Colossus grudgingly grants them unmonitored privacy when they are in bed together, and they use these interludes to plan to regain control of Colossus.Ĭoncluding that Colossus's only real power resides in its control of nuclear missiles, Forbin suggests covertly disarming them. Forbin has a last unmonitored meeting with his team, and proposes that Dr. Colossus orders Forbin to be placed under 24-hour surveillance. Kuprin, under threat of a missile launch against Moscow. while Soviet agents are ordered to kill Dr. Colossus learns of it, and both computers order Forbin's return to the U.S. In a last desperate attempt to regain human control, a secret meeting is arranged in Europe between Forbin and his Soviet counterpart, Dr. Cover stories hiding the facts are released to the press. Colossus is able to shoot down the Soviet missile, but the US missile obliterates the Soviet oil field and a nearby town. The link is hurriedly reconnected and both computers continue without any further interference. When their demand is denied, Colossus launches a nuclear missile at a Soviet oil field, while Guardian launches one at an American air force base. Both machines demand the link be immediately restored.
Even more surprising, the two systems' communications quickly evolve to complex mathematics far beyond human comprehension and speed, whereupon the two machine complexes become synchronized using a communication protocol which no human can interpret.Īlarmed that the computers may be trading secrets, the President and the Soviet General Secretary agree to sever the link. Surprising everyone, Colossus and Guardian begin to slowly communicate using arithmetic. The Soviets also agree to the experiment. The President allows this, hoping to determine the Soviet machine's capability. Forbin is asked how Colossus deduced the other system's existence, to which Forbin answers "Colossus may be built better than we thought." Shortly thereafter, the Soviets announce that their "Guardian" system is now operational.Ĭolossus requests to be linked to Guardian. CIA Director Grauber is asked why the CIA did not know this, but Grauber responds that they had seen indications of a large Soviet defense project but did not know what it was. After Colossus is fully activated, the president of the United States proudly proclaims that Colossus is "the perfect defense system".Ĭolossus' first action is a message warning: "THERE IS ANOTHER SYSTEM" and giving its coordinates. Located deep within a mountain and powered by its own nuclear reactor, Colossus is impervious to any attack. Forbin is the chief designer of a secret project, "Colossus", an advanced supercomputer built to control the United States and Allied nuclear weapon systems.