Object
Teacher's Office Shutter Control Panel
A small, flush-mounted rectangular control pad set into the teacher's office bulkhead: brushed composite faceplate roughly the size of a hand, a single tactile press pad, and a narrow status LED that glows when engaged. Finger-smudges rim the button and a faint scuff marks the lower edge from repeated use. Lieutenant Ballard lays a measured hand on the pad and depresses the button; the panel emits a soft chime and the adjacent classroom shutter slides open, its indicators shifting as the hidden room floods into view. Data watches the motion while Lal remains seated inside the classroom, the panel converting administrative routine into an intimate physical act that exposes vulnerability.
1 appearances
Purpose
To locally command the office-to-classroom shutter (open/close) and provide a simple, immediate control interface for granting access or revealing the classroom.
Significance
The panel functions as the catalytic device that converts diagnostic concern into visible reality: Ballard’s press exposes Lal’s social isolation, intensifies Data’s emerging parental responsibility, and foreshadows the institutional stakes that will drive ethical conflict over Lal’s future.
Appearances in the Narrative
When this object appears and how it's used