[Viden Academy: Scalvoris Campus] Viva

[Pegasus]

50th Ashan, 717

Esme Dashiell was perturbed. It was rare that she grew perturbed, in truth, but she was. There was a series of events which she did not quite understand and so, she sat in her office and she waited for her student. She had in front of her his final project for his physics Diploma and Esme Dashiell looked at it and sighed.

It was, she had decided, perturbing.

She had sent Pippa to do some work in the library whilst she conducted these vivas. She was the only professor who insisted on them, she knew, but she felt that it was important. The students had to be able to do more than write about physics and its applications to the world around them. Only if they could explain what they had done could they prove that they truly understood. She considered it her duty to challenge, to query, to question.

So, at the knock on the door to her office, she looked up and she gave a rare, but genuine, smile. "Ah. Professor Augustin. Or, for the purposes of this meeting, Padraig. Come in." She motioned to the table in front of her where there was a seat for him. "Please, sit."

Professor Dashiell carried out these viva voce examinations at Diploma level and above and her students were terrified of it. She knew this and, to an extent, she encouraged it. She had refused to pass one of Padraig's fellow students yestertrial. She had told him, quite simply that she was not convinced of the authenticity of his work. He was threatening all sorts against her, but the thing that all the students knew was that she was right. He hadn't completed his final project alone but had been given a lot of help from his uncle who was visiting.

She had been, and continued to be, unmoving.

Still, that was a consideration between her and the young man in question. Right now, she was focused on the young man in front of her. "I've read your project." She had, of course, poured over all of them. Each and every detail was there for the serious Biqaj professor. "I'm impressed."

She turned very serious eyes to him and gestured to the project itself which sat on the table between them. "First, talk me through it," she was clear that she had specific questions but that was always her first one. "And tell me why you chose to do this project, specifically."

[Padraig]

It was just his luck, that Padraig had been assigned to the only professor that conducted the viva voce. He dreaded it, though he couldn't exactly say why. After all, he'd never been subjected to one before, and the only ones who had apparently, were also assigned to the same professor as him. They dreaded it however. So perhaps there was something to it. And he'd heard from the horse's mouth, no less, about the most recent failure.

And yet he wasn't particularly nervous. He was confident in his work, and believed that the principles behind what he'd devised were sound ones. So he arrived on time, and smiled when he entered the professor's office. "Good morning, professor Dashiell," he said, before taking a seat as directed.

It appeared there wouldn't be any small talk before they got started, and Padraig was grateful for that. Even more so, that she led with an admission that she was at least intrigued by what he'd submitted. "Well," he said as he sat forward a little to look over the project, carefully drawn and labeled on papers. "Firstly, here I've combined the principles of thermodynamics and gravity to design a mechanisms, or rather a series of them that together can deliver running water indoors. In particular, hot running water than can eliminate the need to heat water over a stove or fire and haul it for bathing."

Also, part of the design, he explained, could also enable a bather to stand beneath a controlled shower of hot running water, rather than simply soaking in an already filled tub. "You'll see the role that gravity plays, in part, in the original water source." There was a good sized wooden tank drawn at the back of a house, raised on a platform to collect rain water, or to be filled from a nearby stream or pond during the dry season. "If you'll remember the drawing I showed to you when we first met," he said with a smile, "The portable paddle wheel?"

That, he explained, would be used to help keep the tank full when the rain wasn't enough. "The tank is positioned higher than the the mechanisms indoors, so that two smaller tanks, positioned in a small, dedicated room, remain constantly full. But then gravity itself prevents them from overflowing." Each one held about sixty gallons at once, he told her.

The rest of the drawing detailed what resembled somewhat an enclosed, squat, wood burning stove with a number of pipes going in and out of it's bottom. One disappeared into a wall, another into the bottom of one of the tanks which was positioned on top of it.

"I've used a small slice of yellow dragon wood in the stove, which should eliminate the need to be constantly refueling it with ordinary wood. I also realized that though the water won't be heated to a boiling point, not everyone wants quite such a hot bath. I added the second tank then, which contains cooler, room temperature water, so that two streams can flow through the pipes at once, combining and becoming one before reaching the shower, here," he added, pointing out the tub and shower, with a head that resembled a shallow soup bowl, pierced through like a strainer.

"Flow and temperature is controlled and adjust from here," he said, pointing out to levers that the bather could adjust as they pleased. It had also occurred to him that the thing would build up pressure when not in use, so he'd designed a valve that would react under pressure and release the steam outdoors, rather than building up and putting strain on the stove, the tank or the pipes.

But why that project? Well, it was Faith who'd put the idea in his head. However, "It's not just theory or a whim, but a real life solution to a real life problem," he told the professor. Countless breaks were spent hauling and heating water, then hauling it out again, which the drain he'd designed in the floor would also address. And doing all of that required a great deal of wood, a requirement eliminated by using the yellow dragon wood.

"I can imagine that such a thing wouldn't just be useful for bathing," he considered. "Something similar could be used in kitchens, at inns, in healer's stations?" he suggested. But a real world problem, a real solution, that was the point of it, he told the professor.

[Pegasus]

If there was one thing that Esme Dashiell could do well, it was disapproval. She oozed it like others oozed bon ami. "I see," she said and nodded her head, the veil on her hat barely moving as she did. "What would you make the pipes out of?" Tapping her pencil against the pipes on the diagram, she considered. "And why?" It seemed to be that it was her natural way, though, he knew her well enough by now that she was always demanding and moreso of those she believed to be talented.

"When you first came to study with me, I told you that we must refine, we must push and we must demand more of ourselves." She peered down her nose at him and gave the slightest sniff. He may recall that the disdainful sniff was the closest to praise she ever got. "What are the problems with it? Apply here the same level of scrutiny I asked you to apply when you spoke of the experiment with the pendulum suspended on string." By now he knew her memory, so would probably not be surprised when she more or less spoke the same words she had the season before.

"Consider the variables. The changes in ambient temperature between areas of the island, for example, and between seasons in one place. What natural predators will it be vulnerable to? How do you avoid overheating in the summer, freezing in the winter, so on and so forth."

Professor Dashiell looked at it and tapped specific points, questioning him on why he designed this pipe at this angle, that one at that, why that bit went there, so on and so forth. It was done with the obvious intention of ensuring that he understood the design he had put in front of her.

"Your penmanship has improved, but only barely." Her eyebrow quirked and then, she sat back and steepled her fingers together.

"What will your specialism be next season for your Charter?" She asked him with a very stringent and sharp gaze at him. There was more to that question than the simple asking of it, no doubt. Her raised eyebrow almost invariably meant that she had strong opinions on whatever they were talking about.

[Padraig]

Disapproval, or apparent disapproval, the professor did very, very well. But Padraig had come to realize that what you saw with this woman, wasn't always what you got. Somehow he thought that he'd managed to impress her. Maybe. "Copper," he said without hesitation, regarding the pipes. "Copper is an excellent conductor, of heat that is. And it doesn't rust."

She had a lot of questions of course, and for most of them he had ready answers. "Overheating wouldn't be a problem. I've calculated the ratio, the slice size of the dragon wood to the volume in the tank, to insure that the temperature is as wanted. Not too cool, not too hot. The valves don't just release steam, they release excess heat. So the warmer the water is at the source," in the tank on the roof, he meant, "the less heating required indoors."

As for freezing, the exterior tank could be easily fitted with a slice of dragon wood that would prevent it from freezing solid. As for predators, depending on the location of the tank, the most likely would be birds leaving their droppings in the exterior tank, or leaves and other things blowing into it. A screen-like cover however was part of the design. One that would let water in, but keep other things out.

The rest, angles, fittings, those for the most part had to do with flow, gravity, durability and so on. But he was happy to spend as much time as she liked going over them. As for his specialization? Padraig frowned a little before answering. "The truth is that I'm not quite sure yet though I've narrowed it down. Between relatively, or thermodynamics and statistical mechanics." he said.

[Pegasus]

More questions, for every answer he gave she had another question. Copper, yes that was good. "What about metals such as Faldrinite, materials such as Faldrass orange sand. Or would you see this as something which should be available across Idalos?" It had to be said, her mind was sharp and her questions were insightful. She didn't ask about how it could be used, as she said with a rather dismissive wave of her hand, "What people do with what we create is theirs to consider. Ours is the burden of creation, not the joy of utilization." Ever a flair for the dramatic, Esme Dashiell.

However, when she had asked every question, some of them could easily lead to improvements. Just slight ones, but a consideration of things from a different angle often led to differing insights and that was what Professor Dashiell offered. Despite the distaste, or apparent distaste, with which she said the word 'utilization', she questioned him on that too. How would he make it accessible for maintenance? Which parts would be most likely to wear out first, how could that be mitigated against? Always, more questions for her.

Then, when she had exhausted her questions, and probably him in the process, Professor Dashiell moved on to his Charter. "Hmph," she said, peering down her glasses. "I do not approve." The Biqaj woman gazed at him with eyes of deep violet, in this moment, and she continued to speak. "You have great potential. Your mind is excellent and your understanding second to none. That is to be nurtured, not exploited." Waving a hand, somewhat dismissively as though the person she spoke of was consummately unimportant, she explained.

"I understand the Dean's vision and his desire to have you on board as staff. However, my interest is in you as a student first. Your focus is split and it shows. Why are you not sure? Is it because you have a range of interests, or is it because you have too much going on to allow you to focus? This time is critical to your studies." Esme Dashiell leaned forward almost as though she was going to take his arm across the table. She did not do that, of course, she gazed at him with intense eyes.

"I believe that your studies should be your priority, but by employing you in a dual role, the Dean has split your focus professionally and as a student. That is counter-productive. If your focus is split, you are less effective in each endeavor. I have told him and I am telling you the same. With this, your Diploma is completed." Her wave at his breaks of works bordered on dismissive. "Do not lose your vision of the future for the purposes of keeping someone else's."

Lecture over, it seemed, she sat back and raised an eyebrow. "Who will you be requesting as a mentor in your Charter?" Professor Dashiell did not feign her interest in that question, it would be very telling of what he was thinking, she believed.

[Padraig]

Locally sourced metals? It was definitely something to consider, Padraig agreed. "Some may or may not be more accessible, even more effective, or cost effective," he said. But he also agreed that those were practical matters, and not his primary interest. It was, as she said, creation that mattered most. Still, he liked the idea of creation leading to genuine usefulness, where it might impact ordinary lives for the better.

Never mind inns and restaurants, those were profit driven endeavors, he said. Think instead of hospitals and the like, where a ready supply of hot running water could save lives and prevent further illnesses and infections. Still, if he'd chosen materials only found on Scalvoris, then it was only Scalvoris where the device would be most useful. Import and export cost money, therefore raising the costs of production.

Whatever the case, he was confident in the design, and had ready answers for her questions. Ease of maintenance, and so on. But when she asked about his choice of focus for his charter and he'd answered her best he could, the professor couldn't have been clearer about her disapproval. He smiled a little, and yet she hadn't said anything that he hadn't considered before. He'd thought about it a great deal, had thought on it some more, and had to admit she made a good point.

Her last question however was more easily answered. He'd thought about that too. A mentor? He answered honestly and there was no flattery implied or intended. "I'd hoped that you might be willing to act as my mentor," Padraig said. And yet on the other point, he frowned before saying, "But you're right. My time, my energy, and more importantly my focus is split."

"Don't get me wrong. I am very flattered, honored by the Dean's faith and confidence in me. And I'd very much like to not disappoint him. However," he added, "What seemed like a good idea at the time...Well, I'm not sure I can do either area of study justice as a professor, or as a student, so long as my attention is split between them." That, and he was also exhausted.

Chemistry and his knowledge of it, he added, was important in that it augmented his experiments and knowledge in alchemy, and physics too. But he'd never intended it to be his primary focus. And there was the matter of time and energy. After trying on the prospect for some time of a dual focus, it was proving difficult to give each the attention they deserved, especially when his choice had been, and remained, primarily physics.

[Pegasus]

"Again with the insistence on considerations of illness and death. You are a most morbid man." Professor Dashiell seemed entirely serious when she said that; if she was aware of the irony of her style of dress if didn't show. "If I wished to consider infection I would have become a doctor. Concerns for mortality seek only to blind us from possibilities." Still his answers to her questions were acceptable and she signed the form she had which fundamentally served to confirm that he had achieved his Diploma. "Do not lose that. Take it to the registry, and they will action your certificate."

A brief smile cross Professor Dashiell's face as she spoke. "Congratulations. A Diploma of Science in Physics is no mean feat, especially not when I am your final examiner." She raised an eyebrow when he said that he had hoped that she would be his mentor, but she did not actually reply for a moment.

It was not until after he had told her how he felt about his current role, in fact, that the Biqaj woman spoke again. "Flattery and ambition are destructive in this case. If you were already qualified in Chemistry, then I would say that the dual role in your teaching would be acceptable. However, you are not." She waved a hand in dismissal as he spoke about one augmenting the other. "That is not my concern. I have no doubt that you are capable of achieving to the highest level in both Chemistry and Physics if you choose. However, I am not interested in mentoring you if you will not be performing at your peak. I demand nothing less than your best, as you know."

She sat back and regarded him from her usual place of behind her glasses and her tone was clipped when she spoke. "You are currently in a paradox. Approach it like a scientist." It was probably the best advice she had, in fairness. "If you wish me to mentor you, I will do so gladly as long as you are able to give your complete focus." She frowned as she spoke her next words, emphasising her point as she did. "I am referring to you as a student. As a staff member, if you choose to teach two subjects or work in two, that is your choice. I demand your full attention as your academic mentor." Just in case he was in any doubt, though?

"Although frankly, I think the whole notion is ludicrous from beginning to end. One should focus brilliance, not seek to dilute it. What is your course of action?" Depending on what he said, she had questions, then, about his Charter, but she did not bother to ask them until she knew it was worth her while to do so.

[Padraig]

The irony of professor Dashiell referring to him as having morbid seeming inclinations, did not pass Padraig by. Not at all. But he only grinned a little, and neither confirmed or denied it. Nor did he explain the source of his amusement.

However, he disagreed in part with her assertion. For him, the ability to change a way of life for others, even on a grand scale, was part of the appeal for him. Alchemy, chemistry, physics all three. He didn't pursue knowledge for the sake of it alone, but for the possibilities. What understanding, knowledge and progress could mean for life on Idalos. He didn't engage in debate however, but accepted the document she handed him with a smile. His physics diploma. "Thank you. I'll be sure to do that as soon as I leave here," he said.

But of course she'd expect the best of him, if she was to agree to mentor him. And, he assured her, he wouldn't give her anything less in return. As for his course of action? "By this arc's end, I will have met the first half of the requirement to earn my diploma in chemistry. Next arc, I will complete it. I believe that in this way, I can satisfy the requirements which are in place for teaching both subjects in time."

However, he added, he would teach physics, and only physics, until such a time that his diploma in chemistry was completed, and he was satisfied that he could focus his studies on physics. "In that way, my studies related to earning a charter in physics, can receive my full attention and focus."

[Pegasus]

He assured Professor Dashiell that he would give her his best and she made a sound that was somewhere between a snort and a harrumph. It was not a sound often heard by people and so what it meant he would be hard pressed to know. However, she waved a hand and looked at him like a barely acceptable specimen of humanity before she acknowledged with a slight tilt of her head and the words "Good enough. Then you will study with me." Whether she was approving or disapproving might remain one of those great mysteries beyond even the realm of science.

She reached down then, into the drawer in her desk and pulled out a piece of parchment. "I give these to all those students who I have accepted to study under my tutelage." His name, date of birth and various other details were all filled in already, he might notice.

"The aim of it is to focus the mind, clear any other nonsense out of it and to ensure that our time is premium." There were blank fields, including what his specialist topic was going to be. "So, I want you to put extraneous concerns aside. Consider, if you will, that you are able to study what you want to study in physics." She tapped the parchment with the pen she had ready to hand to him. "That is what I want you to put there. At the end of this charter, you will be prepared for the licentiate, should you choose it." Somehow, that he would if she had anything to do about it was very, very clear.

"In that, you must pursue your passion. This would be poor preparation if you pursued utilitarian nonsense, better suited to a less able student. Cast aside every what if and could not and write there what it is you wish to study. Make it as general or specific as you wish." Before she let go of the pen, she held on to it with his hand grasping it also. "If it is astronomy or gravity, mechanics or anything. Whatever it is. This will be the only charter in physics you ever complete. Make it yours. Not mine, not the Dean's and not anyone else's."

Letting go of the pen, she watched him as he filled it in. She did not look at what he had written, she merely waved her hand as he handed back the parchment. "You may go," she said and then, as he got to the door, just before he exited, she spoke again. "Congratulations. You should be proud of your achievements. You have been more than acceptable thusfar." Obviously such high praise left her seeking out the comfort of her books and, that she did, turning to study one of the star charts which littered the room.

[Padraig]

Well the identity of his mentor in physics was settled, and apparently it had been before he'd even arrived. That was, if the already filled out paperwork was any indication. Had the professor read his mind, anticipated his choice? If she had, Padraig found it a little unnerving. "Thank you, very much," he said and smiled as he took the form.

She spent a great deal of time then explaining how he should go about choosing his focus of study, both for his charter and beyond. But truth was, it wasn't necessary. Practicalities were nice. Creating things that others could put their hands on and use had a certain appeal. But ultimately, Padraig already knew what interested him more, and what he wanted to know more about.

He didn't have to spend any time thinking about it, since he'd already known the answer. Astrophysics. That's what he wrote down before handing back the paper and watching her put it away without a glance. And then it was an abrupt dismissal for him. Padraig grinned a little, put his things back in his satchel and stood. More than acceptable, she'd said, and from this woman it was high praise. So he thanked her for her time, her input and wisdom, and bidding her farewell, went on his way.