Delivered-To: devra@nianticlabs.com Received from: 12.163.55.16 with SMTP id jl1712jm30; Received from: 163.2.55.16 with SMTP id ume184109l140; Received from: mx5.gmail.com (mx5.gmail.com [140.2.224.181]) by nlan13.nianticlabs.com with ESMTPS id ramj.k140235r.1411.90.30.14.39.46 (version=TLSv1/SSLv3 cipher=OTHER); Received-SPF: neutral (nianticlabs.com: 30.2.55.16 client-ip=30.2.55.16;) Authentication-Results: nlan13.nianticlabs.com; spf=neutral ; dkim=pass (test mode) header.i=@gmail.com Message-ID:<jlme1711842u106.10112@gmail.com> Received from: 109.140.224.181 with SMTP id jlzjma140122;</span> From: 'Dr. Yuri Alaric' <yuri.alaric@gmail.com> Reply-to: <yuri.alaric@gmail.com> Subject: Re: Welcome To: Dr. Devra Bogdanovich <devra@nianticlabs.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary='788471604-466963981-7476619=:84572'--788471604-466963981- 7476619=:84572 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Dr. Bogdanovich, I do not care what Dr. Kureze says, I still think he is a, how you say, rectum. Little joke. He is great colleague, and he says you are hot (do not tell him I told you that!). In serious answer to your question, the name Shaper is my closest English translation to the Anazktec word for those people who 'change their thoughts like clay or wood.' The Shamans there have many words for the way thoughts are bent. Curiously, it seems that the Shapers have little control over exactly what their subjects do. The Shamans say that they are learning to shape. I did see evidence, deep in the jungle, of incredible works of art and architecture built by the ancient Anazktec -- feats far beyond their technical capabilities. And, as I said, there is no hint in their language (analyzed from recordings) that they have ever had significant contact from any other South American cultures. Perhaps incidental and ancient contact, but none that would explain their flashes of artistic and engineering prowess. I would say that what I have seen is analogous to Stonehenge in the new world. As Keats said (or was it as Wordsworth)... Alone in History as it is on the Salisbury plain. Yuri "Dr. Devra Bogdanovich" <devra@nianticlabs.com> wrote: Dr. Alaric, Welcome aboard what we are calling 'The Niantic Project.' Dr. Kureze could not speak more highly of your work on Project Whydah. I look forward to meeting you in person. I was wondering... More out of curiosity than anything else, how you came up with the name 'Shaper' for this inter-dimensional intelligence? Devra