Put simply, Ted Chiang is one of our generation’s greatest speculative fiction writers. This may seem like hyperbole, but we believe it to be true: Reading Ted Chiang will make you a better person, on a level that no self-help book ever can. His stories force us to engage with our possible futures — and our possible selves — in ways that are all but unparalleled in the field. This story, which originally appeared in Exhalation, a collection the New York Times named one of the ten best books of 2019, and is now out in paperback, is a perfect example. We’re thrilled to make it available online for the first time. Enjoy.

简而言之，蒋泰德是我们这一代最伟大的投机小说作家之一。 这可以参考M有些夸张，但我们相信这是真的：阅读姜峰楠会让你成为一个更好的人，就没有自救的书永远能的水平。 他的故事迫使我们以该领域几乎前所未有的方式与可能的未来以及我们自己进行交往。 这个故事最初出现在《 呼气》(Exhalation)中 ， 这 是一个完美的例子。 我们很高兴首次将其在线提供。 请享用。

Nat could have used a cigarette, but company policy forbade smoking in the store, so all she could do was get more and more nervous. Now it was a quarter to four, and Morrow still hadn’t returned. She wasn’t sure how she’d explain things if he didn’t get back in time. She sent him a text asking where he was.

N at本可以使用香烟，但是公司政策禁止在商店内吸烟，因此她所能做的就是变得越来越紧张。 现在是四分之一到四分之一，而Morrow仍然没有回来。 她不确定如果他没有及时回来的话她会如何解释。 她给他发了一条短信，问他在哪里。

A chime sounded as the front door opened, but it wasn’t Morrow. A guy with an orange sweater came in. “Hello? I have a prism to sell?”

前门打开时发出一声鸣响，但这不是莫罗。 一个穿着橙色毛衣的家伙进来了。 我有棱镜要卖吗？”

Nat put her phone away. “Let’s take a look at it.”

纳特(Nat)收起电话。 “让我们看看它。”

He came over and put the prism on the counter; it was a new model, the size of a briefcase. Nat slid it around so she could see the numeric readout at one end: the activation date was only six months ago, and more than 90 percent of its pad was still available. She unfolded the keyboard to reveal the display screen, tapped the ONLINE button, and then waited. A minute went by.

他走过去把棱镜放在柜台上。 这是一个新模型，只有公文包那么大。 纳特(Nat)将它滑了一下，这样她就可以在一端看到数字读数：激活日期只有六个月前，并且仍然有90％以上的垫可用。 她展开键盘以显示显示屏，点击“在线”按钮，然后等待。 一分钟过去了。

“He might have run into some traffic,” said Orange Sweater uncertainly. “It’s fine,” said Nat. After another minute the ready light came on. Nat typed

“他可能遇到了一些流量，” Orange Sweater不确定地说道。 纳特说：“很好。” 再过一分钟，准备就绪的灯亮了。 Nat类型

[Keyboard test.]

[键盘测试。]

A few seconds later a reply came back:

几秒钟后，回复了：

[Looks good.]

[看起来挺好的。]

She switched to video mode, and the text on the screen was replaced by a grainy image of her own face looking back at her.

她切换到视频模式，屏幕上的文字替换为她回头看着她的脸的颗粒状图像。

Her parallel self nodded at her and said, “Mic test.”

她的平行自我向她点点头，说：“麦克风测试。”

“Loud and clear,” she replied.

“大声说清楚。”她回答。

The screen reverted to text. Nat hadn’t recognized the necklace her paraself had been wearing; if they wound up buying the prism, she’d have to ask her where she got it. She looked back at the guy with the orange sweater and quoted him a price.

屏幕恢复为文本。 纳特(Nat)没认出自己的副手戴的项链。 如果他们不愿购买棱镜，她将不得不问她在哪里买的。 她回头看那个穿着橙色毛衣的家伙，并给他报价。

His disappointment was obvious. “Is that all?”

他的失望显而易见。 “这就是全部？”

“That’s what it’s worth.”

“这就是值得的。”

“I thought these things got more valuable over time.”

“我认为这些东西随着时间的推移变得越来越有价值。”

“They do, but not right away. If this was five years old, we’d be having a different conversation.”

“他们有，但不是马上。 如果已经五岁了，我们将进行另一番对话。”

“What about if the other branch has something really interesting going on?”

“如果另一个分支正在进行一些有趣的事情怎么办？”

“Yeah, that’d be worth something.” Nat pointed at his prism. “Does the other branch have something interesting going on?”

“是的，那是值得的。” 纳特指着他的棱镜。 “另一个分支是否正在进行一些有趣的事情？”

“I . . . don’t know.”

“一世 。 。 。 不知道。”

“You’ll have to do the research yourself and bring it to us if you want a better offer.”

“如果您想提供更好的报价，则必须自己进行研究并将其带给我们。”

Orange Sweater hesitated.

橙色毛衣犹豫了。

“If you want to think it over and come back later, we’re always here.”

“如果您想一想，以后再回来，我们总是在这里。”

“Can you give me a minute?”

“你能给我一点时间吗？”

“Take your time.”

“慢慢来。”

Orange Sweater got on the keyboard and had a brief typed exchange with his paraself. When he was done, he said, “Thanks, we’ll be back later.” He folded the prism up and left.

Orange毛衣穿上了键盘，与他自己的副身进行了简短的打字交流。 完成后，他说：“谢谢，我们稍后再回来。” 他向上折叠棱镜，然后离开。

The last customer in the store had finished chatting and was ready to check out. Nat went to the carrel he’d been using, checked the data usage on the prism, and carried it back to the storeroom. By the time she had finished ringing him up, the three customers with four o’clock appointments had arrived, including the one who needed the prism Morrow had with him.

商店中的最后一位顾客已经聊天完毕，可以退房了。 纳特去了他一直在使用的玻璃桶，检查了棱镜上的数据使用情况，并将其运回储藏室。 在她给他打完电话的时候，三个要约四点钟的顾客已经到了，其中包括一个需要棱镜Morrow和他在一起的顾客。

“Just a minute,” she told them, “and I’ll get you checked in.” She went to the storeroom and brought out the prisms for the two other customers. She had just set them up in their carrels when Morrow came through the front door, elbows splayed as he carried a big cardboard carton. She met him at the counter.

她告诉他们：“只需一分钟，我就送您办理登机手续。” 她去了储藏室，为另外两个顾客拿出棱镜。 当莫罗穿过前门时，她刚刚将它们装在了他们的箱子里，肘部在他扛着一个大纸箱时张开了。 她在柜台遇到了他。

“You’re cutting it close,” she whispered, glaring at him.

“你把它关了。”她低语，瞪着他。

“Yeah, yeah, I know the schedule.”

“是的，我知道时间表。”

Morrow took the oversize box into the storeroom and came out with the prism. He set it up in a carrel for the third customer with seconds to spare. At four o’clock, the ready lights on all three prisms came on, and all three customers began chatting with their paraselves.

莫罗把超大号盒子带到储藏室，随棱镜一起出来。 他将其安装在第三个客户的机匣中，余下的时间很短。 四点钟，所有三个棱镜上的就绪灯都亮了，所有三个客户开始同他们的伞客聊天。

Nat followed Morrow into the office behind the front counter. He took a seat at the desk as if nothing had happened. “Well?” she asked. “What took you so long?”

纳特跟着莫罗进入前台柜台后面的办公室。 他坐在办公桌前坐着，好像什么都没发生。 “好？” 她问。 “你怎么这么久？”

“I was talking to one of the aides at the home.” Morrow had just come back from seeing one of their customers. Jessica Oehlsen was a widow in her seventies with few friends and whose only son was more of a burden than a comfort. Almost a year ago she’d started coming in once a week to talk with her paraself; she always reserved one of the private booths so she could use voice chat. A couple months ago she had fractured her hip in a bad fall, and now she was in a nursing home. Since she couldn’t come to the store, Morrow brought the prism to her every week so she could continue her regular conversations; it was a violation of SelfTalk’s company policy, but she paid him for the favor. “He filled me in about Mrs. Oehlsen’s condition.”

“我正在和家里的一名助手谈话。” Morrow刚从看到他们的一位客户回来。 杰西卡·厄尔森(Jessica Oehlsen)是七十多岁的寡妇，很少有朋友，而且她的独生儿子比负担更重。 大约一年前，她开始每周一次与自己的同伴交谈。 她总是预订一个私人摊位，以便可以使用语音聊天。 几个月前，她在一个严重的摔倒中摔断了臀部，现在她正在疗养院。 由于她不能来商店，Morrow每周都会把棱镜带给她，以便她可以继续定期的交谈。 这违反了SelfTalk的公司政策，但她付了他钱。 “他让我了解了欧森夫人的病情。”

“What about it?”

“那呢？”

“She’s got pneumonia now,” said Morrow. “He said it happens a lot after a broken hip.”

“她现在得了肺炎，”莫罗说。 “他说臀部骨折后发生了很多事情。”

“Really? How does a broken hip lead to pneumonia?”

“真？ 髋部骨折怎么导致肺炎？”

“According to this guy, it’s because they don’t move around a lot and they’re zonked on oxy, so they never take a deep breath. Anyway, Mrs. Oehlsen’s definitely got it.”

“根据这个人的说法，这是因为他们移动不多，并且被强加在氧气上，所以他们从不深呼吸。 无论如何，厄尔森太太肯定知道了。”

“Is it serious?”

“严重吗？”

“The aide thinks she’ll be dead within a month, two tops.”

“助手认为她将在一个月内死去，死在两个顶上。”

“Wow. That’s too bad.”

“哇。 这太糟糕了。”

“Yeah.” Morrow scratched his chin with his blunt, square fingertips. “But it gave me an idea.”

“是的。” 莫罗用直截了当的方形指尖scratch了下巴。 “但这给了我一个主意。”

That was no surprise. “So what is it this time?”

这不足为奇。 “那么这次是什么？”

“I won’t need you on this one. I can handle it by myself.”

“我不需要这个。 我可以自己处理。”

“Fine by me. I’ve got enough to do.”

“我没意见。 我有足够的工作要做。”

“Right, you’ve got a meeting to go to tonight. How’s that going?”

“对，你今晚要开会。 怎么样了？”

Nat shrugged. “It’s hard to tell. I think I’m making progress.”

Nat耸了耸肩。 “很难说。 我想我正在进步。”

Every prism — the name was a near acronym of the original designation, “Plaga interworld signaling mechanism” — had two LEDs, one red and one blue. When a prism was activated, a quantum measurement was performed inside the device, with two possible outcomes of equal probability: one outcome was indicated by the red LED lighting up, while the other was indicated by the blue one. From that moment forward, the prism allowed information transfer between two branches of the universal wave function. In colloquial terms, the prism created two newly divergent timelines, one in which the red LED lit up and one in which the blue one did, and it allowed communication between the two.

E非常棱镜-该名称几乎是原始名称“ Plaga国际间信号传递机制”的缩写-具有两个LED，一个红色和一个蓝色。 激活棱镜后，将在设备内部进行量子测量，结果可能具有两个相同的可能性：红色LED点亮表示一个结果，而蓝色则表示另一个结果。 从那一刻起，棱镜允许信息在通用波函数的两个分支之间传递。 用口语来说，棱镜创建了两个新的发散时间线，一个发红光的LED点亮，另一个发蓝光的LED点亮，并且允许两者之间进行通信。

Information was exchanged using an array of ions, isolated in magnetic traps within the prism. When the prism was activated and the universal wave function split into two branches, these ions remained in a state of coherent superposition, balanced on a knife’s edge and accessible to either branch. Each ion could be used to send a single bit of information, a yes or a no, from one branch to the other. The act of reading that yes/no caused the ion to decohere, permanently knocking it off the knife’s edge and onto one side. To send another bit, you needed another ion. With an array of ions, you could transmit a string of bits that encoded text; with a long-enough array, you could send images, sound, even video.

使用在棱镜内的磁阱中隔离的离子阵列交换信息。 当棱镜被激活并且通用波函数分裂为两个分支时，这些离子保持相干叠加的状态，在刀的边缘上保持平衡，并且任一分支都可以访问。 每个离子可用于从一个分支发送到另一分支的单个信息，是或否。 读取是/否会导致离子解粘的动作，将其永久性地从刀的边缘敲到一侧。 要再发送一点，您需要另一个离子。 使用离子数组，您可以传输一串编码文本的位； 使用足够长的阵列，您可以发送图像，声音甚至视频。

The upshot was that a prism wasn’t like a radio connecting the two branches; activating one didn’t power up a transmitter whose frequency you could keep tuning into. It was more like a notepad that the two branches shared, and each time a message was sent, a strip of paper was torn off the top sheet. Once the notepad was exhausted, no more information could be exchanged and the two branches went on their separate ways, incommunicado forever after.

结果是棱镜不像是连接两个分支的收音机。 激活一个并没有为发射机供电，您可以不断调整其频率。 这两个分支更像是一个记事本，每个分支都共享一次，每次发送消息时，都会从顶层撕下一条纸。 记事本用完后，便无法再交换任何信息，两个分支将以各自的方式继续前进，此后便永远不沟通。

Ever since the invention of the prism, engineers had been working to add more ions to the array and increase the size of the notepad. The latest commercial prisms had pads that were a gigabyte in size. That was enough to last a lifetime if all you were exchanging was text, but not all consumers were satisfied with that. Many wanted the ability to have a live conversation, preferably with video; they needed to hear their own voice or see their own face looking back at them. Even low-resolution, low-frame-rate video could burn through a prism’s entire pad in a matter of hours; people tended to use it only occasionally, relying on text or audio-only communications most of the time in order to make their prism last for as long as possible.

自从棱镜发明以来，工程师们一直在努力向阵列中添加更多离子，并增加记事本的尺寸。 最新的商用棱镜的垫片大小为1 GB。 如果您只交换文字，那足以维持一生，但并非所有消费者都对此感到满意。 许多人希望能够进行实时对话，最好是视频对话。 他们需要听到自己的声音或看到自己的脸向后看。 即使是低分辨率，低帧率的视频，也可以在数小时内在整个棱镜板上燃烧。 人们倾向于仅偶尔使用它，大部分时间都依赖于纯文本或纯音频的通信，以便使棱镜尽可能长的使用寿命。

Dana’s regular four o’clock appointment was a woman named Teresa. Teresa had been a client for just over a year; she had sought out therapy primarily because of her difficulty in maintaining a long-term romantic relationship. Dana had initially thought her issues stemmed from her parents’ divorce when she was a teenager, but now she suspected that Teresa was prone to seeking better alternatives. In their session last week, Teresa had told her that she had recently run into an ex-boyfriend of hers; five years ago she had turned down a marriage proposal from him, and now he was happily married to someone else. Dana expected that they would continue talking about that today.

d全日空的常规四点钟的任命是一个叫邓丽君的女人。 特蕾莎(Teresa)只是客户的一年多了； 她之所以寻求治疗，主要是因为她难以维持长期的恋爱关系。 达娜(Dana)最初以为她的问题源于她十几岁时父母的离婚，但现在她怀疑德兰(Teresa)倾向于寻求更好的选择。 上周，特蕾莎修女告诉她，她最近遇到了她的前男友。 五年前，她拒绝了他的求婚，现在，他快乐地嫁给了其他人。 Dana希望他们今天能继续谈论这一点。

Teresa often started her sessions with pleasantries, but not this time. As soon as she sat down she said, “I went to Crystal Ball during my lunch break today.”

特蕾莎(Teresa)常常从开胃菜开始她的课程，但这次不是。 她坐下后立即说道：“我今天午饭时间去了水晶球。”

Already suspecting the answer, Dana asked, “What did you ask them about?”

Dana已经怀疑了答案，问：“您问他们什么？”

“I asked them if they could find out what my life would look like if I had married Andrew.”

“我问他们，如果我嫁给了安德鲁，他们能否弄清楚我的生活会怎样。”

“And what did they say?”

“他们怎么说？”

“They said maybe. I hadn’t realized how it worked; a man there explained it to me.” Teresa didn’t ask if Dana was familiar with it. She needed to talk it through, which was fine; she was often able to untangle her thoughts that way with only slight prompting from Dana. “He said that my decision to marry Andrew or not didn’t cause two timelines to branch off, that only activating a prism does that. He said they could look at the prisms they had that had been activated in the months before Andrew proposed. They would send requests to the parallel versions of Crystal Ball in those branches, and their employees would look up the parallel versions of me and see if any of them were married to him. If one of me was, they could interview her and tell me what she said. But he said there was no guarantee that they’d find such a branch, and it cost money just to send the requests, so they would have to charge me whether they found one or not. Then, if I want them to interview the parallel version of me, there’d be a separate charge for that. And because they’d be using prisms that are five years old, everything would be expensive.”

他们说。 我没有意识到它是如何工作的。 那里的一个人向我解释了。” Teresa没问Dana是否熟悉。 她需要讲清楚，这很好。 她通常能够在Dana稍加提示的情况下便以这种方式解开自己的想法。 “他说，我决定嫁给安德鲁的决定并没有导致两个时间表分叉，只有激活一个棱镜才能做到。 他说，他们可以看看在安德鲁提议之前的几个月中激活过的棱镜。 他们将请求发送到这些分支机构的并行版本的Crystal Ball，而他们的员工将查找并行版本的我，看看是否有人嫁给了他。 如果我是谁，他们可以采访她并告诉我她说了什么。 但是他说，不能保证他们会找到这样的分支机构，只是发送请求要花钱，因此无论是否找到一个分支机构，他们都必须向我收费。 然后，如果我希望他们采访我的平行版本，则需要另外付费。 而且由于他们使用的棱镜已有五年历史，所以一切都会很昂贵。”

Dana was glad to hear that Crystal Ball had been honest about their claims; she knew there were data brokers out there that promised results they couldn’t deliver. “So what did you do?”

Dana很高兴听到Crystal Ball对他们的主张很诚实。 她知道那里有数据经纪人承诺无法提供结果。 “那么你做了些什么？”

“I didn’t want to do anything without talking to you first.”

“我不想在不与您交谈之前做任何事情。”

“Okay,” said Dana, “let’s talk. How did you feel after the consultation?”

“好的，”达娜说，“说吧。 咨询后您感觉如何？”

“I don’t know. I hadn’t considered the possibility that they might not be able to find a branch where I said yes to Andrew. Why wouldn’t they be able to find a branch like that?”

“我不知道。 我没有考虑过他们可能找不到我对安德鲁说“是”的分支的可能性。 他们为什么不能找到这样的分支？”

Dana considered trying to lead Teresa to the answer herself, but decided it wasn’t necessary. “It could mean that your decision to reject him wasn’t a close call. It may have felt like you were on the fence, but in fact you weren’t; your decision to turn him down was based on a deep feeling, not a whim.”

达娜(Dana)考虑尝试亲自带领特雷莎(Teresa)回答问题，但认为没有必要。 “这可能意味着您拒绝他的决定并不是一个直接的电话。 可能感觉就像您在栅栏上，但实际上您没有。 您决定拒绝他是基于深刻的感受，而不是一时的兴致。”

Teresa looked thoughtful. “That might be a good thing to know. I wonder if I ought to just have them do the search first. If they don’t find a version of me that married Andrew, then I can just stop.”

邓丽君看上去很体贴。 “这可能是一件好事。 我想知道是否应该让他们先进行搜索。 如果他们找不到与安德鲁结婚的我，我就可以停下来。”

“And if they do find a version that married Andrew, how likely is it that you’ll ask them to interview her?”

“如果他们确实找到了一个嫁给安德鲁的版本，那么你会要求他们采访她吗？”

She sighed. “A hundred percent.”

她叹了口气。 “百分之一百。”

“So what does that tell you?”

“那这告诉你什么？”

“I guess it tells me that I shouldn’t have them do the search unless I’m sure I want to know the answer.”

“我想这告诉我，除非我确定我想知道答案，否则不应该让他们进行搜索。”

“And do you want to know the answer?” asked Dana. “No, let’s put it another way. What would you like the answer to be, and what are you afraid it might be?”

“你想知道答案吗？” 达娜问。 “不，让我们换一种说法。 您希望答案是什么，您担心会是什么？”

Teresa paused for a minute. Eventually she said, “I guess what I’d like to find out is that a version of me married Andrew and then divorced him because he wasn’t the right guy for me. What I’m afraid of finding out is that a version of me married him and is now blissfully happy. Is that petty of me?”

邓丽君停了片刻。 最终她说：“我想我想发现的是，我的一个版本嫁给了安德鲁，然后与他离婚了，因为他不是我的合适人选。 我害怕发现的是，我的一个版本嫁给了他，现在幸福快乐。 这是我的小资吗？”

“Not at all,” said Dana. “Those are perfectly understandable feelings.”

“一点也不。”达娜说。 “那些感觉完全可以理解。”

“I suppose I just have to decide if I’m willing to take the risk.”

“我想我只需要决定是否愿意冒险。”

“That’s one way to think about it.”

“这是考虑的一种方式。”

“What’s another?”

“又是什么？”

“Another would be to consider whether anything you learn about the other branch would actually be helpful. It could be that nothing you find out about some other branch will change your situation here in this branch.”

“另一种方法是考虑您对另一分支机构的了解是否真的有帮助。 您可能没有发现其他分支机构会改变您在该分支机构的处境。”

Teresa frowned as she thought it over. “Maybe it wouldn’t change anything, but I’d feel better knowing that I had made the right decision.” She went silent, and Dana waited. Then Teresa asked, “Do you have other clients who’ve gone to data brokers?”

特蕾莎想着想，皱了皱眉。 “也许不会有任何改变，但我知道自己做出了正确的决定，我会感觉更好。” 她沉默了，达娜在等。 然后，特雷莎问：“您还有其他去过数据经纪人的客户吗？”

Dana nodded. “Many.”

达娜点点头。 “许多。”

“In general, do you think it’s a good idea to use one of these services?”

“总的来说，您认为使用其中一项服务是个好主意吗？”

“I don’t think there’s a general answer to that. It depends entirely on the individual.”

“我认为对此没有普遍的答案。 这完全取决于个人。”

“And you’re not going to tell me whether or not I should do it.”

“而且您不会告诉我是否应该这样做。”

Dana smiled. “You know that’s not my role.”

达娜笑了。 “你知道那不是我的职责。”

“I know, I just figured it couldn’t hurt to ask.” After a moment, Teresa said, “I’ve heard that some people become obsessed with prisms.”

“我知道，我只是想问问不会有伤害。” 片刻之后，特蕾莎修女说：“我听说有些人迷上了棱镜。”

“Yes, that can happen. I actually facilitate a support group for people whose prism use has become an issue for them.”

是的，那有可能发生。 实际上，我为那些已成为棱镜问题的人们提供了一个支持小组。”

“Really?” Teresa seemed briefly tempted to ask for details, but instead she said, “And you’re not going to warn me away from using Crystal Ball’s services?”

“真？” 特蕾莎(Teresa)似乎很想询问细节，但她说：“您不会警告我不要使用Crystal Ball的服务吗？”

“Some people have issues with alcohol, but I’m not going to advise my clients to never take a drink.”

“有些人在饮酒方面有问题，但是我不会建议我的顾客不要喝酒。”

“I suppose that makes sense.” Teresa paused, and then asked, “Have you ever used one of these services yourself?”

“我认为这是有道理的。” Teresa停顿了一下，然后问：“您自己使用过其中一种服务吗？”

Dana shook her head. “No, I haven’t.”

达娜摇了摇头。 “不，我没有。”

“Have you ever been tempted?”

“你有没有被诱惑过？”

“Not really.”

“并不是的。”

She looked at Dana curiously. “Don’t you ever wonder if you made the wrong choice?”

她好奇地看着达娜。 “您难道不知道您是否选择错误？”

I don’t have to wonder; I know. But aloud Dana said, “Of course. But I try to focus on the here and now.”

我不必怀疑； 我知道。 但是达纳大声说：“当然。 但我会尽力现在和现在。”

The two branches connected by a prism start out as perfectly identical except for the result of the quantum measurement. If a person has resolved to base a huge decision on the measurement — “If the blue LED lights up, I will detonate this bomb; otherwise, I will disarm it” — then the two branches will diverge in an obvious manner. But if no one takes any action as a result of the measurement, how much will the two branches diverge? Can a single quantum event by itself lead to visible changes between the two branches? Is it possible for broader historical forces to be studied using prisms?

吨他两个分支通过棱镜连接开始作为除了量子测量的结果完全相同。 如果一个人决定根据测量结果做出重大决定-“如果蓝色LED亮起，我将引爆这枚炸弹； 否则，我将解除武装。”-那么这两个分支将以明显的方式分叉。 但是，如果没有人根据测量结果采取任何行动，那么两个分支之间会有多少差异？ 单个量子事件本身能否导致两个分支之间的可见变化？ 有可能使用棱镜研究更广泛的历史力量吗？

These questions had been a matter of debate ever since the first demonstration of communication with a prism. When prisms with pads about a hundred kilobytes in size were developed, an atmospheric scientist named Peter Silitonga conducted a pair of experiments to settle the matter.

自从首次展示棱镜通信以来，这些问题一直是辩论的问题。 当开发出具有约百兆字节大小的垫块的棱镜时，一位名叫彼得·西利通加(Peter Silitonga)的大气科学家进行了两次实验来解决这一问题。

At the time, a prism was still a large array of laboratory equipment that used liquid nitrogen for cooling, and Silitonga required one for each of his planned experiments. Before activating them he made a number of arrangements. First he recruited volunteers in a dozen countries who were not currently pregnant but were trying to conceive children; in one year’s time, the couples who’d successfully had a child agreed to have a twenty-one-loci DNA test performed on their newborns. Then he activated the first of his prisms, typing the keyboard command that sent a photon through a polarization filter.

当时，棱镜仍然是​​大量使用液氮进行冷却的实验室设备，Silitonga的每个计划实验都需要一个。 在激活它们之前，他做了一些安排。 首先，他在十几个国家招募了志愿者，这些国家目前尚未怀孕，但正在试图怀孕。 在一年的时间里，成功生育了孩子的夫妇同意对他们的新生儿进行21位基因的DNA检测。 然后，他激活了他的第一个棱镜，输入键盘命令，该命令通过偏振滤光镜发送了一个光子。

Six months later, he scheduled a software agent to retrieve weather reports from around the globe in one month’s time. Then he activated the second of his prisms, and waited.

六个月后，他安排一个软件代理在一个月的时间内从全球范围内检索天气报告。 然后，他激活了第二个棱镜，然后等待。

Nat liked that, no matter what the issue was, support-group meetings always had coffee. She didn’t care so much whether the coffee was good or bad; what she appreciated was that holding the cup gave her something to do with her hands. And even though this support group’s location wasn’t the nicest she’d ever seen — a pretty typical church basement — the coffee was usually really good.

N at表示喜欢，无论问题是什么，支持小组会议总是喝咖啡。 她不在乎咖啡的好坏。 她欣赏的是拿着杯子给了她双手的感觉。 即使这个支持小组的位置不是她见过的最好的地方(一个非常典型的教堂地下室)，咖啡通常也很好。

Lyle was at the coffeemaker pouring himself a cup as Nat walked up. “Hey there,” he said. He handed her the cup he had just filled and started pouring another for himself.

当纳特(Nat)走上来时，莱尔(Lyle)在咖啡机旁给自己倒杯。 “嘿，”他说。 他递给她刚装满的杯子，然后开始为自己倒另一个杯子。

“Thanks, Lyle.” Lyle had been attending the group just a little longer than Nat had, about three months. Ten months ago he’d been offered a new job and couldn’t decide whether he should accept it. He’d bought a prism and used it as a coin flip: blue LED accepts the offer, red LED rejects it. The blue LED had lit up in this branch, so he took the new job while his paraself stayed at his existing job. For months they both felt happy with their situations. But after the initial novelty of the new job wore off, Lyle found himself disenchanted with his duties, while his paraself got a promotion. Lyle’s confidence was shaken. He pretended he was happy when communicating with his paraself, but he was struggling with feelings of envy and jealousy.

“谢谢，莱尔。” 莱尔(Lyle)参加该小组的时间仅比纳特(Nat)多一点，大约三个月。 十个月前，他被提供了一份新工作，无法决定是否接受。 他买了一个棱镜并将其用作硬币翻转：蓝色LED接受报价，红色LED拒绝报价。 该分支机构中的蓝色LED灯已亮起，因此他从事新工作，而副职则停留在现有工作上。 几个月来，他们俩都对自己的处境感到满意。 但是在新工作最初的新颖性消失之后，莱尔发现自己对自己的职责感到迷恋，而自己的副职得到了晋升。 莱尔的信心动摇了。 他假装自己与自己的同伴交流时很高兴，但是他却充满嫉妒和嫉妒的感觉。

Nat found them a couple of empty chairs next to each other. “You like sitting up front, right?” she asked.

纳特发现他们有几把空椅子彼此相邻。 “你喜欢坐在前面，对吗？” 她问。

“Yeah, but you don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“是的，但是如果您不想的话就不必这样做。”

“It’s fine,” she said. They sat and sipped their coffee while waiting for the meeting to start.

“很好。”她说。 他们坐在那里，一边喝咖啡，一边等待会议开始。

The group’s facilitator was a therapist named Dana. She was young, no older than Nat, but seemed to know what she was doing. Nat could have used someone like her in her previous groups. Once everyone was seated, Dana said, “Does anyone want to start us off today?”

该小组的主持人是名叫达娜(Dana)的治疗师。 她年轻，不比Nat大，但似乎知道她在做什么。 纳特本可以在以前的小组中使用像她这样的人。 大家坐好后，达娜说：“有人今天要开始我们吗？”

“I’ll go,” said Lyle.

“我去。”莱尔说。

“Okay, tell us about your week.”

“好的，告诉我们您的一周情况。”

“Well, I looked up the Becca here.” Lyle’s parallel self had been seeing a woman named Becca for months, after a chance meeting at a bar.

“好吧，我在这里仰望贝卡。” 一次在酒吧见面之后，莱尔(Lyle)的平行自我已经见过一个名叫Becca的女人几个月了。

“Bad idea, bad idea,” said Kevin, shaking his head.

“坏主意，坏主意，”凯文摇摇头说。

“Kevin, please,” said Dana.

“请凯文，”达娜说。

“Sorry, sorry.”

“实在抱歉。”

“Thanks, Dana,” said Lyle. “I messaged her, I told her why I was messaging her, I sent her a photo of my paraself and her paraself together, and I asked if I could take her out for coffee. She said sure.”

“谢谢你，达娜。”莱尔说。 “我给她发了消息，我告诉了她为什么要向她发消息，我给她发了一张我自己和她自己的照片，我问我是否可以带她出去喝咖啡。 她说肯定。”

Dana nodded for him to continue.

达娜点点头让他继续。

“We met on Saturday afternoon, and at first we seemed to hit it off. She laughed at my jokes, I laughed at hers, and I was thinking, I’ll bet this is just how it went when my paraself met her. I felt like I was living my best life.” He looked embarrassed.

“我们在周六下午见面，起初我们似乎成功了。 她笑了我的笑话，我笑了她的笑话，我在想，我敢打赌，这就是当我的同伴遇到她时的样子。 我觉得自己过着最美好的生活。” 他看上去很尴尬。

“And then it went all wrong. I was saying how great it was to meet her, and how I felt like things were turning around for me, and before I knew it I told her how using the prism had screwed things up for me. I talked about how jealous I was of my paraself for having met parallel Becca, how I was always second-guessing myself now, and on and on. And I could hear how pathetic I sounded as I was saying it. I knew I was losing her, so out of desperation I . . .” He hesitated, and then said, “I offered to let her borrow my prism so she could talk with parallel Becca, and that Becca could tell this one what a great guy I could be. You can imagine how well that went over. She was polite, but she made it clear that she didn’t want to see me again.”

“然后一切都错了。 我说的是与她会面真是太好了，我感觉自己正在发生变化，在我不知道之前，我告诉她使用棱镜如何给我带来麻烦。 我谈到了自己对遇到平行的Becca的准我自己的嫉妒心，现在我总是在不断地自我猜测。 我可以听见我说的话听起来多么可悲。 我知道我正在失去她，所以我出于绝望。 。 。” 他犹豫了一下，然后说：“我愿意让她借用我的棱镜，以便她可以与平行的Becca交谈，并且Becca可以告诉这个人我可以成为一个好人。 您可以想象，结果如何。 她很有礼貌，但她明确表示不想再见到我。”

“Thanks for sharing that, Lyle,” said Dana. She addressed the rest of the group. “Does anyone want to say anything in response?”

“非常感谢分享，莱尔，”达娜说。 她向小组其他成员致辞。 “有人想回应吗？”

This was an opportunity, but Nat wasn’t going to jump in right away. It’d be best if the other group members spoke first.

这是一个机会，但是Nat不会马上加入。 最好让其他小组成员先发言。

Kevin started. “Sorry about my earlier remark. I didn’t mean that you were dumb for trying it. What I was thinking was it sounded like something I would do, and because of that, I had a bad feeling about how it was going to turn out. I’m sorry it didn’t work out better for you.”

凯文开始。 “对不起，我刚才的话。 我并不是说您因为尝试而愚蠢。 我当时在想，这听起来像是我会做的事情，因此，我对结果的实现感觉很不好。 很抱歉，这种方法对您没有更好的效果。”

“Thanks, Kevin.”

“谢谢，凯文。”

“And really, it’s not a bad idea. The two of you have got to be compatible if your paraselves are a couple.”

“实际上，这不是一个坏主意。 如果您的同伴是一对，那么你们两个必须兼容。”

“I agree with Kevin that the two of you are compatible,” said Zareenah. “But the mistake that all of us keep making is that, when we see our paraselves experiencing good fortune, we think we’re entitled to the same good fortune.”

“我同意凯文的说法，你们两个是兼容的，”扎里耶纳说。 “但是我们所有人不断犯下的错误是，当我们看到自己的顺风顺水时，我们认为我们有资格获得同样的好运。”

“I don’t think I’m entitled to Becca,” said Lyle. “But she’s looking for someone, just like I am. If we’re compatible, shouldn’t that count for something? I know I made a bad first impression, but I feel like our compatibility should be a reason for her to overlook that.”

莱尔说：“我不认为我有资格获得贝卡。” “但是她正在找人，就像我一样。 如果我们兼容，那不值得吗？ 我知道我给人留下了不好的第一印象，但我觉得我们的兼容性应该是她忽略这一点的原因。”

“It’d be nice if she did, but she’s under no obligation to do that.”

“如果她这样做会很好，但她没有义务这样做。”

“Yeah,” said Lyle grudgingly. “I see what you’re saying. I just feel so . . . I know I say this all the time, but I feel envious. Why am I like this?”

“是的。”莱尔苦苦地说。 “我明白你在说什么。 我就是这样。 。 。 我知道我一直在这样说，但我感到嫉妒。 我为什么要这样？”

Now seemed like a good time. Nat said, “Something happened to me recently that I think might be similar to what Lyle’s going through?”

现在似乎是个好时机。 纳特说：“最近我发生了什么事，我想可能与莱尔正在经历的事情相似？”

“Go ahead,” said Dana.

“去吧，”达娜说。

“Okay, I’ve got this hobby where I make jewelry, mostly earrings. I have a little online store where people can buy them; I don’t fill the orders myself, I just upload the designs and this company fabs them and mails them to customers.” That part was all true, which was good in case anyone wanted to look at her store. “My paraself was just telling me that some influencer happened across one of our designs, and posted about how she loved them, and in the last week my paraself has sold hundreds of earrings. She actually saw someone at a coffee shop who was wearing the earrings.

“好吧，我有这个爱好，我生产珠宝，主要是耳环。 我有一个小的网上商店，人们可以在那里购买它们。 我自己不填写订单，我只是上传设计，然后由该公司制造并发送给客户。” 这部分完全正确，以防万一有人想看看她的商店。 “我的同伴只是告诉我，在我们的一项设计中发生了一些影响者，并发布了她对它们的爱戴方式。在上周，我的同伴出售了数百只耳环。 她实际上在一家咖啡店里看到一个戴着耳环的人。

“The thing is, the design that got all the attention wasn’t one she made after I activated the prism; it’s one from before. Those exact same earrings are for sale in my store in this branch, but no one’s buying them here. She’s making money for something we did before our branches diverged, but I’m not. And I resented her for it. Why is she so lucky and I’m not?” Nat saw some others nodding in sympathy.

“问题是，引起我所有关注的设计不是我在激活棱镜后所做的； 是以前的那个 这些完全相同的耳环在我的分支机构的商店中有售，但没人在这里购买。 她在为分支机构分歧之前所做的事情赚钱，但我没有。 我为此感到不满。 她为什么如此幸运，而我却不是？” 纳特看到其他人在点头表示同情。

“And I realized, this didn’t feel the same as when I see other people sell a lot of jewelry in their online stores. This is different.” She turned to face Lyle. “I don’t think I’m an envious person by nature, and I don’t think you are, either. We’re not always wanting what other people have. But with a prism, it’s not other people, it’s you. So how can you not feel like you deserve what they have? It’s natural. The problem isn’t with you, it’s with the prism.”

“而且我意识到，这与我看到其他人在其在线商店出售大量珠宝的感觉不同。 这是不同的。” 她转身面对莱尔。 “我不认为我天生是一个令人羡慕的人，我也不认为你是。 我们并不总是想要别人拥有的东西。 但是有了棱镜，不是别人，而是你。 那么，您怎么能不觉得自己应得的呢？ 很自然 问题不在于你，而是棱镜。”

“Thanks, Nat. I appreciate that.”

“谢谢，纳特。 我很感激。”

“You’re welcome.”

“别客气。”

Progress. That was definitely progress.

进展。 那绝对是进步。

Set up a rack of billiard balls and execute a flawless break. Imagine the table has no pockets and is frictionless, so the balls just keep rebounding, never coming to a stop; how accurately can you predict the path of any given ball as it collides against the others? In 1978, the physicist Michael Berry calculated that you could predict only nine collisions before you would need to account for the gravitational effect of a person standing in the room. If your initial measurement of a ball’s position is off by even a nanometer, your prediction becomes useless within a matter of seconds.

S等了台球的齿条和执行一个完美的休息。 想象一下桌上没有口袋，没有摩擦，因此球只是不断反弹，永不停止。 当给定的球与其他球碰撞时，您如何准确地预测其路径？ 1978年，物理学家迈克尔·贝里(Michael Berry)计算出，在需要考虑站立在房间里的人的引力作用之前，您只能预测9次碰撞。 如果您对球位置的初始测量值甚至偏离了纳米，那么您的预测将在几秒钟内变得无用。

The collisions between air molecules are similarly contingent and can be affected by the gravitational effect of a single atom a meter away. So even though the interior of a prism is shielded from the external environment, the result of the quantum measurement that takes place when the prism is activated can still exert an effect on the outside world, determining whether two oxygen molecules collide or whether they drift past each other. Without anyone intending it, the activation of the prism inevitably gives rise to a difference between the two branches generated. The difference is imperceptible at first, a discrepancy at the level of the thermal motion of molecules, but when air is turbulent, it takes roughly a minute for a perturbation at the microscopic level to become macroscopic, affecting eddies one centimeter in diameter.

空气分子之间的碰撞同样具有偶然性，并且可能会受到一米外的单个原子的引力作用的影响。 因此，即使棱镜的内部不受外界环境的影响，当棱镜被激活时进行的量子测量结果仍然可以对外界产生影响，从而确定两个氧分子是否发生碰撞或是否漂移过去彼此。 在没有任何人打算的情况下，棱镜的激活不可避免地会在所产生的两个分支之间产生差异。 最初的区别是不明显的，即分子热运动水平上的差异，但是当空气湍流时，微观水平上的扰动变为宏观状态大约需要一分钟，影响直径为1厘米的涡流。

For small-scale atmospheric phenomena, the effects of perturbations double in size every couple of hours. In terms of prediction, that means that an error one meter wide in your initial measurements of the atmosphere will lead to an error a kilometer wide in your prediction of the weather on the following day. At larger scales, the propagation of errors slows down due to factors like topography and the stratification of the atmosphere, but it doesn’t stop; eventually errors on the kilometer scale become errors hundreds or thousands of kilometers in size. Even if your initial measurements were so detailed that they included data about every cubic meter of the Earth’s atmosphere, your prediction of the future weather would cease to be useful within a month’s time. Increasing the resolution of the initial measurements has a limited benefit; because errors propagate so rapidly at the small scale, starting with data about every cubic centimeter of the atmosphere would prolong the accuracy of the prediction by only a matter of hours.

对于小规模的大气现象，扰动的影响每隔几个小时就会增加一倍。 就预测而言，这意味着您对大气的初始测量中出现一米宽的误差将导致您在第二天的天气预报中出现一公里宽的误差。 在较大的尺度上，由于地形和大气分层等因素，误差的传播速度减慢了，但并没有停止。 最终，千米级的误差变成数百或数千公里大小的误差。 即使您的初始测量值非常详细，以至于它包含了地球大气每立方米的数据，但您对未来天气的预测在一个月的时间内将不再有用。 增加初始测量的分辨率具有有限的好处； 因为误差在小范围内传播如此之快，所以从大约每立方厘米大气的数据开始只会将预测的准确性延长几个小时。

The growth of errors in weather prediction is identical to the divergence between the weather in the branches on opposite sides of a prism. The initial perturbation is the difference in the collision of oxygen molecules when the prism is activated, and within a month, the weather around the globe is different. Silitonga confirmed this when he and his parallel self exchanged weather reports one month after activating a prism. The weather reports were all seasonally appropriate — there was no location that experienced winter in one branch and summer in the other — but beyond that they were essentially uncorrelated. Without anyone making an effort, the two branches had diverged visibly on a worldwide scale.

天气预报误差的增长与棱镜相对两侧的分支中天气之间的差异相同。 最初的摄动是激活棱镜时氧分子碰撞的差异，一个月之内，全球各地的天气就不同了。 Silitonga在启动棱镜一个月后与他的平行自我交换天气报告证实了这一点。 天气报告均在季节上适当-在一个分支中没有地点经历过冬季而在另一个分支中没有经历过夏季-但除此之外，它们基本上是不相关的。 没有任何人的努力，这两个分支机构在全球范围内明显地分化了。

After Silitonga published these results, in a paper titled “Studying Atmospheric Upscale Error Propagation with the Plaga Interworld-Signaling Mechanism,” historians engaged in heated debates over the extent to which weather could affect the course of history. Skeptics acknowledged that it could affect individuals’ daily lives in various ways, but how often were the outcomes of history-making events decided by the weather? Silitonga didn’t participate in the debates; he was waiting for his other, yearlong prism experiment to conclude.

Silitonga在题为“使用Plaga际信号传递机制研究大气高层误差传播”的论文中发表了这些结果之后，历史学家们就天气可能影响历史进程的程度进行了激烈的辩论。 怀疑论者承认，它可能以各种方式影响个人的日常生活，但是历史事件的结果多久取决于天气呢？ Silitonga没有参加辩论。 他正在等待其他长达一年的棱镜实验结束。

There were times when the clients came in just the right order, and Wednesday afternoons were like that for Dana. The afternoon began with one of her most demanding clients, a man who asked her to make all his decisions for him, whined when she wouldn’t, and blamed her whenever he eventually did take an action. So it was a relief to see Jorge immediately afterward, a breath of fresh air to clear out her office. The issues he was dealing with weren’t the most interesting she’d ever seen, but she liked having him as a client. Jorge was funny and kind, and always well-intentioned; he was tentative about the therapeutic process, but they’d been making steady progress on his poor self-image and the negative attitudes that were holding him back.

Ť这里好几次的客户排在了正确的顺序，周三下午是这样的达纳。 下午从她最苛刻的客户之一开始，一个男人要求她为他做出所有决定，在她不愿意时发牢骚，并在他最终采取行动时责备她。 因此，很高兴见到豪尔赫，立即呼吸新鲜空气清理她的办公室。 他正在处理的问题并不是她见过的最有趣的事情，但是她喜欢让他担任客户。 豪尔赫风趣幽默，善良友善，一向善意。 他对治疗过程不满意，但由于他不良的自我形象和使他退缩的消极态度，他们一直在稳步发展。

Four weeks ago there had been an incident. Jorge’s manager at work was a mean-spirited tyrant who belittled everyone who worked for him; one of the ongoing themes of Dana’s sessions with Jorge was helping him to ignore his manager’s insults. One day, Jorge had lost his temper and punctured all four tires of his manager’s car when he was alone in the parking lot. Enough time had passed that it seemed like there was no risk of him getting caught, and while part of him wanted to pretend that it had never happened, part of him still felt terrible about what he’d done.

四周前发生了一起事件。 豪尔赫(Jorge)工作的经理是一个刻薄的暴君，鄙视为他工作的每个人; 达娜(Dana)与豪尔赫(Jorge)会谈的持续主题之一是帮助他无视经理的侮辱。 有一天，当乔治一个人在停车场时，他发脾气，刺穿了经理车的四个轮胎。 足够的时间过去了，似乎没有被他抓住的风险，虽然他的一部分想假装这从未发生过，但他的一部分仍然对自己的所作所为感到恐惧。

They began their session with some small talk; Dana got the sense that Jorge had something he wanted to say. She looked at him expectantly, and he said, “After our session last week, I went to one of those prism brokers, Lydoscope.”

他们以闲聊开始他们的会议。 Dana感觉到Jorge有话要说。 她满怀期待地看着他，他说：“上周我们开会后，我去了一家棱镜经纪公司，Lydoscope。”

Dana was surprised. “Really? What for?”

达娜很惊讶。 “真？ 做什么的？”

“I wanted to see how many versions of me acted the same way I did.”

“我想看看我有多少版本的行为与以前相同。”

“Tell me more.”

“告诉我更多。”

“I asked them to send questions to six versions of me. Since it’s such a recent departure point, it was cheap, so I asked for video. This morning they sent me a bunch of video files, recordings of what my paraselves said.”

“我要求他们向我的六个版本发送问题。 由于这是最近的出发点，因此价格便宜，因此我要求提供视频。 今天早上，他们给我发送了一堆视频文件，记录了我的自以为是的声音。”

“And what did you learn?”

“那你学到了什么？”

“None of my paraselves have punctured their manager’s tires. All of them said they’ve fantasized about it. One came really close on the same day that I did it, but he stopped himself.”

“我所有的抛弃者都没有刺穿经理的轮胎。 他们所有人都说他们已经幻想了。 我这样做的那天真的很接近，但他停了下来。”

“What do you think that means?”

“你认为那意味着什么？”

“It means that my puncturing his tires was a freak accident. The fact that I did it doesn’t say anything important about me as a person.”

“这意味着我刺破他的轮胎是一次怪胎事故。 我这样做的事实并没有说明我作为一个人的重要之处。”

Dana knew of people using prisms in a similar way, but it was usually someone justifying their actions by pointing out they might have done something worse. She hadn’t encountered this particular version of it before, where the defense was based on their parallel selves behaving better. She certainly hadn’t expected it from Jorge. “So you think your paraselves’ behavior is a reflection on you?”

达纳(Dana)知道人们以类似的方式使用棱镜，但通常是有人指出他们可能做得更糟，以此为自己的行为辩护。 她以前从未遇到过这种特殊的版本，在这种情况下，防御是基于他们的平行自我表现得更好。 她当然没想到豪尔赫。 “所以你认为自己的抛弃行为是对你的反映？”

“The branches they checked, they were all ones where the departure point was just a month before the incident. That means that those paraselves were just the same as me; they hadn’t had time to become different people.”

“他们检查的分支机构都是在事件发生前一个月才出发的分支机构。 那意味着那些抛物线和我一样。 他们没有时间成为不同的人。”

She nodded; he was right about that. “Do you think the fact that you vandalized your manager’s car is canceled out by the fact that your paraselves didn’t?”

她点点头。 他对此是正确的。 “您认为破坏您的经理人的车的事实被您的抛弃者的事实所抵消吗？”

“Not canceled out, but it’s an indicator of the type of person I am. If all of my paraselves had punctured his tires, that would indicate something significant about my personality. That’s something Sharon would need to know about.” Jorge hadn’t told his wife about what he’d done; he’d been too ashamed. “But the fact that they didn’t means that I’m fundamentally not a violent person, so telling Sharon about what happened would give her the wrong idea.”

“并没有被取消，但这表明了我是什么样的人。 如果我所有的顺手刺破了他的轮胎，那将表明我的性格有重要意义。 这是沙龙需要知道的事情。” 豪尔赫没有告诉妻子他做了什么。 他太as愧了。 “但是事实上，他们并不意味着我根本不是一个暴力的人，所以向沙龙讲述发生的事情将使她产生错误的想法。”

Getting him to tell his wife everything was something they’d have to build up to. “So how do you feel, now that you’ve gotten this information?”

让他告诉妻子一切都是他们必须建立的。 “那么，既然您已经获得了这些信息，您的感觉如何？”

“Relief, I suppose,” said Jorge. “I was worried about what it meant that I had done that. But now I’m not so worried.”

“我想救济，”豪尔赫说。 “我担心这样做的意义。 但是现在我不那么担心了。”

“Tell me more about that feeling of relief.”

“告诉我更多关于这种放松的感觉。”

“I feel like . . .” Jorge fidgeted in his chair as he searched for the words. Eventually he said, “I guess I feel like I got the results of a medical test back, and I’m in the clear.”

“我觉得像 。 。 。” 豪尔赫(Jorge)在寻找这些词时坐立不安。 最终，他说：“我想我感觉得到了医学检查的结果，而且我很清楚。”

“Like you might have been sick, but it turns out you’re not.”

“就像你可能生病了，但事实证明你没有生病。”

“Yes! It was nothing serious. It’s not something that’s going to be a recurring thing with me.”

“是！ 没什么大不了的。 对我而言，这不是反复发生的事情。”

Dana decided to take a chance. “So let’s think of it as a medical test. You had some symptoms that might have indicated something serious, like cancer. But it turns out you don’t have cancer.”

达娜决定冒险。 “因此，我们将其视为医学检验。 您有一些症状可能表明某些严重症状，例如癌症。 但事实证明，您没有癌症。”

“Right!”

“对！”

“Of course it’s great that you don’t have cancer. But you still had those symptoms. Isn’t it worth figuring out what it was that gave you those symptoms?”

“当然，您不会得癌症真是太好了。 但是您仍然有那些症状。 弄清楚给您带来这些症状的原因不是值得的吗？”

Jorge looked blank. “If it’s not cancer, what does it matter?”

豪尔赫显得茫然。 “如果不是癌症，那有什么关系？”

“Well, it could be something else, something it’d help you to know about.”

“嗯，这可能是另外一些东西，可以帮助您了解的东西。”

“I got the answer I needed.” He shrugged. “That’s good enough for now.”

“我得到了所需的答案。” 他耸了耸肩。 “That's good enough for now.”

“Okay, that’s fine,” said Dana. No sense in pushing the issue. She was sure he’d get there eventually.

“Okay, that's fine,” said Dana. No sense in pushing the issue. She was sure he'd get there eventually.

It’s a commonly held belief that you would have been born in any branch where your parents met and had children, but no one’s birth is inevitable. Silitonga intended his yearlong experiment to show how the act of conception was highly contingent on circumstances, including the day’s weather.

I t's a commonly held belief that you would have been born in any branch where your parents met and had children, but no one's birth is inevitable. Silitonga intended his yearlong experiment to show how the act of conception was highly contingent on circumstances, including the day's weather.

Ovulation is a gradual and regulated process, so the same egg cell emerges from the follicle no matter whether it’s raining or shining that day. The sperm cell that reaches that egg, however, is like a winning Ping-Pong ball siphoned from a lottery drum as it rotates; it’s the result of utterly random forces. Even if the external circumstances surrounding an act of intercourse appear identical in the two branches, it takes only an imperceptible discrepancy to cause one spermatozoon to fuse with the ovum rather than another. Consequently, as soon as weather patterns are visibly different in two branches, all instances of fertilization are affected. Nine months later, every mother around the globe is giving birth to a different infant in each of the two branches. This is immediately evident when the child is a boy in one branch and a girl in the other, but it remains true even when the children are the same sex. The newly christened Dylan in one branch is not the same as the Dylan in the other; the two are siblings.

Ovulation is a gradual and regulated process, so the same egg cell emerges from the follicle no matter whether it's raining or shining that day. The sperm cell that reaches that egg, however, is like a winning Ping-Pong ball siphoned from a lottery drum as it rotates; it's the result of utterly random forces. Even if the external circumstances surrounding an act of intercourse appear identical in the two branches, it takes only an imperceptible discrepancy to cause one spermatozoon to fuse with the ovum rather than another. Consequently, as soon as weather patterns are visibly different in two branches, all instances of fertilization are affected. Nine months later, every mother around the globe is giving birth to a different infant in each of the two branches. This is immediately evident when the child is a boy in one branch and a girl in the other, but it remains true even when the children are the same sex. The newly christened Dylan in one branch is not the same as the Dylan in the other; the two are siblings.

This is what Silitonga demonstrated when he and his parallel self exchanged the DNA tests of infants born a year after activating a prism, in a paper titled “The Effect of Atmospheric Turbulence on Human Conception.” He had used a different prism from the one in his “Error Propagation” paper to avoid the question of whether the publication of that experiment’s results had somehow created divergences that wouldn’t have otherwise occurred. At the time of these children’s conceptions, there had been no communication at all between the two branches. Every child had a different chromosomal makeup than their counterpart in the other branch, and the only possible cause had been the outcome of a single quantum measurement.

This is what Silitonga demonstrated when he and his parallel self exchanged the DNA tests of infants born a year after activating a prism, in a paper titled “The Effect of Atmospheric Turbulence on Human Conception.” He had used a different prism from the one in his “Error Propagation” paper to avoid the question of whether the publication of that experiment's results had somehow created divergences that wouldn't have otherwise occurred. At the time of these children's conceptions, there had been no communication at all between the two branches. Every child had a different chromosomal makeup than their counterpart in the other branch, and the only possible cause had been the outcome of a single quantum measurement.

Some people still argued that the broader course of history wouldn’t change between the two branches, but it became a more difficult case to make. Silitonga had shown that the smallest change imaginable would eventually have global repercussions. For a hypothetical time traveler who wanted to prevent Hitler’s rise to power, the minimal intervention wasn’t smothering the baby Adolf in his crib; all that was needed was to travel back to a month before his conception and disturb an oxygen molecule. Not only would this replace Adolf with a sibling, it would replace everyone his age or younger. By 1920 that would have composed half of the world’s population.

Some people still argued that the broader course of history wouldn't change between the two branches, but it became a more difficult case to make. Silitonga had shown that the smallest change imaginable would eventually have global repercussions. For a hypothetical time traveler who wanted to prevent Hitler's rise to power, the minimal intervention wasn't smothering the baby Adolf in his crib; all that was needed was to travel back to a month before his conception and disturb an oxygen molecule. Not only would this replace Adolf with a sibling, it would replace everyone his age or younger. By 1920 that would have composed half of the world's population.

Morrow had started working at SelfTalk around the same time as Nat, so neither had been an employee back when the company was thriving. When prisms were something only corporations could afford, people were happy to go to a store to communicate with parallel versions of themselves. Now that it was possible for people to buy their own prisms, SelfTalk had only a few locations left, and their customers were mostly teenagers whose parents didn’t let them use prisms or senior citizens who were unsophisticated enough that they still found the idea of paraselves a novelty.

M orrow had started working at SelfTalk around the same time as Nat, so neither had been an employee back when the company was thriving. When prisms were something only corporations could afford, people were happy to go to a store to communicate with parallel versions of themselves. Now that it was possible for people to buy their own prisms, SelfTalk had only a few locations left, and their customers were mostly teenagers whose parents didn't let them use prisms or senior citizens who were unsophisticated enough that they still found the idea of paraselves a novelty.

Nat had been content to keep her head down, but Morrow had always had plans. He was promoted to store manager after coming up with a way to get new customers. Every time they got a new prism, he checked the accident reports from a month after a prism’s activation date and sent targeted advertisements to the people involved. They were often unable to resist the chance to get a glimpse of their lives if things had gone differently. None of them became long-term customers — most of them were depressed by what they learned — but they were a reliable way of generating revenue from every new prism acquired.

Nat had been content to keep her head down, but Morrow had always had plans. He was promoted to store manager after coming up with a way to get new customers. Every time they got a new prism, he checked the accident reports from a month after a prism's activation date and sent targeted advertisements to the people involved. They were often unable to resist the chance to get a glimpse of their lives if things had gone differently. None of them became long-term customers — most of them were depressed by what they learned — but they were a reliable way of generating revenue from every new prism acquired.

At the nursing home, Morrow waited just outside the door to Mrs. Oehlsen’s room while she talked to her paraself. Now they were using video for their conversations instead of text; she knew she didn’t have long left, so there was no point in conserving the prism’s pad for later. This made things difficult for the parallel Mrs. Oehlsen, though, who was now actually watching a version of herself die. Their conversation was strained — Morrow had left a microphone in the room so he could listen to them through an earpiece — although the dying Mrs. Oehlsen didn’t seem to notice.

At the nursing home, Morrow waited just outside the door to Mrs. Oehlsen's room while she talked to her paraself. Now they were using video for their conversations instead of text; she knew she didn't have long left, so there was no point in conserving the prism's pad for later. This made things difficult for the parallel Mrs. Oehlsen, though, who was now actually watching a version of herself die. Their conversation was strained — Morrow had left a microphone in the room so he could listen to them through an earpiece — although the dying Mrs. Oehlsen didn't seem to notice.

When they were done, Mrs. Oehlsen raised her voice slightly to tell Morrow to come back in. “How did your conversation go?” he asked.

When they were done, Mrs. Oehlsen raised her voice slightly to tell Morrow to come back in. “How did your conversation go?” 他问。

“Fine,” she said. Her breathing was labored. “If there’s one person you can talk to without pretense, it’s your own self.”

“Fine,” she said. Her breathing was labored. “If there's one person you can talk to without pretense, it's your own self.”

Morrow lifted the prism from the overbed table and repacked it into the carton. “Mrs. Oehlsen, if you don’t mind, I’d like to suggest something.”

Morrow lifted the prism from the overbed table and repacked it into the carton. “Mrs. Oehlsen, if you don't mind, I'd like to suggest something.”

“Go ahead.”

“Go ahead.”

“You’ve said you don’t know anyone who really deserves your money. If you really feel that way, maybe you ought to give the money to your paraself.”

“You've said you don't know anyone who really deserves your money. If you really feel that way, maybe you ought to give the money to your paraself.”

“You can do that?”

“You can do that?”

Confidence was the key to selling any lie. “Money is just another form of information,” he said. “We can transmit it through a prism the same way that we transmit audio or video information.”

Confidence was the key to selling any lie. “Money is just another form of information,” he said. “We can transmit it through a prism the same way that we transmit audio or video information.”

“Hmm, that’s an interesting idea. I know she’d put it to better use than my son would.” Her face puckered slightly as she thought about him. “How would I go about that? Would I ask my lawyer to adjust my will?”

“Hmm, that's an interesting idea. I know she'd put it to better use than my son would.” Her face puckered slightly as she thought about him. “How would I go about that? Would I ask my lawyer to adjust my will?”

“You could, but it will take some time before your estate is settled, and you might want to transfer the money sooner rather than later.”

“You could, but it will take some time before your estate is settled, and you might want to transfer the money sooner rather than later.”

“Why is that?”

“Why is that?”

“There’s a new law that goes into effect next month.” He pulled out his phone and showed her an article he had dummied up. “The government wants to discourage people from moving money out of this timeline, so they’re imposing a fifty-percent tax on fund transfers to other timelines. If you send the money before the law goes into effect, you can avoid that tax.” He could see from her expression that the idea appealed to her. “SelfTalk could handle it for you right away.”

“There's a new law that goes into effect next month.” He pulled out his phone and showed her an article he had dummied up. “The government wants to discourage people from moving money out of this timeline, so they're imposing a fifty-percent tax on fund transfers to other timelines. If you send the money before the law goes into effect, you can avoid that tax.” He could see from her expression that the idea appealed to her. “SelfTalk could handle it for you right away.”

“Make the arrangements,” she said. “We’ll do it when you visit next week.”

“Make the arrangements,” she said. “We'll do it when you visit next week.”

“I’ll have everything ready,” said Morrow.

“I'll have everything ready,” said Morrow.

When he got back to SelfTalk, Morrow used the prism to send a message to his parallel self, asking him to play along. The two of them would tell the parallel Mrs. Oehlsen that this one was becoming delusional from the pain medication, believing that she had sent money across the prism, and it would be better to humor her in her remaining days. That would probably suffice, but if necessary, they could always put an end to the video conversations altogether by saying that another client had unexpectedly exhausted the prism’s pad.

When he got back to SelfTalk, Morrow used the prism to send a message to his parallel self, asking him to play along. The two of them would tell the parallel Mrs. Oehlsen that this one was becoming delusional from the pain medication, believing that she had sent money across the prism, and it would be better to humor her in her remaining days. That would probably suffice, but if necessary, they could always put an end to the video conversations altogether by saying that another client had unexpectedly exhausted the prism's pad.

Once that was done, Morrow began setting up the dummy account to receive the funds. He wasn’t expecting a fortune from this; Mrs. Oehlsen presumably had some money saved, but she wasn’t wealthy. The big score would come, if they were lucky, from Nat’s support group.

Once that was done, Morrow began setting up the dummy account to receive the funds. He wasn't expecting a fortune from this; Mrs. Oehlsen presumably had some money saved, but she wasn't wealthy. The big score would come, if they were lucky, from Nat's support group.

As part of his job for SelfTalk, Morrow maintained a list of support groups for people struggling with their prisms. He knew some people in those groups would wind up selling their prisms, so he’d regularly go to the churches and community centers where those groups met and put up flyers: WE’LL BUY YOUR PRISM; TOP DOLLAR PAID. Three months ago Morrow had been stapling a flyer to a bulletin board when a couple of support group members were standing nearby, cups of coffee in their hand, chatting before the room opened up. Morrow could hear them talking.

As part of his job for SelfTalk, Morrow maintained a list of support groups for people struggling with their prisms. He knew some people in those groups would wind up selling their prisms, so he'd regularly go to the churches and community centers where those groups met and put up flyers: WE'LL BUY YOUR PRISM; TOP DOLLAR PAID. Three months ago Morrow had been stapling a flyer to a bulletin board when a couple of support group members were standing nearby, cups of coffee in their hand, chatting before the room opened up. Morrow could hear them talking.

“Do you ever wonder if you ruined someone else’s life by activating your prism?”

“Do you ever wonder if you ruined someone else's life by activating your prism?”

“What do you mean?”

“你什么意思？”

“Like, maybe someone might die in a car crash in the other branch but not in this one, and all because you activated the prism.”

“Like, maybe someone might die in a car crash in the other branch but not in this one, and all because you activated the prism.”

“Now that you mention it, you remember that car crash in Hollywood a few months back? In my paraself ’s branch, Scott died in that crash instead of Roderick.”

“Now that you mention it, you remember that car crash in Hollywood a few months back? In my paraself 's branch, Scott died in that crash instead of Roderick.”

“That’s exactly the sort of thing I mean. You activating the prism had a huge impact on someone else’s life. Do you ever think about that?”

“That's exactly the sort of thing I mean. You activating the prism had a huge impact on someone else's life. Do you ever think about that?”

“Not really. Maybe I’m too self-absorbed, but I’m usually thinking about my own life.”

“Not really. Maybe I'm too self-absorbed, but I'm usually thinking about my own life.”

The guy had been talking about a celebrity couple, pop singer Scott Otsuka and movie star Roderick Ferris. They’d been en route to a movie premiere when their limousine had been hit by a drunk driver; Roderick had been killed, and Scott was left a grieving widower. But this guy’s prism connected to a branch where Scott had been the one who was killed and Roderick was the survivor.

The guy had been talking about a celebrity couple, pop singer Scott Otsuka and movie star Roderick Ferris. They'd been en route to a movie premiere when their limousine had been hit by a drunk driver; Roderick had been killed, and Scott was left a grieving widower. But this guy's prism connected to a branch where Scott had been the one who was killed and Roderick was the survivor.

That prism could be worth a lot of money, but Morrow couldn’t just go up to him and offer to buy it. So he had sent Nat into the group to pretend she was someone wanting to kick her prism habit. The guy’s name was Lyle, and her job was to make friends with him. Nothing sexual — Morrow knew better than to ask her to do that — just a support-group buddy, someone he liked and trusted. That way she could gently nudge him in the direction of giving up his prism. And when he was ready, Nat would tell him she was ready to get rid of hers, too, and she knew someone who was paying good prices for used prisms, so how about the two of them sell theirs together? And then she’d bring Lyle to SelfTalk, where Morrow would buy both of their prisms.

That prism could be worth a lot of money, but Morrow couldn't just go up to him and offer to buy it. So he had sent Nat into the group to pretend she was someone wanting to kick her prism habit. The guy's name was Lyle, and her job was to make friends with him. Nothing sexual — Morrow knew better than to ask her to do that — just a support-group buddy, someone he liked and trusted. That way she could gently nudge him in the direction of giving up his prism. And when he was ready, Nat would tell him she was ready to get rid of hers, too, and she knew someone who was paying good prices for used prisms, so how about the two of them sell theirs together? And then she'd bring Lyle to SelfTalk, where Morrow would buy both of their prisms.

Then Morrow would arrange a visit with Scott Otsuka and offer to sell him a prism that let him talk with his dead husband.

Then Morrow would arrange a visit with Scott Otsuka and offer to sell him a prism that let him talk with his dead husband.

No prism would ever allow communication to a branch that had split off prior to its moment of activation, so there’d be no reports from branches where Kennedy hadn’t been assassinated or where the Mongols had invaded western Europe. By the same token, there were no fortunes to be made by patenting inventions gleaned from branches where technological progress had taken a different route. If there were going to be any practical benefits gained from using a prism, they would have to derive from subsequent divergences, not earlier ones.

No prism would ever allow communication to a branch that had split off prior to its moment of activation, so there'd be no reports from branches where Kennedy hadn't been assassinated or where the Mongols had invaded western Europe. By the same token, there were no fortunes to be made by patenting inventions gleaned from branches where technological progress had taken a different route. If there were going to be any practical benefits gained from using a prism, they would have to derive from subsequent divergences, not earlier ones.

Occasionally, random variations made it possible to avert an accident: once, when a passenger plane crashed, the FAA notified its counterpart in another branch, which was able to ground its version of the plane and perform a closer inspection, identifying a component in the hydraulic system that was on the verge of failing. But there was nothing to be done about accidents caused by human error, which were different in every branch. Nor was it possible to send advance notice of natural disasters: a hurricane in one said nothing about the likelihood of a hurricane in another, while earthquakes happened simultaneously in every branch, so no early warning was possible.

Occasionally, random variations made it possible to avert an accident: once, when a passenger plane crashed, the FAA notified its counterpart in another branch, which was able to ground its version of the plane and perform a closer inspection, identifying a component in the hydraulic system that was on the verge of failing. But there was nothing to be done about accidents caused by human error, which were different in every branch. Nor was it possible to send advance notice of natural disasters: a hurricane in one said nothing about the likelihood of a hurricane in another, while earthquakes happened simultaneously in every branch, so no early warning was possible.

An army general purchased a prism because he thought he’d be able to use a branch as a supremely realistic military simulation: he intended to have his parallel self make an aggressive move in the other branch so they could see what the response was. He discovered the flaw in this plan as soon as he communicated with his parallel self, who intended to use him in exactly the same way. Every branch was of paramount importance to its inhabitants; no one was willing to act as a guinea pig for anyone else.

An army general purchased a prism because he thought he'd be able to use a branch as a supremely realistic military simulation: he intended to have his parallel self make an aggressive move in the other branch so they could see what the response was. He discovered the flaw in this plan as soon as he communicated with his parallel self, who intended to use him in exactly the same way. Every branch was of paramount importance to its inhabitants; no one was willing to act as a guinea pig for anyone else.

What prisms did offer was a way to study the mechanisms of historical change. Researchers began comparing news headlines across branches, looking for discrepancies and then investigating their causes. In some cases the divergence arose from an explicitly random event, such as a wanted fugitive being arrested during a traffic stop. In other cases the divergence was the result of an individual choosing different actions in two branches, in which case researchers would request an interview, but if the person was a public figure, they rarely offered details on why they had made the choice they did. For cases that didn’t fall into those categories, the researchers had to comb through the news stories from the preceding weeks to try to identify the causes of the discrepancy, which usually led to scrutinizing the stochastic jitters of the stock market or social media.

What prisms did offer was a way to study the mechanisms of historical change. Researchers began comparing news headlines across branches, looking for discrepancies and then investigating their causes. In some cases the divergence arose from an explicitly random event, such as a wanted fugitive being arrested during a traffic stop. In other cases the divergence was the result of an individual choosing different actions in two branches, in which case researchers would request an interview, but if the person was a public figure, they rarely offered details on why they had made the choice they did. For cases that didn't fall into those categories, the researchers had to comb through the news stories from the preceding weeks to try to identify the causes of the discrepancy, which usually led to scrutinizing the stochastic jitters of the stock market or social media.

Then the researchers would continue to monitor the news over the following weeks and months to see how the divergences grew over time. They looked for a classic “for want of a nail, a kingdom was lost” scenario, where the ripples expanded steadily but in an intelligible manner. Instead what they found were other small discrepancies, unrelated to the one they’d originally discovered; the weather was instigating changes everywhere, all the time. By the time a significant political divergence was observed, it was difficult to ascertain what the cause had been. The problem was exacerbated by the fact that every study had to end once a prism’s pad was exhausted; no matter how interesting any particular divergence might be, the connection between branches was always temporary.

Then the researchers would continue to monitor the news over the following weeks and months to see how the divergences grew over time. They looked for a classic “for want of a nail, a kingdom was lost” scenario, where the ripples expanded steadily but in an intelligible manner. Instead what they found were other small discrepancies, unrelated to the one they'd originally discovered; the weather was instigating changes everywhere, all the time. By the time a significant political divergence was observed, it was difficult to ascertain what the cause had been. The problem was exacerbated by the fact that every study had to end once a prism's pad was exhausted; no matter how interesting any particular divergence might be, the connection between branches was always temporary.

In the private sector, entrepreneurs realized that while the information obtained from prisms had limited instrumental value, it was something that could be sold as content to consumers. A new kind of data broker emerged: a company would exchange news about current events with its parallel versions and sell the information to subscribers. Sports news and celebrity gossip were the easiest to sell; people were often just as interested in what their favorite stars did in other branches as in what they did in their own. Hard-core sports fans collected information from multiple branches and argued about which team had the best overall performance and whether that was more important than their performance in any individual branch. Readers compared different versions of novels published in different branches, with the result that authors faced competition from pirated copies of books they might have written. As prisms with larger pads were developed, the same thing began happening with music, and then film.

In the private sector, entrepreneurs realized that while the information obtained from prisms had limited instrumental value, it was something that could be sold as content to consumers. A new kind of data broker emerged: a company would exchange news about current events with its parallel versions and sell the information to subscribers. Sports news and celebrity gossip were the easiest to sell; people were often just as interested in what their favorite stars did in other branches as in what they did in their own. Hard-core sports fans collected information from multiple branches and argued about which team had the best overall performance and whether that was more important than their performance in any individual branch. Readers compared different versions of novels published in different branches, with the result that authors faced competition from pirated copies of books they might have written. As prisms with larger pads were developed, the same thing began happening with music, and then film.

At the first meeting she attended, Nat had been incredulous at the things its attendees talked about: a man obsessively worried that his paraself was having more fun than he was, a woman trapped in a spiral of doubt because her paraself voted for a different candidate than she did. Were these the sorts of things regular people thought of as problems? Waking up covered in your own vomit; having to fuck your dealer because you couldn’t scrape together enough cash: those were real problems. Nat had momentarily fantasized about telling everyone in the group they should just get over themselves, but of course she didn’t, and not just because it would have blown her cover. She was in no position to judge these people. So what if they felt sorry for themselves? Better to wallow in self-pity over nothing than to have actually screwed up your life.

At the first meeting she attended, Nat had been incredulous at the things its attendees talked about: a man obsessively worried that his paraself was having more fun than he was, a woman trapped in a spiral of doubt because her paraself voted for a different candidate than she did. Were these the sorts of things regular people thought of as problems? Waking up covered in your own vomit; having to fuck your dealer because you couldn't scrape together enough cash: those were real problems. Nat had momentarily fantasized about telling everyone in the group they should just get over themselves, but of course she didn't, and not just because it would have blown her cover. She was in no position to judge these people. So what if they felt sorry for themselves? Better to wallow in self-pity over nothing than to have actually screwed up your life.

Nat had moved out here to get a fresh start, away from the people and places that could trigger a relapse. The job at SelfTalk wasn’t great, but it was good to earn an honest paycheck, and she mostly liked hanging out with Morrow. His side hustles had been fun; she’d always been good at that sort of thing, and she told herself that it helped keep her from relapsing, because the pleasure of conning people was a safe substitute for getting high. Lately, though, Nat had begun to feel that she was just fooling herself about that. Even if she wasn’t spending the money on drugs, these little scams would probably lead her back to using again. It’d be better for her to get away from all of it; she had to find a different job, away from Morrow, and that probably meant relocating again. But she needed money to do that, so she had to keep working with Morrow before she’d be able to not work with him anymore.

Nat had moved out here to get a fresh start, away from the people and places that could trigger a relapse. The job at SelfTalk wasn't great, but it was good to earn an honest paycheck, and she mostly liked hanging out with Morrow. His side hustles had been fun; she'd always been good at that sort of thing, and she told herself that it helped keep her from relapsing, because the pleasure of conning people was a safe substitute for getting high. Lately, though, Nat had begun to feel that she was just fooling herself about that. Even if she wasn't spending the money on drugs, these little scams would probably lead her back to using again. It'd be better for her to get away from all of it; she had to find a different job, away from Morrow, and that probably meant relocating again. But she needed money to do that, so she had to keep working with Morrow before she'd be able to not work with him anymore.

Zareenah was talking. “My niece is a senior in high school, and for the last few months it’s been college application season. This week they heard back, and she did pretty well; she was accepted to three schools. I was feeling good about it until I was chatting with my paraself.

Zareenah was talking. “My niece is a senior in high school, and for the last few months it's been college application season. This week they heard back, and she did pretty well; she was accepted to three schools. I was feeling good about it until I was chatting with my paraself.

“It turns out that my paraself’s niece got accepted to Vassar, which was her first choice. But here in this branch, that’s one of the schools that rejected my niece. Everything different between our two branches is a result of my activating the prism, right? So I’m the cause of my niece getting rejected. I’m to blame.”

“It turns out that my paraself's niece got accepted to Vassar, which was her first choice. But here in this branch, that's one of the schools that rejected my niece. Everything different between our two branches is a result of my activating the prism, right? So I'm the cause of my niece getting rejected. I'm to blame.”

“You’re assuming that if you hadn’t activated the prism, your niece would have gotten accepted,” said Kevin. “But that’s not necessarily true.”

“You're assuming that if you hadn't activated the prism, your niece would have gotten accepted,” said Kevin. “But that's not necessarily true.”

Zareenah started tearing apart a tissue she held in her hands, a habit of hers when talking about herself. “But that means my paraself did something to help her niece, something I didn’t do in this branch. So I’m to blame through my inaction.”

Zareenah started tearing apart a tissue she held in her hands, a habit of hers when talking about herself. “But that means my paraself did something to help her niece, something I didn't do in this branch. So I'm to blame through my inaction.”

“You’re not to blame,” said Lyle.

“You're not to blame,” said Lyle.

“But everything different is because of my prism.”

“But everything different is because of my prism.”

“That doesn’t mean it’s your fault.”

“That doesn't mean it's your fault.”

“How can it not be?”

“How can it not be?”

At a loss, Lyle turned to Dana for help. Dana asked Zareenah, “Aside from Vassar, were there any other differences in the acceptances and rejections that your niece and her paraself got?”

At a loss, Lyle turned to Dana for help. Dana asked Zareenah, “Aside from Vassar, were there any other differences in the acceptances and rejections that your niece and her paraself got?”

“No, the rest are the same.”

“No, the rest are the same.”

“So we can assume that your niece’s overall application package was equally strong in both branches.”

“So we can assume that your niece's overall application package was equally strong in both branches.”

“Yes,” she said firmly. “She’s a smart girl, and nothing I do is going to change that.”

“Yes,” she said firmly. “She's a smart girl, and nothing I do is going to change that.”

“So let’s speculate for a minute. Why would Vassar accept your niece in the other branch but not in this one?”

“So let's speculate for a minute. Why would Vassar accept your niece in the other branch but not in this one?”

“I don’t know,” said Zareenah.

“I don't know,” said Zareenah.

Dana looked around the room. “Does anyone else have any ideas?”

Dana looked around the room. “Does anyone else have any ideas?”

Lyle said, “Maybe the admissions officer in this branch was having a bad day when he reviewed her application.”

Lyle said, “Maybe the admissions officer in this branch was having a bad day when he reviewed her application.”

“And what might have caused him to have a bad day?”

“And what might have caused him to have a bad day?”

Nat had to feign interest, so she participated. “Maybe someone cut him off in traffic that morning.”

Nat had to feign interest, so she participated. “Maybe someone cut him off in traffic that morning.”

“Or he dropped his phone in the toilet,” said Kevin.

“Or he dropped his phone in the toilet,” said Kevin.

“Or both,” said Lyle.

“Or both,” said Lyle.

To Zareenah, Dana said, “Are any of those foreseeable consequences of actions you took?”

To Zareenah, Dana said, “Are any of those foreseeable consequences of actions you took?”

“No,” admitted Zareenah. “I guess not.”

“No,” admitted Zareenah. “I guess not.”

“They’re just random results of the weather being different between the two branches. And anything can cause the weather to be different. If we looked, I’m sure we could find a hundred people whose prisms connect a branch where your niece was rejected. If the same thing happens in branches where you acted differently, then you aren’t the cause.”

“They're just random results of the weather being different between the two branches. And anything can cause the weather to be different. If we looked, I'm sure we could find a hundred people whose prisms connect a branch where your niece was rejected. If the same thing happens in branches where you acted differently, then you aren't the cause.”

“But I still feel like it’s my fault.”

“But I still feel like it's my fault.”

Dana nodded. “We like the idea that there’s always someone responsible for any given event, because that helps us make sense of the world. We like that so much that sometimes we blame ourselves, just so that there’s someone to blame. But not everything is under our control, or even anyone’s control.”

Dana nodded. “We like the idea that there's always someone responsible for any given event, because that helps us make sense of the world. We like that so much that sometimes we blame ourselves, just so that there's someone to blame. But not everything is under our control, or even anyone's control.”

“I can see it’s not a rational response, but I feel it anyway,” said Zareenah. “I think I’m prone to feeling guilty about my sister . . .” She paused. “Because of our history.”

“I can see it's not a rational response, but I feel it anyway,” said Zareenah. “I think I'm prone to feeling guilty about my sister . 。 。” 她停了下来。 “Because of our history.”

“Do you want to talk about that?” asked Dana.

“Do you want to talk about that?” asked Dana.

Zareenah hesitated, and then went on. “Years ago, when we were teenagers, we both studied dance, but she was much better than me. She got an audition to attend Juilliard, but I was so jealous that I sabotaged her.”

Zareenah hesitated, and then went on. “Years ago, when we were teenagers, we both studied dance, but she was much better than me. She got an audition to attend Juilliard, but I was so jealous that I sabotaged her.”

Now this was interesting: legitimately bad behavior. Nat hadn’t heard anything like this in the group before, but she was careful not to lean forward too eagerly.

Now this was interesting: legitimately bad behavior. Nat hadn't heard anything like this in the group before, but she was careful not to lean forward too eagerly.

“I put caffeine in her water bottle because I knew that would throw her off. She didn’t get accepted.” Zareenah put her face in her hands. “I feel like I can never make up for what I’ve done. You probably can’t relate to that.”

“I put caffeine in her water bottle because I knew that would throw her off. She didn't get accepted.” Zareenah put her face in her hands. “I feel like I can never make up for what I've done. You probably can't relate to that.”

A pained look crossed Dana’s face, but she quickly rearranged her expression. “We’ve all made mistakes,” she said. “Believe me, I’ve made my share. But there’s a difference between accepting responsibility for our actions and taking the blame for random misfortunes.”

A pained look crossed Dana's face, but she quickly rearranged her expression. “We've all made mistakes,” she said. “Believe me, I've made my share. But there's a difference between accepting responsibility for our actions and taking the blame for random misfortunes.”

Nat studied Dana as she spoke. Dana’s face had returned to its usual calm acceptance, but her momentary loss of composure had caught Nat’s attention. She’d never seen that in a group facilitator before. The one time she heard a facilitator in rehab recount his past, it was a guy who was so practiced at it that his story sounded like part of a sales pitch. It made her curious: What had Dana done that she felt so guilty about?

Nat studied Dana as she spoke. Dana's face had returned to its usual calm acceptance, but her momentary loss of composure had caught Nat's attention. She'd never seen that in a group facilitator before. The one time she heard a facilitator in rehab recount his past, it was a guy who was so practiced at it that his story sounded like part of a sales pitch. It made her curious: What had Dana done that she felt so guilty about?

As prisms with larger pads became available, data brokers began offering personal research services for people who wanted to learn about the other paths their lives might have taken. This was a much riskier venture than selling news from other branches, for a couple reasons. First, it might take years before the divergences had grown large enough to be interesting, and the brokers had to stockpile prisms, activating them but not exchanging any information, saving their pads for use later. Second, it required a higher level of cooperation between the parallel versions of the company. If customer Jill wanted to know about her parallel selves, several versions of the company would have to do research in their branches, but Jill could only pay the version in her branch; there was no way for money to be shared across branches. The hope was that cross-branch cooperation would enable every version of a company to get paying customers in their branch, and over time this would work to everyone’s advantage: a form of reciprocal altruism between all of the company’s parallel versions.

As prisms with larger pads became available, data brokers began offering personal research services for people who wanted to learn about the other paths their lives might have taken. This was a much riskier venture than selling news from other branches, for a couple reasons. First, it might take years before the divergences had grown large enough to be interesting, and the brokers had to stockpile prisms, activating them but not exchanging any information, saving their pads for use later. Second, it required a higher level of cooperation between the parallel versions of the company. If customer Jill wanted to know about her parallel selves, several versions of the company would have to do research in their branches, but Jill could only pay the version in her branch; there was no way for money to be shared across branches. The hope was that cross-branch cooperation would enable every version of a company to get paying customers in their branch, and over time this would work to everyone's advantage: a form of reciprocal altruism between all of the company's parallel versions.

Predictably, some individuals became depressed after learning that their parallel selves had enjoyed successes that they themselves hadn’t. For a time there was concern that these private queries would gain a reputation as a product that made buyers unhappy. However, most people decided that they liked more things about their life than they did about their parallel selves’ lives, and so concluded that they had made the right decisions. While this was likely just confirmation bias, it was common enough that personal research services remained a profitable business for data brokers.

Predictably, some individuals became depressed after learning that their parallel selves had enjoyed successes that they themselves hadn't. For a time there was concern that these private queries would gain a reputation as a product that made buyers unhappy. However, most people decided that they liked more things about their life than they did about their parallel selves' lives, and so concluded that they had made the right decisions. While this was likely just confirmation bias, it was common enough that personal research services remained a profitable business for data brokers.

Some people avoided the data brokers entirely, afraid of what they might learn, while others became obsessed with them. There were married couples where one person fell into the former category while the other fell into the latter, which often led to divorce. Data brokers made various attempts to expand their customer base, but rarely met with success. The product that was most successful at winning over naysayers was one aimed at those who had lost a loved one: the data brokers would find a branch where the person was still alive and forward their social-media updates, so the bereaved could see the life their loved one might have lived. This practice only solidified the most common criticism offered by pundits: that data brokers were promoting unhealthy behavior in their customers.

Some people avoided the data brokers entirely, afraid of what they might learn, while others became obsessed with them. There were married couples where one person fell into the former category while the other fell into the latter, which often led to divorce. Data brokers made various attempts to expand their customer base, but rarely met with success. The product that was most successful at winning over naysayers was one aimed at those who had lost a loved one: the data brokers would find a branch where the person was still alive and forward their social-media updates, so the bereaved could see the life their loved one might have lived. This practice only solidified the most common criticism offered by pundits: that data brokers were promoting unhealthy behavior in their customers.

Nat expected that Morrow would be satisfied for a while given the success of his plan with Mrs. Oehlsen. The woman had transferred some money into a dummy account a couple weeks ago, and her parallel self had bought the story about confusion from the pain meds. Now that Mrs. Oehlsen had passed away, everything was wrapped up tidily. But instead of being content with that, Morrow now seemed more eager than ever for a bigger score.

N at expected that Morrow would be satisfied for a while given the success of his plan with Mrs. Oehlsen. The woman had transferred some money into a dummy account a couple weeks ago, and her parallel self had bought the story about confusion from the pain meds. Now that Mrs. Oehlsen had passed away, everything was wrapped up tidily. But instead of being content with that, Morrow now seemed more eager than ever for a bigger score.

They were in the office at SelfTalk eating tacos that Morrow had brought from a food truck two blocks away when he raised the topic. “Where are we with Lyle?” he asked.

They were in the office at SelfTalk eating tacos that Morrow had brought from a food truck two blocks away when he raised the topic. “Where are we with Lyle?” 他问。

“I’m making progress,” said Nat. “I can tell he’s thinking that he’d be happier without a prism.”

“I'm making progress,” said Nat. “I can tell he's thinking that he'd be happier without a prism.”

Morrow finished his taco and drained his can of soda. “We can’t just sit around waiting for him to decide to give up his prism.”

Morrow finished his taco and drained his can of soda. “We can't just sit around waiting for him to decide to give up his prism.”

Nat frowned at him. “‘Just sit around’? You think that’s what I’ve been doing?”

Nat frowned at him. “'Just sit around'? You think that's what I've been doing?”

He waved a hand at her. “Take it easy, I didn’t mean anything by it. But it’s no good for us if he hangs on to that prism for years. We need to make him want to get rid of it.”

He waved a hand at her. “Take it easy, I didn't mean anything by it. But it's no good for us if he hangs on to that prism for years. We need to make him want to get rid of it.”

“I know, and that’s exactly what I’ve been working on.”

“I know, and that's exactly what I've been working on.”

“I was thinking about something more concrete.”

“I was thinking about something more concrete.”

“Like what?”

“Like what?”

“I know a guy, he works with a crew doing identity theft. I could ask him to target Lyle, ruin his credit. After that, Lyle really won’t want to hear about how well his paraself is doing.”

“I know a guy, he works with a crew doing identity theft. I could ask him to target Lyle, ruin his credit. After that, Lyle really won't want to hear about how well his paraself is doing.”

Nat grimaced. “Is that the sort of thing we’re doing now?”

Nat grimaced. “Is that the sort of thing we're doing now?”

He shrugged. “If there were a way to make Lyle’s parallel life look better, I’d be fine with that, but that’s not an option. The only thing we can do is make his life here look worse.”

他耸了耸肩。 “If there were a way to make Lyle's parallel life look better, I'd be fine with that, but that's not an option. The only thing we can do is make his life here look worse.”

A plea based on squeamishness wouldn’t sway Morrow; she needed a more pragmatic argument. “You don’t want to make him so miserable that he holds on to the prism as his only connection to a happy life.”

A plea based on squeamishness wouldn't sway Morrow; she needed a more pragmatic argument. “You don't want to make him so miserable that he holds on to the prism as his only connection to a happy life.”

That seemed to work. “You’ve got a point there,” he admitted.

That seemed to work. “You've got a point there,” he admitted.

“Give me a few more meetings before you do that.”

“Give me a few more meetings before you do that.”

Morrow crumpled up his paper food tray and empty soda can and tossed them into the wastebasket. “All right, we’ll try it your way for a while longer. But you’ve got to speed things up.”

Morrow crumpled up his paper food tray and empty soda can and tossed them into the wastebasket. “All right, we'll try it your way for a while longer. But you've got to speed things up.”

She nodded. “I have an idea.”

她点点头。 “I have an idea.”

Dana was a little surprised when Nat announced to the group that she had sold her prism; in previous meetings she hadn’t gotten the feeling that Nat was ready to make the leap, although she knew it wasn’t always possible to anticipate these things. Nat seemed to be happy with her decision, but that was typical; everyone felt good when they first quit. She did notice that Nat very subtly checked Lyle’s reaction to her announcement, something that Dana had seen her doing before. It didn’t appear that Nat’s interest was romantic, or if it was, she wasn’t pursuing it, maybe so as to not complicate things while she worked on her own issues.

D ana was a little surprised when Nat announced to the group that she had sold her prism; in previous meetings she hadn't gotten the feeling that Nat was ready to make the leap, although she knew it wasn't always possible to anticipate these things. Nat seemed to be happy with her decision, but that was typical; everyone felt good when they first quit. She did notice that Nat very subtly checked Lyle's reaction to her announcement, something that Dana had seen her doing before. It didn't appear that Nat's interest was romantic, or if it was, she wasn't pursuing it, maybe so as to not complicate things while she worked on her own issues.

At the next meeting Nat talked for longer than usual, describing the ways she felt her attitude had improved since giving up the prism. While she wasn’t overly effusive, Dana was a little concerned that she might have unrealistic expectations and was setting herself up for a fall. Kevin expressed a similar sentiment, somewhat indelicately, and he seemed to be motivated more by envy than compassion; he’d been in the group much longer than Nat, and in all that time had made only modest progress. Fortunately, Nat didn’t become defensive; she said that she understood that getting rid of her prism hadn’t magically solved all the problems in her life. Then the group spent the rest of the meeting focusing on Kevin and what he’d been going through in the last week, without Dana having to steer them at all.

At the next meeting Nat talked for longer than usual, describing the ways she felt her attitude had improved since giving up the prism. While she wasn't overly effusive, Dana was a little concerned that she might have unrealistic expectations and was setting herself up for a fall. Kevin expressed a similar sentiment, somewhat indelicately, and he seemed to be motivated more by envy than compassion; he'd been in the group much longer than Nat, and in all that time had made only modest progress. Fortunately, Nat didn't become defensive; she said that she understood that getting rid of her prism hadn't magically solved all the problems in her life. Then the group spent the rest of the meeting focusing on Kevin and what he'd been going through in the last week, without Dana having to steer them at all.

She was feeling pretty pleased about both the group and herself afterward, but her good mood didn’t last long. She had just taken the coffeemaker back to the church kitchen and was locking up the meeting room when Vinessa showed up.

She was feeling pretty pleased about both the group and herself afterward, but her good mood didn't last long. She had just taken the coffeemaker back to the church kitchen and was locking up the meeting room when Vinessa showed up.

“Hey Dana.”

“Hey Dana.”

“Vinessa? What are you doing here?”

“Vinessa? 你在这里做什么？”

“I looked for you at your office,” Vinessa explained, “but you weren’t there, so I figured I’d try here.”

“I looked for you at your office,” Vinessa explained, “but you weren't there, so I figured I'd try here.”

“What’s up?”

“这是怎么回事？”

“It’s about the money.”

“It's about the money.”

Of course it was; Vinessa had decided to go back to school and had asked Dana for help with the tuition. “What about it?”

Of course it was; Vinessa had decided to go back to school and had asked Dana for help with the tuition. “那呢？”

“I need it now. The enrollment period is closing this week.”

“I need it now. The enrollment period is closing this week.”

“This week? The last time we talked about this, you were saying this fall.”

“This week? The last time we talked about this, you were saying this fall.”

“Yeah, I know, but I decided that the sooner I started, the better. So can you get me the money this week?”

“Yeah, I know, but I decided that the sooner I started, the better. So can you get me the money this week?”

Dana hesitated, thinking about how she would have to rearrange her budget.

Dana hesitated, thinking about how she would have to rearrange her budget.

“Are you changing your mind?”

“Are you changing your mind?”

“No — ”

“No — ”

“Because I took you at your word before, and I made plans based on that. But if you’re changing your mind, say so.”

“Because I took you at your word before, and I made plans based on that. But if you're changing your mind, say so.”

“No, no, I can get it to you. I’ll send it to you tomorrow, okay?”

“No, no, I can get it to you. I'll send it to you tomorrow, okay?”

“Great, thanks. You won’t be sorry, I promise. I’m going to make it work this time.”

“Great, thanks. You won't be sorry, I promise. I'm going to make it work this time.”

“I know you will.”

“I know you will.”

The two of them stood there awkwardly for a moment, and then Vinessa left. As Dana watched her walk away, she wondered what was the right word to describe their relationship.

The two of them stood there awkwardly for a moment, and then Vinessa left. As Dana watched her walk away, she wondered what was the right word to describe their relationship.

Back in high school they’d been best friends. They spent all their time together, confided in each other, reduced each other to tears laughing. More than that, Dana had admired the way Vinessa didn’t care what anyone thought, how she refused to be boxed in; she got good grades because it was easy for her, and then openly mocked the teachers until they had no choice but to give her detention. Sometimes Dana wished she could have been as brave, but she was too comfortable with the role of teacher’s pet to do anything that might jeopardize that.

Back in high school they'd been best friends. They spent all their time together, confided in each other, reduced each other to tears laughing. More than that, Dana had admired the way Vinessa didn't care what anyone thought, how she refused to be boxed in; she got good grades because it was easy for her, and then openly mocked the teachers until they had no choice but to give her detention. Sometimes Dana wished she could have been as brave, but she was too comfortable with the role of teacher's pet to do anything that might jeopardize that.

Then came the field trip to Washington, D.C. The two of them had planned to host a party in their hotel room for their last evening in the city, but there was the problem of what to do if a teacher knocked on the door: alcohol was too hard to hide, marijuana too easy to smell. Instead they collected Vicodin from their parents’ medicine cabinets, leftovers from Dana’s father’s gum surgery and Vinessa’s mother’s hysterectomy, enough for them and their friends.

Then came the field trip to Washington, DC The two of them had planned to host a party in their hotel room for their last evening in the city, but there was the problem of what to do if a teacher knocked on the door: alcohol was too hard to hide, marijuana too easy to smell. Instead they collected Vicodin from their parents' medicine cabinets, leftovers from Dana's father's gum surgery and Vinessa's mother's hysterectomy, enough for them and their friends.

What they hadn’t counted on was that one of the teachers had borrowed a key card from housekeeping to do surprise room checks. The very first night, Ms. Archer came in just as the two of them were recounting their stash, two dozen pills arranged in neat rows across the top of the dresser.

What they hadn't counted on was that one of the teachers had borrowed a key card from housekeeping to do surprise room checks. The very first night, Ms. Archer came in just as the two of them were recounting their stash, two dozen pills arranged in neat rows across the top of the dresser.

“What in the world is going on here?”

“What in the world is going on here?”

They both stood there for a long moment, mute as statues. Dana could see all her future plans evaporating like morning mist.

They both stood there for a long moment, mute as statues. Dana could see all her future plans evaporating like morning mist.

“Neither of you have anything to say?”

“Neither of you have anything to say?”

That was when she said it. “They’re Vinessa’s.”

That was when she said it. “They're Vinessa's.”

And Vinessa looked at her, more shocked than anything else. She could have denied it, but they both knew it wouldn’t change anything, that Dana would be believed and Vinessa wouldn’t. There was a moment when Dana could have taken back what she said, when she could have confessed the truth, but she didn’t.

And Vinessa looked at her, more shocked than anything else. She could have denied it, but they both knew it wouldn't change anything, that Dana would be believed and Vinessa wouldn't. There was a moment when Dana could have taken back what she said, when she could have confessed the truth, but she didn't.

Vinessa was suspended. When she returned to school, she pointedly ignored Dana, for which Dana could hardly blame her, but that wasn’t the end of it. Angry at the world, she began acting out: shoplifting, staying out all night, coming to school drunk or stoned, and hanging out with kids who did the same. Her grades plummeted, and her chances of getting into a good college vanished. It was as if, before that night, Vinessa had been balanced on a knife’s edge; she could have become either what society considered a good girl or a bad girl. Dana’s lie had pushed her off the edge, onto the side of being bad, and with that label the course of Vinessa’s life had taken a different direction.

Vinessa was suspended. When she returned to school, she pointedly ignored Dana, for which Dana could hardly blame her, but that wasn't the end of it. Angry at the world, she began acting out: shoplifting, staying out all night, coming to school drunk or stoned, and hanging out with kids who did the same. Her grades plummeted, and her chances of getting into a good college vanished. It was as if, before that night, Vinessa had been balanced on a knife's edge; she could have become either what society considered a good girl or a bad girl. Dana's lie had pushed her off the edge, onto the side of being bad, and with that label the course of Vinessa's life had taken a different direction.

They lost touch after that, but Dana ran into her several years later. Vinessa told her she forgave her, said she understood why Dana had done it. Now, after some time in jail and a stint in rehab, she was trying to get her life back on track; she wanted to take classes at a community college, but she couldn’t afford the tuition on her own, and her parents had given up on her. Dana had immediately offered to help.

They lost touch after that, but Dana ran into her several years later. Vinessa told her she forgave her, said she understood why Dana had done it. Now, after some time in jail and a stint in rehab, she was trying to get her life back on track; she wanted to take classes at a community college, but she couldn't afford the tuition on her own, and her parents had given up on her. Dana had immediately offered to help.

That first attempt hadn’t been a success; Vinessa had discovered that she couldn’t engage with college on an emotional level and dropped out. Later on she had tried to start her own business online, and asked Dana for some money to help her get off the ground. That hadn’t worked out, either; she had misjudged the expenses involved. Now she had an idea for another venture, but she wasn’t asking Dana for money for it. Vinessa’s plan was to take the classes needed for her to draw up a sound business proposal, which she would present to potential investors. And so now she was asking Dana for tuition money again.

That first attempt hadn't been a success; Vinessa had discovered that she couldn't engage with college on an emotional level and dropped out. Later on she had tried to start her own business online, and asked Dana for some money to help her get off the ground. That hadn't worked out, either; she had misjudged the expenses involved. Now she had an idea for another venture, but she wasn't asking Dana for money for it. Vinessa's plan was to take the classes needed for her to draw up a sound business proposal, which she would present to potential investors. And so now she was asking Dana for tuition money again.

Dana knew Vinessa was taking advantage of her feelings of guilt, but it didn’t matter. Dana was guilty. She owed her.

Dana knew Vinessa was taking advantage of her feelings of guilt, but it didn't matter. Dana was guilty. She owed her.

Nat was coming out of the restroom when she heard Dana talking to someone just around the corner, in the hallway. Nat stopped, leaned against the wall, and held her phone up to her ear as camouflage. Then she slid over until she could eavesdrop: someone was getting money out of Dana, but it wasn’t clear what the situation was. Was this woman running some kind of scam? Nat told herself she ought to find out more, just to make sure that there weren’t any surprises that could affect what she and Morrow were doing, but mostly she was just curious.

N at was coming out of the restroom when she heard Dana talking to someone just around the corner, in the hallway. Nat stopped, leaned against the wall, and held her phone up to her ear as camouflage. Then she slid over until she could eavesdrop: someone was getting money out of Dana, but it wasn't clear what the situation was. Was this woman running some kind of scam? Nat told herself she ought to find out more, just to make sure that there weren't any surprises that could affect what she and Morrow were doing, but mostly she was just curious.

She went outside and caught up with the woman. “Excuse me, but do you know Dana?”

She went outside and caught up with the woman. “Excuse me, but do you know Dana?”

The woman eyed her suspiciously. “Why do you want to know?”

The woman eyed her suspiciously. “Why do you want to know?”

“I’m in a support group that she facilitates. I was just about to leave when I saw you two talking. I couldn’t hear what you were saying, but it looked like you were angry with her. I was just wondering if you had been in a group she facilitated, or been a patient of hers, and had a bad experience with her. I don’t mean to pry, I’m just wondering if there’s anything I ought to know about Dana.”

“I'm in a support group that she facilitates. I was just about to leave when I saw you two talking. I couldn't hear what you were saying, but it looked like you were angry with her. I was just wondering if you had been in a group she facilitated, or been a patient of hers, and had a bad experience with her. I don't mean to pry, I'm just wondering if there's anything I ought to know about Dana.”

The woman chuckled. “That’s an interesting question. What kind of group are you in?”

The woman chuckled. “That's an interesting question. What kind of group are you in?”

“It’s for people who have issues with using prisms,” said Nat. At the dismissive look on the woman’s face, Nat decided to play a hunch. “I used to be in NA before, though.”

“It's for people who have issues with using prisms,” said Nat. At the dismissive look on the woman's face, Nat decided to play a hunch. “I used to be in NA before, though.”

She gave a single nod. “But Dana wasn’t your facilitator for that, was she?”

She gave a single nod. “But Dana wasn't your facilitator for that, was she?”

“No.”

“没有。”

“Good, because I wouldn’t trust her with that. For that prism stuff, though, I’m sure she’s fine. You’ve got nothing to worry about.”

“Good, because I wouldn't trust her with that. For that prism stuff, though, I'm sure she's fine. You've got nothing to worry about.”

“Can you tell me why you wouldn’t trust her for an NA group?”

“Can you tell me why you wouldn't trust her for an NA group?”

She considered it, and then shrugged. “Sure, why not. Drinks are on you.”

She considered it, and then shrugged. “Sure, why not. Drinks are on you.”

They went to a nearby bar. The woman’s name was Vinessa, and Nat bought her a Maker’s Mark while sticking with a cranberry and soda for herself. Nat told a sanitized version of her history of drug use, one that could plausibly dovetail with her cover in the support group; she didn’t think Vinessa would mention this conversation to Dana, but it couldn’t hurt to be careful. Once she was satisfied with Nat’s cred, Vinessa started talking about her own past; she explained that she’d had all the potential in the world when she was in high school, that she’d been on the path to a prestigious college and a charmed life. It all came to an end when her best friend had betrayed her, selling her out to protect her own prospects. Ever since then Vinessa had been traveling a hard road, a road that she was getting off only now.

They went to a nearby bar. The woman's name was Vinessa, and Nat bought her a Maker's Mark while sticking with a cranberry and soda for herself. Nat told a sanitized version of her history of drug use, one that could plausibly dovetail with her cover in the support group; she didn't think Vinessa would mention this conversation to Dana, but it couldn't hurt to be careful. Once she was satisfied with Nat's cred, Vinessa started talking about her own past; she explained that she'd had all the potential in the world when she was in high school, that she'd been on the path to a prestigious college and a charmed life. It all came to an end when her best friend had betrayed her, selling her out to protect her own prospects. Ever since then Vinessa had been traveling a hard road, a road that she was getting off only now.

“Which is why I wouldn’t want her for an NA group. You can’t trust her not to turn you in.”

“Which is why I wouldn't want her for an NA group. You can't trust her not to turn you in.”

“Everything that happens in those groups is supposed to be confidential,” said Nat.

“Everything that happens in those groups is supposed to be confidential,” said Nat.

“So is a secret between best friends!” Some other people in the bar turned to look at them. Vinessa resumed at a regular speaking volume, “It’s not like she’s the worst person I’ve ever met; at least she has the decency to feel bad about what she did. But there are people you can count on for anything, and then there are people you can count on only for some things, and you’ve got to know who’s who.”

“So is a secret between best friends!” Some other people in the bar turned to look at them. Vinessa resumed at a regular speaking volume, “It's not like she's the worst person I've ever met; at least she has the decency to feel bad about what she did. But there are people you can count on for anything, and then there are people you can count on only for some things, and you've got to know who's who.”

“You still see her, though.”

“You still see her, though.”

“Well, like I said, Dana’s good for some things. My point is she’s not good for everything. I learned that the hard way.”

“Well, like I said, Dana's good for some things. My point is she's not good for everything. I learned that the hard way.”

Then Vinessa started talking about her plans to start her own business. Nat didn’t ask her about the money that she was getting from Dana, but she could tell it wasn’t a deliberate scam. Vinessa was just using Dana, offering her a chance to atone for her sins by providing financial support for Vinessa’s latest venture. Nat thanked Vinessa and promised she wouldn’t mention their conversation to anyone, and then headed home.

Then Vinessa started talking about her plans to start her own business. Nat didn't ask her about the money that she was getting from Dana, but she could tell it wasn't a deliberate scam. Vinessa was just using Dana, offering her a chance to atone for her sins by providing financial support for Vinessa's latest venture. Nat thanked Vinessa and promised she wouldn't mention their conversation to anyone, and then headed home.

Nat used to be like Vinessa, always blaming someone else for her problems. For years she believed it was her parents’ fault that she was arrested for breaking and entering, because if they hadn’t changed the locks on their house, she wouldn’t have had to break in to find something she could sell for drug money. It had taken a long time for Nat to take responsibility for the things she did. Clearly Vinessa hadn’t gotten there yet, and maybe it was because in Dana she had found someone willing to accept the blame. Dana had done something shitty to Vinessa, no doubt about it, but that was years ago. If Vinessa hadn’t gotten her act together by now, it was her own fault, not Dana’s.

Nat used to be like Vinessa, always blaming someone else for her problems. For years she believed it was her parents' fault that she was arrested for breaking and entering, because if they hadn't changed the locks on their house, she wouldn't have had to break in to find something she could sell for drug money. It had taken a long time for Nat to take responsibility for the things she did. Clearly Vinessa hadn't gotten there yet, and maybe it was because in Dana she had found someone willing to accept the blame. Dana had done something shitty to Vinessa, no doubt about it, but that was years ago. If Vinessa hadn't gotten her act together by now, it was her own fault, not Dana's.

When prisms became affordable to individual consumers, retailers initially advertised them as a private alternative to visiting a data broker. They targeted new parents, encouraging them to buy one now, activate it, and store it until their child was an adult, at which point the child could see how her life might have gone differently. This approach won a few customers, but not nearly the numbers that retailers had hoped for. Instead, it turned out that when people were able to buy prisms themselves, they found uses for them beyond exploring scenarios of “what might have been.”

W hen prisms became affordable to individual consumers, retailers initially advertised them as a private alternative to visiting a data broker. They targeted new parents, encouraging them to buy one now, activate it, and store it until their child was an adult, at which point the child could see how her life might have gone differently. This approach won a few customers, but not nearly the numbers that retailers had hoped for. Instead, it turned out that when people were able to buy prisms themselves, they found uses for them beyond exploring scenarios of “what might have been.”

A popular use of a prism was to enable collaboration with yourself, increasing your productivity by dividing the tasks on a project between your two versions; each of you did one half the job, and then you shared the results. Some individuals tried to buy multiple prisms so that they’d be part of a team consisting solely of versions of themselves, but not all the parallel selves were in direct contact with each other, which meant that information needed to be relayed from one to another, consuming the prisms’ pads faster. A number of projects came to an abrupt end because someone had underestimated their data usage, exhausting the prism before the work done in one branch could be transmitted, leaving it forever inaccessible.

A popular use of a prism was to enable collaboration with yourself, increasing your productivity by dividing the tasks on a project between your two versions; each of you did one half the job, and then you shared the results. Some individuals tried to buy multiple prisms so that they'd be part of a team consisting solely of versions of themselves, but not all the parallel selves were in direct contact with each other, which meant that information needed to be relayed from one to another, consuming the prisms' pads faster. A number of projects came to an abrupt end because someone had underestimated their data usage, exhausting the prism before the work done in one branch could be transmitted, leaving it forever inaccessible.

More than data brokers, the availability of private prisms had an enormous impact on the public imagination; even people who never used prisms found themselves thinking about the enormous role that contingency played in their lives. Some people experienced identity crises, feeling that their sense of self was undermined by the countless parallel versions of themselves. A few bought multiple prisms and tried to keep all their parallel selves in sync, forcing everyone to maintain the same course even as their respective branches diverged. This proved to be unworkable in the long term, but proponents of this practice simply bought more prisms and repeated their efforts with a new set of parallel selves, arguing that any attempt to reduce their dispersal was worthwhile.

More than data brokers, the availability of private prisms had an enormous impact on the public imagination; even people who never used prisms found themselves thinking about the enormous role that contingency played in their lives. Some people experienced identity crises, feeling that their sense of self was undermined by the countless parallel versions of themselves. A few bought multiple prisms and tried to keep all their parallel selves in sync, forcing everyone to maintain the same course even as their respective branches diverged. This proved to be unworkable in the long term, but proponents of this practice simply bought more prisms and repeated their efforts with a new set of parallel selves, arguing that any attempt to reduce their dispersal was worthwhile.

Many worried that their choices were rendered meaningless because every action they took was counterbalanced by a branch in which they had made the opposite choice. Experts tried to explain that human decision-making was a classical rather than quantum phenomenon, so the act of making a choice didn’t by itself cause new branches to split; it was quantum phenomena that generated new branches, and your choices in those branches were as meaningful as they ever were. Despite such efforts, many people became convinced that prisms nullified the moral weight of their actions.

Many worried that their choices were rendered meaningless because every action they took was counterbalanced by a branch in which they had made the opposite choice. Experts tried to explain that human decision-making was a classical rather than quantum phenomenon, so the act of making a choice didn't by itself cause new branches to split; it was quantum phenomena that generated new branches, and your choices in those branches were as meaningful as they ever were. Despite such efforts, many people became convinced that prisms nullified the moral weight of their actions.

Few acted so rashly as to commit murder or other felonies; the consequences of your actions still fell on you in this branch, not any other. But there was a shift in behavior that, while falling short of a mass outbreak of criminality, was readily discernible by social scientists. Edgar Allan Poe had used the phrase “the imp of the perverse” to describe the temptation to do the wrong thing simply because you could, and for many people the imp had become more persuasive.

Few acted so rashly as to commit murder or other felonies; the consequences of your actions still fell on you in this branch, not any other. But there was a shift in behavior that, while falling short of a mass outbreak of criminality, was readily discernible by social scientists. Edgar Allan Poe had used the phrase “the imp of the perverse” to describe the temptation to do the wrong thing simply because you could, and for many people the imp had become more persuasive.

Not for the first time, Nat wished there were some way to tell how Lyle felt about his prism, some visible gauge of her progress. A month had gone by since her gambit of announcing she had given up her prism, and while she knew Lyle was closer to giving his up than when she started, she had no way of telling how much longer it would be. Another month? Another six months? Morrow’s patience would run out soon, and then they’d have to try something more drastic.

N ot for the first time, Nat wished there were some way to tell how Lyle felt about his prism, some visible gauge of her progress. A month had gone by since her gambit of announcing she had given up her prism, and while she knew Lyle was closer to giving his up than when she started, she had no way of telling how much longer it would be. Another month? Another six months? Morrow's patience would run out soon, and then they'd have to try something more drastic.

Once everyone was seated, Lyle volunteered to go first. He turned to Dana. “When I first started attending this group, you said one of the goals was to have a healthy relationship with your paraself.”

Once everyone was seated, Lyle volunteered to go first. He turned to Dana. “When I first started attending this group, you said one of the goals was to have a healthy relationship with your paraself.”

“One of the possible goals, yes,” said Dana.

“One of the possible goals, yes,” said Dana.

“The other day I was talking to this guy who goes to the same gym I go to, and he seems to have that. He says he and his paraself are friends, they exchange tips that they’ve learned, they encourage each other to do better. It sounded amazing.”

“The other day I was talking to this guy who goes to the same gym I go to, and he seems to have that. He says he and his paraself are friends, they exchange tips that they've learned, they encourage each other to do better. It sounded amazing.”

Nat was immediately alert. Was Lyle resolving to make that his goal? That would be a disaster. If he was set on that, even Morrow’s plan wouldn’t be enough to get him to sell his prism.

Nat was immediately alert. Was Lyle resolving to make that his goal? That would be a disaster. If he was set on that, even Morrow's plan wouldn't be enough to get him to sell his prism.

“And I realized that I will never, ever have that kind of relationship with my paraself. So I’ve decided that I’m going to get rid of my prism.”

“And I realized that I will never, ever have that kind of relationship with my paraself. So I've decided that I'm going to get rid of my prism.”

Nat was so relieved that for a moment she thought it must have been obvious to the others, but no one noticed. Zareenah asked Lyle, “Did you talk it over with your paraself?”

Nat was so relieved that for a moment she thought it must have been obvious to the others, but no one noticed. Zareenah asked Lyle, “Did you talk it over with your paraself?”

“Yeah. At first he suggested we just take a break for a while but still hang on to our prisms. I had thought about doing that before, because then I could show him when things were going better for me. But a couple meetings back, Nat mentioned that she didn’t need to prove anything to anyone. I think that keeping my prism would just keep me in that mind-set, wanting to prove something. So I told my paraself that, and he understood. We’re going to sell our prisms.”

“Yeah. At first he suggested we just take a break for a while but still hang on to our prisms. I had thought about doing that before, because then I could show him when things were going better for me. But a couple meetings back, Nat mentioned that she didn't need to prove anything to anyone. I think that keeping my prism would just keep me in that mind-set, wanting to prove something. So I told my paraself that, and he understood. We're going to sell our prisms.”

Kevin said, “Just because your relationship with your paraself isn’t perfect doesn’t mean you have to give it up. That’s like saying if your marriage isn’t fairy-tale happy all the time, you don’t want to be married at all.”

Kevin said, “Just because your relationship with your paraself isn't perfect doesn't mean you have to give it up. That's like saying if your marriage isn't fairy-tale happy all the time, you don't want to be married at all.”

“I don’t think it’s like that,” said Zareenah. “Maintaining your marriage is a lot more important than maintaining your relationship with your paraself. Everyone got by just fine before prisms were invented.”

“I don't think it's like that,” said Zareenah. “Maintaining your marriage is a lot more important than maintaining your relationship with your paraself. Everyone got by just fine before prisms were invented.”

“But is getting rid of your prism going to be what everyone in this group is expected to do? First Nat, now you. I don’t know if I want to give up my prism.”

“But is getting rid of your prism going to be what everyone in this group is expected to do? First Nat, now you. I don't know if I want to give up my prism.”

“Don’t worry, Kevin,” said Dana. “You get to choose what your goal is. Not everyone has to have the same one.”

“Don't worry, Kevin,” said Dana. “You get to choose what your goal is. Not everyone has to have the same one.”

The group spent some more time reassuring Kevin and discussing the validity of different ways of living with prisms. When the meeting was over, Nat went to talk to Lyle. “I think you’re making the right decision,” she told him.

The group spent some more time reassuring Kevin and discussing the validity of different ways of living with prisms. When the meeting was over, Nat went to talk to Lyle. “I think you're making the right decision,” she told him.

“Thanks, Nat. You definitely helped me make it.”

“Thanks, Nat. You definitely helped me make it.”

“I’m glad.” Now came the crucial part. Nat was surprised by how nervous she felt. As casually as she could, she said, “You know what, you should sell your prism at the same place I sold mine. They’ll give you and your paraself a good price.”

“I'm glad.” Now came the crucial part. Nat was surprised by how nervous she felt. As casually as she could, she said, “You know what, you should sell your prism at the same place I sold mine. They'll give you and your paraself a good price.”

“Really? What’s it called?”

“真？ What's it called?”

“SelfTalk, on Fourth Street.”

“SelfTalk, on Fourth Street.”

“Oh yeah, I think I saw a flyer of theirs around here.”

“Oh yeah, I think I saw a flyer of theirs around here.”

“Yeah, that’s where I got their name, too. If you want some moral support when you sell it, I can go with you, and afterward we can go get coffee or something.”

“Yeah, that's where I got their name, too. If you want some moral support when you sell it, I can go with you, and afterward we can go get coffee or something.”

Lyle nodded. “Sure, let’s do that.”

Lyle nodded. “Sure, let's do that.”

And just like that, the plan was right on track. “How about Sunday?” she said.

And just like that, the plan was right on track. “How about Sunday?” 她说。

Nat was waiting outside of SelfTalk for Lyle to arrive. She knew there was a chance he had changed his mind, but he showed up right on time and had the prism with him. It was a little anticlimactic to finally see it; here was what she and Morrow had been working toward for months, but it didn’t look any different from any other late-model prism, just a blue aluminum briefcase. Nat was suddenly struck by how the situation was both extraordinary and surprisingly mundane: each prism was like something out of a fairy tale, a bag containing a door to another world, and yet most of those worlds weren’t particularly interesting, most of those doors weren’t especially valuable. It was only because this one might reunite a prince with his beloved that it was precious.

N at was waiting outside of SelfTalk for Lyle to arrive. She knew there was a chance he had changed his mind, but he showed up right on time and had the prism with him. It was a little anticlimactic to finally see it; here was what she and Morrow had been working toward for months, but it didn't look any different from any other late-model prism, just a blue aluminum briefcase. Nat was suddenly struck by how the situation was both extraordinary and surprisingly mundane: each prism was like something out of a fairy tale, a bag containing a door to another world, and yet most of those worlds weren't particularly interesting, most of those doors weren't especially valuable. It was only because this one might reunite a prince with his beloved that it was precious.

“Still ready to do this?” she asked.

“Still ready to do this?” 她问。

“One hundred percent,” said Lyle. “I checked with my paraself this morning, and he’s still on board. He should be at his version of SelfTalk right now.”

“One hundred percent,” said Lyle. “I checked with my paraself this morning, and he's still on board. He should be at his version of SelfTalk right now.”

“Great. Let’s go.”

“大。 我们走吧。”

They went inside, and Morrow was at the counter. “Can I help you?” he asked.

They went inside, and Morrow was at the counter. “我可以帮你吗？” 他问。

Lyle took a deep breath. “I’d like to sell this prism.”

Lyle took a deep breath. “I'd like to sell this prism.”

Morrow did the usual, checking the keyboard, the video camera, the microphone. This was the biggest variable in their plan: they couldn’t be sure who was working the counter on the other side of the prism, who was going to make parallel Lyle an offer. It was very likely parallel Morrow or parallel Nat, in which case things would be fine; even though they had no idea what the plan was, they would follow this Morrow’s lead. But there was always the chance that someone else was working the counter at SelfTalk in the other branch, which might make things complicated.

Morrow did the usual, checking the keyboard, the video camera, the microphone. This was the biggest variable in their plan: they couldn't be sure who was working the counter on the other side of the prism, who was going to make parallel Lyle an offer. It was very likely parallel Morrow or parallel Nat, in which case things would be fine; even though they had no idea what the plan was, they would follow this Morrow's lead. But there was always the chance that someone else was working the counter at SelfTalk in the other branch, which might make things complicated.

Nat saw that Morrow kept typing longer than the hardware check would require, which was a good sign. Morrow was telling the person on the other end to trust him, to pay parallel Lyle more than market price for the prism and act as if it were perfectly normal, that he would explain later. Fortunately Lyle had no idea of how long a prism inspection usually took.

Nat saw that Morrow kept typing longer than the hardware check would require, which was a good sign. Morrow was telling the person on the other end to trust him, to pay parallel Lyle more than market price for the prism and act as if it were perfectly normal, that he would explain later. Fortunately Lyle had no idea of how long a prism inspection usually took.

Morrow made his offer, and then Lyle briefly conferred with his paraself. Since they had already agreed to sell their prisms, they weren’t talking about the price; just a final farewell. Nat made sure not to exchange looks with Morrow while they waited, but she wasn’t sure where she ought to look. It didn’t make sense to stare at Lyle, so she just looked out the front window.

Morrow made his offer, and then Lyle briefly conferred with his paraself. Since they had already agreed to sell their prisms, they weren't talking about the price; just a final farewell. Nat made sure not to exchange looks with Morrow while they waited, but she wasn't sure where she ought to look. It didn't make sense to stare at Lyle, so she just looked out the front window.

Finally Lyle handed the prism over and took his payment. Once it was done, Nat asked him, “How do you feel?”

Finally Lyle handed the prism over and took his payment. Once it was done, Nat asked him, “How do you feel?”

“Kind of sad, kind of relieved.”

“Kind of sad, kind of relieved.”

“Let’s go get some coffee.”

“Let's go get some coffee.”

They chatted for a while at the coffee shop. Afterward they hugged goodbye, and she told him she’d see him at the next meeting. Her plan was to attend one more meeting and then announce that she felt like she didn’t need to go to the meetings anymore.

They chatted for a while at the coffee shop. Afterward they hugged goodbye, and she told him she'd see him at the next meeting. Her plan was to attend one more meeting and then announce that she felt like she didn't need to go to the meetings anymore.

When she got back to SelfTalk, it was a half hour before closing time, and there were only a couple of customers left in the store. She found Morrow in his office, typing on Lyle’s prism. “You’re just in time,” he said. “I’m on with my paraself.” He gestured for her to look at the screen as he typed.

When she got back to SelfTalk, it was a half hour before closing time, and there were only a couple of customers left in the store. She found Morrow in his office, typing on Lyle's prism. “You're just in time,” he said. “I'm on with my paraself.” He gestured for her to look at the screen as he typed.

[Hey bro.]

[Hey bro.]

[You want to tell me why I justpaid so much for this prism?]

[You want to tell me why I justpaid so much for this prism?]

[Car crash, six months ago, ScotOtsuka and Roderick Ferris.Who survived in your branch?]

[Car crash, six months ago, ScotOtsuka and Roderick Ferris.Who survived in your branch?]

[Roderick Ferris.]

[Roderick Ferris.]

[Here it was Scott Otsuka.]

[Here it was Scott Otsuka.]

[Got it! Great find, bro!]

[Got it! Great find, bro!]

[Yeah, it’s your lucky day.Here’s what you have to do next.]

[Yeah, it's your lucky day.Here's what you have to do next.]

Morrow had already found a printed copy of a six-month-old newspaper whose headline said Roderick Ferris died in the car crash while Scott Otsuka lived. Parallel Morrow’s job now was to find a printed newspaper in his branch that covered the same crash, the one in which Otsuka died while Ferris lived. They scheduled a time a few days from now when they would converse again.

Morrow had already found a printed copy of a six-month-old newspaper whose headline said Roderick Ferris died in the car crash while Scott Otsuka lived. Parallel Morrow's job now was to find a printed newspaper in his branch that covered the same crash, the one in which Otsuka died while Ferris lived. They scheduled a time a few days from now when they would converse again.

Morrow folded up the keyboard and put the prism on a shelf at the rear of the storeroom. He grinned at Nat when he came back into the office. “You didn’t think we’d pull it off, did you?”

Morrow folded up the keyboard and put the prism on a shelf at the rear of the storeroom. He grinned at Nat when he came back into the office. “You didn't think we'd pull it off, did you?”

She’d had her doubts, and even now she could hardly believe it. “We haven’t pulled it off yet,” she said.

She'd had her doubts, and even now she could hardly believe it. “We haven't pulled it off yet,” she said.

“The hard part’s done. The rest is going to be easy.” He laughed. “Cheer up, you’re going to be rich.”

“The hard part's done. The rest is going to be easy.” 他笑了。 “Cheer up, you're going to be rich.”

“I suppose I am.” Which was worrying in itself; for an addict, a giant windfall could trigger a relapse just as easily as a traumatic event.

“I suppose I am.” Which was worrying in itself; for an addict, a giant windfall could trigger a relapse just as easily as a traumatic event.

As if he were reading her mind, Morrow said, “You worried about falling back into old habits? I could hold your money for you, keep it safe so you don’t spend it on the wrong things.”

As if he were reading her mind, Morrow said, “You worried about falling back into old habits? I could hold your money for you, keep it safe so you don't spend it on the wrong things.”

Nat gave a little laugh. “Thanks, Morrow, but I think I’ll just take my share.”

Nat gave a little laugh. “Thanks, Morrow, but I think I'll just take my share.”

“Just trying to be helpful.”

“Just trying to be helpful.”

Nat wondered about the version of herself on the opposite side of the prism. She and that parallel self had been the same person up until just under a year ago, when the prism had been activated. Now Nat was going to be rich, while her parallel self wasn’t. Parallel Morrow was going to be rich, but he wasn’t the type to share the money with parallel Nat. Not that she particularly deserved any of it; parallel Nat hadn’t gone to the support-group meetings, hadn’t done any of the work. Parallel Morrow hadn’t done any work, either; he was just lucky enough to have been working the counter when they made contact. If parallel Nat had been working the counter at that moment, she would probably have to split things with parallel Morrow — he was the boss — but she’d still be making a lot of money for being in the right place at the right time. So much came down to luck.

Nat wondered about the version of herself on the opposite side of the prism. She and that parallel self had been the same person up until just under a year ago, when the prism had been activated. Now Nat was going to be rich, while her parallel self wasn't. Parallel Morrow was going to be rich, but he wasn't the type to share the money with parallel Nat. Not that she particularly deserved any of it; parallel Nat hadn't gone to the support-group meetings, hadn't done any of the work. Parallel Morrow hadn't done any work, either; he was just lucky enough to have been working the counter when they made contact. If parallel Nat had been working the counter at that moment, she would probably have to split things with parallel Morrow — he was the boss — but she'd still be making a lot of money for being in the right place at the right time. So much came down to luck.

Someone had come in the front door, a man in his forties wearing a windbreaker, so Nat went to the front counter. “Can I help you?”

Someone had come in the front door, a man in his forties wearing a windbreaker, so Nat went to the front counter. “我可以帮你吗？”

“Is there a guy named Morrow here?” Morrow came out of the office. “I’m Morrow.” The man stared at him. “I’m Glenn Oehlsen. You stole twenty thousand dollars from my mother.”

“Is there a guy named Morrow here?” Morrow came out of the office. “I'm Morrow.” The man stared at him. “I'm Glenn Oehlsen. You stole twenty thousand dollars from my mother.”

Morrow looked mystified. “There’s been a mistake. I was helping your mother stay in touch with her paraself — ”

Morrow looked mystified. “There's been a mistake. I was helping your mother stay in touch with her paraself — ”

“Yeah, and you convinced her to give away her money. That money belonged to me!”

“Yeah, and you convinced her to give away her money. That money belonged to me!”

“It belonged to your mother,” said Morrow. “She could do whatever she wanted with it.”

“It belonged to your mother,” said Morrow. “She could do whatever she wanted with it.”

“Well, I’m here now, and I want it back.”

“Well, I'm here now, and I want it back.”

“I don’t have the money, it’s been transferred into the other branch.”

“I don't have the money, it's been transferred into the other branch.”

Oehlsen’s face twisted with contempt. “Don’t give me that, I know you can’t send money into another timeline. I’m not an idiot!”

Oehlsen's face twisted with contempt. “Don't give me that, I know you can't send money into another timeline. I'm not an idiot!”

“If you give me a few days, I can see if your mother’s paraself would be willing to return — ”

“If you give me a few days, I can see if your mother's paraself would be willing to return — ”

“Fuck that noise.” Oehlsen pulled a pistol out of his jacket and aimed it at Morrow. “Give me the money!”

“Fuck that noise.” Oehlsen pulled a pistol out of his jacket and aimed it at Morrow. “Give me the money!”

Morrow and Nat raised their hands. “Okay, let’s relax,” said Morrow.

Morrow and Nat raised their hands. “Okay, let's relax,” said Morrow.

“I’ll relax once you give me the money.”

“I'll relax once you give me the money.”

“I don’t have what you’re looking for.”

“I don't have what you're looking for.”

“Bullshit!”

“Bullshit!”

From her vantage point Nat could tell that a customer in one of the carrels had seen what was happening and was calling the police.

From her vantage point Nat could tell that a customer in one of the carrels had seen what was happening and was calling the police.

“There’s some cash in the register,” she said. “You can have that.”

“There's some cash in the register,” she said. “You can have that.”

“I’m not a goddamned robber, I just want what’s mine. What this guy cheated out of my mother.” With his free hand, Oehlsen pulled his phone out and put it on the counter. “Now you take yours out,” he said to Morrow.

“I'm not a goddamned robber, I just want what's mine. What this guy cheated out of my mother.” With his free hand, Oehlsen pulled his phone out and put it on the counter. “Now you take yours out,” he said to Morrow.

Slowly, Morrow took out his phone and laid it next to Oehlsen’s.

Slowly, Morrow took out his phone and laid it next to Oehlsen's.

Oehlsen tapped open the digital wallet on his phone. “Now you’re going to make a transfer. Twenty thousand dollars.”

Oehlsen tapped open the digital wallet on his phone. “Now you're going to make a transfer. Twenty thousand dollars.”

Morrow shook his head. “No.”

Morrow shook his head. “没有。”

“You think I’m joking?”

“You think I'm joking?”

“I’m not paying you,” he said.

“I'm not paying you,” he said.

Nat looked at him incredulously. “Just — ”

Nat looked at him incredulously. “Just — ”

“Shut up,” said Morrow with a glare. He returned his attention to Oehlsen. “I’m not going to pay you.”

“Shut up,” said Morrow with a glare. He returned his attention to Oehlsen. “I'm not going to pay you.”

Oehlsen was clearly flustered. “You think I won’t do it?”

Oehlsen was clearly flustered. “You think I won't do it?”

“I think you don’t want to go to jail.”

“I think you don't want to go to jail.”

“You work with prisms. You know there’s some timeline where I shoot you right now.”

“You work with prisms. You know there's some timeline where I shoot you right now.”

“Yeah, but I don’t think this is the one.”

“Yeah, but I don't think this is the one.”

“If it’s going to happen anyway, why shouldn’t I be the one to do it?”

“If it's going to happen anyway, why shouldn't I be the one to do it?”

“You kill me, you’re the one that goes to jail. And like I said, you don’t want that.”

“You kill me, you're the one that goes to jail. And like I said, you don't want that.”

Oehlsen stared at him for a minute. Then he lowered the pistol, picked up his phone, and walked out of the store.

Oehlsen stared at him for a minute. Then he lowered the pistol, picked up his phone, and walked out of the store.

Nat and Morrow both let out enormous sighs of relief. “Jesus Christ, Morrow,” said Nat. “What the fuck were you thinking?”

Nat and Morrow both let out enormous sighs of relief. “Jesus Christ, Morrow,” said Nat. “What the fuck were you thinking?”

Morrow smiled weakly. “I knew he didn’t have it in him.”

Morrow smiled weakly. “I knew he didn't have it in him.”

“When a guy is holding a gun on you, you do what he says.” Nat realized her heart was racing; she tried some deep breathing to slow it down. Her shirt was soaked with sweat. “I better check on the customers — ” Oehlsen was standing in the doorway again.

“When a guy is holding a gun on you, you do what he says.” Nat realized her heart was racing; she tried some deep breathing to slow it down. Her shirt was soaked with sweat. “I better check on the customers — ” Oehlsen was standing in the doorway again.

“Fuck it,” he said, “what difference does it make?” He raised the pistol, shot Morrow in the face, and walked away.

“Fuck it,” he said, “what difference does it make?” He raised the pistol, shot Morrow in the face, and walked away.

The police picked Glenn Oehlsen up a few miles away. Officers questioned Nat, the customers who were in the store, and an executive who came from SelfTalk’s main office. Nat told the officers she had no idea what Morrow had been up to, and they seemed to believe her. She admitted to the executive that she knew Morrow had been taking a prism out of the store and visiting Jessica Oehlsen at the nursing home, and was reprimanded for failing to report a violation of company policy. The next day a temporary store manager arrived; he ordered an inventory of all the prisms in the store and established new procedures for checking them in and out of the storeroom, but Nat had already taken home the prism that Morrow had bought from Lyle.

T he police picked Glenn Oehlsen up a few miles away. Officers questioned Nat, the customers who were in the store, and an executive who came from SelfTalk's main office. Nat told the officers she had no idea what Morrow had been up to, and they seemed to believe her. She admitted to the executive that she knew Morrow had been taking a prism out of the store and visiting Jessica Oehlsen at the nursing home, and was reprimanded for failing to report a violation of company policy. The next day a temporary store manager arrived; he ordered an inventory of all the prisms in the store and established new procedures for checking them in and out of the storeroom, but Nat had already taken home the prism that Morrow had bought from Lyle.

At the next scheduled meeting with parallel Morrow, Nat got on the keyboard:

At the next scheduled meeting with parallel Morrow, Nat got on the keyboard:

[Hey bro.]

[Hey bro.]

[This isn’t Morrow. This is Nat.]

[This isn't Morrow. This is Nat.]

[Hey Nat. Why are you on the prism?]

[Hey Nat. Why are you on the prism?]

[We’ve had problems here. Morrow’s dead.]

[We've had problems here. Morrow's dead.]

[What? Are you serious?]

[What? Are you serious?]

[He ran a scam on a woman namedJessica Oehlsen. Her son Glenncame in here and shot him. I don’tknow if you’re running a scam onher in your branch, but if you are,back off. Her son’s unstable.]

[He ran a scam on a woman namedJessica Oehlsen. Her son Glenncame in here and shot him. I don'tknow if you're running a scam onher in your branch, but if you are,back off. Her son's unstable.]

[Shit. That’s fucked up.]

[Shit. That's fucked up.]

[You’re telling me. So whatdo you want to do now?]

[You're telling me. So whatdo you want to do now?]

There was a long pause. Eventually a reply appeared on the screen.

There was a long pause. Eventually a reply appeared on the screen.

[We can still go ahead with the deal. You’llhave to take care of things on your endby yourself. Think you can handle that?]

[We can still go ahead with the deal. You'llhave to take care of things on your endby yourself. Think you can handle that?]

Nat thought about it. Selling the prism to Scott Otsuka would mean going to Los Angeles, a bus ride of several hours each way. There would probably have to be a preliminary meeting before the actual sale could take place, which would mean at least two trips.

Nat thought about it. Selling the prism to Scott Otsuka would mean going to Los Angeles, a bus ride of several hours each way. There would probably have to be a preliminary meeting before the actual sale could take place, which would mean at least two trips.

[I can handle it.]

[I can handle it.]

For the first time, Nat wasn’t acting as the buyer; she was the seller. She would have to provide evidence of what made her prism valuable. Nat and parallel Morrow exchanged photos of their respective printed newspapers; these were harder to forge than screenshots of the newspaper websites.

For the first time, Nat wasn't acting as the buyer; she was the seller. She would have to provide evidence of what made her prism valuable. Nat and parallel Morrow exchanged photos of their respective printed newspapers; these were harder to forge than screenshots of the newspaper websites.

Now she had to contact someone who worked for Scott Otsuka, explain what she was offering, and send the photo as proof.

Now she had to contact someone who worked for Scott Otsuka, explain what she was offering, and send the photo as proof.

Ornella had worked as Scott’s personal assistant for ten years, well before he met and married Roderick. Roderick’s assistant had moved to France a couple years ago, and while he got someone to accompany him when he was filming on location or doing a publicity tour, when Roderick was at home Ornella worked as assistant for both of them. Until six months ago, when a drunk driver had changed everything. Now she worked just for Scott again.

O rnella had worked as Scott's personal assistant for ten years, well before he met and married Roderick. Roderick's assistant had moved to France a couple years ago, and while he got someone to accompany him when he was filming on location or doing a publicity tour, when Roderick was at home Ornella worked as assistant for both of them. Until six months ago, when a drunk driver had changed everything. Now she worked just for Scott again.

Before the car crash, Ornella had never paid much attention to prisms. She knew that Scott’s fans circulated pirated copies of other versions of his songs, but he had never listened to any of them, so she hadn’t, either; the same was true of Roderick and his films. But ever since the car crash, it seemed like she was barraged by advertisements from prism data brokers: “Subscribe now and be the first to see the movies Roderick Ferris would have made if he had lived.”

Before the car crash, Ornella had never paid much attention to prisms. She knew that Scott's fans circulated pirated copies of other versions of his songs, but he had never listened to any of them, so she hadn't, either; the same was true of Roderick and his films. But ever since the car crash, it seemed like she was barraged by advertisements from prism data brokers: “Subscribe now and be the first to see the movies Roderick Ferris would have made if he had lived.”

And then there were the offers from fans who owned prisms and wanted to give them to Scott. They knew from interviews that Scott and Roderick hadn’t owned a prism, and while it would have been easy for Scott to buy one from a data broker, a lot of his fans wanted to connect with him, to be the one who eased his pain. Ornella knew Scott had thought about finding a prism; he would have given anything to see Roderick alive again. But the problem was obvious: in every one of those branches where the car crash hadn’t happened and his husband was still alive, his paraself was there, too. Scott would be a grieving widower intruding upon a happily married couple, a reminder that disaster could strike out of nowhere, a specter at the feast. That wasn’t what he wanted. If Scott were going to see a parallel Roderick, it couldn’t be as an object of pity or dread.

And then there were the offers from fans who owned prisms and wanted to give them to Scott. They knew from interviews that Scott and Roderick hadn't owned a prism, and while it would have been easy for Scott to buy one from a data broker, a lot of his fans wanted to connect with him, to be the one who eased his pain. Ornella knew Scott had thought about finding a prism; he would have given anything to see Roderick alive again. But the problem was obvious: in every one of those branches where the car crash hadn't happened and his husband was still alive, his paraself was there, too. Scott would be a grieving widower intruding upon a happily married couple, a reminder that disaster could strike out of nowhere, a specter at the feast. That wasn't what he wanted. If Scott were going to see a parallel Roderick, it couldn't be as an object of pity or dread.

This newest offer was different: a prism connecting to a branch where there was no parallel Scott, only a grieving Roderick. This was something Scott might be interested in. She wasn’t going to mention it to him without making sure it was a legitimate offer first, though.

This newest offer was different: a prism connecting to a branch where there was no parallel Scott, only a grieving Roderick. This was something Scott might be interested in. She wasn't going to mention it to him without making sure it was a legitimate offer first, though.

Ornella had asked an expert to examine the image she’d received, of course. He’d told her it wasn’t an obvious forgery, but he could easily create one just as good, so by itself the image wasn’t proof of anything. She told the seller that she wanted to talk to the Ornella in the other branch first, so they arranged a time when that could happen.

Ornella had asked an expert to examine the image she'd received, of course. He'd told her it wasn't an obvious forgery, but he could easily create one just as good, so by itself the image wasn't proof of anything. She told the seller that she wanted to talk to the Ornella in the other branch first, so they arranged a time when that could happen.

She was a little surprised when the seller arrived. She had assumed “Nat” was a man, but it was a woman who showed up at the front gate carrying a prism. Nat was thin and could have been pretty if she tried, but she had a certain sadness about her. Ornella’s years of working for Scott had given her a lot of experience identifying opportunists, but she didn’t get that sense from Nat, at least not right off the bat.

She was a little surprised when the seller arrived. She had assumed “Nat” was a man, but it was a woman who showed up at the front gate carrying a prism. Nat was thin and could have been pretty if she tried, but she had a certain sadness about her. Ornella's years of working for Scott had given her a lot of experience identifying opportunists, but she didn't get that sense from Nat, at least not right off the bat.

“I want to be clear,” Ornella told her when she came in. “You’re not going to see Scott today. He’s not even in the house. If I’m satisfied by what I see, then we’ll schedule another appointment.”

“I want to be clear,” Ornella told her when she came in. “You're not going to see Scott today. He's not even in the house. If I'm satisfied by what I see, then we'll schedule another appointment.”

“Of course, that’s what I figured,” said Nat. She seemed almost apologetic about what she was doing.

“Of course, that's what I figured,” said Nat. She seemed almost apologetic about what she was doing.

Ornella had her set up the prism on a coffee table. At first Nat had a text conversation with the person on the other side, and then she switched to video and slid the prism over to Ornella. A face appeared on the screen, but it wasn’t a parallel version of Nat, it was a man, lean and lanky. An opportunist. “Who are you?” she asked.

Ornella had her set up the prism on a coffee table. At first Nat had a text conversation with the person on the other side, and then she switched to video and slid the prism over to Ornella. A face appeared on the screen, but it wasn't a parallel version of Nat, it was a man, lean and lanky. An opportunist. “Who are you?” 她问。

“Name’s Morrow.” He stepped away and then the screen was filled by another version of herself. Ornella could see that the room in the background was the same one she was in now, and she recognized the outfit her parallel self was wearing, too.

“Name's Morrow.” He stepped away and then the screen was filled by another version of herself. Ornella could see that the room in the background was the same one she was in now, and she recognized the outfit her parallel self was wearing, too.

“Is this for real?” she asked, tentatively. “Roderick is alive in your branch?”

“Is this for real?” she asked, tentatively. “Roderick is alive in your branch?”

Her parallel self looked like she could hardly believe it, either. “He is. And Scott’s alive in yours?”

Her parallel self looked like she could hardly believe it, either. “He is. And Scott's alive in yours?”

“Yes.”

“是。”

“I have a few questions.”

“I have a few questions.”

“The same ones I have, probably.” The two Ornellas exchanged information about the car crash. It had happened the same way in both branches: same movie premiere, same drunk driver. Just a different survivor.

“The same ones I have, probably.” The two Ornellas exchanged information about the car crash. It had happened the same way in both branches: same movie premiere, same drunk driver. Just a different survivor.

They agreed that Ornella would talk to Scott, and her parallel self would talk to Roderick. Assuming both of them were open to the possibility, the Ornellas scheduled a date next week for them to try the prisms and decide if they wanted to buy them.

They agreed that Ornella would talk to Scott, and her parallel self would talk to Roderick. Assuming both of them were open to the possibility, the Ornellas scheduled a date next week for them to try the prisms and decide if they wanted to buy them.

“Now let’s talk about the price,” said Ornella.

“Now let's talk about the price,” said Ornella.

“We’re not talking price now,” Morrow said firmly, from the other side. “After your bosses have tried the product, I’ll name a price. Either you pay it, or we walk.”

“We're not talking price now,” Morrow said firmly, from the other side. “After your bosses have tried the product, I'll name a price. Either you pay it, or we walk.”

Which was a sensible strategy; assuming Scott and Roderick wanted to buy, they’d be in no mood to haggle. It was clear that this Morrow was the one running the show. “Okay,” said Ornella. “We’ll talk then.” She slid the prism back to Nat, who conferred briefly with Morrow before closing it up.

Which was a sensible strategy; assuming Scott and Roderick wanted to buy, they'd be in no mood to haggle. It was clear that this Morrow was the one running the show. “Okay,” said Ornella. “We'll talk then.” She slid the prism back to Nat, who conferred briefly with Morrow before closing it up.

“I guess that’s it,” said Nat. “I’ll be back next week.”

“I guess that's it,” said Nat. “I'll be back next week.”

“Fine,” said Ornella. She accompanied Nat to the front door and let her out. As Nat began walking down the steps, Ornella asked, “How is it that I’m working with you on this?”

“Fine,” said Ornella. She accompanied Nat to the front door and let her out. As Nat began walking down the steps, Ornella asked, “How is it that I'm working with you on this?”

Nat turned around. “Say what?”

Nat turned around. “Say what?”

“My paraself is working with a guy named Morrow. Why am I working with you instead of a version of Morrow?”

“My paraself is working with a guy named Morrow. Why am I working with you instead of a version of Morrow?”

The woman sighed. “Long story.”

The woman sighed. “Long story.”

Nat got herself a cup of coffee and took her seat. This was her second meeting since getting the prism from Lyle; last week she’d been planning on announcing that she wasn’t going to be coming back, but she had wound up hardly saying anything at all. So she had had to attend at least one more and say that she was going to take a break from the meetings; people would wonder if she simply stopped.

N at got herself a cup of coffee and took her seat. This was her second meeting since getting the prism from Lyle; last week she'd been planning on announcing that she wasn't going to be coming back, but she had wound up hardly saying anything at all. So she had had to attend at least one more and say that she was going to take a break from the meetings; people would wonder if she simply stopped.

Dana smiled at the group and said, “Who wants to start us off today?”

Dana smiled at the group and said, “Who wants to start us off today?”

Without intending to, Nat found herself speaking, just as Lyle began saying something as well. Both of them stopped.

Without intending to, Nat found herself speaking, just as Lyle began saying something as well. Both of them stopped.

“You go,” said Nat.

“You go,” said Nat.

“No, you should go,” said Lyle. “I don’t think you’ve ever started off a meeting before.”

“No, you should go,” said Lyle. “I don't think you've ever started off a meeting before.”

Nat realized that he was right. What had come over her? She opened her mouth, but for once she couldn’t think of a good lie. Eventually, she said, “A guy I work with, I guess you’d call him my supervisor, he was killed recently. Murdered, actually.”

Nat realized that he was right. What had come over her? She opened her mouth, but for once she couldn't think of a good lie. Eventually, she said, “A guy I work with, I guess you'd call him my supervisor, he was killed recently. Murdered, actually.”

The group was shocked, with assorted “Oh my Gods” being murmured.

The group was shocked, with assorted “Oh my Gods” being murmured.

“Do you want to tell us about your relationship with him?” asked Dana.

“Do you want to tell us about your relationship with him?” asked Dana.

“Yeah,” asked Kevin. “Was he a friend?”

“Yeah,” asked Kevin. “Was he a friend?”

“Kind of,” Nat admitted. “But that’s not why it’s been on my mind. I know this isn’t a grief support group . . . I guess I brought this up because I wanted your take on something.”

“Kind of,” Nat admitted. “But that's not why it's been on my mind. I know this isn't a grief support group . 。 。 I guess I brought this up because I wanted your take on something.”

“Of course,” said Dana. “Go ahead.”

“Of course,” said Dana. “Go ahead.”

“I keep thinking about the randomness of this murder. I don’t mean the killer picked him at random. I mean, when he had the gun pointed at my supervisor, he said that some version of him was going to pull the trigger, so why shouldn’t it be him? We’ve all heard that line before, but I never paid any attention to it. But now I’m wondering, are the people who say that actually right?”

“I keep thinking about the randomness of this murder. I don't mean the killer picked him at random. I mean, when he had the gun pointed at my supervisor, he said that some version of him was going to pull the trigger, so why shouldn't it be him? We've all heard that line before, but I never paid any attention to it. But now I'm wondering, are the people who say that actually right?”

“That’s a good question,” said Dana. “I agree that we’ve all heard people make similar claims.” She addressed the group. “Does anyone have any thoughts on that? Do you think that every time someone makes you angry, there’s a branch where you pick up a gun and shoot the guy?”

“That's a good question,” said Dana. “I agree that we've all heard people make similar claims.” She addressed the group. “Does anyone have any thoughts on that? Do you think that every time someone makes you angry, there's a branch where you pick up a gun and shoot the guy?”

Zareenah spoke up. “I’ve read that there’s been an increase in crimes of passion since prisms became popular. Not an enormous one, but statistically significant.”

Zareenah spoke up. “I've read that there's been an increase in crimes of passion since prisms became popular. Not an enormous one, but statistically significant.”

“Yeah,” said Kevin, “which is why the theory can’t be true. The fact that there’s been an increase, even a small one, disproves the theory.”

“Yeah,” said Kevin, “which is why the theory can't be true. The fact that there's been an increase, even a small one, disproves the theory.”

“How do you figure?” asked Zareenah. “Branches are generated by any quantum event, right? Even before we had prisms, branches were still splitting off constantly; we just didn’t have access to any of them. If it were true that there’s always a branch where you pick up a gun and shoot someone on a whim, then we should have seen the same number of random murders every day before the prism was invented as we saw every day after. The invention of prisms wouldn’t cause more of those murders to line up in this particular branch. So if we’re seeing more people killing one another since prisms became popular, it can’t be because there’s always a branch where you pick up a gun.”

“How do you figure?” asked Zareenah. “Branches are generated by any quantum event, right? Even before we had prisms, branches were still splitting off constantly; we just didn't have access to any of them. If it were true that there's always a branch where you pick up a gun and shoot someone on a whim, then we should have seen the same number of random murders every day before the prism was invented as we saw every day after. The invention of prisms wouldn't cause more of those murders to line up in this particular branch. So if we're seeing more people killing one another since prisms became popular, it can't be because there's always a branch where you pick up a gun.”

“I follow your reasoning,” said Zareenah, “but then what’s causing the rise in murders?”

“I follow your reasoning,” said Zareenah, “but then what's causing the rise in murders?”

Kevin shrugged. “It’s like a suicide fad. People hear about other people doing it, and it gives them ideas.”

Kevin shrugged. “It's like a suicide fad. People hear about other people doing it, and it gives them ideas.”

Nat thought about it. “That proves that the argument can’t be right, but it doesn’t explain why it’s wrong.”

Nat thought about it. “That proves that the argument can't be right, but it doesn't explain why it's wrong.”

“If you know the theory’s wrong, why do you need more?”

“If you know the theory's wrong, why do you need more?”

“I want to know whether my decisions matter!” That came out more emphatically than she intended. Nat took a breath, and then continued. “Forget about murder; that’s not the kind of thing I’m talking about. But when I have a choice to do the right thing or the wrong thing, am I always choosing to do both in different branches? Why should I bother being nice to other people, if every time I’m also being a dick to them?”

“I want to know whether my decisions matter!” That came out more emphatically than she intended. Nat took a breath, and then continued. “Forget about murder; that's not the kind of thing I'm talking about. But when I have a choice to do the right thing or the wrong thing, am I always choosing to do both in different branches? Why should I bother being nice to other people, if every time I'm also being a dick to them?”

There was some discussion among the members for a while, but eventually Nat turned to Dana. “Can you tell me what you think?”

There was some discussion among the members for a while, but eventually Nat turned to Dana. “Can you tell me what you think?”

“Sure,” said Dana. She paused to gather her thoughts. “In general, I think your actions are consistent with your character. There might be more than one thing that would be in character for you to do, because your behavior is going to vary depending on your mood, but there are a lot more things that would be utterly out of character. If you’re someone who’s always loved animals, there isn’t a branch where you kick a puppy just because it barked at you. If you’re someone who’s always obeyed the law, there’s no branch where you suddenly rob a convenience store instead of going into work in the morning.”

“Sure,” said Dana. She paused to gather her thoughts. “In general, I think your actions are consistent with your character. There might be more than one thing that would be in character for you to do, because your behavior is going to vary depending on your mood, but there are a lot more things that would be utterly out of character. If you're someone who's always loved animals, there isn't a branch where you kick a puppy just because it barked at you. If you're someone who's always obeyed the law, there's no branch where you suddenly rob a convenience store instead of going into work in the morning.”

Kevin said, “What about branches that diverged when you were a baby and your life took a totally different course?”

Kevin said, “What about branches that diverged when you were a baby and your life took a totally different course?”

“I don’t care about that,” said Nat. “I’m asking about branches where I, having lived the life I led, am faced with a choice.”

“I don't care about that,” said Nat. “I'm asking about branches where I, having lived the life I led, am faced with a choice.”

“Kevin, we can talk about bigger divergences later, if you want,” said Dana.

“Kevin, we can talk about bigger divergences later, if you want,” said Dana.

“No, that’s fine. Proceed.”

“No, that's fine. Proceed.”

“Okay, so let’s imagine you’re in a situation where you have a couple options, and either course of action would be consistent with your character. For example, suppose a cashier has given you too much change, and you can either give it back or just keep it. Suppose you could see yourself doing either of those, depending on the kind of day you’re having. In that case, I’d say it’s entirely possible that there’s a branch where you keep the extra change, as well as a branch where you give it back.”

“Okay, so let's imagine you're in a situation where you have a couple options, and either course of action would be consistent with your character. For example, suppose a cashier has given you too much change, and you can either give it back or just keep it. Suppose you could see yourself doing either of those, depending on the kind of day you're having. In that case, I'd say it's entirely possible that there's a branch where you keep the extra change, as well as a branch where you give it back.”

Nat realized there probably weren’t any branches out there where she gave back the extra change. For as long as she could remember, if she was having a good day, getting extra change would have just made it a better day.

Nat realized there probably weren't any branches out there where she gave back the extra change. For as long as she could remember, if she was having a good day, getting extra change would have just made it a better day.

Kevin asked, “So does that mean it doesn’t matter if we act like jerks?”

Kevin asked, “So does that mean it doesn't matter if we act like jerks?”

“It matters to the person in this branch that you’re acting like a jerk to,” said Zareenah.

“It matters to the person in this branch that you're acting like a jerk to,” said Zareenah.

“But what about globally? Does being a jerk in this branch increase the percentage of jerkish behavior across all branches?”

“But what about globally? Does being a jerk in this branch increase the percentage of jerkish behavior across all branches?”

“I’m not sure about the math,” said Dana. “But I definitely think that your choices matter. Every decision you make contributes to your character and shapes the kind of person you are. If you want to be someone who always gives the extra money back to the cashier, the actions you take now affect whether you’ll become that person.

“I'm not sure about the math,” said Dana. “But I definitely think that your choices matter. Every decision you make contributes to your character and shapes the kind of person you are. If you want to be someone who always gives the extra money back to the cashier, the actions you take now affect whether you'll become that person.

“The branch where you’re having a bad day and keep the extra change is one that split off in the past; your actions can’t affect it anymore. But if you act compassionately in this branch, that’s still meaningful, because it has an effect on the branches that will split off in the future. The more often you make compassionate choices, the less likely it is that you’ll make selfish choices in the future, even in the branches where you’re having a bad day.”

“The branch where you're having a bad day and keep the extra change is one that split off in the past; your actions can't affect it anymore. But if you act compassionately in this branch, that's still meaningful, because it has an effect on the branches that will split off in the future. The more often you make compassionate choices, the less likely it is that you'll make selfish choices in the future, even in the branches where you're having a bad day.”

“That sounds good, but — ” Nat thought about how years of acting a certain way could wear ruts in a person’s brain, so that you would keep slipping into the same habits without trying to. “But it’s not easy,” said Nat.

“That sounds good, but — ” Nat thought about how years of acting a certain way could wear ruts in a person's brain, so that you would keep slipping into the same habits without trying to. “But it's not easy,” said Nat.

“I know it’s not,” said Dana. “But the question was, given that we know about other branches, whether making good choices is worth doing. I think it absolutely is. None of us are saints, but we can all try to be better. Each time you do something generous, you’re shaping yourself into someone who’s more likely to be generous next time, and that matters.

“I know it's not,” said Dana. “But the question was, given that we know about other branches, whether making good choices is worth doing. I think it absolutely is. None of us are saints, but we can all try to be better. Each time you do something generous, you're shaping yourself into someone who's more likely to be generous next time, and that matters.

“And it’s not just your behavior in this branch that you’re changing: you’re inoculating all the versions of you that split off in the future. By becoming a better person, you’re ensuring that more and more of the branches that split off from this point forward are populated by better versions of you.”

“And it's not just your behavior in this branch that you're changing: you're inoculating all the versions of you that split off in the future. By becoming a better person, you're ensuring that more and more of the branches that split off from this point forward are populated by better versions of you.”

Better versions of Nat. “Thanks,” she said. “That’s what I was looking for.”

Better versions of Nat. “Thanks,” she said. “That's what I was looking for.”

Ornella had known it would be awkward when Nat and Scott met, but it was even more so than she expected. Scott had hardly spoken to anyone who wasn’t a family member or close friend in months and was out of practice at wearing his public face; the prospect of seeing Roderick alive again was making him particularly anxious. As for Nat, she seemed distant, which was not what Ornella had expected from someone who stood to make a lot of money in the next few minutes.

O rnella had known it would be awkward when Nat and Scott met, but it was even more so than she expected. Scott had hardly spoken to anyone who wasn't a family member or close friend in months and was out of practice at wearing his public face; the prospect of seeing Roderick alive again was making him particularly anxious. As for Nat, she seemed distant, which was not what Ornella had expected from someone who stood to make a lot of money in the next few minutes.

Nat set the prism up on the coffee table again. Ornella switched it to video and saw Morrow’s face; then it was her parallel self, who looked as nervous as she felt. For a moment Ornella had an impulse to call the whole thing off, afraid that Scott would only be hurt more, but she knew they couldn’t pass up this opportunity. She gestured for Scott to sit down on the couch next to her at the same time that her parallel self gestured to someone offscreen, and then Ornella turned the prism so that it faced Scott.

Nat set the prism up on the coffee table again. Ornella switched it to video and saw Morrow's face; then it was her parallel self, who looked as nervous as she felt. For a moment Ornella had an impulse to call the whole thing off, afraid that Scott would only be hurt more, but she knew they couldn't pass up this opportunity. She gestured for Scott to sit down on the couch next to her at the same time that her parallel self gestured to someone offscreen, and then Ornella turned the prism so that it faced Scott.

On the screen was a face that was doubly familiar, first because it was Roderick and second because his face was worn from months of grief, the same pattern of wear that Ornella saw on Scott’s face every day. Scott and Roderick must have had the same reaction because simultaneously they started to cry, and never before had Ornella felt so strongly that these two men were meant to be together, the way that each one could look into the other’s face and see himself.

On the screen was a face that was doubly familiar, first because it was Roderick and second because his face was worn from months of grief, the same pattern of wear that Ornella saw on Scott's face every day. Scott and Roderick must have had the same reaction because simultaneously they started to cry, and never before had Ornella felt so strongly that these two men were meant to be together, the way that each one could look into the other's face and see himself.

Scott and Roderick started talking, their words overlapping. Ornella didn’t want strangers to hear what they said, and stood up. “Can we give them some privacy?”

Scott and Roderick started talking, their words overlapping. Ornella didn't want strangers to hear what they said, and stood up. “Can we give them some privacy?”

The woman, Nat, nodded and made to leave the room, but Ornella heard Morrow on the other side of the prism speak up. “They can have all the private conversations they want once the prisms are theirs. But first they have to buy them.”

The woman, Nat, nodded and made to leave the room, but Ornella heard Morrow on the other side of the prism speak up. “They can have all the private conversations they want once the prisms are theirs. But first they have to buy them.”

At the same time, the two Ornellas asked, “How much?”

At the same time, the two Ornellas asked, “How much?”

Morrow named a figure. Ornella saw Nat react, as if the number was higher than she expected.

Morrow named a figure. Ornella saw Nat react, as if the number was higher than she expected.

Scott and Roderick didn’t hesitate. “Pay them.”

Scott and Roderick didn't hesitate. “Pay them.”

Ornella took Scott’s hand and looked at him, wordlessly asking, Are you sure about this? He squeezed her hand and nodded. Earlier they had talked about the finiteness of what the prism offered. No matter how much he and Roderick tried to conserve, the amount of data left on its pad wouldn’t last the rest of their lives. They wouldn’t be satisfied with just text; they would want to hear each other’s voices and see each other’s faces, so the pad would eventually run out, and then they’d have to say goodbye. Scott had been willing to go ahead with it; any extra time they had together was worth it, as far as he was concerned, and when the end came, at least it wouldn’t come as a surprise.

Ornella took Scott's hand and looked at him, wordlessly asking, Are you sure about this? He squeezed her hand and nodded. Earlier they had talked about the finiteness of what the prism offered. No matter how much he and Roderick tried to conserve, the amount of data left on its pad wouldn't last the rest of their lives. They wouldn't be satisfied with just text; they would want to hear each other's voices and see each other's faces, so the pad would eventually run out, and then they'd have to say goodbye. Scott had been willing to go ahead with it; any extra time they had together was worth it, as far as he was concerned, and when the end came, at least it wouldn't come as a surprise.

Ornella stood and turned to Nat. “Come with me and I’ll issue the payment.” She could hear her parallel self telling Morrow the same thing. The screen shifted away from Roderick’s face to Morrow’s, and then the screen went dark; he wasn’t going to let his prism out of his sight until the money was in his account.

Ornella stood and turned to Nat. “Come with me and I'll issue the payment.” She could hear her parallel self telling Morrow the same thing. The screen shifted away from Roderick's face to Morrow's, and then the screen went dark; he wasn't going to let his prism out of his sight until the money was in his account.

Nat, by contrast, was content to leave her prism on the table with Scott. She looked at him awkwardly for a moment, and then said, “I’m very sorry for your loss.”

Nat, by contrast, was content to leave her prism on the table with Scott. She looked at him awkwardly for a moment, and then said, “I'm very sorry for your loss.”

“Thank you,” Scott said, wiping away tears.

“Thank you,” Scott said, wiping away tears.

Nat followed Ornella into the room where she had her desk. Ornella unlocked her work phone and opened the digital wallet. She and Nat exchanged their account numbers and then laid their phones next to each other on the desk. Ornella entered the dollar amount and hit send. Nat’s phone acknowledged the offered transfer, but Nat didn’t touch the accept button.

Nat followed Ornella into the room where she had her desk. Ornella unlocked her work phone and opened the digital wallet. She and Nat exchanged their account numbers and then laid their phones next to each other on the desk. Ornella entered the dollar amount and hit send. Nat's phone acknowledged the offered transfer, but Nat didn't touch the accept button.

“I suppose Scott has a lot of fans who would have given him that prism for free,” said Nat, staring at the screen.

“I suppose Scott has a lot of fans who would have given him that prism for free,” said Nat, staring at the screen.

Ornella nodded, although Nat wasn’t looking at her. “Yes,” she said. “He absolutely does.”

Ornella nodded, although Nat wasn't looking at her. “Yes,” she said. “He absolutely does.”

“There are probably people who aren’t even fans of his who would have done the same.”

“There are probably people who aren't even fans of his who would have done the same.”

“Probably.” Ornella was about to say that there were still good Samaritans in the world, but didn’t want to offend Nat by implying she wasn’t one of them. After a long moment, Ornella said, “Since the money’s right there, do you mind if I make a personal observation?”

“Probably.” Ornella was about to say that there were still good Samaritans in the world, but didn't want to offend Nat by implying she wasn't one of them. After a long moment, Ornella said, “Since the money's right there, do you mind if I make a personal observation?”

“Go ahead.”

“Go ahead.”

“You’re not like Morrow.”

“You're not like Morrow.”

“How do you mean?”

“How do you mean?”

“I understand why he’s doing this.” How could she put this tactfully? “He sees a grieving person as an opportunity to make a profit.”

“I understand why he's doing this.” How could she put this tactfully? “He sees a grieving person as an opportunity to make a profit.”

Nat gave a reluctant nod. “Yeah, he does.”

Nat gave a reluctant nod. “Yeah, he does.”

“But you’re not like that. So why are you doing this?”

“But you're not like that. So why are you doing this?”

“Everyone needs money.”

“Everyone needs money.”

Ornella felt emboldened enough to be frank. “If you don’t mind me saying it, there are better ways of making money than this.”

Ornella felt emboldened enough to be frank. “If you don't mind me saying it, there are better ways of making money than this.”

“I don’t mind. I’ve been thinking the same thing myself.”

“I don't mind. I've been thinking the same thing myself.”

Ornella wasn’t sure what she should say. Eventually, she said, “Scott’s happy to pay you for what you’ve done. But if you wouldn’t feel good about taking the money, no one says you have to.”

Ornella wasn't sure what she should say. Eventually, she said, “Scott's happy to pay you for what you've done. But if you wouldn't feel good about taking the money, no one says you have to.”

Nat’s finger hovered over the button.

Nat's finger hovered over the button.

For the past several weeks, Dana had made sure that in her sessions with Jorge she didn’t bring up the vandalism incident. Instead they talked about his efforts to recognize his own good qualities and ignore what other people might or might not think of him. She felt they were making progress and thought that she might be able to broach the topic in the near future.

F or the past several weeks, Dana had made sure that in her sessions with Jorge she didn't bring up the vandalism incident. Instead they talked about his efforts to recognize his own good qualities and ignore what other people might or might not think of him. She felt they were making progress and thought that she might be able to broach the topic in the near future.

So she was surprised when Jorge began a session by saying, “I’ve been wondering if I should go back to Lydoscope and ask them to contact my paraselves again.”

So she was surprised when Jorge began a session by saying, “I've been wondering if I should go back to Lydoscope and ask them to contact my paraselves again.”

“Really? Why?”

“真？ 为什么？”

“I want to know if they’ve acted out since the last time I checked.”

“I want to know if they've acted out since the last time I checked.”

“Was there anything that prompted this?”

“Was there anything that prompted this?”

Jorge described a recent interaction with his manager. “And I felt really angry, like I wanted to smash things. And that made me think about what we talked about before, that it was like I had gotten the results of a medical test when I went to Lydoscope. I started thinking that maybe the test wasn’t sensitive enough.”

Jorge described a recent interaction with his manager. “And I felt really angry, like I wanted to smash things. And that made me think about what we talked about before, that it was like I had gotten the results of a medical test when I went to Lydoscope. I started thinking that maybe the test wasn't sensitive enough.”

“And if you learn that your paraselves have acted out recently, then that would mean there’s something serious that the first test didn’t pick up?”

“And if you learn that your paraselves have acted out recently, then that would mean there's something serious that the first test didn't pick up?”

“I don’t know,” said Jorge. “Maybe.”

“I don't know,” said Jorge. “Maybe.”

Dana decided to push him a little on this. “Jorge, I want to suggest something. Even if your paraselves haven’t acted on their anger recently, maybe it’s worth thinking about what happened here in this branch.”

Dana decided to push him a little on this. “Jorge, I want to suggest something. Even if your paraselves haven't acted on their anger recently, maybe it's worth thinking about what happened here in this branch.”

“But how can I know if it was a freak accident or not unless I check my paraselves?”

“But how can I know if it was a freak accident or not unless I check my paraselves?”

“It was obviously out of character for you,” said Dana. “There’s no question about that. But it was still something you did. You, not your paraselves.”

“It was obviously out of character for you,” said Dana. “There's no question about that. But it was still something you did. You, not your paraselves.”

“You’re saying I’m terrible.”

“You're saying I'm terrible.”

“That is absolutely not what I’m saying,” she assured him. “I know you’re a good person. But even a good person can get angry. You got angry and you acted on it. That’s okay. And it’s okay to acknowledge that you have that side of your personality.”

“That is absolutely not what I'm saying,” she assured him. “I know you're a good person. But even a good person can get angry. You got angry and you acted on it. 没关系。 And it's okay to acknowledge that you have that side of your personality.”

Jorge sat silently for a minute, and Dana worried that she had pushed him too far. Then he said, “Maybe you’re right. But isn’t it important that it was out of character for me, instead of being something typical for me?”

Jorge sat silently for a minute, and Dana worried that she had pushed him too far. Then he said, “Maybe you're right. But isn't it important that it was out of character for me, instead of being something typical for me?”

“Of course it is. But even if you were acting out of character, you have to take responsibility for your actions.”

“Of course it is. But even if you were acting out of character, you have to take responsibility for your actions.”

A look of fear crossed his face. “You mean I have to tell my manager what I did?”

A look of fear crossed his face. “You mean I have to tell my manager what I did?”

“I’m not talking about legal responsibility,” Dana reassured him. “I don’t care whether your manager ever finds out. What I mean by taking responsibility is admitting to yourself what you did, and taking it into consideration when deciding what you do in the future.”

“I'm not talking about legal responsibility,” Dana reassured him. “I don't care whether your manager ever finds out. What I mean by taking responsibility is admitting to yourself what you did, and taking it into consideration when deciding what you do in the future.”

He sighed. “Why can’t I just forget that this ever happened?”

他叹了口气。 “Why can't I just forget that this ever happened?”

“If I genuinely thought you’d be happier forgetting that it ever happened, I’d be fine with that. But the fact that you’ve spent so much energy on this indicates that it’s bothering you.”

“If I genuinely thought you'd be happier forgetting that it ever happened, I'd be fine with that. But the fact that you've spent so much energy on this indicates that it's bothering you.”

Jorge looked down, and nodded. “You’re right. It has been.” He looked back up at her. “So what should I do now?”

Jorge looked down, and nodded. “你是对的。 It has been.” He looked back up at her. “So what should I do now?”

“How would you feel about talking to Sharon about what happened?”

“How would you feel about talking to Sharon about what happened?”

He paused for a long time. “I suppose . . . if I also tell her about how my paraselves didn’t do the same things, then maybe she’d know that it wasn’t something fundamental about me. Then she wouldn’t get the wrong idea.”

He paused for a long time. “I suppose . 。 。 if I also tell her about how my paraselves didn't do the same things, then maybe she'd know that it wasn't something fundamental about me. Then she wouldn't get the wrong idea.”

Dana allowed herself a tiny smile; he’d achieved a breakthrough.

Dana allowed herself a tiny smile; he'd achieved a breakthrough.

A new town, a new apartment; Nat hadn’t found a new job yet, but it was early yet. It had been easy to find an NA meeting to attend, though. Originally she had wanted to go to the prism support group one last time and tell them everything, but the more she thought about it, the more she was sure that doing so would have been purely for her own benefit, not anyone else’s. Lyle was in a good place now; he wouldn’t appreciate learning that she’d had ulterior motives the whole time they’d known each other. Same for the rest of the group. Better for them to keep thinking that the Nat they knew was the real Nat.

A new town, a new apartment; Nat hadn't found a new job yet, but it was early yet. It had been easy to find an NA meeting to attend, though. Originally she had wanted to go to the prism support group one last time and tell them everything, but the more she thought about it, the more she was sure that doing so would have been purely for her own benefit, not anyone else's. Lyle was in a good place now; he wouldn't appreciate learning that she'd had ulterior motives the whole time they'd known each other. Same for the rest of the group. Better for them to keep thinking that the Nat they knew was the real Nat.

Which was why she was now at an NA meeting. It was bigger than the prism support group — prisms would never be able to match drugs in terms of appeal — and it was the usual mix: people you’d never suspect were addicts and people who completely looked the part. She had no idea whether this group was hard core about working the steps or submitting to a higher power. She wasn’t even sure she wanted to attend meetings regularly; she was just going to play it by ear.

Which was why she was now at an NA meeting. It was bigger than the prism support group — prisms would never be able to match drugs in terms of appeal — and it was the usual mix: people you'd never suspect were addicts and people who completely looked the part. She had no idea whether this group was hard core about working the steps or submitting to a higher power. She wasn't even sure she wanted to attend meetings regularly; she was just going to play it by ear.

The first person to speak was a man who described waking up from an overdose to realize that his thirteen-year-old daughter had had to give him an injection of Narcan. It wasn’t easy to listen to, but Nat found something vaguely comforting about being back in a group of people whose experiences she could relate to. A woman spoke next, and then another man; neither recounted anything particularly harrowing, which was a relief. Nat didn’t want to speak immediately after anyone with a horror story.

The first person to speak was a man who described waking up from an overdose to realize that his thirteen-year-old daughter had had to give him an injection of Narcan. It wasn't easy to listen to, but Nat found something vaguely comforting about being back in a group of people whose experiences she could relate to. A woman spoke next, and then another man; neither recounted anything particularly harrowing, which was a relief. Nat didn't want to speak immediately after anyone with a horror story.

The group leader was a soft-spoken man with a salt-and-pepper beard. “I see some new faces here tonight. Would you like to say something to the group?”

The group leader was a soft-spoken man with a salt-and-pepper beard. “I see some new faces here tonight. Would you like to say something to the group?”

Nat raised her hand, introduced herself. “I haven’t been to one of these in a few years. I’ve been able to stay clean without them. But some things happened to me recently . . . it’s not that I felt I needed a meeting to keep me from relapsing, but I’ve been thinking about stuff, and guess I wanted a place to talk.”

Nat raised her hand, introduced herself. “I haven't been to one of these in a few years. I've been able to stay clean without them. But some things happened to me recently . 。 。 it's not that I felt I needed a meeting to keep me from relapsing, but I've been thinking about stuff, and guess I wanted a place to talk.”

Nat was silent for a while — it had been a long time since she’d done anything like this — but the group leader could tell she had more to say and he waited patiently. Eventually she continued, “There are people I’ve hurt that I’ll probably never be able to make amends to. They’ll never give me the chance, and I can’t blame them. But I suppose, at some level, that made me think that if I wasn’t able to do right by them, the ones I’d hurt the most, then it didn’t really matter whether I was nice to other people or not. So I stayed clean, but I would still lie, I would still cheat. Nothing terrible, nothing that hurt anyone the way I did when I was using. I just looked out for myself, and I never really thought much about it.

Nat was silent for a while — it had been a long time since she'd done anything like this — but the group leader could tell she had more to say and he waited patiently. Eventually she continued, “There are people I've hurt that I'll probably never be able to make amends to. They'll never give me the chance, and I can't blame them. But I suppose, at some level, that made me think that if I wasn't able to do right by them, the ones I'd hurt the most, then it didn't really matter whether I was nice to other people or not. So I stayed clean, but I would still lie, I would still cheat. Nothing terrible, nothing that hurt anyone the way I did when I was using. I just looked out for myself, and I never really thought much about it.

“But recently I had this . . . this opportunity to do something actually nice for another person. It wasn’t anyone I had wronged, just someone who was hurting. It would have been easy for me to behave the way I always have. But I imagined what a better person might do, and I did that instead.

“But recently I had this . 。 。 this opportunity to do something actually nice for another person. It wasn't anyone I had wronged, just someone who was hurting. It would have been easy for me to behave the way I always have. But I imagined what a better person might do, and I did that instead.

“I feel good about what I did, but it’s not like I deserve a medal or anything. Because there are other people for whom being generous comes easily, without a struggle. And it’s easy for them because in the past they made a lot of little decisions to be generous. It was hard for me because I’ve made a lot of little decisions to be selfish in the past. So I’m the reason it’s hard for me to be generous. That’s something I need to fix. Or that I want to fix. I’m not sure if this is the right group for that, but this is the first place I thought of.”

“I feel good about what I did, but it's not like I deserve a medal or anything. Because there are other people for whom being generous comes easily, without a struggle. And it's easy for them because in the past they made a lot of little decisions to be generous. It was hard for me because I've made a lot of little decisions to be selfish in the past. So I'm the reason it's hard for me to be generous. That's something I need to fix. Or that I want to fix. I'm not sure if this is the right group for that, but this is the first place I thought of.”

“Thank you,” said the group leader. “You are absolutely welcome to attend these meetings.”

“Thank you,” said the group leader. “You are absolutely welcome to attend these meetings.”

The other new person, a young man who looked like he’d just graduated from high school, introduced himself and started talking. Nat turned to him to listen.

The other new person, a young man who looked like he'd just graduated from high school, introduced himself and started talking. Nat turned to him to listen.

There was a package waiting for her when Dana got home. Once she was in her apartment, she opened it and found a personal tablet inside; no retail packaging, just an adhesive note stuck to the screen: “For Dana.” She checked the wrapping, but there was no name or address for the sender.

T here was a package waiting for her when Dana got home. Once she was in her apartment, she opened it and found a personal tablet inside; no retail packaging, just an adhesive note stuck to the screen: “For Dana.” She checked the wrapping, but there was no name or address for the sender.

Dana turned the tablet on; the only icons on the screen were half a dozen video files, each labeled with her name followed by a sequence of numbers. She tapped the first one to watch it, and the screen filled with a low-resolution image of her face. But it wasn’t her, it was a parallel version of her, talking about her past.

Dana turned the tablet on; the only icons on the screen were half a dozen video files, each labeled with her name followed by a sequence of numbers. She tapped the first one to watch it, and the screen filled with a low-resolution image of her face. But it wasn't her, it was a parallel version of her, talking about her past.

“Ms. Archer came into our room and found us counting the pills. She asked us what was going on, and for a second I froze. Then I said they were mine, that Vinessa hadn’t known anything about them. She was suspicious, because I’d never been in trouble before, but I convinced her. Eventually I got suspended from school, but it didn’t turn into as big a deal as it could have; they put me on probation, so if I stayed out of trouble, it wouldn’t go on my permanent record. I knew it would have been much worse for Vinessa because of the way the teachers felt about her.

“多发性硬化症。 Archer came into our room and found us counting the pills. She asked us what was going on, and for a second I froze. Then I said they were mine, that Vinessa hadn't known anything about them. She was suspicious, because I'd never been in trouble before, but I convinced her. Eventually I got suspended from school, but it didn't turn into as big a deal as it could have; they put me on probation, so if I stayed out of trouble, it wouldn't go on my permanent record. I knew it would have been much worse for Vinessa because of the way the teachers felt about her.

“But Vinessa started avoiding me, and when I finally asked her why, she told me she felt guilty every time she saw me. I told her she didn’t have to feel guilty and that I wanted to hang out with her, but she said I was just making it worse. I got angry at her; she got angry at me. She started spending time with these other girls who were constantly getting into trouble, and everything went downhill from there. She was caught dealing on school grounds, she was expelled, and she was in and out of jail all the time after that.

“But Vinessa started avoiding me, and when I finally asked her why, she told me she felt guilty every time she saw me. I told her she didn't have to feel guilty and that I wanted to hang out with her, but she said I was just making it worse. I got angry at her; she got angry at me. She started spending time with these other girls who were constantly getting into trouble, and everything went downhill from there. She was caught dealing on school grounds, she was expelled, and she was in and out of jail all the time after that.

“And I keep thinking, if I hadn’t said the pills were mine, everything would be different. If I had let Vinessa take her share of the blame, there wouldn’t have been that wedge to drive us apart. We would have been in it together, she wouldn’t have started hanging out with those troubled girls, and her life would have gone in a completely different direction.”

“And I keep thinking, if I hadn't said the pills were mine, everything would be different. If I had let Vinessa take her share of the blame, there wouldn't have been that wedge to drive us apart. We would have been in it together, she wouldn't have started hanging out with those troubled girls, and her life would have gone in a completely different direction.”

What the hell? Fingers trembling, she tapped on the second video.

我勒个去？ Fingers trembling, she tapped on the second video.

Another Dana: “One of the teachers came into our room just as we were counting the pills. I confessed everything immediately; I told her that Vinessa and I had stolen them from our parents so we could have a party. Eventually the school suspended us and put us on probation; I think they wanted to do something worse to Vinessa, but they had to punish us both equally.

Another Dana: “One of the teachers came into our room just as we were counting the pills. I confessed everything immediately; I told her that Vinessa and I had stolen them from our parents so we could have a party. Eventually the school suspended us and put us on probation; I think they wanted to do something worse to Vinessa, but they had to punish us both equally.

“Vinessa was furious at me. She said I should have told the teacher we just found the pills, that someone must have slipped them into our bag at the airport, and we were about to tell a teacher about them. She said they wouldn’t have been able to pin anything on us. But because I had confessed, she was on probation and the teachers who hated her could take her down at any time. She wasn’t going to give them that power over her. As soon as our suspensions were over, Vinessa came into school drunk. After she did that a few times, the school expelled her, and she started getting arrested.

“Vinessa was furious at me. She said I should have told the teacher we just found the pills, that someone must have slipped them into our bag at the airport, and we were about to tell a teacher about them. She said they wouldn't have been able to pin anything on us. But because I had confessed, she was on probation and the teachers who hated her could take her down at any time. She wasn't going to give them that power over her. As soon as our suspensions were over, Vinessa came into school drunk. After she did that a few times, the school expelled her, and she started getting arrested.

“And I keep thinking, if only I hadn’t confessed, everything would be different. That close call would have been enough to warn Vinessa away from getting into real trouble. She only started acting out because she was angry at me. If it weren’t for that, she would have gotten into a good college, and her life would have gone in a completely different direction.”

“And I keep thinking, if only I hadn't confessed, everything would be different. That close call would have been enough to warn Vinessa away from getting into real trouble. She only started acting out because she was angry at me. If it weren't for that, she would have gotten into a good college, and her life would have gone in a completely different direction.”

The other videos made no mention about being caught with the pills, but they still followed a recognizable pattern. In one, Dana felt guilty about introducing Vinessa to a boy who got her addicted to drugs. In another, it was a successful shoplifting incident that emboldened Vinessa to attempt more dramatic thefts. All these Vinessas getting stuck in patterns of self-destructive behavior. All these Danas blaming themselves for it, no matter what actions they took.

The other videos made no mention about being caught with the pills, but they still followed a recognizable pattern. In one, Dana felt guilty about introducing Vinessa to a boy who got her addicted to drugs. In another, it was a successful shoplifting incident that emboldened Vinessa to attempt more dramatic thefts. All these Vinessas getting stuck in patterns of self-destructive behavior. All these Danas blaming themselves for it, no matter what actions they took.

If the same thing happens in branches where you acted differently, then you aren’t the cause.

If the same thing happens in branches where you acted differently, then you aren't the cause.

She had lied about the pills being Vinessa’s, but her lie wasn’t what pushed Vinessa off the edge, what turned her into a delinquent. That was the direction Vinessa was always going to move in, no matter what anyone else did. And Dana had spent years and thousands of dollars trying to make amends for what she’d done, trying to fix Vinessa’s life. Maybe she didn’t need to do that anymore.

She had lied about the pills being Vinessa's, but her lie wasn't what pushed Vinessa off the edge, what turned her into a delinquent. That was the direction Vinessa was always going to move in, no matter what anyone else did. And Dana had spent years and thousands of dollars trying to make amends for what she'd done, trying to fix Vinessa's life. Maybe she didn't need to do that anymore.

Dana took a look at the metadata on the video files. Each file included information about the prism it had come from; the prisms had activation dates that were fully fifteen years in the past.

Dana took a look at the metadata on the video files. Each file included information about the prism it had come from; the prisms had activation dates that were fully fifteen years in the past.

Fifteen years was how long it had been since she and Vinessa had gone on that field trip. Data brokers were just getting started then, and the prisms of the time had much-smaller pads than modern ones. She was surprised that any data brokers still had prisms of that vintage, let alone ones with enough data left in their pads to transmit video. Those were the most valuable prisms that data brokers owned, and transmitting these videos had probably exhausted their pads. Who would have paid for this? It must have cost a fortune.

Fifteen years was how long it had been since she and Vinessa had gone on that field trip. Data brokers were just getting started then, and the prisms of the time had much-smaller pads than modern ones. She was surprised that any data brokers still had prisms of that vintage, let alone ones with enough data left in their pads to transmit video. Those were the most valuable prisms that data brokers owned, and transmitting these videos had probably exhausted their pads. Who would have paid for this? It must have cost a fortune.