jurassic.park-第9节

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　　　　〃I'd　have　to　look；〃　Grant　said。　〃But　it　was　around　then。　Mid…eighties。〃
　　　　〃And　you　know　Hammond　as　just　a　rich　dinosaur　enthusiast。〃
　　　　〃Yes。〃
　　　　Morris　made　another　note。
　　　　〃Look；〃　Grant　said。　〃If　the　EPA　is　so　concerned　about　John　Hammond　and　what　he's　doing…the　dinosaur　sites　in　the　north；　the　amber　purchases；　the　island　in　Costa　Rica…why　don't　you　'ust　ask　him　about　it？〃
　　　　〃At　the　moment；　we　can't；〃　Morris　said。　〃Why　not？〃　Grant　said。
　　　　〃Because　we　don't　have　any　evidence　of　wrongdoing；〃　Morris　said。　〃But　personally；　I　think　it's　clear　John　Hammond　is　evading　the　law。〃

〃I　was　first　contacted；〃　Morris　explained；　〃by　the　Office　of　Technology　Transfer。　The　OTT　monitors　shipments　of　American　technology　which　might　have　military　significance。　They　called　to　say　that　InGen　had　two　areas　of　possible　illegal　technology　transfer。　First；　InGen　shipped　three　Cray　XMPs　to　Costa　Rica。　InGen　characterized　it　as　transfer　within　corporate　divisions；　and　said　they　weren't　for　resale。　But　OTT　couldn't　imagine　why　the　hell　somebody'd　need　that　power　in　Costa　Rica。〃
　　　　〃Three　Crays；〃　Grant　said。　〃is　that　a　kind　of　puter？〃
　　　　Morris　nodded。　〃Very　powerful　superputers。　To　put　it　in　perspective；　three　Crays　represent　more　puting　power　than　any　other　privately　held　pany　in　America。　And　InGen　sent　the　machines　to　Costa　Rica。　You　have　to　wonder　why。〃
　　　　〃I　give　up。　Why？〃　Grant　said。
　　　　〃Nobody　knows。　And　the　Hoods　are　even　more　worrisome；〃　Morris　continued。　〃Hoods　are　automated　gene　sequencers…machines　that　work　out　the　genetic　code　by　themselves。　They're　so　new　that　they　haven't　been　put　on　the　restricted　lists　yet。　But　any　genetic　engineering　lab　is　likely　to　have　one；　if　it　can　afford　the　half…million…dollar　price　tag。〃　He　flipped　through　his　notes。　〃Well；　it　seems　InGen　shipped　twenty…four　Hood　sequencers　to　their　island　in　Costa　Rica。
　　　　〃Again；　they　said　it　was　a　transfer　within　divisions　and　not　an　export；〃　Morris　said。　〃There　wasn't　much　that　OTT　could　do。　They're　not　officially　concerned　with　use。　But　InGen　was　obviously　setting　up　one　of　the　most　powerful　genetic　engineering　facilities　in　the　world　in　an　obscure　Central　American　country。　A　country　with　no　regulations。　That　kind　of　thing　has　happened　before。〃
　　　　There　had　already　been　cases　of　American　bioenginecring　panies　moving　to　another　country　so　they　would　not　be　hampered　by　regulations　and　rules。　The　most　flagrant；　Morris　explained；　was　the　Biosyn　rabies　case。
　　　　In　1986；　Genetic　Biosyn　Corporation　of　Cupertino　tested　a　bioengineered　rabies　vaccine　on　a　farm　in　Chile。　They　didn't　inform　the　government　of　Chile；　or　the　farm　workers　involved。　They　simply　released　the　vaccine。
　　　　The　vaccine　consisted　of　live　rabies　virus；　genetically　modified　to　be　nonvirulent。　But　the　virulence　hadn't　been　tested；　Biosyn　didn't　know　whether　the　virus　could　still　cause　rabies　or　not。　Even　worse；　the　virus　had　been　modified。　Ordinarily　you　couldn't　contract　rabies　unless　you　were　bitten　by　an　animal。　But　Biosyn　modified　the　rabies　virus　to　cross　the　pulmonary　alveoli；　you　could　get　an　infection　just　inhaling　it。　Biosyn　staffers　brought　this　live　rabies　virus　down　to　Chile　in　a　carry…on　bag　on　a　mercial　airline　flight。　Morris　often　wondered　what　would　have　happened　if　the　capsule　had　broken　open　during　the　flight。　Everybody　on　the　plane　might　have　been　infected　with　rabies。
　　　　It　was　outrageous。　It　was　irresponsible。　It　was　criminally　negligent。　But　no　action　was　taken　against　Biosyn。　The　Chilean　farmers　who　unwittingly　risked　their　lives　were　ignorant　peasants；　the　government　of　Chile　had　an　economic　crisis　to　worry　about；　and　the　American　authorities　had　no　jurisdiction。　So　Lewis　Dodgson；　the　geneticist　responsible　for　the　test；　was　still　working　at　Biosyn。　Biosyn　was　still　as　reckless　as　ever。　And　other　American　panies　were　hurrying　to　set　up　facilities　in　foreign　countries　that　lacked　sophistication　about　genetic　research。　Countries　that　perceived　genetic　engineering　to　be　like　any　other　high…tech　development；　and　thus　weled　it　to　their　lands；　unaware　of　the　dangers　posed。
　　　　〃So　that's　why　we　began　our　investigation　of　InGen；〃　Morris　said。　〃About　three　weeks　ago。〃
　　　　〃And　what　have　you　actually　found？〃　Grant　said。
　　　　〃Not　much；〃　Morris　admitted。　〃When　I　go　back　to　San　Francisco；　we'll　probably　have　to　close　the　investigation。　And　I　think　I'm　about　finished　here。〃　He　started　packing　up　his　briefcase…　〃By　the　way；　what　does　'juvenile　hyperspace'　mean？〃
　　　　〃That's　just　a　fancy　label　for　my　report；〃　Grant　said。　〃　'Hyperspace'　is　a　term　for　multidimensional　space…like　three…dimensional　tic…tac…toe。　I　you　were　to　take　all　the　behaviors　of　an　animal；　its　eating　and　movement　and　sleeping；　you　could　plot　the　animal　within　the　multidimensional　space。　Some　paleontologists　refer　to　the　behavior　of　an　animal　as　occurring　in　an　ecological　hyperspace。　'Juvenile　hyperspace'　would　just　refer　to　the　behavior　of　juvenile　dinosaurs…if　you　wanted　to　be　as　pretentious　as　possible。〃
　　　　At　the　far　end　of　the　trailer；　the　phone　rang。　Ellie　answered　it。　She　said；　〃He's　in　a　meeting　right　now。　Can　he　call　you　back？〃
　　　　Morris　snapped　his　briefcase　shut　and　stood。　〃Thanks　for　your　help　and　the　beer；〃　he　said。
　　　　〃No　problem；〃　Grant　said。
　　　　Grant　walked　with　Morris　down　the　trailer　to　the　door　at　the　far　end。　Morris　said；　〃Did　Hammond　ever　ask　for　any　physical　materials　from　your　site？　Bones；　or　eggs；　or　anything　like　that？〃
　　　　〃No；〃　Grant　said。
　　　　〃Dr。　Sattler　mentioned　you　do　some　genetic　work　here。　。　。　。〃
　　　　〃Well；　not　exactly；〃　Grant　said。　〃When　we　remove　fossils　that　are　broken　or　for　some　other　reason　not　suitable　for　museum　preservation；　we　send　the　bones　out　to　a　lab　that　grinds　them　up　and　tries　to　extract　proteins　for　us；　The　proteins　are　then　identified　and　the　report　is　sent　back　to　us。〃
　　　　〃Which　lab　is　that？〃　Morris　asked。
　　　　〃Medical　Biologic　Services　in　Salt　Lake。〃
　　　　〃How'd　you　choose　them？〃
　　　　〃petitive　bids。〃
　　　　〃The　lab　has　nothing　to　do　with　InGen？〃　Morris　asked。
　　　　〃Not　that　I　know；〃　Grant　said。
　　　　They　came　to　the　door　of　the　trailer。　Grant　opened　it；　and　felt　the　rush　of　hot　air　from　outside。　Morris　paused　to　put　on　his　sunglasses。
　　　　〃One　last　thing；〃　Morris　said。　〃Suppose　InGen　wasn't　really　making　a　museum　exhibit。　Is　there　anything　else　they　could　have　done　with　the　information　in　the　report　you　gave　them？〃
　　　　Grant　laughed。　〃Sure。　They　could　feed　a　baby　hadrosaur。〃
　　　　Morris　laughed；　too。　〃A　baby　hadrosaur。　That'd　be　something　to　see。　How　big　were　they？〃
　　　　〃About　so；〃　Grant　said；　holding　his　hands　six　inches　apart。　〃Squirrelsize。〃
　　　　〃And　how　long　before　they　bee　full…grown？〃
　　　　〃Three　years；〃　Grant　said。　〃Give　or　take。〃
　　　　Morris　held　out　his　band。　〃Well；　thanks　again　for　your　help。〃
　　　　〃Take　it　easy　driving　back；〃　Grant　said。　He　watched　for　a　moment　as　Morris　walked　back　toward　his　car；　and　then　closed　the　trailer　door。
　　　　Grant　said；　〃What　did　you　think？〃
　　　　Ellie　shrugged。　〃Na？ve。〃
　　　　〃You　like　the　part　where　John　Hammond　is　the　evil　arch…villain？〃　Grant　laughed。　〃John　Hammond's　about　as　sinister　as　Walt　Disney。　By　the　way；　who　called？〃
　　　　〃Oh；〃　Ellie　said；　〃it　was　a　woman　named　Alice　Levin。　She　works　at　Columbia　Medical　Center。　You　know　her？〃
　　　　Grant　shook　his　head。　〃No。〃
　　　　〃Well；　it　was　something　about　identifying　some　remains。　She　wants　you　to　call　her　back　right　away。〃

Skeleton

Ellie　Sattler　brushed　a　strand　of　blond　hair　back　from　her　face　and　turned　her　attention　to　the　acid　baths。　She　had　six　in　a　row；　at　molar　strengths　from　5　to　30　percent。　She　'had　to　keep　an　eye　on　the　stronger　solutions；　because　they　would　eat　through　the　limestone　and　begin　to　erode　the　bones。　And　infant…dinosaur　bones　were　so　fragile；　She　marveled　that　they　had　been　preserved　at　all；　after　eighty　million　years。
　　　　She　listened　idly　as　Grant　said；　〃Miss　Levin？　This　is　Alan　Grant。　What's　this　about　a　。　。　。　You　have　what？　A　what？〃　He　began　to　laugh。　〃Oh；　I　doubt　that　very　much；　Miss　Levin。　。　。　。　No；　I　really　don't　have　time；　I'm　sorry　。　。　。　。　Well；　I'd　take　a　look　at　it；　but　I　can　pretty　much　guarantee　it's　a　basilisk　lizard。　But　。　。　。　yes；　you　can　do　that。　All　right。　Send　it　now。〃　Grant　hung　up；　and　shook　his　head。　〃These　people。〃
　　　　Ellie　said；　〃What's　it　about？〃
　　　　〃Some　lizard　she's　trying　to　identify；〃　Grant　said。　〃She's　going　to　fax　me　an　X…ray。〃　He　walked　over　to　the　fax　and　waited　as　the　transmission　came　through。　〃Incidentally；　I've　got　a　new　find　for　you。　A　good　one。〃
　　　　〃Yes？〃
　　　　Grant　nodded。　〃Found　it　just　before　the　kid　showed　up。　On　South　Hill；　horizon　four。　Infant　velociraptor：　jaw　and　plete　dentition；　so　there's　no　question　about　identity。　And　the　site　looks　undisturbed。　We　might　even　get　a　full　skeleton。〃
　　　　〃That's　fantastic；〃　Ellie　said。　〃How　young？〃
　　　　〃Young；〃　Grant　said。　〃Two；　maybe　four　months　at　most。〃
　　　　〃And　it's　definitely　a　velociraptor？〃
　　　　〃Definitely；〃　Grant　said。　〃Maybe　our　luck　has　finally　turned。〃
　　　　For　the　last　two　years　at　Snakewater；　the　team　had　excavated　only　duckbilled　hadrosaurs。　They　already　had　evidence　for　vast　herds　of　these　grazing　dinosaurs；　roaming　the　Cretaceous　plains　in　groups　of　ten　or　twenty　thousand；　as　buffalo　would　later　roam。
　　　　But　in