LL :: Volume 25 :: LR

As that segment of the street runs approximately northeast-southwest, pedestrian motion has begun to look distinctively odd. A group of people walking together will naturally form a diagonal line. Even a couple will find it inconvenient to walk side-by-side; one will have to lead, if they are to converse at all.

The dynamics of who walks ahead, and who behind, has sparked the publication of three papers already by City anthropologists.

Variable-Speed Clocks. Speed up and slow down randomly, but with feedback to remain on average accurate. Long-term error maps as a normal curve, within five minutes of true time 75% of the day. Billed as a cure for overly rigid time-binders, without undue error or drift.

Rapid Ice Cubes. Pow! All melted. Do not refreeze.

When you speak the control word, the desk projects a load distribution field between your hand and whatever you're holding. Assuming you had a good surrounding grip, the object is held rigidly in place. (Note that it's held the same way you were holding it -- exerting force on the same spots. Even a fragile object will be held safely, unless you bang into it while it's frozen in space. And since your skin indents slightly when you grip something, even a light grasp will translate into a dove-tailing field, unlikely to slip.)

You can set separate control words for each hand, and for both hands together. Any number of objects can be held at once; touch an object and speak the unsetting word to release it. (Not only does this protocol let you specify which of several frozen objects to release, but it reminds you to get a grip yourself before the object plummets to the desk. Although the tool doesn't require you to get a good grip.)

Design problem: If you've got some complex shape wrapped around your hand, you can accidentally handcuff yourself. Not a big deal, of course; you just release, change your grip, and try again. But it does mean that you can't wear gloves while using the bracelets. On the other hand (sorry) you probably don't need gloves; Kraftwerk provides chemical and thermal shielding options in the sensor fields, if you happen to be working with something dangerous.

If your window doesn't get much rain, you might set up a rain fountain above it, for a permanent water-sculpture effect.