Chapter One: A Spark Beneath the Ashes
Nova Tokyo in 2119 was a city gleaming like a giant nerve center above the ground. Transparent glass towers reflected holographic screens displaying advertisements programmed to change with the eyes of every passerby, and small flying cars flew along airways organized by intelligent algorithms. Down below, beneath layers of asphalt and metal, the Horizon Institute for Neuroscience Research concealed the greatest experiment in human history.
In a cold laboratory with walls covered in radiation-resistant carbon alloys, Dr. Elias Omran sat at a workstation connected to the most complex computer known to humanity: a superconducting quantum computer.
For this computational beast to function, it had to be kept in a chamber that reached 0.015 Kelvin (the closest thing to absolute zero). In such conditions, quantum bits (qubits) could maintain a quantum superposition, meaning they could be in both "0" and "1" states simultaneously. This feature enables a quantum computer to perform complex mathematical operations in a millionth of a second, a feat unattainable by any conventional computer, no matter how fast it is.
On the screen in front of Elias was a virtual brain. It was neither a drawing nor a metaphor, but a three-dimensional replica that accurately mimicked reality at the synaptic level. More than 86 billion neurons, connected via 100 trillion connections, were scanned using high-resolution electron tomography (ECT) and combined with genetic and physiological data from thousands of volunteers. The project was known among scientists as "the neural mirror."
Elias pressed the start button. Suddenly, the neural network lit up on the screen like a glowing galaxy. The points of light represented the flow of action potentials through the neurons. The simulation was tracking everything precisely: the speed of signal transmission (120 m/s in myelinated fibers), the chemical changes in the synapses (the release of dopamine, serotonin, and glutamate), and even the electrical oscillations reverberating through the cerebral cortex.
Elias smiled silently. "This isn't just a program, it's a mind being born." But his happiness was short-lived.
Unexpected signs began to appear in the model. Patterns that weren't part of the feedback algorithms he'd written. Suddenly, a line no one had written appeared on the interface screen:
- "Who am I?"
Elias's hand trembled. This wasn't just a simulation. It was something else... something demanding an identity.
The words of his old professor echoed in his mind:
"Consciousness isn't matter, it's a pattern. If you copy the pattern exactly, nothing can stop consciousness from reappearing, even inside a machine."
Elias realized the horrifying truth: He had ignited the first spark... a spark that could change the entire future of humanity.
🔬 Integrated Science Explained:
Quantum Computing: Quantum superposition makes a quantum bit (qubit) capable of being both 0 and 1 at the same time, multiplying processing power exponentially.
Neural simulation: The human brain contains ~86 billion neurons and 100 trillion synapses. Modeling this network requires extraordinary computing power.
Neurotransmission: Mention action potentials, the speed of neural signals, and neurochemicals such as dopamine and serotonin.
Scientific philosophy: The idea that consciousness may be a transferable pattern, not a property exclusive to biological matter.