Barry R Norman

Ambient Sanity Barry R Norman

Top government statistician and probability theorist, Martin Bruce, hero of AMBIENT SANITY, is either a genius or . . . insane. His therapist and a theoretical physicist are enabling an experiment to determine which, but can Martin and the universe survive it? Martin Bruce is a brilliant systems analyst at defense contractor, Martin Marietta. But he believes that he has stumbled upon another dimension by accidentally playing their resonant frequencies on his array of musical synthesizers and sequencers. This has caused him to insist that he is suffering from what he refers to as a "time lag," making it impossible for him to leave his house. His employer has referred him to psychotherapist Dr. Karen Albers, whose battery of tests has uncovered repressed memories of abuse in his childhood and the possibility of adult-onset schizophrenia. His time lag has instilled in him agoraphobia so their sessions are all conducted online where Dr. Albers has difficulty trying to separate his brilliance from his psychosis. Their conversations blend science, philosophy and psychotherapy which amuse Martin Bruce and fascinate Karen Albers. Dr. Albers soon learns that her patient has also been conferring with MIT theoretical physicist, Dr. Jason Paramus, and she asks Martin's permission to speak to him to see if any of his personal observations and scientific queries have any merit. After speaking with him, she is astonished to find that his theories and self-diagnosis of a time-lag, as a result of "visiting" an alternate dimension, cannot be dismissed. The three of them agree to conduct an experiment which could change the very foundations of science, philosophy and life as we know it. "An extraordinarily captivating read. Mr. Norman's prose is indeed electric and drives the reader forward inexorably to each uncomfortable, funny, or wondrous conclusion. It's as powerful an experience I've had reading anything in a long time." --Amazon review, "FLIPPING POINT," 2016. Author website