Fantastic Voyage - By Isaac Asimov Page 0,31

It's Brownian motion."

Michaels raised his hands with an "Oh, lord," of helpless and resigned understanding.

Grant said, "Whose motion?"

"Brown's if you must know. Robert Brown, an eighteenth century Scottish botanist, who first observed it. You see, we're being bombarded by water molecules from all sides. If we were full-size, the molecules would be so tiny in comparison that their collisions wouldn't affect. However, the fact that we're tremendously miniaturized brings about the same results that would follow if we had remained constant and everything in our surroundings had been greatly magnified."

"Like the water all around."

"Exactly. So far, we're not badly off. The water around us has been partly miniaturized with us. When we get into the blood-stream, though, each water molecule-on our present scale-will weigh a milligram or so. They will still be too small to affect us individually, but thousands will be striking us simultaneously from all directions, and those strikes won't be distributed evenly. Several hundred more might strike from the right than from the left at any given instant, and the combined force of those several hundred extra will shove us toward the left. The next instant we may be forced a bit downward and so on. This vibration we feel now is the result of such random molecular strikes.

"It will be worse later on. "

"Fine," groaned Grant. "Nausea, here I come."

"It will only be for an hour at most," said Cora, angrily. "I wish you would act more grown up."

Michaels said, with obvious worry, "Can the ship take the battering, Owens?"

Owens said, "I think so. I tried to make some calculations concerning it in advance. From what I feel now, I think my estimates weren't far off. This can be endured."

Cora said, "Even if the ship is battered and crushed, it's bound to stand up under the bombardment for a little while. If everything goes well, we can get to the clot and take care of it in fifteen minutes or less and after that it really doesn't matter."

Michaels brought his fist down on the arm-rest of his chair. "Miss Peterson, you are speaking nonsense. What do you suppose would happen, if we managed to reach the clot, destroy it, restore Benes to health and then have the Proteus smashed to rubble immediately afterward? I mean, aside from our deaths which I am ready to consider ignoring for the sake of further argument? It would mean Benes' death, too."

"We understand that," broke in Duval, stiffly.

"Your assistant apparently does not. If this ship were to be beaten into fragments, Miss Peterson, then when the sixty minutes - no, fifty-nine - are up, each individual fragment, however small, would enlarge to normal size. Even if the ship were dissolved into atoms, each atom would enlarge and Benes would be permeated through and through with the matter of ourselves and the ship."

Michaels took a deep breath, one that sounded almost like a snort. He went on, "It is easy to get us out of Benes' body if we are intact. If the ship is in fragments, there will be no way of flushing every fragment out of Benes' body. No matter what is done, enough will remain to kill him at de-miniaturization time. Do you understand?"

Cora seemed to shrink within herself. "I hadn't thought of that."

"Well, think of it," said Michaels. "You too, Owens. Now I want to know again, will the Proteus stand up under the Brownian motion? I don't mean only till we reach the clot. I mean till we reach it, finish it, and return! Consider what you say, Owens. If you don't think the ship can survive then we have no right to go on."

"Well, then," interposed Grant, "stop hectoring, Dr. Michaels, and give Captain Owens a chance to talk."

Owens said doggedly, "I came to no final opinion till I felt the partial Brownian motion we now experience. It is my feeling at the present motion, that we can stand up to sixty full minutes of the full pounding."

"The question is: Ought we to take the risk on the mere strength of Captain Owens' feelings?" said Michaels.

"Not at all," said Grant. "The question is: Will I accept Captain Owens' estimate of the situation? Please remember that General Carter said I was to make the policy decisions. I am accepting Owens' statement simply because we have no one of greater authority or with a better understanding of the ship to consult."

"Well, then," said Michaels, "what is your decision?"

"I accept Owens' estimate. We proceed with the mission." Duval