Blurb
To
the insatiably curious—science is the greatest adventure. So, when
scientists at CERN announced the discovery of the ‘God’ particle
in 2012, all the world wondered, “How did they find it?”
A
decade later, despite his past academic failures and egregious family
circumstance, Andrew Lawrence embarked on a journey of discovery,
competing against rival scientists to be the first to solve the
greatest unsolved mystery of the universe—dark matter—and win the
ultimate prize; the Nobel.
Emma
Franklin, a PhD candidate at Harvard, developed software for
detecting particle reactions using a quantum computer. To the
amazement and excitement of the scientific community, her work
revealed two possible bumps in the energy curve that were not
predicted by any established theory.
At
MIT, Lawrence created a model that predicted the scattering processes
of a dark matter supersymmetry particle. Though his early work was
disparaged, he improved his theory and found that it predicted the
data Emma had discovered. Their professional collaboration deepened
into a personal relationship, but when critical data was stolen, Emma
found evidence that incriminated Lawrence. Though she withheld the
impeaching material from the authorities, she felt she could no
longer trust him.
Despite
their troubled partnership, and notwithstanding the complexities of
nature, Lawrence and Emma persevered against the egos, jealousy, and
envy of rivals, on their exhilarating quest to find the ‘Holy
Grail’ of physics
Excerpt
I
thought all was lost—now I have a second chance.
With
a profound sense of relief, Andrew Lawrence slide his tablet into his
shoulder holster and walked briskly along the Boston sidewalk. His
past academic failures and egregious family circumstances were behind
him. He was ready for a fresh start.
Tall,
slender, and dark-haired, he listened to the clicking and clacking of
shuffling shoes on the pavement as students jostled alongside him.
The hint of autumn from the cool morning air brought a frenzy of
activity to the sprawling campuses of both MIT and Harvard which
nurtured a flourishing rivalry among their ambitious students. He
could feel the undercurrent of tension for the start of the fall
term.
By
the time he crossed Longfellow Bridge, his adrenaline was pumping. He
noticed several eight-man sculls already rowing down the Charles
River, their school colors plainly visible. Squinting his eyes
against the glare, he could make out the MIT and Harvard boats vying
for the lead, stroke by stroke.
Striding
across the rambling campus, his lips concealed a secret smile as he
contemplated a revolutionary solution to a problem he had been
daydreaming about. When he swung around a corner, he ran smack-dab
into a young woman. Her armload of books, papers, and assorted
technology flew into the air and scattered across the walkway.
“Sor
. . . sorry.”
“You
should be,” the woman said, her face screwed into a tight scowl.
“Your head was in the clouds.”
Lawrence
opened his mouth, but before he could speak, she pointed down and
said, “See what you’ve done?”
She
stooped and frantically tried to corral her absconding belongings.
“Let
me help,” said Lawrence, grasping some loose papers about to blow
away.
Spying
her tablet on the grass, she exclaimed, “Oh no! All my work.”
Carefully,
she picked up the device and turned it on, tapping her fingers
impatiently until the screen lit up. She heaved a sigh and looked
Lawrence directly in the eyes. “You’re lucky. Sooo . . . lucky.”
Lawrence
mumbled another apology and helped her pick up the last few books.
As
she struggled to reorganize her treasures, Lawrence brushed a strand
of hair away from his eyes and for the first time cast an appraising
glance at the young woman.
She
was attractive.
It
wasn’t that she was a striking beauty—though her smooth white
skin, olive green eyes, and classic profile complemented the hazelnut
hair that cascaded over her shoulders. Nor was her carriage
especially eye-catching, though she displayed an appealing youthful
vitality. No, what seemed most appealing was her confident determined
poise, as if she possessed a special hidden talent.
“You
really should use a backpack.”
“The
lining ripped,” she retorted.
Seeing
the logos on her tablet’s screen, Lawrence asked, “Harvard?
Math?”
“I
can tell by your tone that you’re MIT,” she said, her eyes
flashing.
Lawrence
grinned, “Physics.” As an afterthought, he asked, “What are you
doing on this campus?”
“Well,
Mr. Physics, that’s none of your concern.”
Something
in the way she said it, caused him to laugh.
They
faced each other in a stand-off for a long moment—saying nothing.
Then
the young woman heaved a sigh, gathered her possessions to her chest,
and brushed past him.
Lawrence
watched her figure disappear into the crowd.
Damn.
I didn’t get her name.
As
he turned to leave, something shiny on the ground caught his eye. It
was a flash drive.
Picking
it up, he spun around and called, “Wait!”
But
she was gone.
He
looked at the memory stick, thinking . . .
I’ll
have to crack her password, if I’m going to see her again.
Get your copy today! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075HVG2Z9
Get your copy today! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075HVG2Z9
About
the Author
As
a scientist and author specializing in technology innovation, H.
Peter Alesso has over twenty years research experience at Lawrence
Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). As Engineering Group Leader at
LLNL he led a team of scientists and engineers in innovative
applications across a wide range of supercomputers, workstations, and
networks. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy with a
B.S. and served in the U.S. Navy on nuclear submarines before
completing an M.S. and an advanced Engineering Degree at M.I.T. He
has published several software titles and numerous scientific journal
and conference articles, and he is the author/co-author of ten books.
Email:
h.alesso [at] comcast [dot] net
The
author will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn
winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
