Trafika Europe 14 - Italian Piazza

The Man at One Kelvin Degrees Observers all agreed that the reason was political. At the time, the Cold War on Trade was in full swing – which, for the Western world, meant flexing its technological muscles. Teleport was very promising in theory, but still far from feasible applications. Even the location seemed to have been chosen for political reasons. In the last fifteen years, lingering clouds of the Long Crisis witnessed in the early part of the century had been dispelled by the warm sun of economic recovery. Belgium and Spain had made it back into the Eurozone, and Northern Italian regions also seemed ready. The choice of Milan was generally thought to be associated with the growing importance of Lombardy in the Continent ’s economy. When Goldbach appeared on the platform instead of De Ruiter, everyone was taken by surprise. Only later was the course of events made known. Questioned by the Lombardy Police, Goldbach himself had declared that he hadn’t the least idea what had prevented the professor from being present at the Stelline. De Ruiter had got in touch with him on the evening of June 13 on the 3DWeb, not in person but through his avatar. This wasn’t unusual, according to Goldbach: the professor had spent hours on the 3DWeb, and had been known to communicate in the same way with Institute staff. In any case his avatar was certified, so it was difficult to question his identity. During their conversation, the frozen-professor-to-be had mentioned health problems; it had occurred to Goldbach that, for some

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