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Construct Tau
The Progenitors are quite known in the technocracy for their extremely neat and orderly constructs, far from the loud factories of Iteration X or the sometimes academically messy Ivory Tower institutions.Tau is one of the neatest constructs within the convention, dominated by its unstoppable ResearchDirector.Tau lies far from the front lines of the Pogrom. Instead it is directed towards unlocking and once and for all solving the mysteries of the human nervous system, which in the long run may prove more importantto win the Ascension War than any number of HIT Marks or destroyed tradition chantries.Under the leadership of Research Director Wolfgang S. Sparrel Tau has grown and flourished, from amediocre academic construct to a leading force within neuroscience, well renowned for its importantresearch. It moved to its current location in the middle 80's from Stanford, a move that turned out to befruitful in many ways. The new buildings still feel fresh, and the location has made it popular for visitingresearchers. At the same time there has been a subtle change of mood, infusing the construct will newenergy.Sparrel has some definite views on how to run the construct. The most important principle is that asmuch work as possible should be done within the paradigm; no cloned brains or hybrid monsters. This both minimises the need for large amounts of quintessence for a horizon realm and protective measures,and keeps the researchers focused on work with applications in the real world.The second principle is that the construct will be directed towards applications helping the Masses in thelong run, although paradigm engineering and definition is regarded as the most important way to helpthem.The third principle may be the secret of Tau's success; that the construct should function as a clearing-house and coordinator of research within the neuroscience field. The research at Tau is supplemented byresearch across the world, and the construct carefully disseminates information in return.The construct is both well renowned and influential within the Progenitors. While some other constructsresent its central position and favour with the Administration, it is regarded as important in theProgenitor Timetable - if Descartes Null and the Labyrinth Solvers can perfect the neuropsychological paradigm the convention will have gained an important hold on the mental paradigm.
Physical Appearance
Tau lies in Mountain View just east of Concorde, near awetlands park in the White Mountains. In thesurroundings are massive, dune-like hills covered in grassand many species of trees, giving the area a somewhatwild look. Nestled on the plateau lies the construct(officially the "Terence A. Underhill MedicalFoundation"), a series of irregular buildings with a trendylook of high technology and ecology. They are all airy,with large windows and soft curves built in stone, bricksand wood. The buildings are connected by concrete tiled paths running gently through the tamed wilderness, anideal place to stroll. The whole complex fits in its
 
surroundings perfectly, giving a strong impression of environmental responsibility and balance. Actually,the surroundings have been slightly altered by the construct to fit it better.At the end of the driveway, just in front of theentrance, is a polished black, slightly irregular,stone around a meter in diameter on a small pieceof well-kept lawn. On it the letters "Terence A.Underhill Medical Foundation" has been engravedand silvered.Inside, the buildings are largely offices andlaboratories. The colour scale is mainly white,with tasteful additions of browns, greys andgreens. While the architecture looks irregular andadapted to the randomness of the landscapeoutside, it actually follows some subtle rulesmaking it easy for employees to find their way around. Most of the buildings are just two stories high, but there are some underground facilities and basements linked by a network of tunnels. Down here arethe PET scan lab, reserve power and some of the high-security labs.The Security Director has a tough job with this kind of open architecture. Despite the problems, he hassucceeded admirably by partially relying on security support from neighbouring constructs (ResearchDirector Sparrel's political clout has been crucial for this) and high technology. The surroundinglandscape is in fact filled with very discrete sensors, a network of tendrils extending from the constructand noticing any disturbance. The windows, doors, ventilation system and parts of the walls are larmedand much sturdier than they look - the windows are bullet-proof. Inside the building most doors arelocked with magnetic passkeys combined with personal codes, and access to the most sensitive areasrequire a DNA scan (camouflaged as a fingerprint scanner). Beside the Security Director, there are sixguards in the construct, all equipped with efficient but nonlethal weapons.
Amalgams
There are several amalgams at work within the construct. The four major are:
The Labyrinth Solvers
, officially the Functional Neuroanatomy Group, map the brain and study/defineits functions. The amalgam is not the most prestigious in the construct, but one of the largest and busiest.Most of their work consists of elaborate animal experiments or PET scans of human volunteers.Currently they are mainly supporting the work of Descartes Null and the Unwrinklers, although their long-term project of mapping the limbic system is progressing nicely. Primary Investigator Jonathan W.Lewisdale is a meticulous researcher, often verging on the overcautious, but he leads the various teamsof the group quite well.
Descartes Null
, the Cognitive Research Group is the cutting edge. The Progenitors have for a long timesought to delineate how intelligence and consciousness arise in the nervous system, to once and for allturn mental function into biology. The main problems so far have been political rather than scientific.The New World Order has long demanded to have a say in the question, and not until the amalgam wasformed with several representatives from the Ivory Tower did the work get seriously underway. TodayDescartes Null is making cautious progress in the uncharted waters of consciousness, gradually defininghow it works. To the surprise of many outsiders the amalgam works perfectly together as a team, unitingthe skills of Progenitor neurologists and New World Order psychologists. It is led by PrimaryInvestigator Laura I. Sandell, a psychologist fairly new to the construct.
 
The Neuromedical Research Group
, known as the Unwrinklers, are working on the cure for variousneurological diseases. Currently their main research thrust is against Alzheimer¹s disease. Apparently thedisease is indirectly caused by the extended lifespan of most people, people live longer than they aresupposed to and their Avatars seem to move away from them. The group is trying to find efficientmethods of binding the avatars more strongly to the brain, so that this degeneration do not occur. Other internal projects study multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease and ALS, trying to determine the best wayto introduce their cures in the paradigm. Primary Investigator Michel Merleau-Ponty is more of a hands-on person, and he and his group often visit hospitals and institutes to test their ideas in real life and seewhat might work from a sleeper perspective.
The Preventative Medicine Group
is the most secretive amalgam in the construct, and located in itsown building a bit away from the rest of the construct. It is however quite clear to the other amalgamsthat their real work is: biological weapons. Under the direction of Dr. Tytti Vinainen the PMG hasdeveloped several discrete and deadly weapons, such as virus infections targeted at individual people, astrain of herpes that attacks bionic interfaces and a form of epidemic meningitis causing debilitatinghallucinations. Its general direction seems to be viral and microbial (with some work on psycholyticdrugs), often using very subtle means to create diseases for assassination and psychological warfare. Ithas also supplied the construct guards with some very special ammunition.
The Node
The black stone in front of the buildings (which reappears in its letterhead) is the last visible remains of the old node the construct was built on. Sparrel has determined that this location was a sacred place long before the white man appeared, and it is not unlikely that healing shamanic rites were performed in frontof the stone. By inscribing the name of the construct (and sanitising the node) Tau now feeds on itsenergy. It is only of moderate power, making it essential to economise with the quintessence somewhat, but that only suits Sparrel well since he like to keep his research teams lean and mean.However, the node may not be completely dead. It might not be a coincidence that the ResearchDirectors room overlooks the stone, and that the great man often stands looking through his window atits black surface. Sparrel sometimes indulges in the mental game of discussing with his superego or other personality aspects while looking at the inscrutable surface, sometimes coming to surprisinginsights. Often he is reminded of his duty to the Masses, to give them health and happiness at all costs.
The Realms
Tau has two separate realms, both very small for a construct of this size. One is the Analysis Centre,where the Labyrinth Solvers perform their most complex experiments. It looks just like an extension of the buildings, filled with labs and experiment rooms where test subjects can be stimulated in variousways. It is reachable from the elevators of the main building by using a special pass key; the car willmove up to an extra floor above the others. This is heaven for an neuropsychologist, every conceivabletool for studying the brain is available, including some far beyond current technology like nanoprobesand microwave neural stimulators. A special room is filled with advanced computer workstations andvirtual reality gear, where researchers build the final atlas of the brain step by step.The other realm is the High Security Lab of the PMG. It is a bunker- like construction beneath their  building, with elaborate security measures. Inside the most deadly projects are developed and stored,and if something goes wrong it will be sealed hermetically. There is even an option to launch it into theDeep Umbra and cut the quintessence supply, something that would lead to the dissolution intonothingness of it (and everything inside). It contains a series of austere labs lit by merciless fluoroscent
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