Slipper Bread

March 2029, Rocket City, Sazhou, Liang Nation

Michael Max invited his girlfriend, Daphne Braun, to his home for the weekend. To avoid awkwardness, he came up with a grand excuse: they would conduct an important scientific experiment together.

On the phone, Daphne asked curiously, "What kind of scientific experiment?"

Michael replied with mock seriousness, "My dear Doctor of Astronomy, this experiment is closely related to your Mars Burst Theory. It requires precise electrical equipment and a complex process to complete. The experiment is called Baking Bread."

Daphne giggled. She knew Michael was referring to Italian ciabatta bread, which was also called "slipper bread" due to its cracked surface resembling a slipper. Daphne had tried making it a few days prior and mentioned it to Michael.

Baking bread? That was a rather… unusual excuse for a date.

For Daphne, the reason didn't matter. She was already captivated by the immense energy Michael exuded.

Daphne firmly believed that true love was unconditional, and being with Michael was the happiest thing for her; no reason was needed.

Despite being the world's richest man, Michael Max's home was remarkably humble: a prefabricated house of less than 100 square meters, built on an open lot in just three days.

The couple's important scientific experiment began.

The "precise electrical equipment" Michael mentioned was actually an old-fashioned electric oven, while his "complex process" was indeed true.

Kneading the dough, letting it rise, wrapping each dough ball in plastic wrap to retain moisture. After the dough had risen, the baking steps were extremely intricate, requiring precise control over temperature and steam humidity.

First, the oven was preheated to 260 degrees Celsius. A baking pan with the dough and another pan filled with water were placed inside. The pan of water generated steam. After baking for 30 seconds, the oven door was opened, water was sprayed in, and the oven temperature was lowered to 230 degrees Celsius. The process was repeated.

As the dough heated and expanded, then cooled and contracted, then heated and expanded again, its surface hardened and cracked when it cooled, forming deep, valley-like textures that resembled slippers.

"Daphne, your Mars Burst Hypothesis is fascinating. If Mars heated up and expanded, then cooled and contracted repeatedly, its outer shell would eventually crack," Michael said.

"Michael, you're so insightful. The principle behind the Mars Burst and slipper bread is the same," Daphne said, leaning against Michael's broad chest. Their flour-dusted aprons touched.

Through the transparent oven door, they could see the bread inside expanding, its surface cracking with a dull popping sound.

With the bread served, the two were in high spirits. Daphne recounted her research and findings on Mars's topography to Michael.

Mars's surface elevation difference reached over 20,000 meters, the largest of any planet in the Solar System. However, due to the absence of strong plate tectonic activity on Mars, there were no large-scale folds on its surface. In essence, its surface was smooth and flat.

Overall, Mars had only two types of terrain: flat highlands and flat plains. The highlands were home to Olympus Mons and three smaller volcanoes arranged in a line to its southeast.

Extending southeast from these four volcanoes was a long canyon, Valles Marineris, stretching over 4,000 kilometers. Its length was second only to Earth's Great Rift Valley.

There was no transitional zone between the highlands where Olympus Mons was located and the plains; it was an almost vertical cliff, hundreds or even thousands of meters high.

The plains showed signs of extensive water flow, not in the manner of river erosion, but suggesting that Mars was once warm and humid, with vast oceans.

The rocks in some parts of the highlands and cliffs were only tens of millions of years old, while the geological age of the plains, the former ocean floor, exceeded billions of years.

The most puzzling feature on Mars was Valles Marineris, discovered in 1972 by Mariner 9, after which it was named.

Valles Marineris was over 4,000 kilometers long, 300-600 kilometers wide, and up to 8 kilometers deep. Unlike Earth's Great Rift Valley, which formed an arc, Valles Marineris was a straight line with no mountains or folds on either side, only endless plains. How did it form?

In the 1970s, one theory suggested that Valles Marineris was formed by one or more massive floods. However, this idea was quickly dismissed. Even enormous floods would not be sufficient to carve out such a wide and deep canyon, especially since there were no similar traces on either side.

The current mainstream view is that Valles Marineris was formed by the subsidence of the plains as the Olympus Mons volcanic region uplifted.

The slipper bread experiment and the arc structure of Earth's Great Rift Valley indicated that if the Martian highlands had uplifted due to geological activity, the rift valleys should have formed in an arc around them. It was unlikely for subsidence and cracking to occur in a straight line towards a fixed southeast direction, extending for over 4,000 kilometers, longer than Mars's radius.

Another unsolved mystery regarding Valles Marineris was the discovery of extensive sedimentary layers at the bottom of the canyon. Sedimentary layers are a common geological phenomenon, often forming at the bottom of lakes or from volcanic ash deposits.

After Valles Marineris formed, where did these additional sedimentary layers come from?

Michael listened intently and asked, "According to your hypothesis, the highlands on Mars were once land, and the plains were the seabed. Then how was Valles Marineris formed?"

"I believe Valles Marineris was formed by the collapse of the ground due to underground magma flow, which erupted from volcanoes and then cooled. But what I can't understand is why the underground magma would flow in such a straight line."

They fell silent. Suddenly, Michael's eyes lit up. He grabbed Daphne's hand and said, "I can connect you to my VESSEL. With Brain-Computer Fusion, it can help you think more deeply."

Michael led Daphne to a specialized chair. He paused and added, "My Brain-Computer Fusion project is still in the experimental phase. The VESSEL, or Non-contact External Brain Connector, is designed specifically for my brain. Although you have more expertise in Mars than I do, I'm not sure if you'll be compatible with the VESSEL."

Daphne was eager to try. She joked, "Let me give it a shot. If it's not compatible, we can just consider it a failed baking bread experiment."

Daphne relaxed into the chair and put on the special helmet. She signaled Michael to turn on the device. As the power increased, Daphne felt drowsy, then dizzy and disoriented.

She tried hard to concentrate, hoping to enter a meditative state. After a few minutes, Daphne helplessly raised her right hand, signaling Michael to turn it off.

Michael removed the helmet for Daphne. She slumped back in the chair, her eyes closed tightly, and said weakly, "I'm too dizzy. I can't think at all."

Daphne Braun's experiment connecting with the VESSEL had failed.

That night, Daphne's head rested on Michael's shoulder. Her arm lay softly and naturally across his chest. She breathed evenly, deep in sleep.

Was this a dream? Daphne saw a beautiful planet with vast oceans and majestic mountains. Four volcanoes, one large and three small, spewed fiery magma into the sky.

A jet of fire, sometimes strong and blazing, sometimes weak and dim, pulsed like the fluctuating temperature in the bread oven. Under the alternating heat and cold, the planet's outer shell expanded and cracked.

With a "crack," the land crust, along with mountains and lakes, shattered and flew off the planet's surface. The entire seabed, along with seawater, instantly splashed into the air and froze into ice. The remaining landscape of the planet became barren highlands and flat plains.

At the junction of the highlands and plains, sharp, vertical cliffs remained – the original plate boundaries of the planet. The seabed where the underground magma had flowed collapsed, forming a long canyon.

Some sedimentary layers, broken from the highland lakes, fell back into the seabed plains and canyons. The planet lost its azure and verdant colors, slowly turning a dusty red.

Michael shifted slightly on his shoulder, waking Daphne. He said softly, "Sorry, I woke you. I just had a dream."

Daphne came back to her senses and asked in surprise, "You had a dream too? What did you dream about?"

"I dreamed there were thin clouds floating above Valles Marineris, and I was in a cabin deep within Valles Marineris using a robotic arm to excavate ice blocks from the rock strata," Michael replied.

"That dream is too real. There are ice blocks in the rock strata of Valles Marineris, and thin clouds in the sky during Martian summers. All of this is true, haven't I told you before?"

Daphne rubbed her eyes and continued, "You told me you were going to establish a Mars survival base deep within Valles Marineris. What did you call that survival capsule?"

Michael replied, "Valles Marineris Capsule."

&

Poem:

Long dwelling, truly has spirit, Tang, Li Dong

Dreaming of seeing the divine form. Song, Li Liuqian

Seeking the source, entering the secluded valley, Song, Ouyang Xiu

Tide rises on the outer bank. Song, Xu Ji