Page 147 - The Perpetrations of Captain Kaga

Sorting the Sexes on Dulup

“Where?”
“In the frequencies. Obviously you must send false information to
regain control of their movements. The problem is that any given
group would recognize the falsity of information about itself, and
reject the whole system. We want them to continue using it without
suspecting that they are once again being directed for the good of the
entire species. So, first we must reprogram the satellite to
simultaneously optimize and calculate the theoretical dispersion of
each group as it would act if it were following a path of pure self-
interest. Then the satellite will send each group that you suspect of
cheating a picture of the population that is necessarily correct in only
one detail: its own sex, location, number, and movement.
Characteristics of all the other groups will be tailored to deceive the
renegade program into following the optimum plan. The use of
individual frequency transmissions permits the satellite to vary its
output to different users. Only one thing could go wrong with this.”
“Oh? What’s that?”
“If two groups got together and compared input. Each would spot
the discrepancies in the other’s profile immediately.”
“I don’t think that would ever happen,” said Lugo. “The chiefs
guard their equipment jealously. Computers are a new symbol of
power here, and outsiders are not allowed access to them.”
“Good. Then let’s get down to work. Where is the documentation
on the algorithmic parameters?’’
Several hours later they emerged from the communications room,
weary but satisfied. A pollen-sucker wiping the fixtures of the door-
locking mechanism stepped back to let them pass. Lugo smiled smugly
at the Dulupian.
“Now I can get on with my research,” said Captain Kaga. “It’s
about another sort of directed reproduction. But, in that case, if it
really happened, it worked in quite an opposite way to what we are
doing to the satellite output.”
‘‘How so?” asked Lugo.
“The supposed disseminators of universal genes knew the quality of
their own race, but could not prevent the information coded in their
DNA molecules from evolving in some cases into evil nasty brutes—
an apt description of many intelligent species in the Known Universe;
whereas you and I are putting garbage in, but won’t get garbage out.”

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