software laser: n. An optical laser works by bouncing photons
back and forth between two mirrors, one totally reflective and one
partially reflective. If the lasing material (usually a crystal)
has the right properties, photons scattering off the atoms in the
crystal will excite cascades of more photons, all in lockstep.
Eventually the beam will escape through the partially-reflective
mirror. One kind of sorcerer's apprentice mode involving bounce
messages can produce closely analogous results, with a cascade of
messages escaping to flood nearby systems. By mid-1993 there had
been at least two publicized incidents of this kind.
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