Book of Dreams 2e: SF and Speculative Fiction Short Stories

Book of Dreams 2nd Edition: Science Fiction and Speculative Fiction Short Stories
has been published in paperback and Kindle versions. This expanded Second Edition contains three new stories in addition to the five original short stories that appeared in the first edition published in August of 2011.

Below are some of the questions raised (and answered?) in this collection of science fiction and speculative fiction short stories that explores the interrelationship between dreams and reality, the nature of reality itself, and the dangers attendant to the single-minded pursuit of wish fulfillment that all too often results in unexpected and unwanted consequences.

What really caused the catastrophic failure after the first full-scale test of the Large Hadron Collider? Motivated, ingenious terrorists are about to try their own field experiment to replicate the classified results of the test on a large scale using two suitcase nukes and a modified jetliner in an attack that, if successful, will eradicate all life on earth, destroy our corner of the universe and, in time, give birth to a new addition to the multiverse.

If we could communicate with the other sentient, intelligent species with whom we share our planet, what vital lessons might we learn from them and they from us?

In a not too distant future in which all human beings on earth are connected and integrated into a single neural net, what price might be exacted for one wishing to opt out?

What price would you pay to revisit a crossroad in your life when you had made a terrible, life altering mistake? Would you give up an unfulfilled life for the chance of virtual happiness in an alternate reality?

Would you sacrifice everything if you could attain absolute knowledge? If so, could you live with the knowledge you attained?

It is said that no man is an island, but what if even the least among us is a god in his/her own right?

If an alien visitor offered you a lifetime of health and the gift of telepathy for a small service, would you be quick to accept?

If we purportedly use only a small fraction of our brain's capacity, what possible purpose does the apparently unused portion serve?

The author is an Associate Professor of Legal Studies in Business at Hofstra University's Frank G. Zarb School of Business and has previously published seven non-fiction books through traditional publishers as well as poetry and fiction. His business law and legal environment textbooks have been used in colleges and universities throughout the United States since 1993. This is an expanded second edition of his first book of short stories. For a sample from the newest story in the book, you can view a separate "First Chapters" thread here: http://www.publishedauthors.org/t9118-book-of-dreams-2e-sf-and-speculative-fiction-short-stories. A preview of the first short story in the book, Eternal Quest, is also available by clicking on the Amazon link for the book above and then clicking on the book's cover for Amazon's free "Look inside" feature.

For more information about the author's books, textbooks, scholarly articles and blogs, you can visit http://www.victordlopez.com, or http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/774657.Victor_D_Lopez.

Wow! That's certainly food for thought. I have been troubled lately by the documentary I saw on the evolution of the human species and how close we are still to the animals that came before us. It's merely the upright walking and larger brain that gives us greater capacity for decision making. Most of our nurturing and instinctive behaviors are connected to our animal origins.

It is only the "higher species"--homo sapiens sapiens, the great apes and killer whales, for example--that are capable of cruelty. It seems with self awareness and a superior brain comes some mightily unpleasant baggage. A lion in the jungle (or in a zoo, for that matter) will kill only if it is hungry or to protect its territory/pride. But chimpanzees have been known to kill other chimps' babies for no apparent reason, orcas to kill sperm whales and leave their carcases untouched (and bite the faces off Beluga whales, leaving these intelligent dolphin-like creatures to die slow, painful deaths) and what can I possibly say of man's inhumanity to man? This is not a running theme in my fiction (though it is the subject of one of the short stories in this collection, if somewhat obliquely). But is is the subtext in real life of what is wrong with humanity.

Dear Victor,

I consider that you and I look out a similar set of eyes. Observation is not just a one way street. I consider that wild animals have been looking out their own eyes at the rest of living species and have considered some things that humans would not give them brain credit for. They may not be able to document it in words, but it is passed on down from ma to child and on and on.

I know that my own chickens, birds, dogs and the wild life around me, (squirrels, raccons, oppossums, armadillos, lizards, doves and other birds, know when the yard is safe from hawks and other preditors (feral cats). I cause no alarm. They are used to me and look forward to the feed.

I have not witnessed in nature the occasion that you mention..animals being cruel for no reason. I have read stories that depict wolves and other man trained animals being vicious and cruel for no reasion other than blood thirst. I am glad that I have not seen that of wild animals. I have seen it from dogs who have been mistreated and trained to kill hogs and attack children. That is a human trait put upon an innocent dog, in my oppinion. It is the curse that humans have put upon a pit bull dog.

Love,

Betty

Betty,

My point was that animals are not generally cruel--they kill only to eat and feed their young. When we see what may appear as cruel behavior, it is generally motivated by instinct with some purpose. An example is a cat playing with a mouse, literally killing it from freight as what may pass for sport but is really a honing of the instinct to hunt--practice, if you will. Animals do not generally kill for sport, or injure other animals without a purpose, such as protecting their young or their territory. Only the higher animals, those with the capacity for self awareness and thought kill for pleasure, for sport, for no reason other than that they can.

Human beings are at the top of the list in this category, but we are not alone. The "higher" animals I've mentioned have been shown to kill for no reason at all. Killer whales will sometimes kill other whales that do not compete with them for food and present no danger, such as humpbacks, apparently for sport, not just for food, since there are many documented cases of attacks by pods (if that is the proper term) of whales where the humpback is not eaten, just severely injured, such as having large bites taken from it, and then left to die. I've read at least one account of a dominant female chimpanzee being studied in the wild taking a newborn from its mother and killing it brutally, for absolutely no reason at all that could be discerned. Animals are not evil or vicious. Human beings (and apparently some other "higher animals" at or near the top of the food chain have the capacity to be both, at least based on what documented evidence I've recounted on documentaries and popular magazines. There are even some reported cases of dolphin on human attacks, though these are very rare.

The new short story in this collection that deals with a fictional (but not far-fetched) breakthrough in dolphin-human communication, "The Day the Dolphins Vanished", deals obliquely with this issue. Trust me, the dolphins are not the "inhuman" party here, nor are humans the "higher intelligence." We are by far the best tool makers on the planet. This does not make us the most advanced nor the worthiest inhabitants of planet earth. If we could communicate with other intelligent inhabitants of our own biosphere, a likely result is that we would scare the hell out of them.

For all of our bravado and technology, we have a world of growing up to do before earning the right to befriend any other intelligent species on this earth or beyond.

Most interesting, Victor. Look forward to reading your book(s).

Fascinating subject!

Dear Victor,

"We are by far the best tool makers on the planet. This does not make us the most advanced nor the worthiest inhabitants of planet earth."

I absolutely agree.

I must read a bit before I can respond. I consider that you know more than I. My experience has been on this farm with the small creatures. I must look closer.

Love,

Betty

I have no significant expertise in this area either, Betty. But I doubt that true experts can give us a definitive answer either that is any more or less valid than yours or mine on the subject of animal intelligence or a definitive analysis of what motivates their actions.

I don't believe that psychiatrists, psychologists or neurologists can give us much more than informed (and conflicting) opinions as to what motivates human behavior, let alone other animals with whom we cannot have true, deep-level communication. They have their expert leaps of faith, and I mine based on my very limited understanding of animal behavior and conjecture as to the negative baggage that comes with self awareness. One thing for me is clear, though: I would trust the average dog to show unwavering loyalty and fidelity to a human friend much more than the average human, killer wale or chimp. Intelligence makes possible duplicity and evil intent. A dog will never betray its human owner. The human will often betray his/her dog, employer, friends, family, and mate--to say nothing of his/her principles.

Hope it isn't too late to get into this discussion. I've been following it with interest, but managed to get my head into a bit of a sh***y place yesterday afternoon, and didn't want to bring it here.

Altogether my bad, and I hope anyone I offended on other threads will not take it personally, and just let it go.

I hear what Victor is saying about psychologists, et al, and have to admit that there is a bit of Jungian thought in my response, but in a mythological/anthropological way that I think does have some bearing on a possibly helpful perspective.

Based on my own research, I believe that Nature is about finding a balance. I'm going to pop in to a little of what Daniel Redstone had to say(edited to prevent possible spoilers for anyone reading the series):

Quote :

This earth that we inhabit, and where we exist as guests, I think, has its own sense of order and law. We try to interpret that law, but we cannot completely understand it. But if you look closely, you can see that it has its own system of balance. A storm, whether it is a hurricane coming ashore, a snow storm, a strong wind at sea, a drought, or a late summer norther, with its rains and floods, is the way Nature strives to restore that balance. A cold dry winter might suck up the moist, warm air of the Gulf, or the south seas, creating a forceful enough whirling vortex to keep the warm air moving toward the cold north, so that it can reach to where it is badly needed. When that happens, most of the animals in its path will sense that it is coming, and do their best to get out of the way.

Human beings, especially those of us who have had our understanding of Nature bred out of us, have the hardest time understanding her power and force, or her objectivity. Sometimes, we find ourselves standing in the way. She makes no promises to us,..., especially as individuals. Her intent is always about the greatest good for, I would say the greatest number, but that implies a countable objective, so let’s just say she works for the good of the whole, and each of us, to that end, is an expendable part.”

The balance of nature does not include, I don't think, any concept of good or evil. If it did, I would guess that evil is about exclusion of the other side, and that good has to do with acceptance of "other-ness."

Victor wrote about "the negative baggage that comes with self awareness," and I wonder if it doesn't stem from the separation from nature that seems to be inherent in the process of a developing mind.

Even so, that does not explain the aberrations that Victor has pointed out.

I will sort of digress for a bit, and talk about what eastern mystics refer to as our chakras - points along the human spine that correlate to our developing sense of awareness of our relationship to the world that is around us and that we are a part of. The first three, the lower chakras, have to do with survival, and connect closely to Victor's observations.

One of the things we learn from our ancestors - often through what we know of our indigenous peoples, is our awareness of the fact that life feeds on life - we must kill to survive, even if what we "kill" is a plant - which is still a conscious living being, BTW - different discussion.

To oversimplify - the first chakra - the root at the base of the spine, has to do with being alive in its most primary sense. I exist or I am, it might say if it had a voice. The second, moving up the spine, has to do with the organs of reproduction - how we continue, and we do that through desire for the other - we feel. Our basic emotions are a part of this step upwards. Then, at the third stage, the need for power comes in to play. War, conflict, the urge to kill, all come into being and into the play of our patterns at this stage. We become territorial. We set our lines of defense. We fight the outsiders - the other, as a way of insuring our continuing existence. This is the part of the spine that relates to the stomach - our gut and gut instincts.

The next chakra is the heart chakra, and is the last I will discuss here. If you are interested, just do a google search. You will find more than you need. At the level of the heart, our true humanity begins. Desire becomes love. The Greeks would call it agape - love for our fellow human beings. It is a connecting level between our basic instincts and our "higher selves."

I wonder if we have not been caught up in that 3rd chakra - the power struggle. I wonder if the aberrations that Victor has pointed out do not come from mental mistakes, or confusion in the brain over "appropriate response" to a situation. Only a higher level of "intelligence" would be capable of misapprehending circumstances that would lead to an inappropriate response. They happen. Our perceptions of reality are incomplete and based on past experience.

The natural world is not "good." The natural world is much like the functions described by Jung and amplified by - among others - Joseph Cambbell.

We all have a "shadow" side to our psyches. The Shadow balances the Persona - our "good" side - the face we show to other humans in order to be accepted into the group. The Shadow is the "unacceptable" part that we project onto other. The Shadow becomes the enemy we must fight.

And yet, the people who have defined the persona and shadow tend to say that the dark side must be accepted and embraced as an important part of who we are as humans, if we are to overcome the need for war.

The development of consciousness is a process, as Victor has noted. There are Highly developed animal species that are not considered human, but still have high capabilities, and it is there that we see the beginnings of unnatural acts..

Betty has pointed out that in the animal world, as opposed to the human, the "aberrations" do not exist.

The more we develop our brains, the more we lose our connection with Nature. The more we rely on our thought processes, the more our mis-perceptions screw things up.

The natural world has strong connections to the feminine. The "enlightened" brain needs to renew that lost connection.

I believe that is what is happening right now - across the world.

But that's just me.

Ann,
I don't see where you offended anyone, anywhere:)

Ann,

BRAVO! You are better versed on this subject than I, but I agree on every point. Thank you for chiming in (you are NEVER too late to comment on ANYTHING as far as I'm concerned) and bringing some order to my stream of consciousness ramblings. (I looked for the applause emoticon but I must have scared it away and will have to settle for )

Victor

Very exciting thread!

Soon, there will be another ice age and dolphins will rule the earth hehe...but before then, you have to buy my book!! Just kidding, just half of you have to buy it the other half have to get two people to buy it!!

No?

Fine, great thread guys!! I look forward to looking at it in more depth, for now, I must retire as it is way past my bedtime and I have to go to...sigh...work tomorrow

Slacking off at 3:51 a.m., eh?

LOL...yes, I could not sleep hehe