We've all heard the cliche: Nothing is free. We buy a bright, shiny piece of technology and low an behold it needs to be recharged. Electricity to recharge it costs money. Replacement batteries cost money. That solar cell to recharge it costs lots of money up front. Even the tiny Guinea pigs rowing in a tank of water (plus the one shouting 'row!') providing electricity need food, which cost money.
So when I infected Rae, the heroine of my Urban SciFi novel called Blue Maneuver, with nanotechnology, I needed to come up with a means to recharge them without Rae sticking her finger in a light socket every 24 hours or so. (Rae hasn't thanked me yet. She's quite uppity for a figment of my imagination.)
Fortunately, I'm a biologist and I know enough science to be dangerous, er, I mean to figure out a means to power them. It is a little acknowledged fact that the human body is a machine. A biological machine, true, but it is still a machine. We power our machine with food that provides energy through chemical processes. Chewing is a physical process that facilitates the chemical breakdown (by making the pieces smaller) and makes the energy dividend higher.
Stop rolling your eyes, I'm not going to get much more science geekish on you.
If you've ever been on a diet or heard of one, you probably think carbohydrates are the Darth Vadar in the fatty foods Evil Empire. Not so. The brain doesn't just like them, it needs them to function properly. You quit carbs full stop and your brain will suffer. But I digress. (Getting off soap box now). Unlike proteins, carbs are easy to access, readily available energy. In other words, if every cell of your body was infected with hungry nanotechnology like Rae's is, eating carbs would be like swallowing batteries.
So, in effect, I've created the perfect fantasy. Eat anything you want--especially those yummy sugar-filled desserts--and you won't gain a pound. Plus, there's the added bonus of higher salt requirements because, you've guessed it, those lovely anions and cations help conduct electricity.
So after poor Rae was infected by three Cerebral Bots (nanotechnology) they needed to replicate which required energy. Poor Rae passed out and when she woke up she was hungry. She got to eat a lot of chips and drink lots of soda to shore up her flagging energy stores.
She's not quite sure if the trade off is worth it.
The Spam dots (Rae's nickname for them since she doesn't like giving money to her swear jar by calling them damn spots) have left their mark on her. You see, the technology also gives off an electrical signature that tech hunters want and some collectors are will to kill to acquire. And they're inside her, marking her with a great big bull's eye. Of course, they do other things besides keeping her healthy, but that's a story for another post.
So what do you think? Are you willing to pay the price to have this technology? One person who comments will receive a free ebook copy (in the format of their choice) of Blue Maneuver.
Blurb: The extraterrestrials have landed and they're human.
Rae Hemplewhite didn't believe in aliens until a close encounter with out-of-this-world technology drags her into the extraterrestrial security program. Helping alien refugees adjust to life on Earth is difficult enough, but her first clients have a price on their heads. Plus, her new partner seems torn between the urge to kiss her or kill her.
And that's the good news.
The bad news: Alliances are forming in deep space. If Rae doesn't keep her witnesses alive long enough to transfer their top secret information to the right faction of humanity, Earth will become a battlefield.
Blue Maneuver available now:
Amazon - Barnes and Noble - Smashwords
If you want to know more about Rae, she's being interview on Bandit Creek books on Wednesday and I'll be talking about the idea that sparked Blue Maneuver on Cynthia Woolf's blog this Friday
So when I infected Rae, the heroine of my Urban SciFi novel called Blue Maneuver, with nanotechnology, I needed to come up with a means to recharge them without Rae sticking her finger in a light socket every 24 hours or so. (Rae hasn't thanked me yet. She's quite uppity for a figment of my imagination.)
Fortunately, I'm a biologist and I know enough science to be dangerous, er, I mean to figure out a means to power them. It is a little acknowledged fact that the human body is a machine. A biological machine, true, but it is still a machine. We power our machine with food that provides energy through chemical processes. Chewing is a physical process that facilitates the chemical breakdown (by making the pieces smaller) and makes the energy dividend higher.
Stop rolling your eyes, I'm not going to get much more science geekish on you.
If you've ever been on a diet or heard of one, you probably think carbohydrates are the Darth Vadar in the fatty foods Evil Empire. Not so. The brain doesn't just like them, it needs them to function properly. You quit carbs full stop and your brain will suffer. But I digress. (Getting off soap box now). Unlike proteins, carbs are easy to access, readily available energy. In other words, if every cell of your body was infected with hungry nanotechnology like Rae's is, eating carbs would be like swallowing batteries.
So, in effect, I've created the perfect fantasy. Eat anything you want--especially those yummy sugar-filled desserts--and you won't gain a pound. Plus, there's the added bonus of higher salt requirements because, you've guessed it, those lovely anions and cations help conduct electricity.
So after poor Rae was infected by three Cerebral Bots (nanotechnology) they needed to replicate which required energy. Poor Rae passed out and when she woke up she was hungry. She got to eat a lot of chips and drink lots of soda to shore up her flagging energy stores.
She's not quite sure if the trade off is worth it.
The Spam dots (Rae's nickname for them since she doesn't like giving money to her swear jar by calling them damn spots) have left their mark on her. You see, the technology also gives off an electrical signature that tech hunters want and some collectors are will to kill to acquire. And they're inside her, marking her with a great big bull's eye. Of course, they do other things besides keeping her healthy, but that's a story for another post.
So what do you think? Are you willing to pay the price to have this technology? One person who comments will receive a free ebook copy (in the format of their choice) of Blue Maneuver.
Blurb: The extraterrestrials have landed and they're human.
Rae Hemplewhite didn't believe in aliens until a close encounter with out-of-this-world technology drags her into the extraterrestrial security program. Helping alien refugees adjust to life on Earth is difficult enough, but her first clients have a price on their heads. Plus, her new partner seems torn between the urge to kiss her or kill her.
And that's the good news.
The bad news: Alliances are forming in deep space. If Rae doesn't keep her witnesses alive long enough to transfer their top secret information to the right faction of humanity, Earth will become a battlefield.
Blue Maneuver available now:
Amazon - Barnes and Noble - Smashwords
If you want to know more about Rae, she's being interview on Bandit Creek books on Wednesday and I'll be talking about the idea that sparked Blue Maneuver on Cynthia Woolf's blog this Friday
Linda Andrews
5 comments:
Thanks Vijaya for having me here today!
I want to be Rae!! All the carbs and salt I want. Heaven!
You are welcome, Linda. Love the book.
What I find funny is how creative Rae gets to avoid swearing. "Crap on a cracker!"
Ditto to wanting to be Rae! Do the aliens love dogs? That's a must if I'm joining the spam dot army. :-)
Great interview, Linda!
Hi Regina,
ARe you asking if aliens love dogs as food or pets? Because I'm sure there are those on both sides of the dinner table:-). Rae doesn't have a pet (yet) but she is watching her neighbor's cat.
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