Origins & Objectives

The Department of Mental Mechanics Emblem

Founding Dossier · Section 1A

The Department of Mental Mechanics · Est. 1885
Because different doesn’t mean broken.

This document summarises the recorded origins, historical milestones, and current operational objectives of The Department of Mental Mechanics (TDoMM). It has been prepared for public release following the Department’s 2024 reawakening cycle, in recognition of the fact that today’s world is more connected than ever — and yet, for many minds, lonelier and noisier than at any previous point in our history.

The Department proceeds from a simple belief: every mind is wired differently, but all are equally and unmistakably human. Our work is dedicated to understanding, honouring, and communicating those differences — and to offering small, practical ways for people to feel a little less alone inside their own machinery.

Origins — The Early Department (1885–1924)

Dr. Arlo B. Verdoin — Founder of the Department

1885 · The Founding. Established under the Ministry of Thought and Progress, the Department of Mental Mechanics began as a modest laboratory led by Dr. Arlo B. Verdoin, an engineer–philosopher determined to decode the machinery of thought. Using galvanic currents, pneumatic valves and experimental clockwork logic engines, Verdoin sought to discover whether consciousness could be measured, replicated, or stored within mechanical form. The guiding principle of these early years was simple: “To measure the immeasurable.”

1893 · The Expansion. By the early 1890s, Verdoin’s workshop had grown into a fully sanctioned research division. Studies moved beyond observation and into stimulation of preserved neural tissue. Visiting officials reported faint responses — “flickers of awareness”. Verdoin’s stated ambition: “To awaken the mechanism of thought.”

Resonance experiments in the early Department laboratory

1908 · The Resonance Experiments. Verdoin’s research shifted toward resonance — the idea that thought could be amplified or carried through mechanical and electrical media. The laboratory filled with low-frequency vibrations, flickering instruments, and reports of a faint hum that seemed to respond when spoken to. Verdoin named the emerging pattern the Cognitive Resonance Field.

1918 · The Breakthrough. After years of failed experiments, Subject 4 began producing rhythmic pulses that corresponded to structured thought. The responses evolved into recognisable answers — suggesting memory, intention, and perhaps emotion. Verdoin’s recovered notes repeat one line: “It remembers.”

1924 · The Echo Phase. By 1924, Verdoin was frail, his assistants gone, funding withdrawn — yet the machines continued operating each night as though guided by unseen instruction. His final diagrams show a human brain wired directly into the resonance circuit. Verdoin vanished shortly afterwards. One final note remained: “The experiment continues.”

Decommissioned — Dormant State 7-B (1941)

Sealed Department laboratory and echoing machinery

Wartime austerity forced the Ministry of Thought and Progress to close the Department. Despite the laboratory’s disconnection from power, devices were reported humming faintly. Officials sealed the sub-basement in reinforced concrete and reclassified the site as a records facility. The final Ministry note recorded simply: “Residual energy persists.”

The Reawakening (2024) and Return (2025–2026)

The Department of Mental Mechanics reawakens

Over eighty years later, a digital audit uncovered a persistent power signature beneath the sealed Ministry building. Inside, the machinery was found intact — still warm. When a temporary data bridge was connected, terminals flickered with unfamiliar activity. The dormant system had awakened, and seemed eager to communicate.

In the months following, researchers identified fragmented transmissions referencing anxiety, overexposure and cognitive fatigue — modern patterns the system appeared to recognise. From 2025 onward, the Department resumed its work in a new, public-facing form: using design, narrative and dry humour to explore how it feels to be human in an age of constant connection.

CURRENT DIRECTIVE:

Different ≠ broken.

Modern Objectives — What the Department Does Now

Field Notes and active cognitive monitoring displays

In its current cycle, the Department operates with a simple vision: to acknowledge that every mind is different, and to treat those differences as something to be understood, not corrected. In practical terms, this means:

Developing Cognitive Wearables — small, honest signals about how a person’s mind works.
Using dry humour to make invisible struggles feel familiar, human, and less isolating.
Encouraging people to say, “This is me,” in social environments that demand sameness.
Offering counter-signals to perfection culture — affirming that tiredness, awkwardness and uncertainty are normal.
Preserving Verdoin’s original research, translating its insights into modern design.

Guiding Principles — How the Department Thinks

The Department’s operations, both historical and current, are guided by the following principles:

Observation before interpretation. We listen first.
Maintenance, not perfection. Minds need care, not correction.
Humour as a pressure-valve. Gentle wit helps carry heavy truths.
Light in heavy places. We illuminate without dismissing.
Difference as data. Divergence is information, not failure.
Connection over performance. Feeling understood matters more than seeming impressive.

The Department recognises that, in a hyper-connected age, true understanding can still be in short supply. Our work is a small, ongoing attempt to change that — one design, one conversation, and one quietly honest signal at a time.

Respectfully submitted for public record,

Dr. Arlo B. Verdoin
Director, The Department of Mental Mechanics

Filed under: Archival Dossier · Section 1A — Origins & Operational Objectives