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Page 2
He bobbed his head in agreement. "Well, I do have to admit, Dr.
Patterson, we have had more than our share of these incidents, so it was necessary to create a healthy, simple
solution just to sustain our small population. Especially considering our isolation from Earth."
They left the pad of the landing area and headed into the large facility that acted as the greeting and registration
area. Dr. Linders kept up a steady stream of conversation the entire time as they took care of the paperwork. Dr.
Patterson half-listened as she took in her surroundings and absorbed the shock of seeing so many forms of vegetation
and life in this remote location.
"So tell me about your work, Doctor," he asked politely, happy to make chit-chat.
She reluctantly turned her attention back to him and launched into a diatribe of the current studies she was conducting
and the frustration she was dealing with. "And no matter what we do, with the numerous pollutions in our ecosystem
and the breakdown of the ozone, women are reaching menopause at an advanced rate."
Dr. Linder pondered the thought. "How advanced is it?"
"It's not uncommon to see women who've just reached thirty with this problem;" She shrugged in resignation.
"It can be very sad to see someone who has planned to have children unable to do so."
Dr. Linder agreed as he led her through the building and out through the front door. Suddenly they were in the
bright sunlight again, and she soaked it up like a sponge. "This is marvelous."
He smiled at her kindly. "Yes it is. Now, back to your problem," he insisted, "There's no way to
reverse these effects with hormones?"
Dr. Patterson shook her head. "No. In fact, the patients we tried to treat that way developed an aggressive
cancer. And there's no chance with DNA therapy."
Dr. Linder pondered the problem; a shocked expression suddenly crossed his plain face. "I hope you aren't
having these same problems."
She smiled kindly at him, "That's very kind of you to worry about me. But no, I am as yet, completely healthy."
He patted her hand and smiled widely; "Good, good. I always hate to hear when bad things happen to colleagues,"
he coughed. "Now then."
They crossed the wide lawn and entered a large white structure. The sun sat behind it, giving the building a heavenly
glow that reinforced Dr. Patterson's feelings of hope for the future.
"Statistically, how many women are experiencing these difficulties?" Dr. Linder asked.
They entered the building and Dr. Patterson got a little thrill from the sight of the new facility, the state-of-the-art
computers, and the extensive equipment. "Of the women in their most fertile period of life, at least half
to some degree. Unfortunately, we didn't even recognize the problem when it surfaced years ago. Our population
has been falling ever since."
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