Astounding Science Fiction, February 1952 (British Edition) — page 57: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE MONKEY WRENCH would ever need—can do any job from running the heating plant to operating the calculator. If something comes up that’s too big for one bank to handle, it just hooks in one or more of the idle banks— and so on until it’s capable of dealing with the situation.” “Ah,” said Cary, “but what if some- thing did come up that required all the banks and more too? Wouldn’t it over- - Joad them and burn itself out?” “You're determined to find fault with it, aren't you, Cary,” answered Burke. “The answer is no. It wouldn’t. Theoretically it’s possible. for the machine to bump into a problem that would require all or more. than all of its banks to handle. For example, if this station suddenly popped into the air and started to fly away for no discernible reason, the bank that first felt the situation would keep reaching out for help until all the banks were engaged in considering it, until it crowded out all the other functions the machine performs. But, even then, it wouldn’t overload and burn out. The banks would just go on considering the problem until they had evolved a theory that ex- plained why we were flying through the air and what to do about returning us to our proper place and functions.” Cary straightened up and snapped his fingers. “Then it’s simple,” he said. “PIi just go in and tell your machine—on the verbal hookup—that we're flying through the air.” Burke gave a sudden roar of laughter. “Cary, you dope!” he said. “Don’t you think the men who designed the machine took the possibility of verbal error into account? You say that the station is flying through the air. The machine immediately checks by making its own observations; and politely répltes, ‘Sorry, your statement is incorrect’ and forgets the whole thing.” €ary’s eyes narrowed and two spots of faint color flushed the tight skin over his cheekbones; but he held his smile. “There’s the theoretical section,” he murmured. “There is,” said Burke, greafly enjoying himself, “and you could use it by going in and saying ‘consider the false statement or data—this station is flying through the air’ and the machine would go right to work on. it.” He paused, and Cary looked at him ex- pectantly. “Buit—” continued triumphantly, the meteorologist, “it would consider the state- 55 ment with only those banks not then in use; and it would give up the banks when- ever a section using real data required them.” He finished, looking at Cary with quiz- zical good humor. But Cary said nothing; only looked back at him as a weasel might look back at a dog that has cornered it against the wall of a chicken run. “Give up, Cary,” he said at last. “It’s no use. Neither God nor Man nor Cary Har- mon can interrupt my Brain in the nghtful performance of its duty.” And Cary’s eyes glittered, dark and with- drawn beneath their narrowed lids. For a long second, he just sat and looked, and then he spoke. “Il could do it,” he said, softly. “Do what?” asked Burke. Cary. “Oh, forget it!” boomed Burke. “Don’t take things so seriously, Cary. What if you can't think of a monkey wrench to throw into the machinery? Nobody else could, either “I said I could do it,” repeated Cary. “Once and for all,” answered Burke, “it’s impossible. Now stop trying to pick flaws in something guaranteed flawless and let’s talk about something else.” “IT will bet you,” said Cary, speaking with a slow, steady intensity, “five thousand credits that if you will leave me alone with your machine for one minute I can put it completely out of order.” “Forget it, will you?” exploded Burke. “IT don’t want to take your money, even if five thousand is the equivalent of a year’s salary for me. The trouble with you is, Cary, you never could stand to lose at anything. Now, forget it!” “Put up or shut up,” said Cary. Burke took a deep breath. “Now look,” he said, the beginnings of anger rumbling in his deep voice. “Maybe I did wrong to needle you about the ma- chine. But you’ve got to get over the idea that I can be bullied into admitting that you're right. You’ve got no conception of the technology that’s behind the machine, and no idea of how certain I am that you, at least, can’t do anything to interfere with its operation. You thmk that there’s a slight element of doubt in my mind and. that you can bluff me out by proposing an astronomical bet. Then, if I won't bet, youll tell yourself you’ve won. Now listen, Pm not just ninety-nine point nine, nine, Eomichboo cS “ft could gimmick your machine, ” said (E() im