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▞ Interview Transcript

Dr.Ram Prasad with researcher David Karlovac.


Dr.Prasad: Ah David, come in!

David: Dr.Prasad

Dr.Prasad: Let's get started: are you sane David?

David: Why would you believe me if I said I was?

Dr.Prasad: David.

David: Ok, ok, I'm sane, doctor.

Dr.Prasad: Good. Tell me about your dinner last night.

David: Fish sticks, tater tots, sriracha sauce, and Colbert.

Dr.Prasad: Yummy. What's your dog's name?

David: I don't have one.

Dr.Prasad: Tell me about SCP-D38813.

David: It's pretty compelling.

Dr.Prasad: We're not big fans of that word here, David.

David: Not like that. It's basically just a cryptogram, and I've always loved those. They're satisfying to crack.

Dr.Prasad: Why is that?

David: I don't know. I suppose, despite the solution being only one out of a huge number of states the puzzle could possibly be in, a little intuition and lateral reasoning lets you solve them in surprisingly few steps.

Dr.Prasad: Director Prescott tells me you're frustrated by it though.

David: Well, somehow it's not letting us solve the puzzles away from the device. I've read out some of the encoded material to Chayne to transcribe, and neither of us can solve them on paper. Even though I've solved the same puzzle on the device.

Dr.Prasad: And this anomaly bothers you?

David: Of course it does! It's not… fair. It also can't be happening. There's a trick, and I'm annoyed I can't see it.

Dr.Prasad: Fair?

David: Fair. Like, ultimately we all play with the same rules, right? If you have to throw out all the assumptions then there's no way to continue, nothing can make sense anymore. The effect we're observing is violating stuff that's so basic, it can't be happening.

Dr.Prasad: But it is happening.

David: Right, but it could be hypnosis of some kind, or or it's reading our minds and knows to throw off the encoding when we're doing the transcription.

Dr.Prasad: But you said you didn't think it was affecting your mind?

David: I… well no, I'm still me, doc. If it's pulling the wool over our eyes, it's just doing that. I mean, I'm still trying to… to thwart it? I think figuring its trick out means it doesn't get its way.

Dr.Prasad: I see. And the compulsion you feel to solve this mystery is natural researcher curiosity?

David: I'm a curious guy doc, or I wouldn't be here.

Dr.Prasad weighs David for a heavy moment.

Dr.Prasad: Quite so. Ok, you pass for today. I'll see you tomorrow?

David: Sure thing doc.





