michael crichton.congo-第22部分

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！


fineries。
　For　a　contract　to　e　in　without　a　UECL　meant　only　one　thing：　somebody　wanted　blue　diamonds　so　badly　he　didn't　care　what　they　cost。
　Within　forty…eight　hours；　the　ERTS　canteen　had　explained　the　Blue　Contract。　It　turned　out　that　Type　JIb　diamonds　were　blue　from　trace　quantities　of　the　element　boron；　which　rendered　them　worthless　as　gemstones　but　altered　their　electronic　properties；　making　them　semiconductors　with　a　resistively　on　the　order　of　100　ohms　centimeters。　They　also　had　light…transmissive　properties。
　Someone　then　found　a　brief　article　in　Electronic　News　for　November　17；　1978：　〃McPhee　Doping　Dropped。〃　It　explained　that　the　Waltham；　Massachusetts；　firm　of　Silec；　Inc。；　had　abandoned　the　experimental　McPhee　technique　to　dope　diamonds　artificially　with　a　monolayer　boron　coating。　The　McPhee　process　had　been　abandoned　as　too　expensive　and　too　unreliable　to　produce　〃desirable　semi　conducting　properties。〃　The　article　concluded　that　〃other　firms　have　underestimated　problems　in　boron　monolayer　doping；　Morikawa　（Tokyo）　abandoned　the　Nagaura　process　in　September　of　this　year。〃　Working　backward；　the　ERTS　canteen　fitted　additional　pieces　of　the　puzzle　into　place。
　Back　in　1971；　Intec；　the　Santa　Clara　microelectronics　firm；　had　first　predicted　that　diamond　semiconductors　would　be　important　to　a　future　generation　of　〃super　conducting〃　puters　in　the　1980s。
　The　first　generation　of　electronic　puters；　ENIAC　and　UNIVAC；　built　in　the　wartime　secrecy　of　the　1940s；　employed　vacuum　tubes。　Vacuum　tubes　had　an　average　life　span　of　twenty　hours；　but　with　thousands　of　glowing　hot　tubes　in　a　single　machine；　some　puters　shut　down　every　seven　to　twelve　minutes。　Vacuum…tube　technology　imposed　a　limit　on　the　size　and　power　of　planned　second…generation　puters。
　But　the　second　generation　never　used　vacuum　tubes。　In　1947；　the　invention　of　the　transistor…a　thumbnail…sized　sandwich　of　solid　material　which　performed　all　the　functions　of　a　vacuum　tube…ushered　in　an　era　of　〃solid　state〃　electronic　devices　which　drew　little　power；　generated　little　heat；　and　were　smaller　and　more　reliable　than　the　tubes　they　replaced。　Silicon　technology　provided　the　basis　for　three　generations　of　increasingly　pact；　reliable；　and　cheap　puters　over　the　next　twenty　years。
　But　by　the　1970s；　puter　designers　began　to　confront　the　inherent　limitations　of　silicon　technology。　Although　circuits　had　been　shrunk　to　microscopic　dimensions；　putation　speed　was　still　dependent　on　circuit　length。　To　miniaturize　circuits　still　more；　where　distances　were　already　on　the　order　of　millionths　of　an　inch；　brought　back　an　old　problem：　heat。　Smaller　circuits　would　literally　melt　from　the　heat　produced。　What　was　needed　was　some　method　to　eliminate　heat　and　reduce　resistance　at　the　same　time。
　It　had　been　known　since　the　1950s　that　many　metals　when　cooled　to　extremely　low　temperatures　became　〃superconducting；〃　permitting　the　unimpeded　flow　of　electrons　through　them。　In　1977；　IBM　announced　it　was　designing　an　ultra…high…speed　puter　the　size　of　a　grapefruit；　chilled　with　liquid　nitrogen。　The　superconducting　puter　required　a　radically　new　technology；　and　a　new　range　of　low　temperature　construction　materials。
　Doped　diamonds　would　be　used　extensively　throughout。
　Several　days　later；　the　ERTS　canteen　came　up　with　an　alternative　explanation。　According　to　the　new　theory；　the　1970s　had　been　a　decade　of　unprecedented　growth　in　puters。　Although　the　first　puter　manufacturers　in　the　1940s　had　predicted　that　four　puters　would　do　the　puting　work　of　the　entire　world　for　the　foreseeable　future；　experts　anticipated　that　by　1990　there　would　actually　be　one　billion　puters…most　of　them　linked　by　munications　networks　to　other　puters。　Such　networks　didn't　exist；　and　might　even　be　theoretically　impossible。　（A　1975　study　by　the　Hanover　Institute　concluded　there　was　insufficient　metal　in　the　earth's　crust　to　construct　the　necessary　puter　transmission　lines。）
　According　to　Harvey　Rumbaugh；　the　1980s　would　be　characterized　by　a　critical　shortage　of　puter　data　transmission　systems：　〃Just　as　the　fossil　fuel　shortage　took　the　industrialized　world　by　surprise　in　the　1970s；　so　will　the　data　transmission　shortage　take　the　world　by　surprise　in　the　next　ten　years。　People　were　denied　movement　in　the　1970s；　but　they　will　be　denied　information　in　the　1980s；　and　it　remains　to　be　seen　which　shortage　will　prove　more　frustrating。〃
　Laser　light　represented　the　only　hope　for　handling　these　massive　data　requirements；　since　laser　channels　carried　twenty　thousand　times　the　information　of　an　ordinary　metal　coaxial　trunk　line。　Laser　transmission　demanded　whole　new　technologies…including　thin…spun　fiber　optics；　and　doped　semiconducting　diamonds；　which　Rumbaugh　predicted　would　be　〃more　valuable　than　oil〃　in　the　ing　years。
　Even　further；　Rumbaugh　anticipated　that　within　ten　years　electricity　itself　would　bee　obsolete。　Future　puters　would　utilize　only　light　circuits；　and　interface　with　light　transmission　data　systems。　The　reason　was　speed。　〃Light；〃　Rumbaugh　said；　〃moves　at　the　speed　of　light。　Electricity　doesn't。　We　are　living　in　the　final　years　of　microelectronic　technology。〃
　Certainly　microelectronics　did　not　look　like　a　moribund　technology。　In　1979；　microelectronics　was　a　major　industry　throughout　the　industrialized　world；　accounting　for　eighty　billion　dollars　annually　in　the　United　States　alone；　six　of　the　top　twenty　corporations　in　the　Fortune　500　were　deeply　involved　in　microelectronics。　These　panies　had　a　history　of　extraordinary　petition　and　advance；　over　a　period　of　less　than　thirty　years。
　In　1958；　a　manufacturer　could　fit　10　electronic　ponents　onto　a　single　silicon　chip。　By　1970；　it　was　possible　to　fit　100　units　onto　a　chip　of　the　same　size…a　tenfold　increase　in　slightly　more　than　a　decade。
　But　by　1972；　it　was　possible　to　fit　1；000　units　on　a　chip；　and　by　1974；　10；000　units。　It　was　expected　that　by　1980；　there　would　be　one　million　units　on　a　single　chip　the　size　of　a　thumbnail；　but；　using　electronic　photo　projection；　this　goal　was　actually　realized　in　1978。　By　the　spring　of　1979；　the　new　goal　was　ten　million　units…or；　even　better；　one　billion　units…　on　a　single　silicon　chip　by　1980。　But　nobody　expected　to　wait　past　June　or　July　of　1979　for　this　development。
　Such　advances　within　an　industry　are　unprecedented。　parison　to　older　manufacturing　technologies　makes　this　clear。　Detroit　was　content　to　make　trivial　product　design　changes　at　three…year　intervals；　but　the　electronics　industry　routinely　expected　order　of　magnitude　advances　in　the　same　time。　（To　keep　pace；　Detroit　would　have　had　to　increase　automobile　gas　mileage　from　8　miles　per　gallon　in　1970　to　80；000；000　miles　per　gallon　in　1979。　Instead；　Detroit　went　from　8　to　16　miles　per　gallon　during　that　time；　further　evidence　of　the　ing　demise　of　the　automotive　industry　as　the　center　of　the　American　economy。）
　
　In　such　a　petitive　market；　everyone　worried　about　foreign　powers；　particularly　Japan；　which　since　1973　had　maintained　a　Japanese　Cultural　Exchange　in　San　Jose…which　some　considered　a　cover　organization　for　well…financed　industrial　espionage。
　The　Blue　Contract　could　only　be　understood　in　the　light　of　an　industry　making　major　advances　every　few　months。　Travis　had　said　that　the　Blue　Contract　was　〃the　biggest　thing　we'll　see　in　the　next　ten　years。　Whoever　finds　those　diamonds　has　a　jump　on　the　technology　for　at　least　five　years。　Five　years。　Do　you　know　what　that　means？〃
　Ross　knew　what　it　meant。　In　an　industry　where　petitive　edges　were　measured　in　months；　panies　had　made　fortunes　by　beating　petitors　by　a　matter　of　weeks　with　some　new　techniques　or　device；　Syntel　in　California　had　been　the　first　to　make　a　256K　memory　chip　while　everyone　else　was　still　making　16K　chips　and　dreaming　of　64K　chips。　Syntel　kept　their　advantage　for　only　sixteen　weeks；　but　realized　a　profit　of　more　than　a　hundred　and　thirty　million　dollars。
　〃And　we're　talking　about　five　years；〃　Travis　said。　〃That's　an　advantage　measured　in　billions　of　dollars；　maybe　tens　of　billions　of　dollars。　If　we　can　get　to　those　diamonds。〃
　
　These　were　the　reasons　for　the　extraordinary　pressure　Ross　felt　as　she　continued　to　work　with　the　puter。　At　the　age　of　twenty…four；　she　was　team　leader　in　a