The theory of potential

I woke up in the middle of the night, drenched in a cold sweat. I had to find my tablet.
This was going to be groundbreaking.

It came to me in a dream—one of those fucked-up ones with hooded creatures and impossible places. The kind of dream you never quite know whether to call a nightmare or not.
Anyway, I found it.

The correlation I’ve been looking for: life expectancy and genius.

After a long mathematical equation explaining the mechanics of potential energy—which I won’t bore you with—I can prove that the younger people die, the more potential energy is stored in… the universe. Or God. Or the Force. Call it whatever you want.

Look at history. When life expectancy was lower, we had more prominent figures in art, mathematics, philosophy, music—everything.
I’m calling this The Theory of Potential.

Here’s how it works.

Assume there is a limited amount of potential energy, randomly distributed among generations. Let’s assign a value to full potential—say, 2000 units, just to make the math easy. Now assume that the maximum reach of potential—when you’ve used all of it—is around age 50.

Any unused potential doesn’t disappear. It gets stored somewhere. Let’s call it the cloud.

In the Middle Ages, when life expectancy hovered around 30 to 40, people died before reaching full potential. If you’re meant to use 100% of your potential by 50, then by 30 you’ve only used about 60%. The remaining 40% goes back to the cloud.

Now imagine generations dying early, over and over. The cloud fills with surplus potential.

Eventually, that surplus gets redistributed—but not evenly. It concentrates. And that’s how we get geniuses.

A few people receive far more potential than average. They reach extraordinary heights early, burn brighter, create more—before they die.

You might argue this is hindsight bias. That only geniuses survive in historical records.
But then look at today.

Life expectancy is higher than ever—and where are our geniuses?

You could argue history is still being written. Fair.
But here’s the real flaw—and the fix.

People are living longer, but they are not reaching their full potential. They live unsatisfactory lives, stretched thin, never fully used. So potential accumulates again—but it’s trapped.

We should have more geniuses by now.
I think we’re owed some.

Signed,
Dr. M. Dorovich

I put the tablet down and grabbed a piece of paper from the nightstand.

Mom,

Read the article—I left it open on the tablet.
I think it explains exactly why I got sick.

If my life ends soon—if I die during this procedure—then all I’m doing is sending my potential back into the cloud. I’m helping the next generation.

When you see a child playing piano impossibly well, or painting something that shouldn’t exist, or discovering a vaccine before they’re old enough to drive—we can both rest easy knowing I helped.

I love you.
Michelle