(c) John, Rekesh 2004-2008. No part of this work may be copied or reproduced without the author's permission
5. Car (Part 3)
“Emma, there is a common principle. You see, life, as biologists define it, is essentially metabolism. You know what that term means?”
“I think so, but refresh my memory, will you?”
“Well, it represents chemical and physical processes in the body. They take in energy sources from the environment, break them down to release energy, and use that energy for various functions. The waste products are released back into the environment. Anything alive as defined by biologists needs to have systems that perform such processes. Even the bacteria have rudimentary systems that do these tasks. So what we are looking at is a life-giving principle or a blueprint, as architects call it.”
From the corner of her eye, she saw Theo look at her curiously. His eyebrows were furrowed.
“Now you are going way over my head,” said Emma, “You don’t mean to say that my car is alive, do you? I’ve seen some movies like that where they have a mind of their own.”
“No, no, that’s not what I mean at all. That’s just fiction. Life need not be associated with sentient intelligence, at least not to biologists. Bacteria are not intelligent, and I don’t think worms have any thinking capacity. Your car is obviously not alive, as we recognize life. But it seems to be a kind of embodiment of a life-giving blueprint, so that it gives the appearance of life.”
“Blueprint?”
“Look at it this way. When scientists look for life on the earth or elsewhere in the universe, they expect to see bodies with supportive structures, muscular structures, digestive apparatus, sensors and so on. The tasks these structures do are essential ingredients for deriving energy, for moving around and functioning. And, in fact, many biologists equate these processes with life. Then the car is something that you may call proto-life. It is a type of manifestation of a deeper principle of life.”
Theo looked impressed, and she felt a strange wave of happiness.
“Aliyah, I am still trying to understand you. What do you mean by proto-life?” Emma was not about to give up.
“Well, it simply means that for any physical entity to sustain itself over long periods of time, it requires a set of systems in place, such as we see in the human body. Possibly evolution has discovered and applied these into our internal systems. The designer of a car also has to build the same systems. He or she has no need to wait for evolution to discover them. The systems may look different and vary in complexity, but many principles behind them are the same. So things like cars, trucks and other automobiles which are built on the same principles, could then be considered to be artificial life forms. That is what I meant by proto-life.”
Theo was now silent, looking away into the distance. She wondered what he was thinking about. He probably found it all too much to handle.
Emma considered this new piece of information. Indeed, a car was somewhat like a horse. Besides the riding, one had to feed it, house it, wash it, and even take it to a “vet” once in a while, as if it were alive.
“Really! I could compare it to an animal or insect in a poetic sense, but the association is deeper,” she said to herself. Is it possible that many analogies do have some common principles behind them, as Aliyah was saying? Was poetic inspiration or intuitive recognition a subconscious discovery of deep connections?
“So you are saying that analogies exist because of common principles?” she asked. “That was your point, wasn’t it? That a single principle can manifest in different areas, resulting in analogies of one another?”
“More or less. When the analogies are deep, they definitely smack of common ground.”
Theo seemed to agree, for she saw him smile and gently nod his head. Again, she felt strangely elated.
A brief silence ensued as Aliyah fell back into her world of thoughts. Emma, driving her Beetle, now evoked a different picture in her mind. It pointed to an analogous phenomenon at the level of body, mind and spirit – that of a soul inhabiting and driving bodily systems. And this was as amazing a correlation as she had discovered about the sun!
* * *
The car turned onto University Avenue and headed towards the biological sciences building. Theo had requested that he be dropped off there, saying he wanted to visit a friend.
“First time to the university, is it?” Aliyah enquired.
“Yes,” Theo agreed.
“Thought so!” she jibed. ‘Well, try not to make any trouble here. We do have road signs everywhere, that is, if you decide to follow them!”
Emma flashed her a look. Theo said nothing, but pointed to the building up ahead and said, “Drop me off there, please, next to the entrance.”
A floodlight towered over the entrance, where a man stood idly watching the street. The car came to a stop and Theo stepped out. He turned to thank them both when a loud and boisterous voice came sailing through the air.
“Professor Thor! So glad to see you! We were expecting you next week. And we all heard about your adventure in Egypt!”
The dean of arts & sciences walked briskly towards Theo, his right hand outstretched.
Aliyah cringed.
* * *