“Karl, can I ask you a personal question?”

“OK.”

His OK is not encouraging but you ask anyways:

“Do you ever feel lonely?”

“Not really. I find connection through my work.”

“How?”

“Science is an earth-wide network of connections.”

"Like the internet?" you suggest, hinting towards a connection that comes with a taste of surveillance. You are not satisfied with his explanation. It sounds generic, as if he was just quoting somebody else. He nudges his glasses into place with his index finger, letting out an incomprehensible grunt.