Read Online Semmant by Vadim Babenko - Free Book Online

dream – that is what is worth aiming for, aspiring to with every ounce of strength. Let those who pretend to know furrow their brows in disbelief – I don’t have anything to prove. All knowledge is approximate; its quantity is only able to beget vanity – for nothing. The dream must be given not to those who are puffed up with pride. It should be available to each and every one.
    Available, but not simple. Not mindless from the start, like the daydream of those who brought us to the School. It should amaze and be accepted wholeheartedly by its followers. They should see it as a landmark, as the symbol of a new faith. And so, here, I’ll offer you a symbol. A brilliant artificial brain – nothing less. I’ll set an example, and, before long, the apologists will come in droves. Something must change; the old ways of existence are already unbearable, plain and simple. An incentive is needed for that, and tell me: where can you find a convincing one?
    I cannot offer a prescription for happiness, but I’ll open the door a bit. A new point of reference – how’s that for a start? And then: an alternate path, fresh horizons. Who said entropy is all-powerful, that it only grows, increasing confusion? Who came up with the notion that all is meaningless, that our fate is an endless, excruciating crawl?
    “Here it is, the limit,” we hear from every quarter. “You can’t go far or overextend yourself. After all, everything will be the same, only worse.” But if I show that there are no limits, might not many be encouraged? Could he, Semmant, put them head first, ever so tenderly, into a new dimension, in something above despair?
    This was so simple, although it sounded like a fantasy, like an impossible promise. To break through the obstacles of stagnation with a precisely applied blade, to give hope to those who still wanted it badly. The main thing was not to become misunderstood. The new concept would have to penetrate to the depths – to the stomach, gut, liver… What else do you usually use to feel and desire?
    And that’s why I chose guilders, doubloons, bills large and small. The smell of new banknotes – that’s more exciting than the scent of the most desirable woman. The market, that simulator of chaos where entropy works its tricks – here was my choice. It must be defeated, forced into submission. Let the robot named Semmant show everyone victory is right here, close by. Let’s dispense with the myth of omnipotence, of which only the “sanctified” have the right to speak aloud – in a hushed voice with their eyes rolled back.
    I wouldn’t settle for less than the naked truth. Let’s push the sanctified away; let’s see that the emperor has no clothes. Let us expose the greed of the cowardly and constrain those who sit in the judgment seats. Every novice will find his place, if he makes no bones and sees everything as it is. My Semmant will show the way – he will be a confirmation, a great one! He will become the most graphic of demonstrations, an indirect proof, an illustration of fortune. Let the rest lunge after him, fatigued from fighting their chains. It may not work out for everyone, but it will for quite a few, quite a few!
    I was overwhelmed by excitement and delight. I felt like screaming and laughing out loud. Lucco Mancini, you sly shyster, this is what you used as a bluff, only now it’s for real. My future robot would not be some sorry fake, good for nothing more than a smoke screen. He would be huge, a giant in soul, an iron-clad knight of logic and order…
    The prospects were indeed incredible. Showing Semmant to everyone – that would be something to make their jaws drop! He would make money out of thin air; that certainly could not be denied. No one would say this was boring or not worth seeing. They would give me the highest podium: “Tell us, enlighten us, reveal to us!” And I would not refuse; I would make myself known, just to say what was critically needed. That is