Eye of the Storm

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Book: Read Eye of the Storm for Free Online
Authors: Kate Messner
can do.”
    The last few campers file in. It’s quiet, but then a motor clicks on, and the fans begin to hum quietly, almost as if they’re whispering promises about what they can do.
    Tomas is the first to speak up. “You gonna run this thing for us?”
    Van shakes his head. “Later in the week, maybe. It doesn’t mean much if you don’t understand what you’re seeing, but this is where our meteorology program is based. It’s all exclusive, patented technology—one of a kind. Well, three of a kind, actually. There’s one up at the StormSafe complex and one at the company’s property in Russia. Just wanted you to have a look at it for today.”
    He walks us out of the dome, back into the bright light and sunshine air.
    The rest of the morning is a parade of in and outs, more rooms filled with elaborate equipment. This is what I imagined Dad’sStormSafe headquarters might look like. If they provide this stuff at a camp for teenagers, what must he have at work?
    After lunch, we’re back in the orientation center to talk about areas of study.
    This time, there’s no holo-sim of Dad. Instead, a three-dimensional globe of light drops from the ceiling as classical music starts to play.
    Alex leans over. “Mozart,” he whispers. “They did some study that shows classical music helps to develop synapses between the hemispheres of the brain and makes us better problem solvers.”
    It’s also Dad’s favorite, but I don’t mention that. Alex probably wouldn’t like Mozart anymore.
    Dad’s voice rises over the violins. “Welcome back, Eye on Tomorrow campers. This afternoon, we’ll take a look at the problems our world is facing today . . . and tomorrow. And we’ll ask you to make a commitment to one of those challenges for the summer.”
    The globe at the center of the room spins and then explodes into a million bits of light that shoot out toward the walls, and in its place now is a spinning cloud. It’s just light, just a holo-image, but somehow the air feels wetter, heavier than it did a few seconds ago. Dad’s voice describes the first challenge, the one we all know about already—the storms.
    â€œWarmer global temperatures have led to increased instances of tornadic storms, not only in the traditional storm belt, but worldwide. Through the careful planning and vigilance of theInternational Climate Committee, we’ve managed to reverse the planetary warming trend. However, as you know, campers, it will be two more years before greenhouse gases are reduced to a level that will have a positive impact on weather patterns. Our goal at StormSafe and here at Eye on Tomorrow is to bridge the gap—to find solutions that will keep people safe until then.”
    It’s not only the tornadoes, Dad says, but also hurricanes of greater intensity and size, tropical cyclones around the globe, droughts and heat waves, that need to be controlled. “When we master our climate,” Dad’s voice promises, “we’ll be the masters of our planet.”
    He goes on to describe three more challenges: the bio-botanicals program that he promises will revolutionize the world’s food supply and end hunger through an expansion of DNA-ture bioengineering and factory-grown food practices; the robotics research that will automate the world’s industries and services, from motorcycles to medicine, within thirty years; and the cellular generation and human cloning center, where scholars have already begun developing successful technology to create, through DNA-based cloning, any part of the human body for transplant or other use.
    When the human figure representing the last area of study fades and sinks into the floor, the lights come on and Van is back in front of us, bouncing on his sneakers. “Ready to solve the world’s problems? We’ll see you back here, first thing in the morning, to get

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