Space Elevator
As Daniel and Audrey walked up to the podium the murmurs of the crowd dimmed and vanished. Thousands of people watched as the noted couple shuffled their notes. They had come on this day, braving the torrential rain, the heat, and the humidity. Just to hear the momentous words spoken this day.
"Hello, her name is Audrey Roy Greenfeld," Daniel said.
"And his name is Daniel Roy Greenfeld," Audrey said.
Everyone cheered. For long minutes the couple allowed the applause to sink in. Then they smiled at each other.
"Today we are going to talk about the future of technology in not just Singapore, but the entire solar system," Daniel said. "For we are here to announce the beginning of something wonderful."
"There comes a day in every woman's life..." Audrey began.
"...and every man's," Daniel interjected.
"Yes, there comes a day in every woman and man's life when you have to take a stand. Not just for us, but for our children and their children as well," Audrey said. "And today is that day!"
"You see we believe that Singapore is uniquely suited to change the world," Daniel said. "It is near the equator, a shipping hub, and has amazing financial resources. In a few decades, it went from being a group of fishing villages to one of the great cities and nations of Earth. These are wonderful things, and it is no surprise that Singapore is one of the great tigers of Asia."
"However, with vision, Singapore can be so much more than a financial powerhouse. It can shape the future of the human species," Audrey said. She raised wand and pointed it at the screen behind her and Daniel. "I give you our design for the Singapore Space Elevator - which we call Infinity!"
She motioned with the wand and the screen showed a vision of Singapore. From the pinnacle of the island, a building made of silvery metal began to grow. Inexorably it went higher and higher and the camera followed it as it went high above the small island nation. Soon it went so high the top could not be seen.
"With the right raw materials and an understanding of mathematics and programming, we can build to infinity," Daniel said. "And we will!"
"This is nonsense!" shouted a man. He pushed through the crowd and climbed onto the stage. "Nothing on earth has the structural strength to support a structure so large!"
"You've heard of spider silk, right?" Audrey asked. "Well, we've calculated how to use the diamond pattern in multiple inheritance object-oriented programming to invent diamond spider silk. It's one hundred times stronger than spider silk!"
"Balderdash!" the rude man said. He was sweating in the humidity. "Even if you could create that, it's not able to hold up a structure."
"You're correct," Daniel said. Before the man could comment further, Daniel continued. "That's why we are going to place a satellite in geosynchronous orbit. The Infinity Space Elevator will be a hanging structure."
"This seems dangerous to me," muttered the man. His face seemed to melt under the blazing heat. "What if terrorists cut the base of the elevator? It would snap like a giant rubber band, cracking the world in two!"
"The force involved in cutting the tower would be greater than a nuclear weapon," Audrey said. "Besides, the 'snap' as you call it would go upwards, never touching the ground."
"It's still wrong!" cried the man. Streaks of sweat left makeup marks on his face, almost as if he were wearing a disguise. "Man wasn't meant to go into space, we should instead stay on earth and use the money for the Infinity to help poor people!"
"We'll have easy access to the solar system. The economic boost from that will generate will lift a billion people out of poverty," Daniel countered.
"Um...err..." the man said. He wiped his brow and looked at the mark on his sleeve from his running makeup. "Looks like you've got all the angles figured out then. I'll just run along then!" With that, the man ran behind the stage.
"You see, we have all the answers figured out," Daniel said. "There's no reason not to build Infinity and explore the solar system."
"Who is with us?" Audrey asked. "Who is willing to invest in the future of our species and make a fortune large enough to last not just a lifetime, but a thousand lunchtimes?"
The crowd cheered and lifted their charge cards to the sky. A sky soon to be pierced by the massive Infinity Space Elevator.
An hour later Daniel and Audrey walked into a small room. There, a robot was finishing removing a plaster and makeup rendition of a human face.
"My apologies for leaving so quickly," the robot said. "The heat was melting my disguise."