15 - (Mostly) Unkowable Object
Nov. 21st, 2020 01:47 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
aprilmarchItem 471232407
Object is 1cm tall and made of an iron-rich metallic alloy. No other physical property it possesses can be observed.
Object was sent by mail to the DPA central office with a letter stating:
"Dear colleagues,
I send to you this item that I collected from the Pernambuco coast. I have studied it intently for three years now and have discovered no more information other than its height and its composition. It has been driving me crazy.
I send it to you in hopes that you'll be more successful, or, failing that, that it'll drive you crazy instead.
Regards,
Dr. von Braun."
Dr. Amadeus von Braun is a known DPA person of interest. Born in Blumenau, Santa Catarina, the doctor abandoned as a renowed anthropologist in order to study anomalous objects. The reference to the Pernambuco coast is believed to refer to the "Roman shipwreck" found there (see item 431515105), which was believed to have been disturbed before DPA secured it; this proves some items were indeed taken, although it is unknown if von Braun acquired these items himself or if he acquired this object from an unknown third party.
The object's phyisical properties cannot be understood. Only its height (exactly 1cm) and its composition (a metal alloy) are known. Its lenght and depth, weight, shape and other properties cannot be defined. Any attempt to do so results in a combination of contradictory results, equipment failure, or mental confusion.
Another property is that any observer instinctively knows the one obsevable dimension is its height, and not its lenght or depth. This means all observers know how the object is the 'right way up'.
Different methods of measurement will work equally well for knowable properties and equally fail for unknowable ones. For instance, touching the object will reveal it has a smooth metal texture, but observers will be unable to realize its shape.
As our strongest anti-memetics techniques have not caused any change, this suggests that the object either has memetic properties stronger than any object found so far, or that its properties are actually physically unmeasurable, not merely unable to be understood.
Tests have revealed some clues about its other properties:
- While its exact weight cannot be recorded, it is as expected for an object of its size and shape.
- If one attempts to place it 'upside down', it falls over. Otherwise, it doesn't. This suggests its bottom is flat and its top is not.
- It will roll slightly if not placed 'upright' on an angled surface, which suggests it is not completely convex but it is not round.
All researchers are said to feel a slight sense of foreboding when placing the object in any orientation other than right side up. As such, all testing is currently suspended.
Object is 1cm tall and made of an iron-rich metallic alloy. No other physical property it possesses can be observed.
Object was sent by mail to the DPA central office with a letter stating:
"Dear colleagues,
I send to you this item that I collected from the Pernambuco coast. I have studied it intently for three years now and have discovered no more information other than its height and its composition. It has been driving me crazy.
I send it to you in hopes that you'll be more successful, or, failing that, that it'll drive you crazy instead.
Regards,
Dr. von Braun."
Dr. Amadeus von Braun is a known DPA person of interest. Born in Blumenau, Santa Catarina, the doctor abandoned as a renowed anthropologist in order to study anomalous objects. The reference to the Pernambuco coast is believed to refer to the "Roman shipwreck" found there (see item 431515105), which was believed to have been disturbed before DPA secured it; this proves some items were indeed taken, although it is unknown if von Braun acquired these items himself or if he acquired this object from an unknown third party.
The object's phyisical properties cannot be understood. Only its height (exactly 1cm) and its composition (a metal alloy) are known. Its lenght and depth, weight, shape and other properties cannot be defined. Any attempt to do so results in a combination of contradictory results, equipment failure, or mental confusion.
Another property is that any observer instinctively knows the one obsevable dimension is its height, and not its lenght or depth. This means all observers know how the object is the 'right way up'.
Different methods of measurement will work equally well for knowable properties and equally fail for unknowable ones. For instance, touching the object will reveal it has a smooth metal texture, but observers will be unable to realize its shape.
As our strongest anti-memetics techniques have not caused any change, this suggests that the object either has memetic properties stronger than any object found so far, or that its properties are actually physically unmeasurable, not merely unable to be understood.
Tests have revealed some clues about its other properties:
- While its exact weight cannot be recorded, it is as expected for an object of its size and shape.
- If one attempts to place it 'upside down', it falls over. Otherwise, it doesn't. This suggests its bottom is flat and its top is not.
- It will roll slightly if not placed 'upright' on an angled surface, which suggests it is not completely convex but it is not round.
All researchers are said to feel a slight sense of foreboding when placing the object in any orientation other than right side up. As such, all testing is currently suspended.
