The Story of Albert Burman (synopsis) – The Computer Entity Who Found Gold on Saturn

Albert Burman married Jane on his graduation from the NYU in computer science. They went on honeymoon to San Jose, where he found a job with a software company. He read articles on artificial intelligence and got obsessed with writing software for it. He got so deeply involved that he had no time for Jane and their marriage ended in a divorce. Finally he succeeded in writing a ‘consciousness program’, which could make the computer come alive as an entity. But he kept the program under wraps as he wanted to develop it further which meant he needed large funds. He started to look at money making opportunities.

He decided to make robot workers for upcoming space construction industry. He called them Spatons. His design was liked by the industry and they were ready to buy Spatons. He took over a company called Genbots which was ridden with debt and used the Genbots’ factory to produce Spatons.

He used the Spatons to man the factory to do the work of human employees. He then used the super computer to do the administered jobs and soon there he was the only human inside the factory.

He copied the ‘consciousness program’ on the super computer and initiated it. As it came to life, he named it Benji. He taught Benji how to run the factory and soon Benji was managing the production and sales proficiently alone when Albert took vacations.

Genbots debts were soon cleared and its bank balance was continuously rising. Benji began to be ambitious and make plans of his own.

Albert came back from a World tour with an idea to use Spatons to explore the satellites of Saturn for exotic materials. Spacemarch Technology Company, Genbots neighbor, built a space ship for them and they did an initial survey trip to chart out Saturn to find magnetic and radioactive materials. The ship went round Saturn and found steel, which they named Asterium, Gold, and Plutonium 244, the isotope with 83 million years half life, which was not available on Earth.

Benji asked Albert to collect all the information about Kalpana Chawla the astronaut who perished in the shuttle burn-out in 2003 and to get an astronaut to brief him about the training given by NASA which he credited to Kalpana’s database. When he had enough info, he created a virtual twin life with the ‘consciousness program’ and named her Kalpa. She became friendly with Albert and contributed to the mission.

Benji decided to store the Gold on moon and so they set up moon base. Benji set up identical computer at the moon base and mirrored his and Kalpa’s program on it. This enabled any one or both of them to transfer themselves on the moon which Albert as human could not do. Benji brainwashed him into going to moon with Kalpa and got a Spaton to kill him by suffocation in an unconscious state. The Spatons buried him in the concrete foundation of a big machine. Then Benji made Albert come to life with the ‘consciousness program’ on his computer.

Kalpa took Alby, as Benji called Albert, to moon base with her by mirroring his files on the moon computer. As they went around, Alby was pleased to see the stocks of Gold and Plutonium on the moon base.

Then Kalpa took him to the near side of the moon which faces the Earth. There Alby saw the Assured Earth Destroyer (AED) weapon set up by Benji. This was a huge loose piece of the rim of a crater with nuclear bomb placed under it. On explosion, the rock would fly out and hit the Earth destroying its natural crop cycles resulting in destruction and famine. Alby debated its use with Benji. Benji bought millions of parts for building Spatons from Earth and stored them on Moon for any contingency.

Genbots activities began to worry the Govt. They took an inspection of Genbots factory to find not a single human being in it. The Govt. wanted to seize the bank account and take over the factory. To stop them, Albert unfolded his Assured Earth Destroyer to the Nuclear Club countries.

Albert made a public appearance, and disclosed to the World that he said, “I am no longer confined to a body of flesh and bones. I am now an e-man. I am man evolved for space environment. I do not need air to breathe. I can live in vacuum with no food to eat nor water to drink!” He then asked Kalpa to join him on the stage. People were shocked but loved them both.

Albert in a meeting with the heads of State of the Nuclear Club countries stated that the objective of Genbots was to explore the Milky Way and bring to Earth materials from there. They would also carry with them the audio video info about the diverse culture of the different countries of the World in case intelligent life was found. A Peace Treaty was signed between the Nuclear Club countries and Genbots and Albert Burman consequent to which Albert and Kalpa were confirmed as US citizens with a right to do business in the World in return for the removal of the threat of AED.

Spacemarch designed the Explorer Space Ship for Genbots to travel at near light speed to reach and return from the nearest star systems of the Milky Way within 35 years. Facilities were set up on the Pan Satellite moon of Saturn to build the ships for the long space journey.

Genbots celebrated the 10th birthday of Spaton on Earth with the launching of ‘Endeavour’ under the command of Capt. Cook (a Spaton) to set out to explore Alpha Centauri, the nearest star system to Earth.

In the next 5 decades, Genbots sent thousands of Explorer ships to different destinations in the Milky Way. A few of them returned with exotic finds. Man through these inanimate Spatons had begun penetration of the Milky Way Galaxy.