Author: Victor López

Publisher: CreateSpace

Published: 2012-11-11

Total Pages: 174

ISBN-13: 9781480295919

This expanded Second Edition contains three new stories in addition to the original short stories that appeared in the first edition published in August of 2011. What really caused the catastrophic failure after the first full-scale test of the Large Hadron Collider? Motivated, ingenious terrorists are about to try their own field experiment to replicate the classified results of the test on a large scale using two suitcase nukes and a modified jetliner in an attack that, if successful, will eradicate all life on earth, destroy our corner of the universe and, in time, give birth to a new addition to the multiverse. If we could communicate with the other sentient, intelligent species with whom we share our planet, what vital lessons might we learn from them and they from us? In a not too distant future in which all human beings on earth are connected and integrated into a single neural net, what price might be exacted for one wishing to opt out? What price would you pay to revisit a crossroad in your life when you had made a terrible, life altering mistake? Would you give up an unfulfilled life for the chance of virtual happiness in an alternate reality? Would you sacrifice everything if you could attain absolute knowledge? If so, could you live with the knowledge you attained? It is said that no man is an island, but what if even the least among us is a god in his/her own right? If an alien visitor offered you a lifetime of health and the gift of telepathy for a small service, would you be quick to accept? If we purportedly use only a small fraction of our brain's capacity, what possible purpose does the apparently unused portion serve? Above are some of the questions raised in this collection of science fiction and speculative fiction short stories that explores the interrelationship between dreams and reality, the nature of reality itself, and the dangers attendant to the single-minded pursuit of wish fulfillment that all too often results in unexpected and unwanted consequences. The author is an Associate Professor of Legal Studies at Hofstra University's Frank G. Zarb School of Business and has previously published seven non-fiction books through traditional publishers. His business law and legal environment textbooks have been used in colleges and universities throughout the United States since 1993. This is his first book of short stories. For more information about the author's books, textbooks, scholarly articles and blogs, you can visit http: //www.victordlopez.com.