David Brin - Those Eyes

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2024-11-24 0 0 20.73KB 6 页 5.9玖币
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THOSE EYES
by
David Brin
“… So you want to talk about flying saucers? I was afraid of that.
“This happens every damn time I’m blackmailed into babysitting you insomniacs, while Talkback Larry escapes
to Bimini for a badly needed rest. I’m supposed to field call-in questions about astronomy and outer space for two
weeks. You know, black holes and comets? But it seems we always have to spend the first night wrangling over puta
UFOs.
“… Now, don’t get excited, sir … Yeah, I’m just a typical ivory tower scientist, out to repress unconventional
thought. Whatever you say, buddy.
“Truth is, I’ve also dreamed of contact with alien life. In fact, I’m involved in research now … That’s right, SETI
… the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence … And no, it’s not at all like chasing UFOs! I don’t believe the
Earth has ever been visited by anything remotely resembling intelligent …
“Yes, sir, I bet you’ve got crates full of case histories, and a personal encounter or two? Thought so. I got an
earful when some of us tried studying these ‘phenomena’ a few years back. Spent weeks on each case, only to find it
was just a weather balloon, or an airplane, or ball lightning …
“… Oh, yeah? Well, I’ve seen ball lightning, fella. Got a scar on my nose and a pair of melted binoculars to show
just how close. So don’t tell me it’s a myth like your chingaso flying saucers!”
We commence our labours this night in England, near Avebury, braiding strands of yellow wheat in tidy, flattened
rings. It is happy work, playing lassos of light upon the sea of grain. These will be fine circles. Humans will see
pictures in their morning papers, and wonder.
Our bright ether-boat hovers, bathed in the approving glow of Mother Moon. The sleek craft wears a lambent
gloss to make it slippery to mortal eyes.
To be seen is desirable. But never too well.
Fyrfalcon proclaims, “Keep the edges sharp! Make each ring perfect! Let men of science jabber about natural
phenomena. We’ll have new believers after this night’s work!”
Once, he might have been called ‘King’. But we adapt to changing times. “Yes, Captain!” we shout, and hurry to
our tasks.
Our Listener calls from her perch. “We are being discussed on a human radio programme! Would all like to hear?”
We cry cheerful assent. Although we loathe Mankind’s technology, it often serves our ends.
“Let’s cover your second question, caller. Are UFO enthusiasts so different from we astronomers, probing with
our telescopes for signs of life somewhere? Both groups long to discover other minds, other viewpoints, something
strange and wonderful.
“We part company, though, over the question of evidence. Science teaches us to expect – demand – more than
just eerie mysteries. What use is a puzzle that can’t be solved?
“Patience is fine, but I’m not going to stop asking the universe to make sense!”
The boy drives faster than he wants to, taking hairpin turns recklessly to impress the girl next to him.
He needn’t get in such a lather; she is ready. She had already decided when the night was young. Now she
laughs, feigning nonchalance as road posts streak by and her heart races.
The convertible climbs under opal moonlight. Her bare knee brushes his hand, making him muff the gears. He
coughs, fighting impulses more ancient than his race, swerving just in time to keep from roaring over the edge.
I sense their excitement. He is half-blind with desire. She by anticipation.
They are unaware of our approach.
At a secluded Cliffside, he sets the brake and turns to her. She teases him playfully, in ways meant to inflame.
There is no ambiguity.
We circle behind, enjoying such simple, honest lusts. Backing away, we dip over the cliff, then cruise along its
face until directly below them.
We turn on all our pulsing glows to make our craft its gaudiest!
We start to rise.
No one will believe their story. But more than one kind of seed will have been sown tonight.
“There’s a saying that applies here. “Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.” While Project SETI
hasn’t logged any verified signals from the few stars we’ve looked at, that doesn’t prove nobody’s out there!
“… Yeah, sure. The same could apply to UFOs, if you insist.
“But while SETI has to sift a vast cosmos for radio sources – a real case of hunting needles in haystacks – it’s
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分类：外语学习 价格：5.9玖币 属性：6 页 大小：20.73KB 格式：PDF 时间：2024-11-24

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