Where Are We Going? -SOS2022- writer

In the belly of an undisclosed mountain the artificial cave provided the necessary shielding to the avantgarde science conducted there. Everything and everyone in it was the best and most advanced the human race was to this point capable of bringing forward.
EMA the AI of the facility managed 3 quantum computers, which officially didn't even exist yet. 4 wetwork calculators, computing devices constructed out of actual brain imitations enhanced with classical chip processors, which were so secret not even the people in the facility knew they were there. And a crew of 16 scientists and engineers which as far as the world was concerned had died as they were recruited for the project.
A little over a week in on the project 'Asimov' the mood had changed from joyful optimism to carefully managed frustration.

The project had it's name from the famous science-fiction writer because the people funding it had hoped it would once and for all solve the human condition, the ambivalence of science and make the future predictable and through careful manipulation controllable.
Sure the work had only begun 10 days ago but so far all they had achieved was to run the diagnostics on EMA twice without any result. Because the damned thing was so new nobody had any idea how it would run if it ran properly or what signs of a possible false calculation process would look like. And it didn't help that EMA's designer, or 'Father' as it called him refused to share any details about its programming or design details.
'If EMA says she is fine, she is fine.' Was all he had to offer.
The first two team meetings had to be broken up by security because as it turned out scientists especially the really smart ones aren't very well equipped to tackle philosophical or moral questions. The result was 5 black eyes, a cut in the lip and a broken rip along with minor bruises and a poisened team spirit, but the question what made a human a human, or science good or evil remained stubbornly elusive.

Corporal R.K.L. Braxton the head of operations in the facility had assumed after Iraq and Afghanistan this would be the perfect quiet position for his transition into retirement. Now he had started smoking again heavier than ever and contemplated murder and/or suicide in hourly intervals.
"Run the simulation again!" his shaking hand illuminated by the red glow of the cigarette knocked impatiently on the table while he hissed the words out breathlessly between his teeth.
All screens in the cave lit up, billions of little dots went through their lifes from birth to death in 15 seconds, 2 generations later they all vanished.
"It happened again Sir." EMA's female computer voice informed him.
"How?"
"Stupidity, Sir."
With a sigh the Corporal sank on his chair.
"May I make a suggestion, Sir?"
"Sure." R.K.L. Braxton felt for a second embarassed he was so desperate he had to take advice from a machine now.
"Why don't we analyse how humanity survived long enough to make it this far first?"
The mood in the laboratory changed instantly. And everybody started to work again with new enthusiasm.

2 weeks later another meeting was scheduled. To present the findings. How had humanity made it this far?
The surprising answer was: stupidity. Blatant ignorance in the face of danger. And luck.
R.K.L. Braxton pulled out his gun and pointed it at the emergency switch that would permanently shut down all computers of the facility.
He had found the problem.

The End

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Johnny

Very good story! :