文书楼

手机浏览器扫描二维码访问

第29部分（第4页）

〃Hes　gone。〃

〃Well；〃　Norman　said。　〃youve　just　seen　the　power　of　psychology　in　action。〃　He　couldnt　help　saying　it。　He　was　still　annoyed　with　Ted。

〃Im　sorry；〃　Ted　began。

〃Thats　all　right。〃

〃But　I　just　dont　think　that　for　a　higher　intellect；　emotions　are　really　significant。〃

〃Lets　not　go　into　this　again；〃　Beth　said。

〃The　real　point；〃　Norman　said；　〃is　that　emotions　and　intellect　are　entirely　unrelated。　Theyre　like　separate　partments　of　the　brain；　or　even　separate　brains；　and　they　dont　municate　with　each　other。　Thats　why　intellectual　understanding　is　so　useless。〃

Ted　said；　〃Intellectual　understanding　is　useless？〃　He　sounded　horrified。

＇＇197＇＇　〃In　many　cases；　yes；〃　Norman　said。　〃If　you　read　a　book　on　how　to　ride　a　bike；　do　you　know　how　to　ride　a　bike？　No；　you　dont。　You　can　read　all　you　want；　but　you　still　have　to　go　out　and　learn　to　ride。　The　part　of　your　brain　that　learns　to　ride　is　different　from　the　part　of　your　brain　that　reads　about　it。〃

〃What　does　this　have　to　do　with　Jerry？〃　Barnes　said。　〃We　know；〃　Norman　said；　〃that　a　smart　person　is　just　as　likely　to　blunder　emotionally　as　anyone　else。　If　Jerry　is　really　an　emotional　creature…and　not　just　pretending　to　be　one…then　we　need　to　deal　with　his　emotional　side　as　well　as　his　intellectual　side。〃

〃Very　convenient　for　you；〃　Ted　said。

〃Not　really；〃　Norman　said。　〃Frankly；　Id　be　much　happier　if　Jerry　were　just　cold；　emotionless　intellect。〃

〃Why？〃

〃Because；〃　Norman　said；　〃if　Jerry　is　powerful　and　also　emotional；　it　raises　a　question。　What　happens　if　Jerry　gets　mad？〃

LEVY

The　group　broke　up。　Harry；　exhausted　by　the　sustained　effort　of　decoding；　immediately　went　off　to　sleep。　Ted　went　to　C　Cyl　to　tape　his　personal　observations　on　Jerry　for　the　book　he　was　planning　to　write。　Barnes　and　Fletcher　went　to　E　Cyl　to　plan　battle　strategy；　in　case　the　alien　decided　to　attack　them。

Tina　stayed　for　a　moment；　adjusting　the　monitors　in　her　precise；　methodical　way。　Norman　and　Beth　watched　her　work。　She　spent　a　lot　of　time　with　a　deck　of　controls　Norman　＇＇198＇＇　had　never　noticed　before。　There　was　a　series　of　gas…plasma　readout　screens；　glowing　bright　red。

〃Whats　all　that？〃　Beth　said。

〃EPSA。　The　External　Perimeter　Sensor　Array。　We　have　active　and　passive　sensors　for　all　modalities…thermal；　aural；　pressure…wave…ranged　in　concentric　circles　around　the　habitat。　Captain　Barnes　wants　them　all　reset　and　activated。〃

〃Why　is　that？〃　Norman　said。

〃I　dont　know；　sir。　His　orders。〃

The　inter　crackled。　Barnes　said：　〃Seaman　Chan　to　E　Cylinder　on　the　double。　And　shut　down　the　　line　in　here。　I　dont　want　that　Jerry　listening　to　these　plans。〃

〃Yes；　sir。〃

Beth　said；　〃Paranoid　ass。〃

Tina　collected　her　papers　and　hurried　off。

Norman　sat　with　Beth　in　silence　for　a　moment。　They　heard　the　rhythmic　thumping；　from　somewhere　in　the　habitat。　Then　another　silence；　then　they　heard　the　thumping　again。

〃What　is　that？〃　Beth　said。　〃It　sounds　like　its　somewhere　inside　the　habitat。〃　She　went　to　the　porthole；　looked　out；　flicked　on　the　exterior　floods。　〃Uh…oh；〃　Beth　said。　Norman　looked。

Stretching　across　the　ocean　floor　was　an　elongated　shadow　which　moved　back　and　forth　with　each　thumping　impact。　The　shadow　was　so　distorted　it　took　him　a　moment　to　realize　what　he　was　seeing。　It　was　the　shadow　of　a　human　arm；　and　a　human　hand。

〃Captain　Barnes。　Are　you　there？〃

There　was　no　reply。　Norman　snapped　the　inter　switch　again。

〃Captain　Barnes；　are　you　reading？〃

Still　no　reply。

〃Hes　shut　off　the　　line；〃　Beth　said。　〃He　cant　hear　you。〃

〃Do　you　think　the　persons　still　alive　out　there？〃　Norman　said。

＇＇199＇＇　〃I　dont　know。　They　might　be。〃

〃Lets　get　going；〃　Norman　said。

He　tasted　the　dry　metallic　pressed　air　inside　his　helmet　and　fel