3/4869 LEVEL 3/4869
CLASSIFIED
Item #: SCP-4869
Neutralized
Special Containment Procedures: As SCP-4869 has been neutralized, no containment procedures are necessary. The defunct procedures have been archived for posterity.
CLOSE Archived Containment Procedures
Due to its biological fragility, a containment chamber has been constructed around SCP-4869 within Pataphysics Room #104 at Site-19. This room is to be classified as a containment cell until permanent accommodations can be arranged.
SCP-4869 is to be contained within a 550-liter plexiglass tank filled with an oxygenated electrolytic solution. Protein-dense nutritional supplements are to be dissolved in 250-milliliters of water and added to the tank every eight hours in lieu of scheduled feeding; waste materials and other refuse are to be skimmed from the surface of the tank prior to feeding. The pH balance of the solution is to be kept strictly within a range of 7.35 to 7.45 and any deviation from these parameters is to be corrected first and then reported to the Research Lead.
At this time, requests for media such as music and audiobooks are to be granted; SCP-4869 may access these materials per its discretion between the hours of 0700 and 2000.
Description: SCP-4869 was a humanoid brain and brain stem capable of communicating via anomalously generated sound waves. SCP-4869 possessed cognition and sapience comparable to that of a middle-aged adult human as well as its own fully formed personal identity. Although SCP-4869's knowledge of history conformed to normalcy, none of the events it claimed to have subjectively experienced were verified as having occurred. See Addendum.1 and Addendum.2 for additional details.
Dateline 2011-11-02, SCP-4869 spontaneously manifested in Pataphysics Room #104 within the Research & Development wing of Site-19. Foundation personnel present at the time of manifestation were engaged in research for [Project Codename: TYCHE] and had been utilizing room #104 for several weeks. Internal sensors reported a brief, non-harmful spike in gamma radiation immediately prior to the manifestation of SCP-4869 but were unable to record any other precursor events. No additional extrasensory perceptual warnings were reported by any involved personnel.
SCP-4869 initially manifested within a 20-liter container of distilled water where its sudden appearance caused the displacement of water and subsequent damage to electronics and paper records within the room. Upon recognizing the biological nature of SCP-4869 and assessing it for signs of life, the object was transported into an electrolytic solution upon which containment was oriented.
Addendum.4869.1:
Dateline 2011-11-05. An interview was scheduled with SCP-4869 conducted by Containment Specialist Dr. Eates. Due to its immobile nature and low threat, non-hostile classification, the interview took place within the containment chamber of SCP-4869 and has been transcribed for the record.
CLOSE Interview Log
Dr. Eates: Thank you for agreeing to speak with me, SCP-4869. Is there a particular way you'd like to be addressed? I understand you have an identity that you've been sharing with some of the staff.
SCP-4869: Yes, my name is David. Doctor David Weller.
Dr. Eates: And you are a doctor of…?
SCP-4869: I have a Ph.D. in Physics from UC Berkley.
Dr. Eates: Ah, Cal. Go Bears. I'm a Cal State Fullerton man myself.
SCP-4869: Small world. If I may, what's yours in? Your doctorate, I mean.
Dr. Eates: Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, but I'm actually here to interview you.
SCP-4869: Ah, I suppose I'm the science project here.
Dr. Eates: What is the last thing you remember before waking up in the lab?
SCP-4869: Well, it's a bit fuzzy. I was at home on my laptop, lying in bed, trying to run sorting algorithms on a dataset. I'd been collecting data on the angular momentum of near earth objects for use within some orbital mechanics models Ph.D. candidates were working on. The exciting life of an academic…
Dr. Eates: That sounds rather dry but otherwise harmless. Did you notice anything strange, feel anything bizarre that might have alerted you to odd things happening? A strange physical sensation like sudden onset nausea, or perhaps an acute feeling of dread?
SCP-4869: No, not at all. Nothing like that. I was simply tired and working later than I should have been like four out of every five days. Just closed my eyes for a little bit and the next thing I know I was here. I remember coming to, not being able to see, and a burning in my chest like I was drowning and struggling for air. But as the blur subsided and the burning gave way, I saw the men and women in lab coats. Those folks that put me in this jar looking at me with grotesque fascination through the distortions in the glass.
Dr. Eates: I hope you can understand that was an innocent and natural reaction, not a calculated one. Can you describe the differences in sensation you're feeling right now?
SCP-4869: I'm aware I'm a brain in a jar if that's what you're asking. The biggest difference is that I don't really have any distinct sense of orientation. Every part of me feels simultaneously right side up and upside down. It's extraordinarily bothersome. If I could walk, I'd imagine I would be stumbling everywhere right now.
Dr. Eates: Speaking of legs, do you have a connection to any other parts of your body? What other sensations are you feeling?
SCP-4869: I'm not sure how to answer that. I can feel my chest rising and falling as I breathe, I can feel my own voice reverberating in my ears as we talk. My body, all of it, all the memories of what I should feel are within me. Reality simply doesn't align with my perception, that's all. Maybe I'm merely recalling the sensation, I don't know…
Dr. Eates: So you're saying that this feels natural for you?
SCP-4869: Come on, Doc. How many times have you become a brain in a jar before? I know I've never done it, so imagine my surprise to suddenly be one. I'm freaked out in every applicable sense. I ran through the whole checklist of things; How am I talking, how am I breathing, how am I thinking without a body? And a million and one more questions over the last however-long before you've had me here. Eventually, it's all kind of mushed together and I'm not even sure where to go from here. Don't know what to answer first. I'm stunned.
Dr. Eates: Have you tried any metaphysical exercises such as willing it to be different? Or advanced meditation techniques?
SCP-4869: Constantly trying, well, aside from this very minute. The only thing on my mind right now is that someone really needs to feed my cats. I've got two of them. Both calicos. And if my body is back there in my apartment, I'd rather the cats get fed before they turn desperate enough to nibble on me. 3141 Flecker Street, Pasadena.
Dr. Eates: You didn't mention the animals before. We'll go check on that right now.
SCP-4869: Thanks, Doctor Eates. I've had a lot on my mind.
Dr. Eates: Of course, Doctor Weller.
Addendum.4869.2:
Dateline 2011-11-06. Approximately 24-hours after the view interview, Containment Specialist Eates conducted a second interview after the search for the provided address had been carried out.
CLOSE Interview Log
Dr. Eates: Hello, SCP-4869, I'd like to discuss a few things with you.
SCP-4869: Welcome back, Doctor Eates. How are my cats?
Dr. Eates: Unfortunately that address didn't lead to your apartment. What you provided exists but it belongs to a four-person family that's been in residence for a number of years. I suspected maybe you transposed a digit so we tried some permutations and that didn't turn up any better. Then we consulted tax records; nothing under your name there either. Care to try again?
Dr. Eates produces a clipboard that contains several packets of records.
Dr. Eates: I did some further digging and other parts of your story have not added up either. When did you graduate from Berkley, exactly?
SCP-4869: Wha-, um, I…I must admit I'm taken aback by this. I live at 3141, I have for nearly 8 years. All my bills, all my mail, my Amazon shipping address, everything. It all says 'David Weller, 3141 Flecker Street'. You must have looked on South Flecker. Please, check the other end of the street.
Dr. Eates: I understand this may be jarring to hear but we were very thorough. In fact, I went back to property records as far as thirty years just in case you have been displaced for a lot longer than you thought and I—
SCP-4869: Please. I live on Flecker street. Go find my cats or we're—I'm sorry. You don't deserve this kind of a reaction, I know you're just following up on what I've told you. You have to understand, though, that it feels like gaslighting from my perspective. I am certain I've told you the right information. It's 3141, just like I said. I picked it because of Pi and that's not the type of quirky thing you just forget.
Dr. Eates: I appreciate the clarification, Dr. Weller. I'll do what I can to dig deeper and re-check what you've told me. We'll get to the bottom of this.
SCP-4869: Thank you, doctor. It's appreciated.
Addendum.4869.3:
Dateline 2011-11-09. Dr. Eates returned for a third interview with SCP-4869. A second reconnaissance team was dispatched to Pasadena in an attempt to confirm the story of SCP-4869 but no additional relevant details were uncovered from their search.
CLOSE Interview Log
Dr. Eates: Hello Doctor Weller.
SCP-4869: Welcome back. I've had some time to think since we last spoke. I guess it's the isolation doing its work, so I wanted to apologize for losing my cool.
Dr. Eates: You don't really need to apologize; I know this is all a lot to swallow.
SCP-4869: I was hoping I could tell you a bit more about what I remember. Maybe you can track down some of my colleagues or family and confirm some details through them. It's not impossible I got some details wrong, I have to admit that, so the more people you can fact-check me with the faster you'll be able to get to the bottom of things. Right?
Dr. Eates: That makes sense, Dr. Weller. Go ahead when you're ready. I'll take some preliminary information and then we'll send a transcriptionist down in a little bit to let you be more thorough.
SCP-4869: My name is David Charles Weller. I was born in Modesto, California in 1971. I completed my undergrad, Masters, and Ph.D. all at UC Berkley ending in 1999. Since then I've been a research physicist and graduate sponsor at the University. I married a beautiful woman named Charlie, her maiden name was Plymouth, in 1998. We divorced in 2005. We have no kids and she moved out of state afterward. I have two cats, Tabitha and Jack, both adopted from the Humane Society in 2008. Paid cash but there was an application form I signed. There; that should keep you busy with leads.
Dr. Eates: This is a bit unorthodox but I'm going to ask you all the same, Dr. Weller. If I go look these things up and it continues to not add up are you going to want to know? I'm not sure the fruits of this investigation are something you are going to be able to handle, for better or worse. Psych evaluations are a thing we offer as well as counseling, and that's not to say you're frayed and in need but rather to point out that it's something we offer. A tool for your well-being.
SCP-4869: I don't know, doc. Every man has their limits, and as much as I can repeat that I am holding up in the face of mine we can never be completely certain until we're already over the line. If it were you, I bet you'd want to know. Even if it disproves me and everything I claim. I can't call myself a scientist without pursuing the truth.
Dr. Eates: Okay, but there are protocols about what I can and can't tell you. Information security. How much I am able to say isn't just my decision so I hope you don't hold that against me.
SCP-4869: Not unless there's a reason I should.
Dr. Eates: <Sighs> The facts that we do know are that a spontaneous burst of gamma radiation preceded the manifestation of one human brain inside a bucket of distilled water. By all accounts, it was an otherwise normal and quiet day for the people working in this room with no warning signs or preamble. There have been no further bursts of radiation or related phenomenon that we've been able to detect to give us new leads or new information.
SCP-4869: So no one is taking credit for having sent me?
Dr. Eates: No one. Which I suppose means it's possible that no one sent you. I remember a number of rather ridiculous thought experiments from college physics that fit the bill for situations like this.
SCP-4869: What, you mean like chaos theory or some sort of entropic impossibility?
Dr. Eates: Yes, something like that. But things like that are only funny and interesting because they rely on bending the way language is forced to express fundamental laws. I suppose I've always found those impossibilities exciting and that's why I'm here.
SCP-4869: I can really respect that, it's pretty similar to why I got into Physics in the first place; the way observable behaviors of the universe can line up with math and theory we can deductively demonstrate on paper without any knowledge of the greater cosmos. It's a privilege to be able to understand just a small portion of it.
Dr. Eates: I agree completely! I find myself—
Operational control pages Dr. Eates via his earpiece and reprimands him for his lengthy personal diversion.
Dr. Eates: Apologies. I have work to do on my end with the details you've given me. I'll be back when I have an update.
SCP-4869: Goodbye, Manny.
Dr. Eates: Goodbye, David.
Update.4869.4:
At the request of Containment Specialist Dr. Eates, a number of quality of life adjustments were approved for SCP-4869's containment procedures including access to Site-19's music library and audiobooks as well as other non-classified materials. On 2011-11-15, SCP-4869 made a request for ongoing social interaction in order to occupy its time and this request was initially granted up to a maximum of 120 minutes per day.
On 2011-11-25, Dr. Eates petitioned the Ethics Committee for an exception to the standard time limit of social interaction for non-hostile humanoid entities. This exception was granted contingent upon SCP-4869's continued good behavior.
Update.4869.5:
Dateline 2011-12-08. Preceded by a short burst of gamma radiation, SCP-4869 demanifested. The object is to be reclassified as Neutralized with a 90-day contingency for potential rediscovery.
Addendum.4869.6:
Dateline 2012-02-15. Pataphysics Researcher Dr. Michelle Wilkes requested an interview with Containment Specialist Eates regarding the decommissioning of SCP-4869. This request for an interview was granted by Dr. Eates.
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Dr. Wilkes: Doctor, thanks for agreeing to meet with me. I just wanted to clear a few things up and better understand what went on here with SCP-4869 and your subsequent requests. You've asked for the project brief for TYCHE half a dozen times and I have to ask what part of 'no' wasn't made clear to you?
Dr. Eates: Yes, Dr. Wilkes, I did. I know you're not trying to be hostile or difficult but I feel like there was a connection to what went on in that room and where SCP-4869 came from. I'd just like to know so we can put this all to bed and I can move on. I'm wanting the project brief so we can infer cause and effect and see where that takes us.
Dr. Wilkes: I'm sorry but I can't give you the project brief, even with someone of your classification requesting it. You are neither part of the Pataphysics Department nor associated with our project in any way so I really don't see the need to step on toes here.
Dr. Eates: Dr. Wilkes, I really need you to tell me something about the nature of the project beyond no and your assurance. I need more than a codename, I need closure and this is literally the only thread I have left. You aren't letting me pull on it, so please save us both the headache of me escalating this up the chain. I know both you and the site director hate loose ends, Michelle, and I do too.
Dr. Wilkes: I'm not going to give you the project brief, Eates. But, I am willing to explain a few things that establish its foundations if that will satisfy you. I can appreciate the position you've been placed in and I am hoping you won't forget my accommodation.
Dr. Eates: That's a very good start. I appreciate it.
Dr. Wilkes: Imagine the entirety of the universe is represented by a big box of black and white ping pong balls. They are all jumbled up together and completely mixed up but also constantly moving.
Dr. Eates: Entropy, disorder, sure I get that.
Dr. Wilkes: This box will never be sorted properly by color or be placed into just the right configuration we want in order to get the universe that we want. It's too chaotic, too big. Cannot happen. But, if we zoom in on just a small little volume of that box and look at just a small number of ping pong balls…it's not only theoretically possible that they may spontaneously arrange or sort themselves, but it's also possible that we can now bring the resources and expertise to bear in order to arrange that space to our choosing.
Dr. Eates: So you're fucking with probability then, trying to bend reality to do what you want. Do you understand the implications of making nearly impossible things happen? There's a negligible chance we're all killed by a gamma-ray burst in an hour but it's in no one's interests to make that more possible. You don't write the laws of the universe and I'm not sure how you can conclude you should try to edit them in your favor.
Dr. Wilkes: I do understand your apprehension, Dr. Eates, truly. But we both want the same things for the Foundation, and I am fully aware that there are pataphysical risks with this project. Plus this project is backed at a level significantly above your own. Being frank, it's not like your opinion on the matter is a factor.
Dr. Eates: You can think that the ends justify the means but you're playing with lives. This is a lot of risks to be taking.
Dr. Wilkes: What you really mean is that you're upset about SCP-4869.
Dr. Eates: Yeah. I am. If your little project was responsible for the fluctuations that.. <Dr. Eates sighs> He didn't ask to come into being and he certainly didn't ask to leave it. He was a good person caught in a bad circumstance and your tampering blinked him out of existence, knowingly or otherwise.
Dr. Wilkes: I'm admitting to nothing, but if it did have anything to do with our project then he wouldn't count as a person at all. You yourself confirmed yourself that nothing SCP-4869 claimed happened was provable. No degree, no marriage record, no birth certificate, no property tax. Sometimes these things just happen, Manny, with no real explanation. And cracking open my project isn't going to bring you one.
Dr. Eates: You've read my entries for SCP-4869, I see.
Dr. Wilkes: It only seemed fair to look into someone so intent on looking into me.
Dr. Eates: Let me be frank: I am having trouble accepting that a human brain, with human memories and experiences, and intimate knowledge of our timeline just happened to appear in your team's lab with no intervention or man-made cause all while you're in the midst of a project focused on quantum probability.
Dr. Wilkes: Really not sure what else to tell you, Eates. Sometimes the ping pong balls just line up.
Dr. Eates: Yeah. What are the odds…
Dr. Wilkes: Apparently only nearly impossible.