Our Girl Scootaloo

Disclaimer: This is a non-profit fan-made work of prose. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is the property of Hasbro. Please support the official release

It had now been several years since NASA scientists had reverse engineered our daughter's ability to fly, and the resulting Electro Magnetic Field Repulsion technology (EMFR) had by now made it into mass production, making access to orbit cheap and easy. Some of the results were predictable; more millionaires were now able to experience zero gravity, and a 'reality' TV show was soon aired showing rich snobs blowing chunks in zero gravity for everyone's amusement.

Some changes were more meaningful; the first orbital factories opened their doors producing products that could only be made in zero gravity, mostly medical and computer parts. The first manned missions to other worlds were being assembled and readied for launch in orbit, and there was much controversy over a company that wanted to bring big asteroids into earth orbit and build cities on them.

But out of all the changes going on, the one nobody expected was Sunbeam. Much like other silicon valley start ups, they started small with a handful of engineers and dreamers, building basketball sized satellites and booking even cheaper flights for them by cramming them into any leftover space on the orbital flights. Once in orbit, the satellites unfolded thin reflective foil several football fields across, creating an enormous mirror with the tiny baseball sized core at the center. The tiny core of the satellite was made from cheap off the shelf parts –all it did was aim the mirror with gyroscopes and communicate through a tiny antenna. Even the solar power cells were barely bigger then a laptop. But despite all their frailties, the little satellites were cheap to mass produce, and within months Sunbeam started selling sunlight.

The first customers were, ironically, cities in China that ran the math and found it was cheaper to buy sunlight overnight then pay for electricity and maintenance to all the street lamps in a big city. As more satellites went up and the price fell, cities around the world started to sign up, and some farmers started buying time to get an extra crop out each year. Before long, the first off shore power plant was online: hundreds of satellites concentrated 100 times the normal intensity of the sun onto the offshore platform, and as the black pipes on top generated steam, the ocean around the platform provided the cooling water. The concentrating solar power plant piped the power back to shore though undersea cables, and while the price of electricity fell, various governments around the world looked at the power of 100 suns beating down on the power plant, and dreamed of (or worried about) military applications.

Despite grumbling by environmentalists, Sunbeam continued to grow, and any doubts about their long term future were put to rest during hurricane Sabrina. Just as Katrina had destroyed much of New Orleans years ago, so Sabrina was on track to run right over the city with much higher winds, more rain, and undo all the progress that had been made. With less than 48 hours to go, Sunbeam pulled all their available reflector satellites and used them to alter the path of the hurricane, slowing it to a stop, then reversing its direction and sending it back out to sea. It was about as precise as a bulldozer, but for the first time in history, humanity had rudimentary weather control.

All these events were talked up on the news, but had only gradual impact on our day to day lives. As with others around the world, it all hit home that first night when our city signed up with Sunbeam and shut down the street lights. All three of us stepped out and stared as one after another, tiny points of blinding light appeared across the sky, and within a minute it was as bright as a cloudy, overcast day.

"It's only possible because of you, Scootaloo." Kevin reminded her "The Russians launched one satellite like this back in the early 90's just to prove it could be done. But we needed a cheap way into space before this could happen, and your generously helped make that possible."

For my part, I just stood there watching as the street lights winked out, unneeded in the midnight sun.

Back in school, Scootaloo made good on her word and asked Conner out on a date. While he seemed confused at first, he soon assured her that he was interested, and would be happy to go out with her. Over a meal of salads and vegetarian food at a local restaurant they got to know each other better.

After the waitress delivered their orders, Scootaloo smiled softly. "That was sweet, but you didn't have to order vegetarian just because I'm here."

Conner looked surprised "What? Oh!" He blushed "Scoot, I'm a vegetarian too, have been since I was 14."

"Really? I've only met a few people who are vegetarian by choice. Why did you switch?"

Conner looked a bit confused. "Well beyond the dollar savings and environmental benefit, I would have thought the protection of helpless animals would be a concern to both of us."

"Hmm.. A concern yes, but I'm a vegetarian by genetics. My body can handle meat with no problem, but my genes change how I perceive it: it tastes and smells so awful I can't touch it. If I can't taste it, like protein powder in milk or if its baked into something like eggs into a cake, then it doesn't taste like meat and I can enjoy it without a problem. If I had a choice in the matter? I don't know." She grimaced and went on, "I went through a rebellious period a few years ago and made a leather coat, but almost no one seemed to notice."

"I would have thought you of all... people would find the prospect of eating animals even more repulsive."

"Because my body is so different?" Conner looked embarrassed, and Scootaloo frowned at him. "I'll thank you to remember that I'm not some kind of super bright horse. All the genetic work done so far shows my intellect is an improved version of a normal human brain. My body is different from yours, but under the hood?" She gestured at her head; "I've got a little more RAM and a more powerful processes than the average, but I'm still using the same parts, same setup and same layout as you.

"A truly alien intelligence would be instantly obvious as different by its behavior, its thought processes, its biology and physiology. Well, more than half my DNA is copied unmodified from normal homo-sapien DNA. Mentally? I'm an above-average human woman, though when it comes to spelling, I'd question the above-average part."

She leaned back against the booth. "Sorry, I'm just a bit touchy on that subject. So many people can't even be bothered to understand what they are, let alone who they're talking to."

Scootaloo looked across the room at group of guys in scruffy work clothes and overalls who kept glancing in their direction and gesturing to each other. Every so often the group would burst into laughter. Scootaloo flashed them an irritable look as she continued. "No, I mean what they are. Most of the people you'll ever meet think they're some kind of demigods, unconnected to animals, and know next to nothing about how their own bodies work."

"Some brighter people have a dim notion that they're related to apes, but very few can articulate what that means, or why they should care."

Conner put up his hands again; "Please don't be mad, but I fall somewhere between those two groups." He cracked a small smile "But I would happily learn if you want to teach me. What difference does it make in day to day life?"

Scootaloo regarded him for a moment and her expression warmed. "Well, for starters, how much of male/female interaction in society is dictated by our genetics? Chimps and bonobos are nearly identical species that have very different behaviors based on recent evolutionary changes. Chimps are incredibly violent, and almost every chimp is a child of rape. Any female who doesn't sleep with every male risks the scorned male killing and eating her children out of spite. It's all because the females have to spread out to find sparse food in the trees, and hence can't work together effectively."

"Bonobos are nearly identical to chimps, but because they can find food on the ground and the females stay together, the females run the society peacefully, and all disputes are settled with sex. Where do you think humans fall on this scale of violence?"

"Exactly. Have you ever heard about me getting in a fight? Despite all the times I could have?"

"Now we know my DNA has been tampered with; so, is my peaceful nature due to upbringing or genetic alteration?"

"Well, in organizations, there's the rule of 150. Human brains seem to only be able to keep tabs on, and feel relationships with, about 150 people on average, probably because that's the biggest size group we evolved to run in. Organizations smaller than this tend to be tight-knit and function well; bigger, and they start to look like a bureaucracy, because the members can't perceive that many people as being human. Ever hear of a person in power doing something mean or cruel to their own workforce? 'Well they're just employees, it's not like I know them,' and so forth?"

"Yup. And what about vision? Ever wonder why you can see so many shades of red and green? And why women usually have better color vision? In our ancestors, it was important to tell the difference between ripe and unripe fruit that was often red or green. All us gatherers needed it even more, which is why we still see color better on average then the hunters, you men."

"I never really wondered about that... I follow you on the organizational bit, but you said this had bearing on day to day life. Is that all?"

"Now you're getting it. In the wild, we perceive sugar to taste good because the sweet, ripe fruit was good for us. Likewise fats and proteins taste good because they were parts of valuable, calorie-rich foods for our ancestors, and those who liked them and sought them out tended to survive better. But now that we can strip out all but the fat, protein and sugar, delivering just the reward without any of the reason we evolved to like it?"

"I get it! Strip out only what we got rewarded for eating, and you get health problems, obesity, diabetes and rotted teeth."

"That's right. And while most people have some dim recollection that some foods are bad, they often have no idea why or how they're bad. They're just parroting jargon with no understanding."

There was a long pause while Conner thought this over. "Well, for my part, I will try to pay more attention. I can see how in your position the ignorance of others would suddenly be a problem. That's a lot to explain before someone can grasp even the most basic concept of who you are."

Scootaloo looked a bit sad. "I learned long ago to simply say 'I'm a cartoon pony'. It solves a lot of problems."

He reached across the table and gently squeezed her hand as he changed the subject. "Well regardless of all that, I'm happy to be here with such a beautiful, well dressed young lady."

Scootaloo blushed again. "Oh this dress? Thank you for the compliment, I made it myself."

"Well my mom had an old machine, and she taught me when I was little. Dad wasn't too keen on it, but I always had a knack for it. These pants? I made them to fit me perfectly -see how they cling in all the right places?"

"Well... they are clearly well made, but as to all the right places?" She swatted him under the table with her tail. "I tend to look more at the mind then the body."

"I've wondered about that -not to be rude, but you've dated other guys before. Were you... attracted to them at all?"

Scootaloo blushed "Yes, yes I was. My best guess is that a lot of the markers for a strong healthy... male... are shared across our two species. Toned sleek bodies, strong limbs, a clean well-kept appearance... I don't know if its genetics or growing up with a culture that shows me what I should want, but whatever the cause, yes, I do like the way you look." She finished with a smile and a blush.

"It's okay. Besides, no sane person looks only at appearance. They covered some of that in last year's biology class."

She laughed. "Not exactly. Its one of those theories that no one can prove or disprove, but that's interesting none the less. You know how deer and elk grow big antlers that act like a kind of gauge for genetic fitness? Bigger rack means healthier male. Well some people have wondered if that might be how humans got to be so smart. The brain is a pretty good indicator of how healthy you are, and any number of problems can cause weird behaviors. The theory goes that the brain became the human equivalent for antlers as a gauge of genetic fitness, and that you guys accidentally bred yourselves for intelligence."

"I'm not. It was a one time event, and you can't study one time events, so we'll probably never know. Its plausible, but that doesn't mean it happened."

"That's what I like about you -you're smart, probably smarter than me, but you still have time to be a cheerleader and have friends. It's rare to meet someone so special." He leaned in and smiled.

"Well don't get too attached." She replied ruefully "I've been thinking of quitting the squad, or at least going to some kind of part time status. I've been cheering for a few years now, and it's all starting to feel the same. We show up, we drill the routines the coach wants... I'd like to try something less formal, where nobody is the boss of me. I'm friends with all the girls on the team, but it also takes so much time, and school is really challenging now with these college distance learning classes."

"Well do you have to take such a heavy course load? You could take it easy, there are plenty of simple classes..."

"I know, but... I want to do something with my life. I want to help people, and I'm good at biology. I think I want to be a doctor, or at least a nurse."

He looked at her thoughtfully. "Well maybe I can help with that. Have you ever considered the volunteer fire department? I spend a lot of evenings there, and I got the training though them so I ride along on calls and help with car wrecks and burning buildings."

Now it was Scootaloo's turn to be surprised. "Wow, you're a fire fighter? That's so cool! But I thought the fire department only put out fires?"

"Oh heck no. Fires are actually rare, more often it's a medical emergency, or a car crash. Our city has a volunteer ambulance corps too, and I bet I could put in a good word for you... any interest in riding along sometime?

As the school year wound down the time was fast approaching to pick classes for the fall term. In Scootaloo's distance learning biology 102 class, her professor opened the last class over the teleconference with her usual friendly, businesslike manner.

"I want to thank you all for a good semester, and I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did." Looking though the monitor Scootaloo could see a lot of smiling faces nodding, but also noticed that quite a few seats in the back row of the real college class were empty.

She remembered the conversion she had with Kevin and I before starting the class.

"College is not like highschool" Kevin had said. "You pay to attend, and no one forces you to do anything. If you don't work hard you'll soon get left behind and fail. Look at the person behind the counter at the grocery store, the girls serving burgers or busing tables; some are in college or trade school, working hard on a valuable skill, but the older ones, the ones who are there year after year..." He grimaced, but Scootaloo didn't notice.

"Some didn't work at all, some tried and failed, and some... Some people did what I did. I got a scholarship, a half ride, for a degree in fashion design, and I worked hard, I even added a minor in marketing communications... But it was a disaster. When I graduated, I found no one needed another designer, even if they were a good tailor and had clever designs. And people in the business world wanted someone with years of experience, internships, or a powerful connected family to land a job."

I put my arms around him and hugged him, and after a moment he pulled himself together and continued. "I'm still paying down those loans, and it took almost a decade before I worked my way into a job I enjoy and that pays a living wage. I don't want that to be you, struggling to make ends meet, saddled with half a house worth of debt, all for a useless degree."

"Colleges will do that?" She had asked. "But I thought if you did well in school and college you would get a good job!"

I smiled bitterly. "No honey, colleges are businesses, and they're in business to make money. Most schools today derive a significant part of their income from the 'drunk and flunk' – admitting people with no chance of making it, taking their money and letting them party for a year and flunk out. And most also offer useless degree's –it's not the colleges problem that the degree you select isn't in demand. And that happens more today than it used to. Over the last year the New York times has run article after article about degrees that used to mean something and are now close to useless: New lawyers have better then half unemployment in their field, veterinarians are having tough time finding work, English, news ed, journalism, theater, and even many education degrees have all become the new wallpaper degrees of this generation, and that's not including industries like advertising and computer science where better technology and outsourcing to India have destroyed most people's chance at employment."

Kevin had taken her hoof in his hand "I'm very proud of you Scootaloo, I know how bright you are, and I know you can succeed, but be careful when you pick your career. The world doesn't care if you make it or not, it only cares if you can do the job in demand, and if you want that job to pay well, it usually means working on something most people think is 'hard', something in the STEM fields – Science, Technology, Engineering and Math."

"We'll help you all we can" I assured her, "Just remember that good grades alone are not enough. You have to be good at a valuable skill that not many people can do. As an engineer, I can usually land a job in under three months, and the pay is fair, but I'll never be rich either."

"And don't underestimate how bad it can be when you're young and poor. Jayne and I graduated and worked at a time when being poor meant you did without medical care. You got sick? Tough, go to work anyway. Car broke down? Then fix it with your own two hands, and quick! If you miss work, you lose your job, and then good luck paying the rent. We only made it out because I got a degree that paid well and was in demand."

"I'm one of the lucky ones, and you can be too. You're a smart kid Scootaloo, and Kevin and I know you can do whatever you put your mind to."

Back in class Scootaloo shuddered as she saw those vacant seats and knew what they meant, but she also felt a glow of pride that she had made it through the bio 102 class with a solid A.

However her professor was not quite done yet. "As many of you know, the chair of the biology department teaches one or two advanced versions of required classes each year, and these highly sought after classes are worth an extra hour of college credit. Her advanced class this coming fall will be in bio chemistry, and as usual, it was immediately booked up with pre-med and other ambitious students vying for the challenge and the chance to list the class on their transcripts." She looked meaningfully at several of the brightest students in the class. "This year, in an attempt to thin the ranks, Dr. Moselle has requested that all applicants for the class submit a paper answering and expanding upon a single question. She recorded this video for those who want to try. Anyone who is not interested, or doesn't need bio chem; it's been a pleasure, and have a good summer."

There was the familiar rumble of bags being shouldered and chairs scraping as most of the class got up and left, accompanied by the 'ding' of computers as distance learners in high schools around the state signed off. When it was quiet again, only about 10 students remained in the large lecture hall, and Scootaloo found herself one of two left on the digital connection.

The professor looked over the remaining students, nodded, and set the video to play full screen on the projector. A middle aged woman with short cut, slightly gray hair, glasses and a well used lab coat introduced herself as Dr Moselle and explained the contest.

"In biology, as in all the sciences, it is necessary to know and understand the many details of how processes work, what structures are named, and how chemicals interact. However knowing details is only the start."

"Just as any mechanic can tell you what a coolant pump does, so you can describe how cells divide, but what separates a decent mechanic from a good one, and so a decent pre-med from an excellent one is the understanding and application of theory."

"If you bring in a car that makes a clicking noise sometimes, an average mechanic will start replacing parts (at your expense) until the noise doesn't come back. A good mechanic will test drive the car, and listen to it while moving and stopped, with the engine on and off, driving fast and slow, turning and straight. That good mechanic will hear the clicking only when turning hard, know the theory, the totality of how the car works, and diagnose a worn out joint in the drive shaft that turns the front wheel."

"By this point, those with no understanding of theory, such as creationists, have ether learned or failed out, much as would happen to a mechanic who thought cars were pulled by invisible horses. Understanding basic evolution is a good starting place, but I don't want students who mindlessly repeat cell types and car part names, I want students who can employ theory to do something useful. I am looking for the students who can hear that clicking and work through the possibilities to nail down exactly what's happening based on an understanding of how the system works. In short, I am looking for that rare, special person who is capable of thinking under their own power.

"Most of you hearing this are not that person. Yet. The question I want an answer to is simple enough that a competent sixth grader could answer it with a bit of thought if they understood basic theory could think for themselves. I will expect a detailed answer to this question, including examples illustrating your point; those who give the best answers by July 15th will get into the class. If you draw a blank, I suggest brushing up on the 'why sex?' chapter in the 7 part 'evolution' series.

Our girl Scootaloo 1 of 3

by Cozy Mark IV

Ch 9: Midnight Sun