Free Living in Syn by Bobby Draughon

you don’t have a syn? Well, maybe someday soon.”  
    Susan
gritted her teeth. “They are not sins. They are…they are far more decent than
humans, They are synthetic homo sapiens. Or synthetic humans. But…not…sins."
    Mission
nodded. “Okay, noted. I will try to do better. But as far as turning out combat
models…”
    Susan
protested, "I've already told you, it just isn't possible."
    Mission
held up his hands.  "Hello, this is Mission with your 7:00 wakeup call. 
You will admit that the syn, the synthetic in your apartment was ...
modified?"
    She
slumped back in the sofa.  "Yes, I see what you mean.  They have to come
from somewhere."
    "Okay. 
Now.  Does Paradox make any models with a reinforced chassis?"
    "No. 
Wait, yes!  We offered a redesigned mining model last year.  Prototype status. The
constant stress of mining caused an unusually high failure rate starting at
about three years."
    Mission
frowned.  "But would they make reinforced female models?"
    "Oh
definitely.  The mining camps on Jupiter's moons and the like, it's more than
90% men.  It would be crazy to send synthetics for mining and a separate set
for entertainment."
    "Really?" 
Mission entered this on the vue screen.  "Are there any other models with
a heavy duty chassis?"
    "No,
that's why the redesign took a while.  It was the company's first try."
    "Now,
the agility of these combat models.  Are they at least as agile as a the normal
synthetic?  Say an eight or a nine?"
    She
nodded.  "Yes, a nine recently performed gymnastics routines far beyond
the capability of the world's best humans."
    "And
surveillance, tracking, reconnaissance.  These are skills that Paradox doesn't
offer, but don't constitute a major hurdle.  That is to say, they wouldn't
contradict or interrupt hard coded logic?"
    Susan
said guardedly, "I guess not.  What are you getting at, Mission?"
    "I'm
trying to establish the requirements for developing a combat model.  Once we
define those parameters, we can look for people or organizations with the
qualifications, or with the access to needed components, or with facilities and
other resources needed to make this happen.  See?   Then we see several
different angles from which to approach the problem.  And that significantly
increases our chances of success."
    Susan
looked impressed.  "Mission, I had no idea you approached work in such a
... cerebral fashion."
    "Ah
yes, I'm a true renaissance man.  Now, for the big one Susan.  How would you
alter the base programming so that a syn could attack a human and even commit
murder?"
    Susan
clasped her hands together. “And that’s where your theory falls apart. It can’t
be done. The cases you handle represent the most extreme synthetic pathologies.
And even in those instances, they only retaliate, when their survival is
directly and immediately threatened. Before that much core programming could
break down, the synthetic would cease to function. We don’t have a single
documented case of  unprovoked violence."
    “Then
what do you call last night’s little encounter?”
    Susan
sighed and nodded her head in agreement. There were minutes of silence and then
Mission said,  "Did you not serve on the team that worked out the
mathematics, the transaction processors, and the very design of the brain that
drives all current Paradox syns?"
    "Well
yes but ... "
    "Well
then, you evaluate the odds for me.  Which would be easier, to throw the
Paradox design out the window and build a new brain, or to modify the existing
brain with an encapsulation system?"
    Susan
stuck out her lower lip.  "You already know the answer.  A new brain costs
more than $10 billion and requires three to five years for development."
    "So,
back to my question.  How would you modify base programming?"
    "Mission,
I don't know."
    Mission
refused to surrender.  "Let's talk about specialized processors.  Could
substitution or addition of processors make an impact?"
    She
shook her head.  "I