Authentic Science Fiction Monthly No. 44 — page 17: what you’re looking at

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

AUTHENTIC SCIENCE FICTION *‘T have no name, sir, except the name you gave me.” “Tell me when and where you were made.” “I am unable to answer these questions exactly, sir. My memory record extends back to include events which occurred three thousand, five hundred and ninety-three years ago—that is to say, the Standard Year as reckoned in this system. I have deduced that I was made in the Orms Heights factory, on Mars, in the Sol System.” “What is your intelligence level?” I asked next. *“‘T have no means of assess- ing it,’ James answered. *“How does it compare with human intelligence ?”’ “It is many times greater.” This statement was made without pride, without boast- ing, without emotion of any sort. It was fact. “These Astrogation tech- niques you taught me—had they been fed into your memory record as I sup- posed ?” *““No, sir.” “‘Where did they originate?” **T devised them.”’ “T must think about this for a while,” I said to myself. The attempted murder was less disconcerting to me than 16 the discovery of James’ in- telligence and complexity of personality. The fact that he had come to my rescue was not in itself miraculous. One of our modern type robots, acting under a general in- struction to protect, would have done so, though it could not have imagined the device of spinning my sword towards me; but James had acted on his own initiative. Furthermore, he had con- cealed his true mental capa- cities from me for several months; in fact, he had de- ceived me, and for a robot to do such a thing was normally a mathematical impossibility. Something followed from this: something even stranger. Since the robot had con- cealed first his personality, and then at a certain moment disclosed it, he must have a purpose, a private purpose. A robot with a private and per- sonal purpose! Incredible! I looked up at him again— I was beginning to think of James as “him” now. : “Why did you act as you did to save my life? Do you have any affection for me?” I suppose this question must have sounded a little pathetic. So few people did have any regard for me. connicloooks.com