Lucid Reality - a novel

Table of Contents

The Lead-In...

(c) 2023 Jan Zenith   a Techno Fiction novel by  Jan Zenith Characters herein are from diverse cultures. This exciting story does not contain violence.   Lucid Reality Dreams can seem like Reality. Reality can seem like a Dream. With modern technology, they can be the Same Thing.  The World before 2030 The fundamental technologies mentioned in this story exist today. We are at a cusp whereby many new developments are being created, but have either not yet been put into use, or have been in general use for only a few years. Cars that drive themselves, robots that explore Mars, and pocket computers that access the global mind. There are surgical robots that perform complex procedures on human patients. People whose inner ears don’t work can get electronic replacements. People who have fewer limbs than the original design calls for, can get electro-mechanical replacement parts. That being said... “We are such stuff as dreams are made on.” — William Shakespeare, ‘The Tempest’ Coordinated Neural Networking Companies C N N C Extended Capability Services Human, AI, Robotic Team Solutions Shenandoah Fields – Director Ben Franklin – Operations Manager Alice Berkeley – Technology Manager

Chapter 1 Remote Control Detectives
	Rat'bots Aid Police Investigations require versatility. Consider the abilities to fit into tiny places, remain incognito, and to crawl into nooks and crannies people would not even notice. Alice Berkely is doing just that, by remote control. With Mixed Reality Technology, she virtually becomes the rat'bot itself. As such, Alice confronts a very different sort of Rats!

Chapter 2 Welcome to CNNC Remote Controlled Solutions for Extreme Challenges

The Doctor is In Dr. Sam Weiss has been hired to get to the bottom of some very strange things that employees have been doing after using Immersive Technology to remotely tele-operate robots, droids, and drones. To do his job, Sam will meet a few impressive people. He will also meet a couple of Artificially Intelligent people. But when the meeting is in Virtual Reality it can get confusing as to who is real, and who is a computer program.

 

Chapter 3 Developments

Virtual Reality – Real Weapons Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency develops new technologies.  The DARPA web site tells of amazing, and often frightening, devices and systems. During the design phase, high tech systems rarely work right the first time. Or the second. When the system is chock full of high-powered energy weapons, safety becomes a major concern. What happens when the safety measures fail?

Chapter 4 High Tech Puppets Part 1 – Automated Catastrophe

Bad Beer & Robots A self-driving delivery truck parks itself, and dispatches a team of drones and 'bots. Ordinary everyday delivery system, right? Wrong! This particular truck is not there to make a delivery. From a window seat at the pub across the street, over what is supposed to be a lager beer, Joe watches drones and micro-trucks pick up some cargo... Later, Officer Dempsey finds no rational clues to explain the major crime scene he's looking at. Listening to a tavern full of obviously drunk witnesses telling insane stories doesn't help. However, Joe notes some key details that the Navy and the Space Force desperately need to know about. ASAP!

Chapter 5 High Tech Puppets - Part 2
Image: MetaBallStudios	That jewelry heist might have been just the tip of the iceberg. A Navy Squadron and a Cop are looking into it, but things are not going as they should.

Chapter 6 AI Strike There is no way to get away.

To Droid or Not to Droid “Control, Seal Team Leader. This office building’s cleaning drones have gone berserk. Some are just sitting in the hallways, while others are wandering around aimlessly." When the AI's strike, things don't go the way people would expect. After all, AI's are not human. But if they don't think like people, how do they think?   The president needs to know, before the Navy starts losing assets.

Chapter 7 Leaders & Ships
	The White House is concerned.

– To Be Continued –

I'm producing a chapter per month, so far.

Over time I will get faster at it.

Thank you for having a look at this story!