Still half asleep, and barely emerged from the nightmare which had been tormenting3 me only amoment before, I pulled myself up to a sitting position and shielded my eyes against the glareto look at her. The trembling continued, and I stretched out my arms, but Rheya pushed meaway and hid her face.
"Rheya…""Don't talk to me!""Rheya, what's the matter?"I caught a glimpse of her tear-stained face, contorted with emotion. The big childish tearsstreamed down her face, glistened4 in the dimple above her chin and fell onto the sheets.
"You don't want me.""What are you talking about?""I heard…"My jaw5 tightened6: "Heard what? You don't understand.""Yes I do. You said I wasn't Rheya. You wanted me to go, and I would, I really would…but Ican't. I don't know why. I've tried to go, but I couldn't do it. I'm such a coward.""Come on now…." I put my arms round her and held her with all my strength. Nothingmattered to me except her: everything else was meaningless. I kissed her hands, talked,begged, excused myself and made promise after promise, saying that she had been havingsome silly, terrible dream. Gradually she grew calmer, and at last she stopped crying and hereyes glazed7, like a woman walking in her sleep. She turned her face away from me.
"No," she said at last, "be quiet, don't talk like that. It's no good, you're not the same person anymore." I started to protest, but she went on: "No, you don't want me. I knew it before, but Ipretended not to notice. I thought perhaps I was imagining everything, but it was true…you'vechanged. You're not being honest with me. You talk about dreams, but it was you who weredreaming, and it was to do with me. You spoke8 my name as if it repelled9 you. Why? Just tellme why.""Rheya, my little….""I won't have you talking to me like that, do you hear? I won't let you. I'm not your littleanything, I'm not a child. I'm…."She burst into tears and buried her face in the pillow. I got up. The ventilation hummed quietly.
It was cold, and I pulled a dressing-gown over my shoulders before sitting next to her andtaking her arm: "Listen to me, I'm going to tell you something. I'm going to tell you the truth."She pushed herself upright again. I could see the veins10 throbbing11 beneath the delicate skin ofher neck. My jaw tightened once more. The air seemed to be colder still, and my head wascompletely empty.
"The truth?" she said. "Word of honor?" I opened my mouth to speak, but no sound came.
'Word of honor'…it was our special catch-phrase, our old way of making an unconditionalpromise. Once these words had been spoken, neither of us was permitted to lie, or even to takerefuge behind a half-truth. I remembered the period when we used to torture each other in anexaggerated striving for sincerity12, convinced that this ingenuous13 honesty was the preconditionof our relationship.
"Word of honor, Rheya," I answered gravely, and she waited for me to continue. "You havechanged too—we all change. But that is not what I wanted to say. For some reason that neitherof us understands, it seems that…you are forced to stay near me. And that's fine with me,because I can't leave you either…""No, Kris. The change is not in you," Rheya whispered. "It's me. Something is wrong. Perhapsit has to do with the accident?"She looked at the dark, empty rectangle of the door. The previous evening, I had removed theshattered remains14—a new one would have to be fitted. Another thought struck me:
"Have you been managing to sleep?""I don't know.""What do you mean?""I have dreams…I don't know whether they really are dreams. Perhaps I'm ill. I lie there andthink, and…""What?""I have strange thoughts. I don't know where they come from."It took all my self-control to steady my voice and tell her to go on, and I found myself tensingfor her answer as if for a blow in the face.
"They are thoughts…" She shook her head helplessly. "…all around me.""I don't understand.""I get a feeling as if they were not from inside myself, but somewhere further away. I can'texplain it, can't put words to it…"I broke in almost involuntarily: "It must be some kind of dream." Then, back in control again:
"And now, we put the light out and we forget our problems until morning. Tomorrow we caninvent some new ones if you like. OK?"She pressed the switch, and darkness fell between us. Stretched out on the bed, I felt her warmbreathing beside me, and put my arms round her.
"Harder!" she whispered, and then, after a long pause:
"Kris!""What?""I love you."I almost screamed.
In the red morning, the sun's swollen15 disc was rising over the horizon.
An envelope lay in the doorway17, and I tore it open. I could hear Rheya humming to herself inthe bath, and from time to time she looked into the room and I would see her face, half hiddenby her wet hair.
I went to the window, and read:
"Kelvin, things are looking up. Sartorius has decided18 that it may be possible to use some formof energy to destabilize the neutrino structure. He wants to examine some Phi plasma19 in orbit.
He suggests that you make a reconnaissance flight and take a certain quantity of plasma in thecapsule. It's up to you, but let me know what you decide. I have no opinion. I feel as if I nolonger have anything. If I am more in favor of your going, it's because we would at least bemaking some show of progress. Otherwise, we can only envy G.
SnowP.S. All I ask is for you to stay outside the cabin. You can call me on the videophone."I felt a stir of apprehension20 as I read the letter, and went over it again carefully before tearing itup and throwing the pieces into the disposal unit.
I went through the same terrible charade21 that I had begun the previous day, and made up astory for Rheya's benefit. She did not notice the deception22, and when I told her that I had tomake an inspection23 and suggested that she come with me she was delighted. We stopped at thekitchen for breakfast—Rheya ate very little—and then made for the library.
Before venturing on the mission suggested by Sartorius, I wanted to glance through theliterature dealing24 with magnetic fields and neutrino structures. I did not yet have any clear ideaof how I would set about it, but I had made up my mind to make an independent check onSartorius's activities. Not that I would prevent Snow and Sartorius from 'liberating25' themselveswhen the annihilator26 was completed: I meant to take Rheya out of the Station and wait for theconclusion of the operation in the cabin of an aircraft. I set to work with the automaticlibrarian. Sometimes it answered my queries27 by ejecting a card with the laconic28 inscription"Not on file," sometimes it practically submerged me under such a spate29 of specialist physicstextbooks that I hesitated to use its advice. Yet I had no desire to leave the big circularchamber. I felt at ease in my egg, among the rows of cabinets crammed31 with tape andmicrofilm. Situated32 right at the center of the Station, the library had no windows: It was themost isolated33 area in the great steel shell, and made me feel relaxed in spite of finding myresearches held up.
Wandering across the vast room, I stopped at a set of shelves as high as the ceiling, andholding about six hundred volumes—all classics on the history of Solaris, starting with the ninevolumes of Giese's monumental and already relatively34 obsolescent35 monograph36. Display for itsown sake was improbable in these surroundings. The collection was a respectful tribute to thememory of the pioneers. I took down the massive volumes of Giese and sat leafing throughthem. Rheya had also located some reading matter. Looking over her shoulder, I saw that shehad picked one of the many books brought out by the first expedition, the InterplanetaryCookery Book. which could have been the personal property of Giese himself. She was poringover the recipes adapted to the arduous37 conditions of interstellar flight. I said nothing, andreturned to the book resting on my knees. Solaris—Ten Years of Exploration had appeared asvolumes 4-12 of the Solariana collection whose most recent additions were numbered in thethousands.
Giese was an unemotional man, but then in the study of Solaris emotion is a hindrance38 to theexplorer. Imagination and premature39 theorizing are positive disadvantages in approaching aplanet where—as has become clear—anything is possible. It is almost certain that the unlikelydescriptions of the 'plasmatic40' metamorphoses of the ocean are faithful accounts of thephenomena observed, although these descriptions are unverifiable, since the ocean seldomrepeats itself. The freakish character and gigantic scale of these phenomena41 go too far outsidethe experience of man to be grasped by anybody observing them for the first time, and whowould consider analogous42 occurrences as 'sports of nature,' accidental manifestations43 of blindforces, if he saw them on a reduced scale, say in a mud-volcano on Earth.
Genius and mediocrity alike are dumbfounded by the teeming44 diversity of the oceanicformations of Solaris; no man has ever become genuinely conversant45 with them. Giese was byno means a mediocrity, nor was he a genius. He was a scholarly classifier, the type whosecompulsive application to their work utterly46 divorces them from the pressures of everyday life.
Giese devised a plain descriptive terminology47, supplemented by terms of his own invention,and although these were inadequate48, and sometimes clumsy, it has to be admitted that nosemantic system is as yet available to illustrate49 the behavior of the ocean. The 'tree-mountains,'
'extensors,' 'fungoids,' 'mimoids,' 'symmetriads' and 'asymmetriads,' 'vertebrids' and 'agilus' areartificial, linguistically50 awkward terms, but they do give some impression of Solaris to anyonewho has only seen the planet in blurred51 photographs and incomplete films. The fact is that inspite of his cautious nature the scrupulous52 Giese more than once jumped to prematureconclusions. Even when on their guard, human beings inevitably53 theorize. Giese, who thoughthimself immune to temptation, decided that the 'extensors' came into the category of basicforms. He compared them to accumulations of gigantic waves, similar to the tidal movementsof our Terran oceans. In the first edition of his work, we find them originally named as 'tides.'
This geocentrism might be considered amusing if it did not underline the dilemma54 in which hefound himself.
As soon as the question of comparisons with Earth arises, it must be understood that the'extensors' are formations that dwarf55 the Grand Canyon56, that they are produced in a substancewhich externally resembles a yeasty colloid58 (during this fantastic 'fermentation,' the yeast57 setsinto festoons of starched59 open-work lace; some experts refer to 'ossified60 tumors'), and thatdeeper down the substance becomes increasingly resistant61, like a tensed muscle which fifty feetbelow the surface is as hard as rock but retains its flexibility62. The 'extensor' appears to be anindependent creation, stretching for miles between membranous63 walls swollen with 'ossifiedgrowths,' like some colossal64 python which after swallowing a mountain is sluggishly65 digestingthe meal, while a slow shudder66 occasionally ripples68 along its creeping body. The 'extensor'
only looks like a lethargic69 reptile70 from overhead. At close quarters, when the two 'canyonwalls' loom71 hundreds of yards above the exploring aircraft, it can be seen that this inflatedcylinder, reaching from one side of the horizon to the other, is bewilderingly alive withmovement. First you notice the continual rotating motion of a greyish-green, oily sludge whichreflects blinding sunlight, but skimming just above the 'back of the python' (the 'ravine'
sheltering the 'extensor' now resembles the sides of a geological fault), you realize that themotion is in fact far more complex, and consists of concentric fluctuations72 traversed by darkercurrents. Occasionally this mantle73 turns into a shining crust that reflects sky and clouds andthen is riddled75 by explosive eruptions76 of the internal gases and fluids. The observer slowlyrealizes that he is looking at the guiding forces that are thrusting outward and upward the twogradually crystallizing gelatinous walls. Science does not accept the obvious without furtherproof, however, and virulent78 controversies79 have reverberated80 down the years on the keyquestion of the exact sequence of events in the interior of the 'extensors that furrow81 the vastliving ocean in their millions.
Various organic functions have been ascribed to the 'extensors.' Some experts have argued thattheir purpose is the transformation82 of matter; others suggested respiratory processes; still othersclaimed that they conveyed alimentary83 materials. An infinite variety of hypotheses nowmoulder in library basements, eliminated by ingenious, sometimes dangerous experiments.
Today, the scientists will go no further than to refer to the 'extensors' as relatively simple,stable formations whose duration is measurable in weeks—an exceptional characteristic amongthe recorded phenomena of the planet.
The 'mimoid' formations are considerably84 more complex and bizarre, and elicit85 a morevehement response from the observer, an instinctive86 response, I mean. It can be stated withoutexaggeration that Giese fell in love with the 'mimoids' and was soon devoting all his time tothem. For the rest of his life, he studied and described them and brought all his ingenuity87 tobear on defining their nature. The name he gave them indicates their most astonishingcharacteristic, the imitation of objects, near or far, external to the ocean itself.
Concealed88 at first beneath the ocean surface, a large flattened89 disc appears, ragged90, with a tar-like coating. After a few hours, it begins to separate into flat sheets which rise slowly. Theobserver now becomes a spectator at what looks like a fight to the death, as massed ranks ofwaves converge91 from all directions like contorted, fleshy mouths which snap greedily aroundthe tattered92, fluttering leaf, then plunge93 into the depths. As each ring of waves breaks andsinks, the fall of this mass of hundreds of thousands of tons is accompanied for an instant by aviscous rumbling94, an immense thunderclap. The tarry leaf is overwhelmed, battered95 and tornapart; with every fresh assault, circular fragments scatter96 and drift like feebly fluttering wingsbelow the ocean surface. They bunch into pear-shaped clusters or long strings97, merge2 and riseagain, and drag with them an undertow of coagulated shreds98 of the base of the primal99 disc. Theencircling waves continue to break around the steadily100 expanding crater101. This phenomenonmay persist for a day or linger on for a month, and sometimes there are no furtherdevelopments. The conscientious102 Giese dubbed103 this first variation a 'stillbirth,' convinced thateach of these upheavals104 aspired105 towards an ultimate condition, the 'major mimoid,' like a polypcolony (only covering an area greater than a town) of pale outcroppings with the faculty106 ofimitating foreign bodies. Uyvens, on the other hand, saw this final stage as constituting adegeneration or necrosis: according to him, the appearance of the 'copies' corresponded to alocalized dissipation of the life energies of the ocean, which was no longer in control of theoriginal forms it created.
Giese would not abandon his account of the various phases of the process as a sustainedprogression towards perfection, with a conviction which is particularly surprising coming froma man of such a moderate, cautious turn of mind in advancing the most trivial hypothesis onthe other creations of the ocean. Normally he had all the boldness of an ant crawling up aglacier.
Viewed from above, the mimoid resembles a town, an illusion produced by our compulsion tosuperimpose analogies with what we know. When the sky is clear, a shimmering107 heat-hazecovers the pliant108 structures of the clustered polyps surmounted109 by membranous palisades. Thefirst cloud passing overhead wakens the mimoid. All the outcrops suddenly sprout110 new shoots,then the mass of polyps ejects a thick tegument which dilates111, puffs112 out, changes color and inthe space of a few minutes has produced an astonishing imitation of the volutes of a cloud. Theenormous 'object' casts a reddish shadow over the mimoid, whose peaks ripple67 and bendtogether, always in the opposite direction to the movement of the real cloud. I imagine thatGiese would have been ready to give his right hand to discover what made the mimoids behavein this way, but these 'isolated' productions are nothing in comparison to the frantic113 activity themimoid displays when 'stimulated114' by objects of human origin.
The reproduction process embraces every object inside a radius116 of eight or nine miles. Usuallythe facsimile is an enlargement of the original, whose forms are sometimes only roughlycopied. The reproduction of machines, in particular, elicits117 simplifications that might beconsidered grotesque—practically caricatures. The copy is always modelled in the samecolorless tegument, which hovers118 above the outcrops, linked to its base by flimsy umbilicalcords; it slides, creeps, curls back on itself, shrinks or swells119 and finally assumes the mostcomplicated forms. An aircraft, a net or a pole are all reproduced at the same speed. Themimoid is not stimulated by human beings themselves, and in fact it does not react to anyliving matter, and has never copied, for example, the plants imported for experimentalpurposes. On the other hand, it will readily reproduce a puppet or a doll, a carving120 of a dog, ora tree sculpted121 in any material.
The observer must bear in mind that the 'obedience122' of the mimoid does not constitute evidenceof cooperation, since it is not consistent. The most highly evolved mimoid has its off-days,when it 'lives' in slow-motion, or its pulsation123 weakens. (This pulsation is invisible to the nakedeye, and was only discovered after close examination of rapid-motion film of the mimoid,which revealed that each 'beat' took two hours.)During these 'off-days,' it is easy to explore the mimoid, especially if it is old, for the baseanchored in the ocean, like the protuberances growing out of it, is relatively solid, and providesa firm footing for a man. It is equally possible to remain inside the mimoid during periods ofactivity, except that visibility is close to nil124 because of the whitish colloidal125 dust continuallyemitted through tears in the tegument above. In any case, at close range it is impossible todistinguish what forms the tegument is assuming, on account of their vast size—the smallest'copy' is the size of a mountain. In addition, a thick layer of colloidal snow quickly covers thebase of the mimoid: this spongy carpet takes several hours to solidify126 (the 'frozen' crust willtake the weight of a man, though its composition is much lighter127 than pumice stone). Theproblem is that without special equipment there is a risk of being lost in the maze128 of tangledstructures and crevasses129, sometimes reminiscent of jumbled130 colonnades131, sometimes of petrifiedgeysers. Even in daylight it is easy to lose one's direction, for the sun's rays cannot pierce thewhite ceiling ejected into the atmosphere by the 'imitative explosions.'
On gala days (for the scientist as well as for the mimoid), an unforgettable spectacle developsas the mimoid goes into hyperproduction and performs wild flights of fancy. It plays variationson the theme of a given object and embroiders132 'formal extensions' that amuse it for hours onend, to the delight of the non-figurative artist and the despair of the scientist, who is at a loss tograsp any common theme in the performance. The mimoid can produce 'primitive133'
simplifications, but is just as likely to indulge in 'baroque' deviations134, paroxysms ofextravagant brilliance135. Old mimoids tend to manufacture extremely comic forms. Looking atthe photographs, I have never been moved to laughter; the riddle74 they set is too disquieting136 tobe funny.
During the early years of exploration, the scientists literally137 threw themselves upon themimoids, which were spoken of as open windows on the ocean and the best opportunity toestablish the hoped-for contact between the two civilizations. They were soon forced to admitthat there was not the slightest prospect138 of communication, and that the entire process beganand ended with the reproduction of forms. The mimoids were a dead end.
Giving way to the temptations of a latent anthropomorphism or zoomorphism, there were manyschools of thought which saw various other oceanic formations as 'sensory139 organs,' even as'limbs,' which was how experts like Maartens and Ekkonai classified Giese's 'vertebrids' and'agilus' for a time. Anyone who is rash enough to see protuberances that reach as far as twomiles into the atmosphere as limbs, might just as well claim that earthquakes are thegymnastics of the Earth's crust!
Three hundred chapters of Giese catalogue the standard formations which occur on the surfaceof the living ocean and which can be seen in dozens, even hundreds, in the course of any day.
The symmetriads—to continue using the terminology and definitions of the Giese school—arethe least 'human' formations, which is to say that they bear no resemblance whatsoever140 toanything on Earth. By the time, the symmetriads were being investigated, it was already clearthat the ocean was not aggressive, and that its plasmatic eddies141 would not swallow any but themost foolhardy explorer (of course I am not including accidents resulting from mechanicalfailures). It is possible to fly in complete safety from one part to another of the cylindrical142 bodyof an extensor, or of the vertebrids, Jacob's ladders oscillating among the clouds: the plasmaretreats at the speed of sound in the planet's atmosphere to make way for any foreign body.
Deep funnels144 will open even beneath the surface of the ocean (at a prodigious145 expenditure146 ofenergy, calculated by Scriabin at around 10^19 ergs). Nevertheless the first venture into theinterior of a symmetriad was undertaken with the utmost caution and discipline, and involved ahost of what turned out to be unnecessary safety measures. Every schoolboy on Earth knows ofthese pioneers.
It is not their nightmare appearance that makes the gigantic symmetriad formations dangerous,but the total instability and capriciousness of their structure, in which even the laws of physicsdo not hold. The theory that the living ocean is endowed with intelligence has found its firmestadherents among those scientists who have ventured into their unpredictable depths.
The birth of a symmetriad comes like a sudden eruption77. About an hour beforehand, an area oftens of square miles of ocean vitrifies and begins to shine. It remains fluid, and there is noalteration in the rhythm of the waves. Occasionally the phenomenon of vitrification occurs inthe neighbourhood of the funnel143 left by an agilus. The gleaming sheath of the ocean heavesupwards to form a vast ball that reflects sky, sun, clouds and the entire horizon in a medley148 ofchanging, variegated149 images. Diffracted light creates a kaleidoscopic150 play of color.
The effects of light on a symmetriad are especially striking during the blue day and the redsunset. The planet appears to be giving birth to a twin that increases in volume from onemoment to the next. The immense flaming globe has scarcely reached its maximum expansionabove the ocean when it bursts at the summit and cracks vertically152. It is not breaking up; this isthe second phase, which goes under the clumsy name of the 'floral calyx phase' and lasts only afew seconds. The membranous arches soaring into the sky now fold inwards and merge toproduce a thick-set trunk enclosing a scene of teeming activity. At the center of the trunk,which was explored for the first time by the seventy-man Hamalei expedition, a process ofpolycrystallization on a giant scale erects153 an axis155 commonly referred to as the 'backbone,' aterm which I consider ill-chosen. The mind-bending architecture of this central pillar is held inplace by vertical151 shafts156 of a gelatinous, almost liquid consistency157, constantly gushing158 upwardsout of wide crevasses. Meanwhile, the entire trunk is surrounded by a belt of snow foam159,seething160 with great bubbles of gas, and the whole process is accompanied by a perpetual dullroar of sound. From the center towards the periphery161, powerful buttresses162 spin out and arecoated with streams of ductile163 matter rising out of the ocean depths Simultaneously164 thegelatinous geysers are converted into mobile columns that proceed to extrude165 tendrils thatreach out in clusters towards points rigorously predetermined by the over-all dynamics167 of theentire structure: they call to mind the gills of an embryo168, except that they are revolving169 atfantastic speed and ooze170 trickles171 of pinkish 'blood' and a dark green secretion172.
The symmetriad now begins to display its most exotic characteristic—the property of'illustrating,' sometimes contradicting, various laws of physics. (Bear in mind that no twosymmetriads are alike, and that the geometry of each one is a unique 'invention' of the livingocean.) The interior of the symmetriad becomes a factory for the production of 'monumentalmachines,' as these constructs are sometimes called, although they resemble no machine whichit is within the power of mankind to build: the designation is applied173 because all this activityhas finite ends, and is therefore in some sense 'mechanical.'
When the geysers of oceanic matter have solidified174 into pillars or into three-dimensionalnetworks of galleries and passages, and the 'membranes176' are set into an inextricable pattern ofstoreys, panels and vaults177, the symmetriad justifies178 its name, for the entire structure is dividedinto two segments, each mirroring the other to the most infinitesimal detail.
After twenty or thirty minutes, when the axis may have tilted179 as much as eight to ten degreesfrom the horizontal, the giant begins slowly to subside180. (Symmetriads vary in size, but as thebase begins to submerge even the smallest reach a height of half a mile, and are visible frommiles away.) At last, the structure stabilizes181 itself, and the partly submerged symmetriad ceasesits activity. It is now possible to explore it in complete safety by making an entry near thesummit, through one of the many syphons which emerge from the dome182. The completedsymmetriad represents a spatial183 analogue184 of some transcendental equation.
It is a commonplace that any equation can be expressed in the figurative language of non-Euclidean geometry and represented in three dimensions. This interpretation185 relates thesymmetriad to Lobachevsky's cones186 and Riemann's negative curves, although its unimaginablecomplexity makes the relationship highly tenuous187. The eventual188 form occupies an area ofseveral cubic miles and extends far beyond our whole system of mathematics. In addition, thisextension is four-dimensional, for the fundamental terms of the equations use a temporalsymbolism expressed in the internal changes over a given period.
It would be only natural, clearly, to suppose that the symmetriad is a 'computer' of the livingocean, performing calculations for a purpose that we are not able to grasp. This was Fremont'stheory, now generally discounted. The hypothesis was a tempting189 one, but it proved impossibleto sustain the concept that the living ocean examined problems of matter, the cosmos190 andexistence through the medium of titanic191 eruptions, in which every particle had an indispensablefunction as a controlled element in an analytical192 system of infinite purity. In fact, numerousphenomena contradict this over-simplified (some say childishly na.ve) concept.
Any number of attempts have been made to transpose and 'illustrate' the symmetriad, andAverian's demonstration193 was particularly well received. Let us imagine, he said, an edificedating from the great days of Babylon, but built of some living, sensitive substance with thecapacity to evolve: the architectonics of this edifice194 pass through a series of phases, and we seeit adopt the forms of a Greek, then of a Roman building. The columns sprout like branches andbecome narrower, the roof grows lighter, rises, curves, the arch describes an abrupt195 parabolathen breaks down into an arrow shape: the Gothic is born, comes to maturity196 and gives way intime to new forms. Austerity of line gives way to a riot of exploding lines and shapes, and theBaroque runs wild. If the progression continues—and the successive mutations are to be seenas stages in the life of an evolving organism—we finally arrive at the architecture of the spaceage, and perhaps too at some understanding of the symmetriad.
Unfortunately, no matter how this demonstration may be expanded and unproved (there havebeen attempts to visualize197 it with the aid of models and films), the comparison remainssuperficial. It is evasive and illusory, and side-steps the central fact that the symmetriad is quiteunlike anything Earth has ever produced.
The human mind is only capable of absorbing a few things at a time. We see what is takingplace in front of us in the here and now, and cannot envisage198 simultaneously a succession ofprocesses, no matter how integrated and complementary. Our faculties199 of perception areconsequently limited even as regards fairly simple phenomena. The fate of a single man can berich with significance, that of a few hundred less so, but the history of thousands and millionsof men does not mean anything at all, in any adequate sense of the word. The symmetriad is amillion—a billion, rather—raised to the power of N: it is incomprehensible. We pass throughvast halls, each with a capacity of ten Kronecker units, and creep like so many ants clinging tothe folds of breathing vaults and craning to watch the flight of soaring girders, opalescent200 in theglare of searchlights, and elastic201 domes202 which criss-cross and balance each other unerringly,the perfection of a moment, since everything here passes and fades, The essence of thisarchitecture is movement synchronized203 towards a precise objective. We observe a fraction ofthe process, like hearing the vibration204 of a single string in an orchestra of supergiants. Weknow, but cannot grasp, that above and below, beyond the limits of perception or imagination,thousands and millions of simultaneous transformations205 are at work, interlinked like a musicalscore by mathematical counterpoint. It has been described as a symphony in geometry, but welack the ears to hear it.
Only a long-distance view would reveal the entire process, but the outer covering of thesymmetriad conceals206 the colossal inner matrix where creation is unceasing, the createdbecomes the creator, and absolutely identical 'twins' are born at opposite poles, separated bytowering structures and miles of distance. The symphony creates itself, and writes its ownconclusion, which is terrible to watch. Every observer feels like a spectator at a tragedy or apublic massacre207, when after two or three hours—never longer—the living ocean stages itsassault. The polished surface of the ocean swirls208 and crumples209, the desiccated foam liquefiesagain, begins to seethe210, and legions of waves pour inwards from every point of the horizon,their gaping211 mouths far more massive than the greedy lips that surround the embryonicmimoid. The submerged base of the symmetriad is compressed, and the colossus rises as if onthe point of being shot out of the planet's gravitational pull. The upper layers of the oceanredouble their activity, and the waves surge higher and higher to lick against the sides of thesymmetriad. They envelop16 it, harden and plug the orifices, but their attack is nothing comparedto the scene in the interior. First the process of creation freezes momentarily; then there is'panic.' The smooth interpenetration of moving forms and the harmonious212 play of planes andlines accelerates, and the impression is inescapable that the symmetriad is hurrying to completesome task in the face of danger. The awe213 inspired by the metamorphosis and dynamics of thesymmetriad intensifies214 as the proud sweep of the domes falters215, vaults sag175 and droop216, and'wrong notes'—incomplete, mangled217 forms—make their appearance. A powerful moaning roarissues from the invisible depths like a sigh of agony, reverberates218 through the narrow funnelsand booms through the collapsing219 domes. In spite of the growing destructive violence of theseconvulsions, the spectator is rooted to the spot. Only the force of the hurricane streaing out ofthe depths and howling through the thousands of galleries keeps the great structure erect154. Soonit subsides220 and starts to disintegrate221. There are final flutterings, contortions222, and blind, randomspasms. Gnawed223 and undermined, the giant sinks slowly and disappears, and the space where itstood is covered with whirlpools of foam.
So what does all this mean?
I remembered an incident dating from my spell as assistant to Gibarian. A group ofschoolchildren visiting the Solarist Institute in Aden were making their way through the mainhall of the library and looking at the racks of microfilm that occupied the entire left-hand sideof the hall. The guide explained that among other phenomena immortalized by the image, thesecontained fragmentary glimpses of symmetriads long since vanished—not single shots, butwhole reels, more than ninety thousand of them!
One plump schoolgirl (she looked about fifteen, peering inquisitively224 over her spectacles)abruptly225 asked: "And what is it for?"In the ensuing embarrassed silence, the school mistress was content to dart226 a reproving look ather wayward pupil. Among the Solarists whose job was to act as guides (I was one of them),no one would produce an answer. Each symmetriad is unique, and the developments in its heartare, generally speaking, unpredictable. Sometimes there is no sound. Sometimes the index ofrefraction increases or diminishes. Sometimes, rhythmic227 pulsations are accompanied by localchanges in gravitation, as if the heart of the symmetriad were beating by gravitating.
Sometimes the compasses of the observers spin wildly, and ionized layers spring up anddisappear. The catalogue could go on indefinitely. In any case, even if we did ever succeed insolving the riddle of the symmetriads, we would still have to contend with the asymmetriads!
The asymmetriads are born in the same manner as the symmetriads but finish differently, andnothing can be seen of their internal processes except tremors228, vibrations229 and flickering230. We doknow, however, that the interior houses bewildering operations performed at a speed that defiesthe laws of physics and which are dubbed 'giant quantic phenomena.' The mathematicalanalogy with certain three-dimensional models of the atom is so unstable231 and transitory thatsome commentators232 dismiss the resemblance as of secondary importance, if not purelyaccidental. The asymmetriads have a very short life-span of fifteen to twenty minutes, and theirdeath is even more appalling233 than that of the symmetriads: with the howling gale234 that screamsthrough its fabric235, a thick fluid gushes236 out, gurgles hideously237, and submerges everythingbeneath a foul238, bubbling foam. Then an explosion, coinciding with a muddy eruption, hurls239 upa spout240 of debris241 which rains slowly down into the seething ocean. This debris is sometimesfound scores of miles from the focus of the explosion, dried up, yellow and flattened, likeflakes of cartilage.
Some other creations of the ocean, which are much more rare and of very variable duration,part company with the parent body entirely242. The first traces of these 'independents' wereidentified—wrongly, it was later proved—as the remains of creatures inhabiting the oceandeeps. The free-ranging forms are often reminiscent of many-winged birds, darting243 away fromthe moving trunks of the agilus, but the preconceptions of Earth offer no assistance inunravelling the mysteries of Solaris. Strange, seal-like bodies appear now and then on therocky outcrop of an island, sprawling244 in the sun or dragging themselves lazily back to mergewith the ocean.
There was no escaping the impressions that grew out of man's experience on Earth. Theprospects of Contact receded245.
Explorers travelled hundreds of miles in the depths of symmetriads, and installed measuringinstruments and remote-control cameras. Artificial satellites captured the birth of mimoids andextensors, and faithfully reproduced their images of growth and destruction. The librariesoverflowed, the archives grew, and the price paid for all this documentation was often veryheavy. One notorious disaster cost one hundred and six people their lives, among them Giesehimself: while studying what was undoubtedly246 a symmetriad, the expedition was suddenlydestroyed by a process peculiar247 to the asymmetriads. In two seconds, an eruption of glutinousmud swallowed up seventy-nine men and all their equipment. Another twenty-seven observerssurveying the area from aircraft and helicopters were also caught in the eruption.
Following the Eruption of the Hundred and Six, and for the first time in Solarist studies, therewere petitions demanding a thermo-nuclear attack on the ocean. Such a response would havebeen more cruelty than revenge, since it would have meant destroying what we did notunderstand. Tsanken's ultimatum248, which was never offically acknowledged, probablyinfluenced the negative outcome of the vote. He was in command of Giese's reserve team, andhad survived owing to a transmission error that took him off his course, to arrive in the disasterarea a few minutes after the explosion, when the black mushroom cloud was still visible.
Informed of the proposal for a nuclear strike, he threatened to blow up the Station, togetherwith the nineteen survivors249 sheltering inside it.
Today, there are only three of us on the Station. Its construction was controlled by satellites,and was a technical feat250 on which the human race has a right to pride itself, even if the oceanbuilds far more impressive structures in the space of a few seconds. The Station is a disc of onehundred yards radius, and contains four decks at the center and two at the circumference251. It ismaintained at a height of from five to fifteen hundred yards above the ocean by gravitorsprogrammed to compensate252 for the ocean's own field of attraction. In addition to all themachines available to ordinary Stations and the large artificial satellites that orbit other planets,the Solaris Station is equipped with specialized253 radar254 apparatus255 sensitive to the smallestfluctuations of the ocean surface, which trips auxiliary256 power-circuits capable of thrusting thesteel disc into the stratosphere at the first indication of new plasmatic upheavals.
But today, in spite of the presence of our faithful 'visitors,' the Station was strangely deserted257.
Ever since the robots had been locked away in the lower-deck store-rooms—for a reason I hadstill not discovered—it had been possible to walk around without meeting a single member ofthe crew of our ghost ship.
As I replaced the ninth volume of Giese on the shelf, the plastic-coated steel floor seemed toshudder under my feet. I stood still, but the vibration had stopped. The library was completelyisolated from the other rooms, and the only possible source of vibration must be a shuttleleaving the Station. This thought jerked me back to reality. I had not yet decided to acceptSartorius's suggestion and leave the Station. By feigning258 approval of his plan, I had been moreor less postponing259 the outbreak of hostilities260, for I was determined166 to save Rheya. All the same,Sartorius might have some chance of success. He certainly had the advantage of being aqualified physicist261, while I was in the ironic262 position of having to count on the superiority ofthe ocean. I pored over microfilm texts for an hour, and made myself wrestle263 with theunfamiliar language of neutrino physics. The undertaking264 seemed hopeless at first: there wereno less than five current theories dealing with neutrino fields, an obvious indication that nonewas definitive265. Eventually I struck promising266 ground, and was busily copying down equationswhen there was a knock at the door. I got up quickly and opened it a few inches, to see Snow'sperspiring face, and behind him an empty corridor.
"Yes, it's me." His voice was hoarse267, and there were dark pouches268 under the bloodshot eyes.
He wore an antiradiation apron269 of shiny rubber, and the same worn old trousers held up byelastic braces115.
Snow's gaze flickered270 round the circular chamber30 and alighted on Rheya where she stood by anarmchair at the other end. Then it returned to me, and I lowered my eyelids271 imperceptibly. Henodded, and I spoke casually272:
"Rheya, come and meet Dr. Snow…Snow—my wife.""I…I'm just a minor273 member of the crew. Don't get about much…" He faltered274, but managed toblurt out: "That's why I haven't had the pleasure of meeting you before…"Rheya smiled and held out her hand, which he shook in some surprise. He blinked severaltimes and stood looking at her, tongue-tied, until I took him by the arm.
"Excuse me," he said to Rheya. "I wanted a word with you, Kelvin…""Of course." (My composure was an ugly charade, but what else could I do?) "Take no noticeof us, Rheya. We'll be talking shop…"I guided Snow over to the chairs on the far side of the room, and Rheya sat in the armchair Ihad occupied earlier, swivelling it so that she could glance up at us from her book. I loweredmy voice:
"Any news?""I'm divorced," he whispered. If anybody had quoted this to me as the opening of aconversation a few days before, I would have burst out laughing, but the Station had bluntedmy sense of humor. "It feels like years since yesterday morning," he went on. "And you?""Nothing." I was at a loss for words. I liked Snow, but I distrusted him, or rather I distrustedthe purpose of his visit.
"Nothing? Surely…""What?" I pretended not to understand.
Eyes half shut, he leaned so close to me that I could feel his breath on my face:
"This business has all of us confused, Kelvin. I can't make contact with Sartorius. All I know iswhat I wrote to you, which is what he told me after our little conference…"Has he disconnected his videophone?""No, there's been a short-circuit at his end. He could have done it on purpose, but there'salso…" He clenched275 his fist and mimed276 somebody aiming a punch, curling his lips in anunpleasant grin. "Kelvin, I came here to…What do you intend doing?""You want my answer to your letter. All right, I'll go on the trip, there's no reason for me torefuse. I've only been getting ready…""No," he interrupted. "It isn't that.""What then? Go on.""Sartorius thinks he may be on the right track," Snow muttered. His eyes never left me, and Ihad to stay still and try to look casual. "It all started with that X-ray experiment that he andGibarian arranged, you remember. That could have produced some alteration147…""What kind of alteration?""They beamed the rays directly into the ocean. The intensity277 was only modulated279 according toa pre-set program.""I know. It's already been done by Nilin and a lot of others.""Yes, but the others worked on low power. This time they used everything we had.""That could lead to trouble…violating the four-power convention, and the United Nations…""Come on, Kelvin, you know as well as I do that it doesn't matter now. Gibarian is dead.""So Sartorius makes him the scapegoat280?""I don't know. We haven't talked about that. Sartorius is intrigued281 by the visiting hours. Theyonly come as we wake up, which suggests that the ocean is especially interested in our sleepinghours, and that that is when it locates its patterns. Sartorius wants to send our waking selves—our conscious thoughts. You see?""By mail?""Keep the jokes to yourself. The idea is to modulate278 the X-rays by hooking in an electroencephalographtaken from one of us.""Ah!" Light was beginning to dawn. "And that one of us is me?""Yes, Sartorius had you in mind.""Tell him I'm flattered.""Will you do it?"I hesitated. Snow darted282 a look at Rheya, who seemed absorbed in her book. I felt my face turnpale.
"Well?""The idea of using X-rays to preach sermons on the greatness of mankind seems absolutelyridiculous to me. Don't you think so?""You mean it?""Yes.""Right," he said, smiling as if I had fallen in with some idea of his own, "then you're opposedto the plan?"His expression told me that he had somehow been a step ahead of me all the time.
"Okay," he went on. "There is a second plan—to construct a Roche apparatus.""An annihilator?""Yes. Sartorius has already made the preliminary calculations. It is feasible, and it won't evenrequire any great expenditure of energy. The apparatus will generate a negative field twenty-four hours a day, and for an unlimited283 period.""And its effect?""Simple. It will be a negative neutrino field. Ordinary matter will not be affected284 at all. Onlythe…neutrino structures will be destroyed. You see?"Snow gave me a satisfied grin. I stood stock-still and gaping, so that he stopped smiling,looked at me with a frown, and waited a moment before speaking:
"We abandon the first plan then, the 'Brainwave' plan? Sartorius is working on the other oneright now. We'll call it 'Project Liberation.'"I had to make a quick decision. Snow was no physicist, and Sartorius's videophone wasdisconnected or smashed. I took the chance:
"I'd rather call the second idea 'Operation Slaughterhouse.'""And you ought to know! Don't tell me you haven't had some practice lately. Only there'll be aradical difference this time—no more visitors, no more Phi-creatures—they will disintegrate assoon as they appear."I nodded, and managed what I hoped was a convincing smile:
"You haven't got the point. Morality is one thing, but self-preservation…I just don't want to getus killed, Snow."He stared back at me suspiciously, as I showed him my scribbled285 equations:
"I've been working along the same lines. Don't look so surprised. The neutrino theory was myidea in the first place, remember? Look. Negative fields can be generated all right. Andordinary matter is unaffected. But what happens to the energy that maintains the neutrinostructure when it disintegrates286? There must be a considerable release of that energy. Assuminga kilogram of ordinary matter represents 10^8 ergs, for a Phi-creation we get 5^7 multiplied by10^8. That means the equivalent of a small atomic bomb exploding inside the Station.""You mean to tell me Sartorius won't have been over all this?"It was my turn to grin maliciously287:
"Not necessarily. Sartorius follows the Frazer-Cajolla school. Their theories would indicatethat the energy potential would be given off in the form of light—powerful, yes, but notdestructive. But that isn't the only theory of neutrino fields. According to Cayatte, and Avalov,and Sion, the radiation-spectrum would be much broader. At its maximum, there would be astrong burst of gamma radiation. Sartorius has faith in his tutors. I don't say we can't respectthat, but there are other tutors, and other theories. And another thing, Snow,"—I could see himbeginning to waver—"we have to bear in mind the ocean itself! It is bound to have used theoptimum means of designing its creations. It seems to me that we can't afford to back Sartoriusagainst the ocean as well as the other theories.""Give me that paper, Kelvin."I passed it to him, and he poured over my equations.
"What's this?" He pointed288 to a line of calculations.
"That? The transformation tensor of the magnetic field.""Give it here.""Why?" (I already knew his reply.)"I'll have to show Sartorius.""If you say so," I shrugged289. "You're welcome to it, naturally, provided you realize that thesetheories have never been tested experimentally: neutrino structures have been abstractions untilnow. Sartorius is relying on Frazer, and I've followed Sion's theory. He'll say I'm no physicist,or Sion either, not from his point of view, at least. He will dispute my figures, and I'm notgoing to get into the kind of argument where he tries to browbeat290 me for his own satisfaction.
You, I can convince. I couldn't begin to convince Sartorius, and I have no intention of trying.""Then what do you want to do? He's already started work…"All his earlier animation291 had subsided292, and he spoke in a monotone. I did not know if hetrusted me, and I did not much care:
"What do I want to do? Whatever a man does when his life is in danger.""I'll try to contact him. Maybe he can develop some kind of safety device…And then there'sthe first plan. Would you cooperate? Sartorius would agree, I'm sure of it. At least it's worth atry.""You think so?""No," he snapped back. "But what have we got to lose?"I was in no hurry to accept. It was time that I needed, and Snow could help me to prolong thedelay:
"I'll think about it.""Okay, I'm going." His bones creaked as he got up. "We'll have to begin with theencephalogram," he said, rubbing at his overall as if to get rid of some invisible stain.
Without a word to Rheya, he walked to the door, and after it had closed behind him I got upand crumpled293 the sheet of paper in my hand. I had not falsified the equations, but I doubtedwhether Sion would have agreed with my extensions of his theory. I started abruptly, asRheya's hand touched my shoulder.
"Kris, who is he?""I told you, Dr. Snow.""What's he like?""I don't know him very well…why?""He was giving me such a strange look.""So you're an attractive woman….""No, this was a different sort of look…as if…." She trembled, looked up at me momentarily,then lowered her eyes. "Let's go back to the cabin."
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1
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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merge
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| v.(使)结合，(使)合并，(使)合为一体 | |
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tormenting
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| 使痛苦的，使苦恼的 | |
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glistened
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| v.湿物闪耀，闪亮( glisten的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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jaw
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| n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训 | |
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tightened
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| 收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）变紧； （使）绷紧； 加紧 | |
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glazed
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| adj.光滑的，像玻璃的；上过釉的；呆滞无神的v.装玻璃( glaze的过去式)；上釉于，上光；（目光）变得呆滞无神 | |
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spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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repelled
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| v.击退( repel的过去式和过去分词 )；使厌恶；排斥；推开 | |
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veins
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| n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理 | |
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throbbing
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| a. 跳动的,悸动的 | |
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sincerity
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| n.真诚，诚意；真实 | |
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ingenuous
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| adj.纯朴的，单纯的；天真的；坦率的 | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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swollen
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| adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀 | |
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envelop
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| vt.包，封，遮盖；包围 | |
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doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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plasma
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| n.血浆，细胞质，乳清 | |
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apprehension
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| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
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charade
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| n.用动作等表演文字意义的字谜游戏 | |
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deception
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| n.欺骗，欺诈；骗局，诡计 | |
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inspection
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| n.检查，审查，检阅 | |
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dealing
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| n.经商方法，待人态度 | |
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liberating
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| 解放，释放( liberate的现在分词 ) | |
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annihilator
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| n.歼灭者，消灭者；灭火器；零化子 | |
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queries
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| n.问题( query的名词复数 )；疑问；询问；问号v.质疑，对…表示疑问( query的第三人称单数 )；询问 | |
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laconic
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| adj.简洁的；精练的 | |
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spate
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| n.泛滥，洪水，突然的一阵 | |
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chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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crammed
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| adj.塞满的，挤满的；大口地吃；快速贪婪地吃v.把…塞满；填入；临时抱佛脚( cram的过去式) | |
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situated
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| adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的 | |
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isolated
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| adj.与世隔绝的 | |
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relatively
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| adv.比较...地，相对地 | |
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obsolescent
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| adj.过时的，难管束的 | |
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monograph
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| n.专题文章，专题著作 | |
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arduous
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| adj.艰苦的，费力的，陡峭的 | |
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hindrance
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| n.妨碍，障碍 | |
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premature
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| adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的 | |
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plasmatic
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| adj.血浆的 | |
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phenomena
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| n.现象 | |
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analogous
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| adj.相似的；类似的 | |
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manifestations
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| n.表示，显示（manifestation的复数形式） | |
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teeming
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| adj.丰富的v.充满( teem的现在分词 )；到处都是；（指水、雨等）暴降；倾注 | |
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conversant
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| adj.亲近的，有交情的，熟悉的 | |
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utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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terminology
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| n.术语；专有名词 | |
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inadequate
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| adj.(for,to)不充足的，不适当的 | |
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illustrate
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| v.举例说明，阐明；图解，加插图 | |
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linguistically
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| adv. 语言的, 语言学的 | |
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51
blurred
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| v.（使）变模糊( blur的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）难以区分；模模糊糊；迷离 | |
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scrupulous
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| adj.审慎的，小心翼翼的，完全的，纯粹的 | |
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inevitably
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| adv.不可避免地；必然发生地 | |
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dilemma
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| n.困境，进退两难的局面 | |
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dwarf
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| n.矮子，侏儒，矮小的动植物；vt.使…矮小 | |
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canyon
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| n.峡谷，溪谷 | |
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yeast
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| n.酵母；酵母片；泡沫；v.发酵；起泡沫 | |
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colloid
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| n.胶体；adj．胶体的，胶质的 | |
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starched
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| adj.浆硬的，硬挺的，拘泥刻板的v.把（衣服、床单等）浆一浆( starch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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ossified
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| adj.已骨化[硬化]的v.骨化，硬化，使僵化( ossify的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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resistant
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| adj.(to)抵抗的，有抵抗力的 | |
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flexibility
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| n.柔韧性，弹性，（光的）折射性，灵活性 | |
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membranous
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| adj.膜的，膜状的 | |
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colossal
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| adj.异常的，庞大的 | |
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sluggishly
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| adv.懒惰地；缓慢地 | |
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shudder
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| v.战粟，震动，剧烈地摇晃；n.战粟，抖动 | |
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67
ripple
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| n.涟波，涟漪，波纹，粗钢梳；vt.使...起涟漪，使起波纹； vi.呈波浪状，起伏前进 | |
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68
ripples
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| 逐渐扩散的感觉( ripple的名词复数 ) | |
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69
lethargic
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| adj.昏睡的，懒洋洋的 | |
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70
reptile
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| n.爬行动物；两栖动物 | |
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71
loom
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| n.织布机，织机；v.隐现，(危险、忧虑等)迫近 | |
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72
fluctuations
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| 波动，涨落，起伏( fluctuation的名词复数 ) | |
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73
mantle
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| n.斗篷，覆罩之物，罩子；v.罩住，覆盖，脸红 | |
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74
riddle
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| n.谜，谜语，粗筛；vt.解谜，给…出谜，筛，检查，鉴定，非难，充满于；vi.出谜 | |
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75
riddled
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| adj.布满的；充斥的；泛滥的v.解谜，出谜题(riddle的过去分词形式) | |
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76
eruptions
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| n.喷发，爆发( eruption的名词复数 ) | |
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77
eruption
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| n.火山爆发；（战争等）爆发；（疾病等）发作 | |
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78
virulent
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| adj.有毒的，有恶意的，充满敌意的 | |
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79
controversies
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| 争论 | |
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80
reverberated
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| 回响，回荡( reverberate的过去式和过去分词 )； 使反响，使回荡，使反射 | |
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81
furrow
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| n.沟；垄沟；轨迹；车辙；皱纹 | |
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82
transformation
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| n.变化；改造；转变 | |
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83
alimentary
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| adj.饮食的，营养的 | |
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84
considerably
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| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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85
elicit
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| v.引出,抽出,引起 | |
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86
instinctive
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| adj.(出于)本能的；直觉的；(出于)天性的 | |
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87
ingenuity
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| n.别出心裁；善于发明创造 | |
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88
concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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89
flattened
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| [医]（水）平扁的，弄平的 | |
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90
ragged
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| adj.衣衫褴褛的，粗糙的，刺耳的 | |
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91
converge
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| vi.会合；聚集，集中；(思想、观点等)趋近 | |
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92
tattered
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| adj.破旧的，衣衫破的 | |
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93
plunge
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| v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲 | |
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94
rumbling
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| n. 隆隆声, 辘辘声 adj. 隆隆响的 动词rumble的现在分词 | |
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95
battered
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| adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损 | |
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96
scatter
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| vt.撒，驱散，散开；散布/播；vi.分散，消散 | |
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97
strings
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| n.弦 | |
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98
shreds
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| v.撕碎，切碎( shred的第三人称单数 )；用撕毁机撕毁（文件） | |
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99
primal
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| adj.原始的；最重要的 | |
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100
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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101
crater
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| n.火山口，弹坑 | |
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102
conscientious
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| adj.审慎正直的，认真的，本着良心的 | |
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103
dubbed
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| v.给…起绰号( dub的过去式和过去分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制 | |
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104
upheavals
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| 突然的巨变( upheaval的名词复数 )； 大动荡； 大变动； 胀起 | |
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105
aspired
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| v.渴望，追求( aspire的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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106
faculty
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| n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员 | |
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107
shimmering
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| v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的现在分词 ) | |
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108
pliant
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| adj.顺从的；可弯曲的 | |
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109
surmounted
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| 战胜( surmount的过去式和过去分词 )； 克服（困难）； 居于…之上； 在…顶上 | |
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110
sprout
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| n.芽，萌芽；vt.使发芽，摘去芽；vi.长芽，抽条 | |
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111
dilates
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| v.（使某物）扩大，膨胀，张大( dilate的第三人称单数 ) | |
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112
puffs
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| n.吸( puff的名词复数 )；（烟斗或香烟的）一吸；一缕（烟、蒸汽等）；（呼吸或风的）呼v.使喷出( puff的第三人称单数 )；喷着汽（或烟）移动；吹嘘；吹捧 | |
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113
frantic
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| adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的 | |
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114
stimulated
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| a.刺激的 | |
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115
braces
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| n.吊带，背带；托架( brace的名词复数 )；箍子；括弧；（儿童）牙箍v.支住( brace的第三人称单数 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来 | |
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116
radius
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| n.半径，半径范围；有效航程，范围，界限 | |
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117
elicits
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| 引出，探出( elicit的第三人称单数 ) | |
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118
hovers
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| 鸟( hover的第三人称单数 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫 | |
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119
swells
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| 增强( swell的第三人称单数 )； 肿胀； （使）凸出； 充满（激情） | |
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120
carving
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| n.雕刻品，雕花 | |
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121
sculpted
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| adj.经雕塑的 | |
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122
obedience
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| n.服从，顺从 | |
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123
pulsation
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| n.脉搏，悸动，脉动；搏动性 | |
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124
nil
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| n.无，全无，零 | |
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125
colloidal
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| adj. 胶状的, 胶质的 | |
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126
solidify
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| v.(使)凝固，(使)固化，(使)团结 | |
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127
lighter
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| n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级 | |
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128
maze
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| n.迷宫，八阵图，混乱，迷惑 | |
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129
crevasses
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| n.破口，崩溃处，裂缝( crevasse的名词复数 ) | |
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130
jumbled
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| adj.混乱的；杂乱的 | |
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131
colonnades
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| n.石柱廊( colonnade的名词复数 ) | |
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132
embroiders
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| v.（在织物上）绣花( embroider的第三人称单数 )；刺绣；对…加以渲染（或修饰）；给…添枝加叶 | |
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133
primitive
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| adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物 | |
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134
deviations
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| 背离，偏离( deviation的名词复数 )； 离经叛道的行为 | |
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135
brilliance
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| n.光辉，辉煌，壮丽，（卓越的）才华，才智 | |
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136
disquieting
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| adj.令人不安的，令人不平静的v.使不安，使忧虑，使烦恼( disquiet的现在分词 ) | |
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137
literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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138
prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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139
sensory
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| adj.知觉的，感觉的，知觉器官的 | |
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140
whatsoever
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| adv.（用于否定句中以加强语气）任何；pron.无论什么 | |
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141
eddies
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| （水、烟等的）漩涡，涡流( eddy的名词复数 ) | |
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142
cylindrical
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| adj.圆筒形的 | |
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143
funnel
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| n.漏斗；烟囱；v.汇集 | |
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144
funnels
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| 漏斗( funnel的名词复数 )； （轮船，火车等的）烟囱 | |
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145
prodigious
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| adj.惊人的，奇妙的；异常的；巨大的；庞大的 | |
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146
expenditure
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| n.(时间、劳力、金钱等)支出；使用，消耗 | |
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147
alteration
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| n.变更，改变；蚀变 | |
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148
medley
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| n.混合 | |
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149
variegated
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| adj.斑驳的，杂色的 | |
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150
kaleidoscopic
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| adj.千变万化的 | |
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151
vertical
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| adj.垂直的，顶点的，纵向的；n.垂直物，垂直的位置 | |
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152
vertically
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| adv.垂直地 | |
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153
erects
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| v.使直立，竖起( erect的第三人称单数 )；建立 | |
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154
erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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155
axis
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| n.轴，轴线，中心线；坐标轴，基准线 | |
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156
shafts
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| n.轴( shaft的名词复数 )；（箭、高尔夫球棒等的）杆；通风井；一阵（疼痛、害怕等） | |
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157
consistency
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| n.一贯性，前后一致，稳定性；(液体的)浓度 | |
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158
gushing
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| adj.迸出的；涌出的；喷出的；过分热情的v.喷，涌( gush的现在分词 )；滔滔不绝地说话 | |
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159
foam
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| v./n.泡沫，起泡沫 | |
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160
seething
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| 沸腾的，火热的 | |
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161
periphery
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| n.(圆体的)外面；周围 | |
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162
buttresses
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| n.扶壁，扶垛( buttress的名词复数 )v.用扶壁支撑，加固( buttress的第三人称单数 ) | |
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163
ductile
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| adj.易延展的，柔软的 | |
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164
simultaneously
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| adv.同时发生地，同时进行地 | |
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165
extrude
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| v.挤出；逐出 | |
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166
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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167
dynamics
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| n.力学，动力学，动力，原动力；动态 | |
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168
embryo
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| n.胚胎，萌芽的事物 | |
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169
revolving
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| adj.旋转的，轮转式的；循环的v.（使）旋转( revolve的现在分词 )；细想 | |
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170
ooze
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| n.软泥，渗出物；vi.渗出，泄漏；vt.慢慢渗出，流露 | |
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171
trickles
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| n.细流( trickle的名词复数 )；稀稀疏疏缓慢来往的东西v.滴( trickle的第三人称单数 )；淌；使)慢慢走；缓慢移动 | |
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172
secretion
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| n.分泌 | |
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173
applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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174
solidified
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| （使）成为固体，（使）变硬，（使）变得坚固( solidify的过去式和过去分词 )； 使团结一致； 充实，巩固； 具体化 | |
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175
sag
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| v.下垂，下跌，消沉；n.下垂，下跌，凹陷，[航海]随风漂流 | |
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176
membranes
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| n.（动物或植物体内的）薄膜( membrane的名词复数 )；隔膜；（可起防水、防风等作用的）膜状物 | |
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177
vaults
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| n.拱顶( vault的名词复数 )；地下室；撑物跳高；墓穴 | |
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178
justifies
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| 证明…有理( justify的第三人称单数 )； 为…辩护； 对…作出解释； 为…辩解（或辩护） | |
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179
tilted
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| v. 倾斜的 | |
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180
subside
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| vi.平静，平息；下沉，塌陷，沉降 | |
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181
stabilizes
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| n.（使）稳定， （使）稳固( stabilize的名词复数 )v.（使）稳定， （使）稳固( stabilize的第三人称单数 ) | |
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182
dome
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| n.圆屋顶，拱顶 | |
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183
spatial
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| adj.空间的，占据空间的 | |
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184
analogue
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| n.类似物；同源语 | |
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185
interpretation
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| n.解释，说明，描述；艺术处理 | |
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186
cones
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| n.（人眼）圆锥细胞；圆锥体( cone的名词复数 )；球果；圆锥形东西；（盛冰淇淋的）锥形蛋卷筒 | |
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187
tenuous
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| adj.细薄的，稀薄的，空洞的 | |
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188
eventual
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| adj.最后的，结局的，最终的 | |
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189
tempting
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| a.诱人的, 吸引人的 | |
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190
cosmos
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| n.宇宙；秩序，和谐 | |
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191
titanic
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| adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的 | |
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192
analytical
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| adj.分析的；用分析法的 | |
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193
demonstration
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| n.表明，示范，论证，示威 | |
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194
edifice
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| n.宏伟的建筑物(如宫殿，教室) | |
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195
abrupt
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| adj.突然的，意外的；唐突的，鲁莽的 | |
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196
maturity
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| n.成熟；完成；(支票、债券等)到期 | |
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197
visualize
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| vt.使看得见，使具体化，想象，设想 | |
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198
envisage
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| v.想象，设想，展望，正视 | |
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199
faculties
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| n.能力( faculty的名词复数 )；全体教职员；技巧；院 | |
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200
opalescent
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| adj.乳色的，乳白的 | |
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201
elastic
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| n.橡皮圈，松紧带；adj.有弹性的；灵活的 | |
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202
domes
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| n.圆屋顶( dome的名词复数 )；像圆屋顶一样的东西；圆顶体育场 | |
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203
synchronized
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| 同步的 | |
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204
vibration
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| n.颤动，振动；摆动 | |
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205
transformations
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| n.变化( transformation的名词复数 )；转换；转换；变换 | |
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206
conceals
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，遮住( conceal的第三人称单数 ) | |
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207
massacre
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| n.残杀，大屠杀；v.残杀，集体屠杀 | |
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208
swirls
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| n.旋转( swirl的名词复数 )；卷状物；漩涡；尘旋v.旋转，打旋( swirl的第三人称单数 ) | |
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209
crumples
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| 压皱，弄皱( crumple的第三人称单数 )； 变皱 | |
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210
seethe
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| vi.拥挤，云集；发怒，激动，骚动 | |
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211
gaping
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| adj.口的；张口的；敞口的；多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 )；张开，张大 | |
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212
harmonious
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| adj.和睦的，调和的，和谐的，协调的 | |
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213
awe
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| n.敬畏，惊惧；vt.使敬畏，使惊惧 | |
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214
intensifies
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| n.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的名词复数 )v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的第三人称单数 ) | |
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215
falters
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| （嗓音）颤抖( falter的第三人称单数 )； 支吾其词； 蹒跚； 摇晃 | |
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216
droop
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| v.低垂，下垂；凋萎，萎靡 | |
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217
mangled
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| vt.乱砍（mangle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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218
reverberates
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| 回响，回荡( reverberate的第三人称单数 )； 使反响，使回荡，使反射 | |
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219
collapsing
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| 压扁[平]，毁坏，断裂 | |
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220
subsides
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| v.（土地）下陷（因在地下采矿）( subside的第三人称单数 )；减弱；下降至较低或正常水平；一下子坐在椅子等上 | |
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221
disintegrate
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| v.瓦解，解体，（使）碎裂，（使）粉碎 | |
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222
contortions
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| n.扭歪，弯曲；扭曲，弄歪，歪曲( contortion的名词复数 ) | |
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223
gnawed
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| 咬( gnaw的过去式和过去分词 )； （长时间） 折磨某人； （使）苦恼； （长时间）危害某事物 | |
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224
inquisitively
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| 过分好奇地； 好问地 | |
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225
abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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226
dart
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| v.猛冲，投掷；n.飞镖，猛冲 | |
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227
rhythmic
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| adj.有节奏的，有韵律的 | |
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228
tremors
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| 震颤( tremor的名词复数 )； 战栗； 震颤声； 大地的轻微震动 | |
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229
vibrations
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| n.摆动( vibration的名词复数 )；震动；感受；（偏离平衡位置的）一次性往复振动 | |
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230
flickering
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| adj.闪烁的，摇曳的，一闪一闪的 | |
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231
unstable
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| adj.不稳定的，易变的 | |
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232
commentators
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| n.评论员( commentator的名词复数 )；时事评论员；注释者；实况广播员 | |
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233
appalling
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| adj.骇人听闻的，令人震惊的，可怕的 | |
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234
gale
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| n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等） | |
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235
fabric
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| n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织 | |
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236
gushes
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| n.涌出，迸发( gush的名词复数 )v.喷，涌( gush的第三人称单数 )；滔滔不绝地说话 | |
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237
hideously
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| adv.可怕地，非常讨厌地 | |
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238
foul
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| adj.污秽的；邪恶的；v.弄脏；妨害；犯规；n.犯规 | |
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239
hurls
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的第三人称单数 )；大声叫骂 | |
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240
spout
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| v.喷出，涌出；滔滔不绝地讲；n.喷管；水柱 | |
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241
debris
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| n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片 | |
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242
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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243
darting
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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244
sprawling
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| adj.蔓生的，不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 )；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着） | |
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245
receded
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| v.逐渐远离( recede的过去式和过去分词 )；向后倾斜；自原处后退或避开别人的注视；尤指问题 | |
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246
undoubtedly
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| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
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247
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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248
ultimatum
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| n.最后通牒 | |
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249
survivors
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| 幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 ) | |
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250
feat
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| n.功绩；武艺，技艺；adj.灵巧的，漂亮的，合适的 | |
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251
circumference
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| n.圆周，周长，圆周线 | |
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252
compensate
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| vt.补偿，赔偿；酬报 vi.弥补；补偿；抵消 | |
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253
specialized
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| adj.专门的，专业化的 | |
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254
radar
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| n.雷达，无线电探测器 | |
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255
apparatus
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| n.装置，器械；器具，设备 | |
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256
auxiliary
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| adj.辅助的，备用的 | |
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257
deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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258
feigning
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| 假装，伪装( feign的现在分词 )； 捏造（借口、理由等） | |
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259
postponing
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| v.延期，推迟( postpone的现在分词 ) | |
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260
hostilities
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| n.战争；敌意(hostility的复数)；敌对状态；战事 | |
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261
physicist
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| n.物理学家，研究物理学的人 | |
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262
ironic
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| adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的 | |
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263
wrestle
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| vi.摔跤，角力；搏斗；全力对付 | |
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264
undertaking
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| n.保证，许诺，事业 | |
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265
definitive
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| adj.确切的，权威性的；最后的，决定性的 | |
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266
promising
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| adj.有希望的，有前途的 | |
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267
hoarse
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| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
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268
pouches
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| n.（放在衣袋里或连在腰带上的）小袋( pouch的名词复数 )；（袋鼠等的）育儿袋；邮袋；（某些动物贮存食物的）颊袋 | |
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269
apron
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| n.围裙；工作裙 | |
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270
flickered
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| （通常指灯光）闪烁，摇曳( flicker的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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271
eyelids
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| n.眼睑( eyelid的名词复数 )；眼睛也不眨一下；不露声色；面不改色 | |
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272
casually
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| adv.漠不关心地，无动于衷地，不负责任地 | |
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273
minor
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| adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修 | |
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274
faltered
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| （嗓音）颤抖( falter的过去式和过去分词 )； 支吾其词； 蹒跚； 摇晃 | |
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275
clenched
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| v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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276
mimed
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| v.指手画脚地表演，用哑剧的形式表演( mime的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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277
intensity
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| n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度 | |
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278
modulate
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| v.调整，调节(音的强弱)；变调 | |
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279
modulated
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| 已调整[制]的，被调的 | |
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280
scapegoat
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| n.替罪的羔羊，替人顶罪者；v.使…成为替罪羊 | |
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281
intrigued
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| adj.好奇的，被迷住了的v.搞阴谋诡计(intrigue的过去式)；激起…的兴趣或好奇心；“intrigue”的过去式和过去分词 | |
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282
darted
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的过去式和过去分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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283
unlimited
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| adj.无限的，不受控制的，无条件的 | |
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284
affected
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| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
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285
scribbled
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| v.潦草的书写( scribble的过去式和过去分词 )；乱画；草草地写；匆匆记下 | |
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286
disintegrates
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| n.（使）破裂[分裂，粉碎]，（使）崩溃( disintegrate的名词复数 )v.（使）破裂[分裂，粉碎]，（使）崩溃( disintegrate的第三人称单数 ) | |
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287
maliciously
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| adv.有敌意地 | |
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288
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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289
shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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290
browbeat
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| v.欺侮；吓唬 | |
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291
animation
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| n.活泼，兴奋，卡通片／动画片的制作 | |
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292
subsided
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| v.（土地）下陷（因在地下采矿）( subside的过去式和过去分词 )；减弱；下降至较低或正常水平；一下子坐在椅子等上 | |
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293
crumpled
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| adj. 弯扭的, 变皱的 动词crumple的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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