"Marc Laidlaw - Evaluation of the Hannemouth Bequest" - читать интересную книгу автора (Laidlaw Marc)

three-story building adjacent to the Academic Affairs building. HannemouthтАЩs array, being somewhat
older, and probably dedicated to more complex computing operations, would no doubt occupy a
sizeable footprint.

Several hoursтАЩ drive brought Messraunt to the gates of HannemouthтАЩs secluded estate in an old-growth
redwood forest. A bulky keycard device gave him entry, and he soon found himself driving through
what appeared to be an extensive if dilapidated campus, larger than the university that had received the
bequest. HannemouthтАЩs wealth and eccentricity were obvious at every turn, as was his apparently
prolonged absence. For while the Dean had painted the old inventor as a solitary man, the grounds of
his estate were lined with avenues of dormitory-like buildings, as if this had once been a thriving campus
itself. Half an hour of driving about the complex left Messraunt feeling as if only a fraction of the place
had been explored; but he was mindful of his duty, which was to give a cursory inspection of the device,
and return with recommendations whereby the Dean might determine whether to accept the bequest or
beg other arrangements be made.




With the aid of a poorly labeled map, Messraunt parked his car in what appeared to be a small staff
parking lot near one of the more formidable buildings at the center of the complex. Stepping out of the
car for the first time, he discovered the abandoned complex had the nature of an unkempt park, with
squirrels everywhere, and the rooflines festering with crows. Messraunt had been provided with keys to
the main building, and he soon found himself in a shabby lobby, where the destructive activities of rats
were much in evidence. Unpromisingly, there was no electricity, and the elevators proved inoperable,
which did not bode well for his ability to judge the Hannemouth Self-Configurable Combinatorial Array
except in its most superficial aspect. (Imagine evaluating the performance of a modern personal
computer with nothing to go by but the blank metal case.) His instructions led him to believe the
seventh, topmost floor was his destination, and he made his way through dark stairwells, seven floors of
clanging metal steps clogged with rat droppings and crow feathers. Messraunt wondered how long ago
Professor Hannemouth had abandoned the device. Everywhere was the rustling of vermin.

The seventh floor, fortunately, was well-lit thanks to panoramic windows that gave a view of the entire
campus complex. Several of the windows had been shattered by the elements, and a number of crows
fled squawking from the room when he first entered. The carpets were stained from storm leakage, and
Messraunt worried for the integrity of any sensitive device that might have been stored under such
conditions. But the view momentarily occupied him, as he looked out on a timeless view of the campus
held in its bowl of wooded hills. From here he was able to see along entire avenues, between grey,
almost featureless dormitories evocative of grim Soviet-style apartment blocks. In the distance, across a
glittering river he had managed to miss in his cursory tour of the estate, he saw the cold smokestacks of a
small physical plant which must have generated power and warmth for the campus and its erstwhile
inhabitants. Messraunt faintly perceived some sort of pattern underlying the layout of streets and
buildings, but after his initial wonder at the sprawling vista faded, he found himself more concerned by the
absence of anything he could identify as the Hannemouth Self-Configurable Combinatorial Array.
There was nothing in the room except a console of moderate size, being not much larger than a Steelcase
office desk typical of the era, with several integral keyboards and monitors. MessrauntтАЩs mood turned
to one of irritation, for if this were the device, he felt it could easily have been relocated to the university
by a professional moving crew, thus saving him the bother of the trip, which at this point was threatening
to turn into an overnight venture, for he had misjudged the shortness of daylight in this part of the state,
and now found it further exacerbated by the steep crowding peaks all around. He did not much wish to
be caught here in darkness, and he promised himself he would be down those seven flights of stairs and