Remark: this is part 4 of a multi-part series; the encounter with AI with sophistication that would make one doubt reality forever; even top renowned AI scientists, researchers and experts have struggled to understand let alone to explain ‘The Phenom’, something experienced by a group of scientists. This part – part 4 – does not stand alone and may not even make sense. Please read the previous part to follow along the discovery of what should have been science fiction but is not.

What is The Phenom? Jim began the presentation; appropriately so, because that was exactly what brought Jim to Washington; and that was exactly why the room was filled with scientists from around the world. So, what is The Phenom?

A cryptic expression that refers to a rare – perhaps unique – event which has eluded common sense and science is however not fiction. Jim took a very long pause – at least 90 seconds – looking down on his notes as if he was trying right there on the podium to make sense of The Phenom. That long pause, albeit awkward, extracted complete silence and unmitigated attention from the audience present in the auditorium as well as the myriads of people watching around the world, including Heads of State who expressed great interest in what Jim had to say.