Five years ago, we opened Pandora’s box. Blinded by hubris, we didn’t foresee the problems that would arise. Only later did we realize our work would have such horrible implications, and as the story of Pandora goes, it’s too late once the bad stuff gets out of the box. Now, things are a mess, and I guess we are to blame. You would be right to judge us harshly, and I won’t hope for your forgiveness, but perhaps you might eventually understand how we got here and where we might end up if something isn’t done.
I still remember the day well. It was early spring. A tang of vitality hung in the mild morning air as I climbed out of my car and walked slowly to the lab, weary from the late night and stuck in a loop of thinking I couldn’t escape. Why wasn’t it working? Where had we gone wrong? What had I missed?
We had been working late all week, sustained by a stubborn, almost desperate self-belief. We knew we were close. Close enough to believe the next day would be the breakthrough. Or the next. We just had to keep at it and ignore the poisonous doubt lurking in the long pauses between conversation; the doubt that it actually might not be possible to achieve.
None of us wanted to walk away from the years of work. From the years of sweet-talking potential investors and cajoling skittish board members. From the years of telling each other and anyone else who would listen that if we
