Chapter 119: First Solution was a Failure
By the time Chen Chen stepped into the power control room, Little X had completed the download of Rise of the Planet of the Apes.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes premiered in 2011. The plot of the movie was about the protagonist who invented a form of viral drug in an attempt to cure his father’s Alzheimer’s.
The principle of this drug was to infect the human brain through an artificially modulated virus, thereby regenerating and repairing the brain nerve in the process.
However, many people may have a difficult time understanding the principle of it. Take the following for example.
In 2015, German scientists discovered a special gene that was only present in modern-age humans and the close ones around them – ARGHAP11B.
This series of genes stimulated the reproduction of brain stem cells, allowing the brain cell to produce more neuron cells in the development process, thus contributing to advanced cognitive abilities such as “thought” and “speech”.
In other words, this genetic could very well be the reason that humans were able to break away from the food chain and ascend to the top of the hierarchy.
To further explore the workings of this genetic, the German scientists conducted an experiment: They injected these genetics into the embryo of mice via genetic engineering technology. They then began to observe if there were any changes in the mice which obtained the “fruit of wisdom”.
The results proved to be gratifying. After these transgenic mice were born, they displayed a significant increase in brain capacity.
The brain of regular mice usually took on a smooth form, resembling a peanut. Under the influence of the human genetic, it had to be compressed and folded itself due to the increase in surface area. This resulted in a cortical folding similar to what was observed in human brains.
The above experiments proved that ARGHAP11B genetic played a crucial role in the development and evolution of the neural system.
(The only thing that was left unknown was whether the batch of mice made it out alive. If they did, perhaps there would be a reenactment of Rise of the Planet of the Mice in the decades or centuries to come. Hehe.)
The ALZ-112 virus in Rise of the Planet of the Apes a.s.sumed the same principle. By transferring alternative genetics to the brain, it effectively prevented death of nerve cells caused by Alzheimer’s disease and rejuvenated the nerve cells of the brain.
The events in the movie closely resembled that of the experiment conducted. The protagonist of the movie had conducted the experiment on a particular ape which caused the ape to see a tremendous amount of improvement in intelligence. It even led to it giving birth to its son, Caesar, who eventually became the harbinger of the end of human civilization.
Despite the difference in methods applied by the two, the end goal was the same.
However, in reality, it was only feasible to modify the genes of biological embryos but not the genes of adult organisms. This was because of the trillions of genes present in the adult body. It was nigh impossible to modify all of them.
This was why retroviruses, a means of altering genes throughout the body appeared in the movie.
T Virus, G Virus, DX-1118 Virus, and other similar viruses operated on the same principle.
Back to reality. Chen Chen unplugged the charging USB drive and inserted it into the computer. He then dragged the downloaded Rise of the Planet of the Apes into the USB drive.
“Ding!”
However, there was an unexpected notification. This movie that seemed to have legitimate scientific roots was rejected by the USB drive...
Chen Chen raised his eyebrow in suspicion and tried again.
It yielded the exact same result.
Emmm...
Chen Chen thought for a moment. In an attempt to catch the USB drive off guard, he clicked the “Rise of the Planet of the Apes.mp4” t.i.tle. As the cursor flashed, he hastily changed the t.i.tle to “Dream of the Red Chamber.mp4” and immediately dragged it into the USB drive.
“Ding!”
Hmm, his attempt to fool the USB drive resulted in a failure.
It appeared that the movie did not conform to the core principle of the USB drive.
Chen Chen helplessly shook his head. Unsurprisingly, the first solution was a failure.
In fact, anyone with the slightest understanding of biology would know that the movie Rise of the Apes contained many pseudo-scientific elements, take the protagonist’s father for example.
The protagonist’s father was in the mid-stage of Alzheimer’s disease. In that stage, the brain cells would begin to die in large batches. Even if the remaining neurons were preserved by the ALZ-112, it was impossible to recover the neural function damage and the lost memory.
Therefore, the events which transpired in the movie with the protagonist’s father returning to normal was not possible.
Also, the source of human intelligence was not limited to the complex workings of the brain as the size of the brain played a crucial factor. The size of the human brain was three times the size of an ape’s, therefore, it was simply impossible for the apes in the movie to achieve such a degree of intelligence.
Besides, even if a form of virus designed to reprogram an ape’s brain was manufactured in reality, it might not work on other sub-species of apes.
Just like how the ALZ-113 was able to substantially increase an ape’s intelligence but proved to be lethal on humans, it should not be able to achieve an effect of “awakening”, on not just chimpanzees, but even orangutans, gorillas, bon.o.bos, and other primates as seen in the movie.
The ALZ-113 virus had catalyzed the events in the movie. None of the events which transpired would be possible without the virus. The problem was that the virus had far exceeded the scope of what was possible in real life. Perhaps, this was the reason the movie could not be moved into the USB drive?
The catalyst of the movie?
Chen Chen pondered for a moment before downloading another movie.
Deep Blue Sea.
This was another movie that dealt with Alzheimer’s, but it cured the disease by extracting the protein found in a shark’s brain.
Based on the movie, dripping several drops of the protein on the brain cell was able to simulate and activate dead brain cells for six seconds. The way Chen Chen saw it, this was more fantasy than sci-fi.
The results did not prove to be surprising. Deep Blue Sea was unable to be moved into the USB drive as well.
As he watched his initial plan failing, Chen Chen decided to stop pressing the issue. He inserted the USB drive back to the charging port and found a contact on his phone.
Chen Chen thought for a bit before making the call.
“Mr. Edwards?
“I’m Chen Chen.
“I have a certain commission that you might be interested in, it’s about a movie shoot.
“Yes, I’ll supply the plot. I’ll need a well-known screenwriter, a well-known director, and a group of well-known movie stars to play the movie I envisioned and put it on major screens. I want at least 100 million in the box office.
“The soonest possible, ideally there should be just three months between writing the script and premiering it.
“I will be funding the movie myself. 1000 audience shares, it can’t possibly get any higher than that.
“Pleasure working with you...”
Chen Chen hung up after that.
The one Chen Chen had contacted was a member of the Edwards family in the North American continent.
It was Edwards Financial Group, financial t.i.tans of Wall Street. Its corporations included but were not limited to electronics, optics, s.p.a.ce, missiles, and various electronics industries. The crucial factor was its involvement in the entertainment industry.
The Edwards family held shares in more than 200 Hollywood studios, which was nearly one-fifth of Hollywood.
The one Chen Chen had contacted was one of the three helm members of the Edwards family. He was also the member who was a part of a previous meeting and none other than Robert Edwards himself.