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"I started writing in the 1930's when I was eighteen years old. And deep inside me I'm still eighteen and it's still 1938."
- Isaac Asimov
 |
| Shere | ||
| Destroys cells so that memory cannot be deduced from the cells of the person even in death. |
In the far future world of the novel, it is possible to probe the cells of a dead person and retrieve a substantial amount of information, including emotions, thoughts, and beliefs. People who are in danger of being captured by their enemies use a special drug that causes these traces to be unreadable.
| An Ixian probe can raid the mind even of a dead person," Geasa explained. "Shere is a drug that protects you from the probe. Your cells will be totally dead before the drug effect is gone. |
| From Heretics of Dune,
by Frank Herbert. Published by Putnam in 1984 Additional resources -
|
It does seem hard to believe that it would be possible to probe your cells after you are dead, and retrieve anything like thoughts. However, research done on planaria and other simple organisms suggests that, since particular kinds of training (like finding their way through mazes, or resistance to being photophobic) have an effect on the tissues of the animal, it may be possible to deduce something about the organism's training or experiences from the cadaver.
More information on this topic is available in the entry for RNA Shots, from A World Out of Time by Larry Niven.
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As far as the future is concerned 'they're the only experts we have'.
'The walls and ceiling bore an irregular spacing of illuminum tiles...'
'The planes flew continuously, twenty-four hours a day...'
'It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time.'
'...a single perfectly level platform, which rose so high above the water that it was not splashed by the waves.'
'Is an extra-factual memory that convincing?' Quail asked.
