“-Well, the doctor is beside himself. And aside from the obvious, which is money, he can’t think of any reason why someone would want to steal his research. -I can. The bio-chip plugs directly into the thalamus, which not only regulates sleep, it also works as a relay tower to the Cerebral Cortex, which also controls motor-function. -Mind control, Peter. Wouldn’t be the first time someone’s attempted it. I told you about my work with the MK-Ultra Project. Of course, at that time, we supposed we could do it with LSD and hypnotic suggestion. -So it is possible? -Theoretically, yes. -If I faxed you a schematic of the device’s internal architecture, could you test the chip you have? -Yes, but I’d need to replicate the chip’s function in a neutral environment. Of course, I… if I had a live subject… -Walter, no. No student volunteers.”
“-Hold it steady, Agent Casper. -It’s Kashner. (to Astrid) Do this kind of thing often? -Brains? No. Although Walter gets particularly excited whenever we do.”
“-What does that do, the thalamus? Why is it relevant? -It’s the part of the brain that regulates sleep. -What are you looking for? -That.”
“-(Some kind of little) computer chip embedded in his midbrain. -The thalamus? -Yes, that would make sense. Well done, son. -Hold up, Walter. Agent Dunham.”
“-It’s a bio-chip. Technically a brain-computer interface, or B.C.I. This particular chip has a transmitter, which makes it wireless. -So it can commit the brain to a remote computer? -That’s right. From what we can ascertain, we think it works a lot like a pacemaker. It monitors sleep cycles and, when necessary, stimulates the thalamus.”
