When the Ants go Marching. - Ken Rodenberger (i am malala young readers edition .TXT) 📗

When the Ants Go Marching!

John Wise enters Kendine Industries, the largest robotics firm in Chicago.  This is his last opportunity to present what he’s sure is the biggest breakthrough in biomechanics in the twenty-first century.  His life’s work is on the line, and he knows it.  After all, he has been trying to get a big firm to notice his work since 2010 when he first imagined it ten years ago.

John greets the secretary with restrained enthusiasm, “Good afternoon, my name is John Wise.  I have an appointment with Mr.…”

The secretary raises her eyebrow and cuts him off, “Kendrick?”  She quickly types something into her keyboard, “Yes, I see, John Wise, two thirty.  You’re…early.  Please take a seat.  I’ll let him know you’re here.”

She presses a button on her telephone, “Mr. Kendrick, Your two-thirty is here.”

“Send him in Joyce; I might as well get this over with.” 

Looking up at John she says, “Mr. Kendrick will see you now.”

John pushes open the door and says, “Hello, Mr. Kendrick” to the man sitting behind the huge desk with only a few knick knacks on it, “I am…”

 “I know who you are and why you are here.  Listen, the only reason you got this appointment is because in your last email you mentioned you’d been working with Lazarus Jones.”

 “Yes, well, I did get some help from Laz…um…Mr. Jones.  He helped me with the interface and the mechanical aspects, but the idea is completely mine.  It involves DNA computers and the interface that allows these tiny computers to control mechanical devices.”  

Kendrick crosses his arms and stares at John.  “Alright Wise, impress me!

John begins his presentation, “My DNA computers can actually program their own interface when you put them into a device.  Of course, the bigger and more complicated the device, the more time it takes for them to interface with it.”

“Tick-tock, that’s a lot of talk, but anyone can talk,” says Mr. Kendrick.  “If that’s all you have, I’m not impressed.”

John knows it’s now time to put up or shut up.  He says, “I see a demonstration is in order.”  He pulls a box from his pocket, and places three ant-like robots, labeled #1, #2, and #3, on the desk.  “Mr. Jones made these for me.  They have all the mechanical components, but no computer controls.”  John then takes a drop of liquid from a bottle and puts it on the first robot.

At first, nothing happens, and Kendrick frowns.  Slowly, it lifts one antenna, then the other and starts marching across the desk.  It bumps into the phone a couple of times and then marches around it.

Kendrick says, “Is that it?” 

John replies, “No.  It also learns, and it’s smart so all you have to do is give it the most basic of instructions.  It can also reproduce itself, and pass on everything it learned to the next generation.  It can even teach others what it learned.”

John can see that Mr. Kendrick is not yet convinced, so he puts a drop of the liquid on the second ant.  He then presses the button on his cell phone and commands, “Find second ant.”  The first ant marches around for a bit and finds the other ant as it begins to move.  They touch antennas and then begin marching around the desk, both avoiding the phone.

Mr. Kendrick is now interested, but not sold on the idea, so John puts a drop of the liquid on the third ant.  Without even being given any instructions, the first two ants seem to be drawn to the third ant, but they are now moving much slower.  “When they run out of energy, they shut down until they find a new source, but it takes very little to run them.  They can use almost any organic compound for energy.”  John says as he puts some sugar on the desk, and with his phone orders, “Find food!”  John smiles as the ants head for the sugar.

John beams.  “Now, watch this.  Given almost any raw materials, they can even build more robots.  Some paperclips and rubber bands will do.”  Kendrick provides the material and John gives the command,  “Build robot.”

They watch as the ants build another robot in a surprisingly short time.  Then, one of the ants climbs on top of the newly built machine.  Kendrick asks, “What’s it doing?”

“I told you the computers reproduce.  It’s placing a DNA computer in the new robot.”  John answers.

Again, the ants slow down and Kendrick picks one up, “Ouch!  The darned thing bit me.” 

John smiles sheepishly.  “Sorry.  It must have thought you were food.”

At this point, John can tell Kendrick is almost sold.  Kendrick asks, “So, all I have to do is put some of these things into one of my robots and it will what, start running it?” 

“Not quite,” John replies.  “Once the computers interface with a device it’s set in the DNA.  To run your robots, you’ll need computers with blank interfaces.”

“Alright, John Wise, “I guess you have earned the right to present your idea to the board.  I’ll have Joyce set it up and contact you.  Bring a fresh supply of those DNA computers.  We’ll see how they function in something a little bigger.”

“Sure.  And keep the bots I brought today, they’ll shut down if you don’t feed them,” John says as he turns to leave. 

When John returns a few days later, Joyce says, “Go right in, they’re waiting for you.”  As John enters, he freezes in his tracks.  His jaw drops and his eyes widen in fear when he sees thousands of ants swarming over the skeletons of Mr. Kendrick and the board. 

His ants had grown hungry and when Kendrick foolishly opened their box, they found a new food source and they started replicating. 

John turns for the door, but it’s too late --- his ants are already marching up his leg.

Publication Date: 01-25-2015

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