
In a cramped lab, Dr. Alan Burgess has created a machine that can feed a person pre‑recorded thoughts, letting the mind construct its own vivid reality. By linking concepts like wealth, danger, or size, a test subject experiences those imagined scenarios with all five senses, while their body moves in a real room that supplies food and other material through an atomic duplicator. The technology promises a new form of therapy, but its very power makes it a dangerous playground for unchecked psyches.
When Lieutenant Jerry Norcriss is called in, Burgess explains that a patient named Anthony Mawson vanished inside the device, his private universe becoming impenetrable. The room has turned self‑sustaining, and two men who entered to retrieve Mawson never emerged, hinting that the mind‑crafted world may be expanding beyond control. As the investigation unfolds, the line between imagination and reality begins to blur, leaving everyone wondering how far a thought can grow when given its own matter.
Language
en
Duration
~30 minutes (28K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
Release date
2016-09-19
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1931–1992
A prolific American writer who moved easily between science fiction, comedy, and the stage, he built a career full of clever ideas and crowd-pleasing storytelling. He is especially remembered for dozens of plays written under his own name and several pen names.
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