The continuous barrage of questions left Ethan somewhat bewildered. He furrowed his brows, scratching his head, unsure why his sister was suddenly so agitated.
However, a glance exchanged with Evelyn made Ethan instantly comprehend.
He realized he had forgotten something.
He had forgotten that Evelyn was an engineering student, one who could tinker with computers at Stanford.
Yes, to Ethan, the only thing that could make Evelyn jump with excitement was the 6502 chip.
After all, in Ethan's eyes, anyone learning computers in this era would dream of owning one. The emergence of affordable CPUs meant that these tech-savvy individuals could achieve their dreams with their own hands.
And he had come across this product but hadn't purchased it?
Oh, he indeed overlooked something.
Thinking about it, a smile reappeared on Ethan's face as he said, "Okay, okay. It's my bad. I forgot to order it for you after discovering this affordable and efficient chip. I apologize for that."
"I'll make a call right now and have them mail it over."
Ethan didn't attempt to justify; he straightforwardly admitted his mistake.
However, his candor raised Evelyn's eyebrows.
"Ethan!" the girl exclaimed in surprise. "Don't you understand what I mean?"
'?'
Ethan's mouth was slightly agape, looking puzzled.
He admitted his mistake, and was ready to rectify it, why wasn't Evelyn happy?
With a perplexed look, Evelyn raised her hand in frustration and poked his chest with her index finger.
"Are you foolish?"
"It's not about buying or not buying the chip; it's about helping! The MOS company, the inventor of the 6502, Chuck Peddle, they need help! Legal help! Why didn't you come back and tell me about such a big thing?"
'!!!'
Ethan blinked at his sister's questioning.
And his surprise seemed to fuel Evelyn's anger as she raised her voice.
"Oh my God! Are you completely devoid of any thought about helping? Chuck Peddle and others are doing something tremendous! They want to bring computers to every household! For this, they're even willing to go against Motorola! In such a situation, do you not have any thoughts about helping them?"
"I thought when you told me about this, you wanted me to consult with Barbara to help them!"
"But you—"
"You thought I only wanted the 6502?"
Evelyn's words stuttered. It was frustration.
Seeing her waving hands and the highly excited figure, Ethan opened his mouth but couldn't find any words.
Because he felt like he understood Evelyn's meaning, comprehended her thoughts, or rather, glimpsed a spirit from Evelyn—a spirit called knowledge sharing, technical sharing.
In fact, the spirit of sharing is not a product of the Internet age; it has long been prevalent in scientific research circles before the advent of the Internet.
Take Jonas Salk, for example. He invented the polio vaccine, eradicating polio.
But to save lives, he gave up patent applications.
Sometimes, ordinary people couldn't understand the thoughts of these giants.
But the world did become brighter because of their existence.
"Okay, okay, I think I understand what you mean."
Ethan sighed, chuckled lightly, and nodded. "Well, I admit, my mind is indeed filled with commercial ideas."
"As you guessed, I didn't think of helping them because I feel that, according to their philosophy, even if I help them, I won't get exclusive authorization for the 6502."
"You might look down on me, but... I feel there's no need to lie to you about this."
"Yes, I am that pragmatic."
Ethan's honesty left Evelyn stunned for a moment.
With the appearance of self-mockery, her gaze softened.
Relaxing into the comfortable sofa, her voice also became smoother. "Ethan, you still haven't understood what I mean."
"Huh?"
"I didn't mean to accuse you."
"Really?" Ethan was sceptical.
"Of course." Evelyn smiled, saying, "Because I understand that all research needs money. If something developed with money doesn't get the expected returns, how can research projects sustain themselves?"
This question made Ethan relax, squinting his eyes, asking, "So, what do you mean?"
"My point is simple," Evelyn said. "Maybe we're not that noble, maybe we can't achieve selfless dedication, but when others want to contribute, we should support them. And when they face difficulties, we should try to help."
"You might think my thoughts are very naive because helping others change the world won't make you famous."
"But... I want to tell you, while helping others, you're also helping yourself."
Evelyn's idealistic words made Ethan pursed his lips.
He didn't know how to respond.
As he was organizing his thoughts, Evelyn continued, "Okay, okay, do you think my thoughts are ridiculous?"
"No." Ethan shook his head decisively. "Everyone has their beliefs; it's their freedom."
"You still misunderstood." Evelyn shook her head, saying, "Let me rephrase. Do you want to know why I have such thoughts?"
This question genuinely intrigued Ethan. "Of course, if you're willing to share."
"Oh—I have nothing I can't tell you—as long as you don't mind me being a bit chatty," Evelyn sighed with a smile. "Actually, about a year ago, or maybe a year and a half ago, my mindset was just like yours."
"If something has nothing to do with me and doesn't bring any benefits, why bother getting involved?"
"But a year and a half ago, something happened that completely changed that mindset."
"Do you know about the Wide Area Network? It's that network formed by telephone communication."
"The military uses it."
"At its inception, it might have been a good invention, but in this era, it's outdated. For example, it's slow and easily destructible. So, to ensure continuous communication during war, ARPA wanted to develop a network that could withstand destruction under nuclear deterrence."
"As for why there was such a need, I think I don't need to tell you about it?"
"Soviets," Ethan interjected.
"Yeah~" Evelyn nodded with a smile.
At the same time, she continued, "And under the scientists' research, the ARPANET was born."
"It's a project led by ARPA, connecting computers for data transmission."
"I don't know if you can understand this stuff because it's classified, rarely reported by the media. I can only tell you that ARPANET is quite magical. It can break down a message composed of letters into data packets, send them to where people want them to go, and then reassemble them on the other end for efficient data transmission."
"In 1969, it was officially launched with four initial nodes at the University of California's campuses in Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, the University of Utah, and Stanford."
"Because four nodes were also vulnerable to destruction, in the following years, MIT, Harvard, Carnegie Mellon, NASA, and other schools and institutions joined in."
"Although this addition made data transmission seem more secure, a problem arose. ARPANET's initial design was a homogeneous environment, where computers could only transfer data if the network components and language were the same or compatible."
"And making computers and computer languages consistent across various schools and institutions was clearly impossible."
"So, to ensure normal data transmission, ARPA had to find a solution to the transfer of data between different machines and languages."
"And this problem was solved by us at Stanford a year ago."
"Vint Cerf, the professor, you know, the one I mentioned to you before, he and his companion Robert Kahn solved this problem."
"They invented a new technology called the TCP/IP protocol, successfully connecting different types of computers and operating languages. In December last year, they conducted an experiment where a data packet, after travelling sixty thousand miles, successfully reached a machine of a different type than the sending one."
"In fact, when they reached this point, all they had to do was continue researching and perfecting, then they could declare the project finished to ARPA."
"But they didn't."
"Do you know why Vint frequently looks for Barbara?"
"Because he thinks the TCP/IP protocol can change the world."
"When market computers can't be unified, the TCP/IP protocol ensuring unified communication is the key."
"He doesn't want to hand over this patent to ARPA; he wants to keep it in his hands."
"If one day, ordinary people need it, they will directly open the authorization."
At this point, Ethan's face was already full of surprise.
And Evelyn continued—
"Do you know how shocked I was when I learned that Vint wanted to go against ARPA? But he told me that many things must be done by someone."
"And Barbara's reaction after hearing Vint's request surprised me even more."
"Because without thinking, Barbara agreed."
Later, I asked Barbara why she agreed so readily."
"Barbara told me there are two reasons. One is that she really admires Vint, admires his ideas and actions. The second is that helping Vint is helping herself."
Evelyn paused, sat up straight again, and said seriously—
"Ethan, you say you're very pragmatic?"
"Oh—in my eyes, you're far less pragmatic than Barbara."
"That day, you lectured me in front of Barbara?"
"And Barbara praised your behaviour?"
"Hahaha~ I dare to say, if you don't tell her the thought you just had, the thought of not helping Chuck Peddle, she will definitely be very disappointed in you."
"Because, when she told me that helping Vint is helping herself, she also explained the reason with a self-deprecating tone."
"Today, she helped Vint change the world. If tomorrow, she encounters trouble, Vint will definitely use all his connections to help her. Because someone who selflessly wants to change the world by sharing patents will never abandon a friend in need."
"At the same time, today, she helped Vint change the world. If someone else wants to change the world tomorrow, they will surely come to her. And the person who has the ability to change the world is the highest-quality social resource."
Speaking to this point, Evelyn leaned forward, and when the two noses were just an inch apart, she stopped.
The girl stared at Ethan, with a hint of emotion flashing in her beautiful eyes. The words from her mouth carried a cheerful tone.
"Do you think the patent authorization for the 6502 is the greatest benefit?"
"Ethan, compared to those playing with the law, you're simply too kind..."
TL Note:
Someone guessed that Vint is Vinton Cerf. The inventor of the TCP/IP protocol was an assistant professor at Stanford in 1975, and he did teach.
Barbara Babcock was indeed a person skilled in networking investments. As mentioned earlier, the praise from Ginsburg, who eventually became the Chief Justice, was recommended by Barbara. In the obituary published in The New York Times on the day Barbara passed away, it directly used Ginsburg's words, "I would not hold the good job I have today were it not for Barbara."