Free Saturn by Ben Bova Page A

and repaired them without anyone needing to go outside."
    "Then they could be very useful," said Eberly.
    "They'd be extremely helpful in all the maintenance tasks, yes, certainly," Jaansen replied. "They would make my job much easier." Before either of the other two could speak, he added, "If they're kept under strict control. That's the hard part: keeping them under control."
    "Can they be controlled well enough to do only what they're programmed to do, without running wild?" Morgenthau asked.
    "Yes, certainly. But you've got to be verrry careful with the programming. It's like those old fairy tales about getting three wishes, and the wishes always backfire on you."
    "We'll have Dr. Kristin Cardenas to be in charge of the nanotechnology group," Eberly said.
    Jaansen's ash-blond brows rose a respectful few centimeters. "Cardenas? She's here?"
    "She will be, in a few months."
    "That's good. That's extremely good."
    "Then it's settled," Eberly said. "You will work with Cardenas to draw up guidelines for using nanomachines."
    Jaansen nodded enthusiastically. "I'll be glad to."
    "I don't like it," Morgenthau said, grim-faced. "It's too dangerous."
    "Not if we can keep them under control," said Eberly.
    Jaansen got to his feet. "As I said, it's a two-edged sword. Cardenas is the top expert, though. We'll be lucky to have her."
    "I don't like it," said Morgenthau, once the engineer had left. "Nanomachines are dangerous ... evil."
    "They're tools," Eberly countered. "Tools that could be useful to us."
    "But-"
    "No buts!" Eberly snapped. "I've made my decision. Dr. Cardenas will be welcome, as long as she works under our guidelines."
    Looking doubtful, almost fearful, Morgenthau said, "I'll have to discuss this with my superiors in Amsterdam."
    Eberly glared at her. "The Holy Disciples asked me to direct things here. I won't be second-guessed by a board of elders sitting back on Earth."
    "Those elders asked me to assist you," said Morgenthau. "And to make certain you didn't stray off the path of righteousness."
    Eberly leaned back in his desk chair. So that's it. She's the link back to Amsterdam. She's here to control me.
    Keeping his voice calm, he said to Morgenthau, "Well, I've made my decision. Dr. Cardenas will be joining us in three months, and there's nothing that Amsterdam or Atlanta or anyone else can do about it."
    She looked far less than pleased. "You still have to convince Wilmot to let you introduce nanotechnology into the habitat."
    Eberly stared at her for a silent moment. Then, "Yes, so I do."

CONFIDENTIAL REPORT
    EYES ONLY

    TO: M. Eberly.
    FROM: R. Morgenthau.
    SUBJECT: Surveillance of living quarters.

    Dr. Eberly:

    I discussed the problem of installing surveillance cameras in every living space in the habitat with H. Jaansen, of Engineering. He informed me that microcameras, no larger than a pinhead, have been developed for the probes that the planetary scientists plan to send to Titan. Such cameras are also used by the medical department for examining patients' innards. They can be manufactured in large numbers with existing facilities.
    Jaansen suggests having the medical department initiate a program of spraying each apartment in the habitat with a broad-based disinfectant or aerosol antibiotic, under the guise of preventing the outbreak of airborne diseases. The cameras would be installed in each apartment during the spraying procedure.
    This program will require the cooperation of several lower-level personnel from the medical, maintenance, engineering, and security departments. It will also require a significant amount of time to complete.
    If you can recruit satisfactory personnel for this program, I suggest we begin the "spraying" effort as soon as feasible.
    In addition, Vyborg has successfully tapped into the communications net and is now routinely recording phone conversations and the video programming that individuals watch in their homes. The amount of information is enormous, as you may well