Hot Wavelength

Chapter 6 (Equator 2): Mayan Notes
May 2029, equatorial, eastern Pacific Ocean

Greece has a thriving shipping industry, and there is more than one family known as the "shipping magnate".

Mandy Petkova's second marriage was to one of the heirs of a so-called "shipping magnate".

Mandy is an art collector and a philanthropist. Since she owns a boat, she organized a Central American art exhibition and charity auction, which was held on the Silver Beach cruise ship.

The Silver Beach cruise ship sailed along the equator towards the Galapagos Islands, 600 nautical miles west of Ecuador. The destination was an uninhabited island in the archipelago called Genovesa Island, also known as Tower Island.

The auction at sea has been going on for several hours, and the generosity of nearly a hundred guests has resulted in substantial charitable fundraising.

The last item was a Mayan pottery jar unearthed in the Yucatan Peninsula. It was a practical civilian object and not of high cultural value. In addition, the jar had cracks and was damaged with missing corners. Therefore, Mandy listed it last.

Surprisingly, the competition for this Mayan pottery jar was fierce, and after several rounds of bidding, the hammer price reached a staggering $10.

The one determined to succeed was Mandy's distinguished guest, Michael Max. Seated beside Michael were Daphne and her father, Professor Braun.

Martha, an old acquaintance of Mandy and Michael, came over, and Mandy said to Michael:

"Thank you for your generosity. The Mayan indigenous people's homeland rescue project, 'living fossil of civilization,' has gained another act of kindness."

Michael replied with a smile, "It is my honor to be able to help the Mayan people, and it is my good fortune to receive such a beautiful collection."

"So official, Michael? If you keep answering questions like this, I, the investigative journalist, will be out of a job!" Martha joked humorously.

The group introduced themselves to each other.

Martha is the chief investigative journalist for Sky High Media Group, the world's largest media company, and the ex-wife of the group's owner, media mogul Andre Andre.

Martha has an Asian face, high-arched eyebrows, is sociable, witty, and humorous, and thrives in high society. She has a sharp pen and a keen news sense, often dropping explosive stories.

Martha's way of doing things is far beyond what ordinary people can do. Five years ago, she introduced her best friend Mandy's mother, Eileen Peterkova, to her ex-husband's boss.

Thus, molecular biologist and diabetes expert Erin Petkova became the fifth wife of media mogul Andrej Andrew.

Irene Petkova was more than just a molecular biologist; she was born in the former Soviet Union and came from a prominent family. Her first husband, Mandy's biological father, was the grand-nephew of Marshal Petkov, a famous general in World War II.

At this moment, on the top deck of the cruise ship, Eileen is showing her antique violin to a well-known musician.

Amidst the pure tone and beautiful melody of the piano, the cruise ship slowly approached Genovesa Island.

"Ladies first." Mandy and Martha took Daphne's hand, greeted Michael and the professor, and boarded the first ferry boat.

The music did not stop, and Daphne recognized it as a violin piece by Kreisler, the outstanding 20th-century violin composer and performer.

One is "The Joy of Love," and the other is "The Sorrow of Love."

Michael and Professor Braun sat side by side on the second ferry boat.

Professor Braun is a senior director at the Liangguo Space Agency and the person in charge of Liangguo's T-program space program.

Six months ago, Mr. E, the head of Project T, and Professor Braun approached Michael, granting his company permission to participate in the civilian application of Nikola Tesla's top-secret theory of superluminal waves.

The professor asked, "Is this the island you've chosen for building the space elevator?"

“Dear professor, this is it. But the space elevator is just a public term. The space elevator I’m going to build is not just 9 kilometers high, but 18 kilometers high.”

The professor was taken aback and asked, "18 kilometers away, capable of receiving the complete wavelength of superluminal waves? Are you planning to build a superluminal power station on this island located on the equator?"

Michael briefly outlined his plans.

Michael Max is both an adventurer and a pragmatist who can turn ideals into reality. He aims to transform the universally desired ideal of "ultimate freedom" into an achievable engineering solution.

His proposal is:
Achieving bodily freedom through interstellar migration;
Achieving freedom of consciousness through brain-computer interfaces. Looking at his future son-in-law, the professor said thoughtfully, "Both of these ideals require a large amount of energy."

“Yes, the space industry needs energy, and artificial intelligence and brain-computer interfaces need it even more. Insufficient power has become the biggest obstacle to improving computing power,” Michael said. “Moore’s Law for chips has reached its end, and geometric optimization of computing power is no longer possible. Utilizing ultra-light wave energy seems to be the best option.”

The professor cautiously stated that building a power station on the island required risk assessment and reporting to Mr. E.

The small boats docked one by one, and the group reunited.

Under the huge makeshift tent, Michael once again became the focus of everyone's attention.

The conversation naturally focused on the exhibition and auction items, with Michael asking Mandy:

"Mandy, is there a particular reason why you are so interested in Mayan culture?"

“Haha, you’ve come to the right person! Let my dearest mother reveal the answer.” Mandy playfully led Eileen Petkova to the center.

Eileen turned to Michael and began to tell everyone a long and legendary story.

Irene was born in 1957 and lived in the Soviet Union for over 30 years before moving to Liang State. Her father-in-law was the nephew of Marshal Petkov, who served as a regimental commander in the Marshal's army during World War II.

In April 1945, Regiment Commander Petkov led his troops in the Battle of Berlin, tasked with capturing the Reich Library, which had been fortified by the Germans. One of his lieutenants, a captain named Mirov, captured a rare 19th-century printed document on Mayan culture.

As is well known, the Mayan civilization amazed the world after its discovery. It had mysterious pyramid temples, exquisite carvings and paintings, as well as accurate astronomical observation records and advanced mathematical knowledge.

Regrettably, the Mayan script has remained undeciphered for a long time. Many linguists are baffled by the Mayan inscription, and some scholars even suspect that the patterns carved on the stone slabs by the Mayans were merely symbols used in rituals and had no actual written meaning.

Heroes aren't just on the battlefield!

Captain Mirov, a veteran who knew nothing about archaeology or philology, devoted himself to studying Mayan stone rubbings with his strong curiosity and perseverance.

Ten years later, in the 1950s, Mirov published a paper proposing a completely new approach to deciphering Mayan script. He argued that Mayan script was a combination of hieroglyphics and phonetic writing. This research shocked the academic world.

Thanks to Mirov's work and the combined efforts of linguists, 80% of the Mayan script has been successfully deciphered to this day.

“I met Uncle Mirov for the first time at my wedding in 1979,” Eileen continued. “It was also the first time I learned that, in addition to writing, Mirov also had in-depth knowledge of the Mayan calendar and mathematics.”

Mirov also successfully persuaded the Soviet government to launch a project based on his findings. After more than 20 years, the project was abandoned in 1979 due to financial constraints. That became a lifelong regret for him.

"It was against this backdrop that I received a special wedding gift from Uncle Mirov."

Eileen opened a box, took out a large envelope, and said:
"Mirov said that the Soviet Union was unable to translate his research results, perhaps because the Mayan scientific concepts were too advanced. It may take until a short Mayan calendar cycle, that is, 52 years, before humans have the technology and needs to match their scientific concepts."

Eileen walked over to Michael and handed him the envelope. Michael looked puzzled, and Eileen said, "Uncle Miroff asked me to give this letter to someone who needs it and can use it well, and I think you are the most suitable person he mentioned."

"Oh, it won't be 52 years until 2031? It's not that time yet." Michael was even more confused. He noticed that the envelope was sealed with red paint.

“我的结婚日期是1979年8月22日，到2031年8月22日整整52年，我建议你到那时再打开它。”艾琳郑重地对迈克尔说道。

Daphne curiously approached the envelope in Michael's hand. She noticed the Russian writing on the envelope cover. Since Maya was the common language, she guessed that the title meant: Mayan Notes.

There were two more lines of Russian text below, which Daphne couldn't understand. She asked:
What do these two lines of Russian text mean?

Eileen and Mandy, mother and daughter, translated with pride and loud voices almost simultaneously:

"For the Soviet Union, and for all mankind!"

&
The poem composed of collected verses at the end of the chapter:
The shadows of distant mountains are like those of the Tang Dynasty poet Zhou Pu.
A crimson staircase rises from the jade palace. (Tang Dynasty, Huang Tao)

Seeking to soar into the clouds, Song Dynasty, Yuan Xie
Only by reaching the summit do you realize how low the world is. — Tang Zhiliang

(End of this chapter)