Sometimes It Is Rocket Science Read Online Free PDF Page A

wanted to integrate several domestic robots.  There are four gorgeous ones in the workshop, but he ran into a problem with the artificial intelligence, and I got sidetracked.”
    Robert groaned, shook his head.  His father was brilliant when it came to robotics and engineering but had never had the patience for computer programs.  Robert had a hard time believing Dan had set up the entire house by himself.  His father was good, but the range of NORA’s capabilities was beyond incredible.  “Did Dad bring in an outside contractor to help?”
    “No.”  Georgiana released Robert’s wrist and stopped outside a closed door.  Faint humming and whirling could be heard through the crack under the door.  “Dan and I worked on it alone.  Tab helped some.  It’s not as elegant as it could be, but we made it work.”
    Robert nodded.  That made sense.  At first glance, Georgiana appeared to be nothing more than a carbon copy of her glamorous and gracious mother, but she had her father’s genius intellect, if not his exact programming or business finesse.  “Why did Dad do this, though?  He’d never expressed an interest in it before.”
    Georgiana blushed.  She ducked her head.  He half expected her to shuffle her feet.  “It was for me.  I asked him to help create a home system, and he insisted on installing the prototype in his house before we set one up in my townhouse.”
    He wanted to ask why she needed an automated home, but the look on her face made it clear that she’d shut down completely if he did.  Relieving his curiosity would have to wait.  “What’s this room?”
    She shot him a tight, grateful smile before tapping in her code on the keypad beside the door.  It unlocked with a soft click .  She twisted the heavy brass knob and nudged the door open with her foot.  Dozens of monitors and racks of blade servers lined the small room’s walls.  Despite the air vents were strategically placed on the floor and ceiling, the room was considerably warmer than the hallway.
    “This is the heart of NORA.  All her data is backed up hourly and stored at a secure, off-site location as well as our private cloud.”  Georgiana moved to a computer set up in the far corner.  She perched on the edge of a short, padded stool.  Her fingers flew across the keyboard.  “Come on, I’ll set you up.”
    Robert sat patiently while Georgiana scanned his fingerprints, eyes, and face and then loaded them into the database.  She politely turned her back while he entered his personal eight-digit access code and alphanumeric override code.  When he mentioned that his personal chauffeur Allan and Cedric were due to fly in at the end of the week, she put their names into NORA’s system and set her to run background checks.
    “They were checked before I hired them,” Robert pointed out, arms crossed over his chest and foot tapping against the wood floor.
    “I’m sure they were, but all non-family members get checked again before they are given access to the house.”  She bit down on her lower lip and continued typing commands.  “It’s Dan’s rule, not mine.”
    “Were you checked?”
    “No.”  She tilted her head and shrugged.  “We are practically family, Bobby.  Besides, I have a similar system at home.  I’m not going to sell my security system to the highest bidder.  It would be like giving them the keys to my home.”
    “Oh?”  Robert arched a dark eyebrow.  “And what are you protecting?”
    “Something infinitely more important than a few schematics and prototypes.”  Georgiana clicked out of the program and turned off the monitor.  “As soon as NORA finishes the check, she’ll send the information to Dan and me.  One of us will set up limited access for Allan and Cedric.”
    She ran his father’s home as if it were her own.  Were her reasons perfectly benign or did she have something to gain by being so close to Dan? “You said my access level is the same as yours.