is so safe that even if the TIN were misplaced, there would be no harm done to you.” He saw the look of doubt on Clay’s face and added, “The TIN won’t be misplaced. I promise.”
Rudy put the PSD to Clay’s ear, pressed a button. Clay closed his eyes, expecting the worst. He felt absolutely nothing. A hopeful thought that the PSD was broken crossed his mind. He opened his eyes and turned to Rudy.
“Listen, if there’s a problem, I can always come back.”
“I’m sorry Sir. What was that you said?” Rudy asked, involved in hooking up Clay’s tiny iMeme to the cable dangling off the lower end of the PSD.
“I said,” Clay started and then jumped slightly when he heard a gentle whisper in his ear.
iMeme now activated: November 13, 2021. 5:43 p.m.
Clay spun around to see who had spoken to him, but quickly realized it was no one, simply his iMeme communicating to him. Clay flushed slightly with embarrassment as he noticed Rudy grinning. Clay wondered whether everyone reacted as surprised or whether Clay was the random oddball. The idea of being looked upon as some sort of fool annoyed him. “What if I want to take the chip out?” Clay asked.
A puzzled look crossed Rudy’s face. “Take it out?”
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About Daniel Seltzer:
Daniel Seltzer holds a J.D. degree and a BA in English. He also holds an MA in Bioethics and previously worked at a major university researching the ethical, legal and social implications (“ELSI”) of nanotechnology. It was while working there that the idea for this story first took shape.
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Giveaways:
Author Daniel Seltzer is giving away 20 print copies of Leviticus and a $50 Amazon gift card! Enter through Goodreads and Rafflecopter! USA residents only, please.
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