The Deadliest Moop

“Wait a minute!” Alex gripped the table. “That’s Geneva time, isn’t it? What’s the time difference between the Fermilab and CERN?”

“Seven hours, I think,” said Katerina.

Alex checked his watch. “Oh my god! That gives us just over an hour.” He slid his chair back. “We’ve got to try to convince the Director to shut it down.” He stood. “Please. Let’s go.”

Takeo looked down at the table and stayed put. “It could be injudicious for a staff member to confront the director.”

“You mean you think he might fire you,” said Katerina.

“The thought did occur.”

“Well, I have a safe university position.” Katerina stood. “I’ll go.”

“Professor Wakabayashi?” said Alex.

Takeo toyed with his pocket chess set and did not raise his head. “With regret.”

“I understand,” said Alex, softly. “We’ll come back after our meeting and let you know what happened.”

“Thank you.” Takeo paused. “Perhaps, though, one should not mention the dog to the director.”

The director’s secretary informed them that the director was unavailable. And she would not reveal where he was at the moment. No amount of pleading and arguing from Alex and Katerina resulted in the director becoming less unavailable.

Alex checked his watch. “Come on, Katerina. Let’s get out of here.”

They stormed out of the office. On a door across the hall, Alex saw the sign,

Michael Decker

Deputy Director

“Maybe he can do something,” said Alex.

“Let’s hope,” said Katerina.

They walked in to confront Deputy Director Decker. Alex was prepared for a fight but he didn’t get one. Decker was relaxed and casual, not even wearing a tie. Apparently, he did not have a secretary.

After Alex explained who they were and why they were there, Katerina showed Decker the data.

Alex, painfully aware of the passage of time, waited impatiently as Decker unhurriedly perused Katerina’s folder.

“I’m not sure that I believe these data,” said Decker.

Alex suppressed a grimace. Damn.

“But I think they justify shutting down the Tevetron while the LHC is live,” Decker continued, “until we can do a thorough analysis.”

Great!

“But unfortunately, I don’t have the authority. The Director will have to approve.”

Damn!

“The director’s not in his office,” said Katerina. “And his secretary wouldn’t tell us where he is.”

Decker scowled. “He’s probably in his not-to-disturb hideaway deep in the Tevatron facility.” He leaned in over his computer keyboard. “But I’d say this is important enough to disturb him—via videoconference.”

The computer monitor came live with the image of a man sitting at his desk. And he seemed angry. Alex couldn’t help noticing the man’s dilated pupils and sweat-glistening forehead.

Decker explained the situation and, without waiting for a response, aimed the camera at Katerina and Alex and had them give the details. As they laid out the arguments, the director fidgeted, almost as if afflicted with a neurological condition.

“You’re sure all this is going to happen?” said the director when they’d finished.

“No. We’re not sure,” said Katerina, “not even half sure. But the risk is there.”

“A very theoretical risk, I assume.” The director crossed his hands on his desk. “I am sorry, but I can’t justify bringing down the Tevatron on such… theoretical grounds.”

“We’re sitting on an extension of the New Madrid fault,” said Alex, hoping his voice would imply an urgency that Katerina’s did not. “There could well be another quake right here—this time a big one.”

“Again,” said the director, imperiously, “are you sure?”

“Well, no.” Alex paused. “But I know what a Richter nine earthquake can do.”

“If it happens.”

Alex blew out a breath. “With the Tevatron up and running, especially with the two-Tev upgrade and with the LHC above seven—”

“The LHC,” said the director, scornfully. “If we had just one-tenth their funding, we could replace our magnets with lutetium-doped units and be almost at their power.” He uttered a laugh without humor. “If by some miracle we did have some damage from this quake of yours, then, damn it, we’d take the insurance money and we would buy those magnets.”

“Please,” said Alex. “This could be a real danger to the world.” He glanced at his watch. “And we are almost out of time.”

The director gave a mirthless smile. “When you first came here, only last month,”—the director straightened one finger and pointed it at Alex—”weren’t you the one who applied Rapid-Grow in a circle on the grass above the accelerator ring?”

“I didn’t know anyone knew about that.”

“Well,” said the director, “what’s the joke this time?”

“This is no joke,” said Alex, weakly, the wind now out of his sails.

“We can show,” said Katerina, “that the earthquakes correlate strongly with the Tevatron and LHC running.”

“But you can’t say it’s causal, can you?” said the director. “Correlation doesn’t mean causation.”

“In this case, though,” said Katerina, “it’s very suggestive.”

The director looked away. “Some thought the first atomic bomb test might ignite the atmosphere.”

“Meaning?” said Alex, impatiently.