A. Belyaev - Classics fantasy – 3

– To write with the left hand, to operate each eye separately, to work and to talk at the same time to you? The matter is that at me both brain hemispheres work absolutely independently and almost independently from each other.

But I have to explain you, so to speak, my starting point. As you know, officially I am professor of biology. Not less to you, I hope, also the fact that modern scientific disciplines extremely quickly break up to independent parts is known. Before our eyes the biological chemistry grows. Each new scientific branch, like the atomic theory, quickly grows in independent scientific discipline. Years are necessary to comprehend each of these certain scientific areas.

And meanwhile, to go forward, it is necessary to know also interdisciplinary sciences: the biology and physiology, chemistry and electricity, even geology and astronomy – all of them intertwine, mutually influence at each other. Some comprehensive mind is necessary to capture all this mass of knowledge. And life human is so short! To me for fifty. Ten more – another years, and the end. Before me enormous tasks which I want to resolve. Means, the first that I had to make for the purpose, it anyway to extend life. At first I thought of experiences of rejuvenation. What is already reached helped me: I look much younger. Perhaps, I will also return to these experiences. But so far I stopped that to me he was more familiar on the works on a brain.

The first that to me came to a thought, it to develop ability to work separately with each brain hemisphere. Unfortunately, I cannot stop in detail at these works: it would take too much time. I will tell only that here the major role is played by a training. You, maybe, had to see rhythmic gymnastics of Dalkroz? Kids quickly seize ability to operate the asymmetric movements: the right hand they can beat three time, left – two, besides at various rates, at the same time making various movements and legs. Something similar was made also by me, by the way, to full bewilderment of my housekeeper.

More difficult it appeared to seize the device of eyes. At us each eye has an independent control system, but owing to what we better see, fixing both eyes on one point, we developed a habit to coordinate the movements of eyes. Heredity of these skills complicated fight for «autonomy» in the movement of eyes. However such independence of the movement of each eye is quite possible. The chameleon can be an example of it. I was engaged in exercises. You see results. To learn to write and work the left hand did not represent work. It was necessary to pass to the last: to learn to perform at the same time two mental work, for example, to write with both hands two scientific research on different subjects at once. On it several years left at me. I achieved the. Thus I doubled the brain production.

But and it it seemed to me a little. Eight hours of a dream! We lose a third of human life on that helpless, half-dead state. Here what revolted me. To exempt mankind from a sleepy duty. What extraordinary prospects, what opportunities!. How many great works still great thinkers would give us if to present to them all nights for creativity! How many unfinished great works would be finished! As progress would move! The worker, having fulfilled the put hours at the machine, would spend night behind the book or public work. At us would not be illiterate. It is more than that, all would have an opportunity to become quite educated people. What with great strides progress would move! Here of what I thought…

Professor Wagner was animated. His right eye burned with enthusiasm. Apparently, nervousness was transferred also to other half of a brain: the left eye also flashed and the left hand began to write falteringly.

But Wagner noticed it, and the left eye as though went out, having gone deep into work, the left hand methodically zastrochit while the right eye continued to burn with enthusiasm and the right hand led round wide circles.

– And now it is possible! – professor told. – A dream – not the so normal phenomenon, but the disease which is result of gipnotoksinama poisoning: these are special poisons which are excreted by a brain during the work. Poisoned with these poisons, the person falls asleep, that is gets sick.

When the person sleeps, the brain does not produce new toxins; for the same time the organism destroys the toxins which collected for the working day.

Thus, having had a sleep, the person recovers, but – alas! – again to ache by the evening, and it is forced to go to bed again. Unless it is not awful?!

If you want, the dream is infectious. I did such experience: forced a dog not to sleep.

When its organism was poisoned with gipnotoksina, I took them and injected to well slept and just woken up dog. She immediately fell asleep.

All task was in finding «antidote» – antigipnotoksina. And I managed to resolve a task more widely, than I assumed: found me антигипнотоксин kills not only toxins of a dream, but also others. Therefore, it improves all organism. There were many obstacles, but they are won. I overcame a dream. I threw out a bed – this symbol of hospital. I do not sleep any more and I work almost day and night. Antigipnotoksin I accept together with food. On meal leaves at me one or two hours a day.

All this was so extraordinary that Gorev continued to sit silently, listening carefully to professor.

– But how you felt at first? – at last he asked.

– Yes, I had to tinker with a habit to sleep a little. There was no wish to sleep to me at all. But this continuous, infinite working day – with the sun behind a window, with a dark veil of night – worked somehow strange. I, however, got used to it soon. But as it is well worked in calm of night! I will not cut out one selfish thought: I am afraid that when all people begin to lead a sleepless life, it will not be so silent at night.

– And it does not seem to you that not all can like prospect of life without dream?

– I am confident even in it. – And professor smiled. – I offered somehow in the winter, in the remote village, to one country guy who was surprised that I do not sleep to try on itself my means. He agreed. Next morning I ask it how he feels. «It be wrong! – the guy speaks. – From melancholy nearly died! All village sleeps. One dogs bark. Went, went – a toshchishcha! Climbed on the furnace – a dream as sober as a judge. Thought, night of this and the end will not be!»

Exempt people from habitual work – professor continued – they will start missing too. But all this only at the lowest steps of culture. This culture quickly rises at rational use of «sleepless nights».

– One more question. You say that you do not sleep almost all twenty four hours. But how you are not tired?

– Very simply. The fatigue is the painful phenomenon too. The working brain excretes gipnotoksina, the working muscles excrete kenotoksina – poisons which cause feeling of fatigue. I import antidote – ретардин, and the fatigue as did not happen. Mine ретардин also interrupts a course of disease, the called fatigue as interrupt returnable typhus now, having entered into an organism диоксидиаминоарсенобензолдихлоргидрат – a tongue twister Wagner spoke.

At Gorev took the breath away from this long word. He asked professor to repeat the exotic name on syllables and wrote down in a notebook. «Such words give to article scientific weight» – he thought.

– And now count – professor Wagner told. – Working with two halves of a brain, I double the production. Working as twenty four hours instead of eight, I triple working hours. Means, I work for six, besides without any harm for health. Therefore, in thirty years of working life of people she will be able to perform work of hundred eighty years. Still in other words, in an every half-century the mankind will move forward on the way of progress for three centuries at once.

How you believe, costs it heels of narrow-minded dogs?. – with a smile professor finished.

The capacious drawing room of the banker Goldzak who bought recently baronial title was trimmed with heavy magnificence. On the walls trimmed with the carved oak panel horns of deer and the coats of arms of the newly appeared baron flaunted. In a corner the knight in armor and with a sword of the 13th century – doubtful «ancestor» of the baron was located. At windows with narrow lattices color glasses represented the same baronial coat of arms: on a yellow board the hand bent in an elbow chained in armor squeezed an iron glove a sword. Over a hand – five dark blue stars.

In the middle of the room around a big round a black oak table on oak chairs with high carved backs members of the central committee of the German political organization «Diktator» sat. On a chair with higher back, with a carved German state eagle at its top the chairman of the meeting – the old general, one of «heroes» of imperialistic war, the Kaiser’s friend sat. A rough face of the general as if cut by the axe from a piece of a tree, densely compressed bays under the moustaches raised up spoke about big will power. From under the hung gray-haired eyebrows the inquisitive, seldom blinking eyes looked out. On its uniform frock coat only «the iron cross» flaunted.

On the right side from the chairman the host – the baron Goldzak, in a black dress coat, with absolutely bald head, shaven, with a monocle in an eye was located. Further in a strict order, on a rank, members of the committee were located. The general with a narrow forehead, deeply put eyes and an outstanding chin. Something cruel, animal was in this head. Still general… Officials of the ministries, deputies… Large manufacturers and bankers closed a circle.

The young-looking person in a dress coat, with the person and the diplomat’s manners – the secretary of committee – did the report. On a table about it issue of Izvestia with Gorev’s article «Victory over a dream and fatigue of professor Wagner» lay. Here a translation of article into German.

– We did not check up to the end reliability of the data provided in article yet, but, according to the data which are available already for us, apparently, she answers reality.

I should not speak about value of this discovery. If it is used by the Soviet Russia, the ratio of forces between it and other states of the world considerably will change. In some five years power of the Bolshevism will extraordinary grow.

Simultaneous work as both brain hemispheres, fortunately, demands time and a training and therefore it is not absolutely available to masses. But one victory over a dream and fatigue already triples physical and intellectual forces of our political opponents, at the same time and their material resources. Their scientific forces and skilled workers will work three times and even six times more. Production of the industry will increase. In several years they will have new shots of well trained staff in all areas of the equipment. In a word, their power will grow is unceasing. They will work when the whole world sleeps. They will work when we are forced to have a rest after day of work.

– Well, growth of the industry will happen not so soon – the manufacturer told. – Let’s put, all their plants and factories will work day and night. But further?. It will be not so easy to get the credits for construction of new factories and plants to them. You, the baron, will not grant them the loan? – with a smile he addressed Goldzak.

The baron answered with the same smile and started up a smoke ringlet.

– But there is other danger – the hoarse voice of the general was heard. – I speak about military power of Red army. What if only eight of sixteen «additional» hours a day it is used by them for military training of workers and peasants? It is equivalent to creation of multimillion army. Further, during war they will have fighters who do not need rest. They should not replace soldiers in entrenchments. They will be always sharp-sighted, vigilant, fresh while at us two thirds of soldiers temporarily fail for a dream and rest. Their pilots who are not knowing were tired, will be able to make distant flights… Their command structure, their headquarters will be able to direct operations, without producing threads of management for one minute for rest and a dream. It is possible that they use means of professor Wagner also over horses. Their wagon trains, their cavalry will not know fatigue. All this is too serious!.