Experiments (Awake, Part 2)
Read Part 1
I stare intensely at the blob of black ink.
”A goat?” I say reluctantly. Theresa doesn’t say anything, she just puts the picture away and holds up the next. I groan. *”How many more of these are there?”
”Ten in total. Only this and one more. Come on, we’re almost done. You’re doing great!”
I frown and try to focus my attention on the next blob.
”A bat?”
The next one.
”A flower?”
”And we’re done!” Theresa starts packing up the pictures.
”And what exactly did that show you now? That I’m very creative?”
”No, this actually had a purpose.” Theresa chuckles. ”It’s a so-called Rorschach test.”
I think I’ve heard about it before.
”Isn’t that a very old practice?”
”Yes, it has been devised in 1917 by Hermann Rorschach.”
”Then how precise can it be? What did you even test me for?”
Theresa finishes packing and sits down across from me again.
”These 10 images have never changed in their appearance or order. They’re still exactly the same test Rorschach did back then to study how certain people respond to the images. He noticed that patients with schizophrenia had a specific kind of answers they gave.” @suesa
”Doesn’t sound very scientific.”
”It has been regarded as pseudoscience for quite a while. The problem was that people wanted to see it as something it is not. You can’t pinpoint the exact psychological issues someone might have, you can only notice that their answers, the way they respond to those images, is a lot different from the average person. It has been a useful tool for our group to assess if someone we liberated is too damaged to be integrated back into society.”
Great. A centuries-old procedure decides if I will be sent back to die or if I’m allowed to carry on. And these people think they can rule on my sanity? I don’t think they themselves are very sane, to begin with.
”Did I pass?” I ask.
”Yes, Cora. This one test you passed.”
”There are more?”
”Of course! Do you think we will just release you? You could be a danger to yourself and others! And we don’t just need to check and maybe readjust your mental health, there are also some physical changes you’ll have to go through.”
”Physical changes?” This doesn’t sound like a simple haircut or a change of clothes.
”Oh sweet Cora, there is so much more to my kind of people that sets us apart from your kind! Decades, centuries of research!”
Your people. My people. I get the feeling that Theresa doesn’t even see me as a human. Not really.
”Do you know what an axolotl is?” She asks. The question seems a little bit out of context.
”I … yes? It’s a neotenic amphibian. It looks like you’d usually expect a young salamander to look like, not an adult.”
”Correct! Well done.”
It’s not like I grew up under a stone. I went to school and all, you know? My education wasn’t as bad as you might think it was.
I force myself to keep these thoughts inside. Upsetting Theresa might not be the smartest way to proceed.
I watch her stand up from her chair, briefly leave the room and return with a small container made of glass. Inside I see … an axolotl.
The white-pink creature looks at me with tiny black eyes. It seems to smile.
”Why are you showing me this?”
”There are no axolotls in the wild anymore, did you know that? During the first few decades of the 21st century, they completely vanished - except for those in captivity. People tried to save the wild ones but nobody was willing to invest enough money. So bit by bit, they just … disappeared. All that’s left are these extremely inbred specimen. But we managed to remove most of the bad mutation that would have killed them all by changing their genetic makeup a bit. And while doing that, we discovered some fascinating mechanisms.”
I pity the tiny animal. It’s a test subject, just as I am. We both had no say in how we were treated and still don’t have.
”Don’t you want to ask what discoveries were made?” Theresa asks. Oh my, she’s pouting. She is seriously pouting because I didn’t immediately react.
”Uhm, of course. What did they discover?”
”The ultimate healing factor!”
All of sudden, there is a knife in her hand, causing me to jump up and almost kicking over my chair. But she doesn’t attack me. Instead, she pulls the knife across her palm, leaving a red line of blood.
”Theresa!” I call out and try to find something to stop the bleeding with. A towel, a tissue paper, anything.
”It’s okay, Cora. Look.” She holds up her hand. The blood has stopped pouring out and the cut … is closed. She wipes off the blood on her jeans like it’s nothing.
”What … how …” I can’t find any words to express my shock.
”Axolotls can make their cells turn into something similar to stem cells which can then grow into a vast number of other cells, allowing the animal to regrow body parts. We found the genetic sequences necessary for this kind of regeneration, adjusted them for humans, accelerated the cell growth and ended up with humans who can heal from small injuries in seconds. Larger ones take a bit more time, but it is still much better than how it used to be. And how it is for you.”
”So I don’t have this ability? Isn’t that kind of dumb to have test subjects that are too genetically different?”
”How similar are mice to humans? Research begins in organisms that are similar but not the same.”
There is it again. I’m just similar, not the same. Not a real human. I force a smile.
”So you’ll change my genes to have this mutation too? So that I fit in?”
”That’s one of the first steps, yes.”
Sources:
The Rorschach Test Is More Accurate Than You Think
Salamander cells remember their origins in limb regeneration
Biology’s beloved amphibian — the axolotl — is racing towards extinction
Pictures taken from pixabay.com
Today’s Suesa’s favorite is: @mobbs
He has joined just a month before me and was one of the first people I ever encountered on Steemit. As a musician and steemSTEM member at the same time, he mostly writes about fascinating animals and scientific facts. Doesn’t matter if it’s about the mystery how Sperm Whales can survive in the deep sea they call their home or camels with superpowers. Mobbs manages to present the most interesting stuff and is always a good read!
Got a scientific topic which you want to see as a story? Leave me a comment!
You want to support scientists on Steemit? You are a scientist on Steemit? Join the #steemSTEM channel on steemit.chat and connect with us!
STEM is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math
genetic research ... always an interesting and unexpected result))
Hah, that's funny, earlier today I was looking up how to spell Rorschach...
Probably meant "was" instead of "has been".
Is it rude or annoying if I point out stuff like this? If so, I'll stop. I kind of like it when people point this stuff out for me...
This is some cool write-up.
You know, sometimes the voices in your head are really trying to get you. ;) I do like what you are writing. It makes me think about how we could use tests to check the mental stability of people and help them.
But, I'm afraid the test would show me something I don't want to know.
I'm so doubtful of everybody, I think they all might be evil.
Even the axolotl. That bastard.
I can do with an Axolotls gene, I bruise easily and heal so slow :)
Beautifully written as I could picture the setup right from my mind's eye. The confused Cora and the geeky know-it-all scientist Theresa obviously wearing some nerd glasses with a crazy gleam that only belongs to scientist of her ilk. Lol. Good one.
Wonderful story ! This is science fiction, not necessarily a story, you just talked about stem cells in a little way and also axolotl. Now, I understand your profile 'mixing science with fiction'. Wow ! Thank God you chose my friend today... @mobbs is a friend with very nice posts.
psychoanalisys!!!!!!!!!
An amazing picture @sueza .
am new in steem....i can be your friend???