Daniella and the Lions

"Lions! Everyone loves and admires those majestic beasts. Everyone, that is, except those who must live near them. Somehow, having to worry about whether lions will kill your livestock or maul you when you go out at night in your village cools the ardor. This has major implications for conservation efforts because if we can't convince the locals that the lions are worth saving, all our programs will come to naught. However, what if we could use machine learning to come up with a way to allow humans and lions to peacefully coexist?"

This is the pitch my wife Daniella, Dani for short, gives to investors. My name is James. My wife and I founded a startup to save the lions.

My wife Dani is brilliant. She grew up on a ranch in Wyoming. By the time she had graduated high school, she had taught herself programming, advanced math, and machine learning. She ended up getting a full scholarship to Stanford. That was where I met her while I was studying economics.

We ended up dating, and then were engaged. We married right after graduation. She went to work at a tech company, and I continued my studies for my MBA.

While she was good at what she did and greatly enjoyed her job and co-workers, I could tell that Dani was restless. She wanted to do a lot more than just make a huge salary working for a large company.

It was a TV special that gave her the flash of insight. We were watching a documentary about lion conservation. The program said that a common issue was local villagers' opposition to programs trying to protect the lions.

"This is just like wolves and ranchers!" she jumped up and yelled at the TV screen.

"When I was growing up, I always hated wolves. There was a calf that I helped my dad deliver and named Daisy. Then one morning, Daisy was missing and her mother was distraught. I went with my dad to find Daisy, and after searching all day, came upon her carcass that was mostly eaten. My father said that it was the work of wolves. I wished then that wolves would go extinct."

"However, as time passed, the wolf population declined, and we also put up better fencing. This made the predations pretty much go away. After a while, I began to appreciate the beauty, strength, and intelligence of these animals."

"If we can keep the lions from endangering the livestock and lives of the villagers, we can get them to appreciate them."

When it was time for bed, Dani told me to go on to bed without her, because she wanted to research some ideas.

When I woke up the next day, a tired Dani triumphantly showed me a notebook filled with sketches and notes and pseudocode.

"I know what I want to do, James!" she told me.

When I graduated with my MBA a month later, she quit her job, and we became the co-founders of a startup.

The idea was pretty simple. We wanted portable machines consisting of a controller and various satellites that could be placed in strategic locations in a village. The machines would use various sensors to scan for lions or other large predators. Then they would direct focused light and sound at the animal to get it to turn back. Failing that, they would sound a general alarm to alert the village as a fallback.

She was a whirlwind of energy. First she worked out the mechanism for the light and sound to deter the animals. She spent months working with animal welfare experts and biologists to develop a system that was both effective and safe for the animals.

Then she wrote up the code for the sensors that detected and tracked the lions. After getting ethics approval, she tested it on a small scale with various big cat sanctuaries to great effect.

She and I also spent time presenting to various investors. We came to the attention of a large environmental focused investment group that was excited about our idea and invested heavily in our company.

With those funds, we developed a pilot system, but we needed to find a country that was willing to try it.

We finally got the phone call from our investor that we had been hoping for. One of the countries in Africa, had recently emerged into a stable government after years of civil wars. The new government was very interested in modernizing and industrializing the country, but wanted to preserve the wildlife as well.

As peace came to the country, and more people began farming and raising livestock once again, there had been increasing conflicts with lions. Although there were laws protecting the lions, they were mostly ignored. The government wanted to do a trial with our system in one of the villages with the worst predations by lions, and if successful would place a large order for other villages.

Dani and I were ecstatic. I had 100% confidence in my wife's genius and knew this would work.

It took some time for all the paperwork and logistics to be arranged, but eventually, we boarded the aircraft that would take us to the country.

(Because of Non Disclosure Agreements, I am not at liberty to use the name of the country, or the real names of some of the people involved. I hope you understand.)

Because the country had only relatively recently become stable, we would be accompanied by a Mr. Brooks to oversee our security and safety. Mr. Brooks was an ex-Special Forces soldier who had had extensive experience in many countries. He also knew some of the leadership of the country personally.

We landed at the airport in the capital city. It was a fairly small airport with just a single terminal with a half-dozen gates, but it had a large enough runway for wide body jets to land and take off.

When the three of us arrived, we were picked up in a limousine and taken to see the Interior Minister.

He welcomed us graciously and asked us to sit down in his large office.

He began asking questions about the details of our plans. Next to him, there was a man wearing a police uniform. As our conversation continued, the man grew more and more hostile to us. He was telling the Interior Minister that this was all a scam, and that he was wasting his time offering us this opportunity to test our system.

However, the Interior Minister could not be dissuaded. He told us he was excited about our work, and wished us the best of luck. He provided the transportation and the logistics for us to get to the village where the real world test would be conducted.

After a long drive in jeeps, our convoy finally reached the village early in the afternoon. We spent the remaining time getting our accommodations set up, and the equipment unloaded and assembled.

I wanted to rest for a day, but Dani would have none of it. She wanted to get started immediately. We went out in jeeps and saw the lions. After we came back to the village, Dani spent time visiting the villagers and hearing their stories of how they or their livestock had been harmed by the lions. They described how they felt safe during the day when it was light and there were many people about, but were scared to go out of their homes, once it became night. Dani, I, and Mr. Books went out and saw the enclosure at the edge of the village, where the livestock would be kept at night. Working with the village leaders, we determined the best positions for our equipment.

Finally as the sun set, we turned on the equipment and watched.

We were giddy with excitement, as were all the village leaders.

There was the master station that was set up at the center of the village. It coordinated all the satellite stations, and also showed a real time display of all the lions it was tracking,and an indicator of when the focused light and sound was being emitted at the lion.

As we watched, we could see the lions go about their business beyond the village. Then just before midnight, one of the male lions began stalking towards the cattle enclosure.

However, as soon as he came within a 100 yards of the enclosure, the system identified him as an intruder, and locked onto him. We saw the red circle around him, indicating the system was firing. Instantly the lion stopped in his tracks, and looked confused. He tried to come another way, but once again, the system stopped him. After a while he gave up!

We congratulated ourselves!

Similar events happened every night. What was nice, is that because the system was only needed at night, it could charge during the day with its built in solar panels, and so did not require electricity from the village.

As we watched more, we saw that all the lions eventually knew where that invisible line was that marked how close they could come. They were careful to avoid coming too close!

At the end of the month, it was time to analyze our data. It was a pretty easy conclusion. There had been no predations, and no sightings of a lion in the village. Our system worked!

The afternoon we finished our analysis, the village held a feast to celebrate our success. The young people seemed excited, but the older ones seemed more somber.

"Hello sir, you don't seem very excited about the success!" Dani addressed one of the elders of the village.

"Do you have doubts about the system?"

"No, Dani, I don't have any doubts that your system works. It is the chief of police I fear. He is a very bad man. He is in league with the poachers, who pay him lots of bribes to look the other way. He knows your system protects the villages, and reduces enmity between people and lions. This makes it harder for the poachers."

"So, I fear when you are gone, he will destroy the system."

"Then I must talk to the Minister about him!" Dani exclaimed.

"Please don't. He is the Minister's second cousin, and is always hanging around him. Surely, you must have seen him when you talked with the Minister."

"There was a guy in a police uniform who seemed really hostile to us, and kept telling the Minister that this pilot study was a waste of time and money."

"Yes, that was him. If you tell the Minister, the chief of police will find out, and know that we have talked with you. The Minister will give him the benefit of the doubt, and then the chief of police will take out his anger on us. Please promise me, you will say nothing to the Minister!" the village elder pleaded.

"Ok, for your sake, I won't tell him. But, still, there must be something we can do."

After the feast, after saying warm goodbye's to the villagers with whom we had formed close friendships that month, we headed back to the capital. Dani was quiet the whole trip back. I could tell she was thinking what she could do to thwart the police chief.

We were put up in a 5-star hotel that evening. The next morning we would meet with the Interior Minister at his home for a large reception celebrating our success and fly out in the afternoon.

As we got ready the next morning to go to the reception, I was stunned by how my wife looked. She was wearing a navy blue women's suit with slacks and a white blouse. It looked very professional, but at the same time was very flattering on her. Her long, full, blond hair was styled very beautifully, even though all she had was a hairbrush and blow dryer. On her feet, she wore her high heels.

The Interior Minister was very cordial and welcoming. He seemed as excited as we were that the trial had worked in real life. He said he wanted to continue the trial in the village for an additional month to make sure it could work without us there, before placing a larger order.

At the reception we also met the President. I wondered why the reception was held at the Interior Minister's home, but then when I saw the President, I realized that it was the Interior Minister who was the real power in the country, and the President was just a figurehead.

We also met various other officials who also congratulated us on our success.

"Hi Dani and James, congratulations on your success, for now."

It was the chief of police.

"I hope it still works when you are gone!" he said with a smirk.

"Thank you. I am sure it will as long as the directions are properly followed." Dani replied confidently.

The chief chuckled.

"We'll have to see about that, won't we," he said as he walked away.

Once the reception was over, we headed to the airport. We got to the airport and made it through security and customs without any issue. Like I mentioned, it was a small airport, with only a single terminal. It was mostly empty with maybe a few dozen businessmen, mainly Chinese and European, waiting for their flights.

It would be about an hour or so, before we could begin boarding our plane. Dani and I settled onto a bench to wait, when a worried Mr. Brooks came up to us!

"I have some bad news. One of my contacts told me that the chief of police is in the airport, and he is heading our way."

"What do you think he wants?" Dani asked.

"I think he wants to try to intimidate or trick you into accompanying him out of the airport to the police station. Once he has you there, he will have you in his power."

"You're the security expert, what should I do?" Dani asked.

"Just refuse him. From what my sources tell me, he is a big bully, but he is a coward as well. As long as you are here with me, you are safe," Mr. Brooks reassured.

"Thanks. But won't you be in danger, being the only one?" she asked him.

"Do you really think I am all alone?" he asked, looking out at the crowd of businessmen.

I looked closely. I spotted a few men who seemed to be more alert and more fit than the others.

"But, it won't come to that. Once you refuse him, he won't try to take you by force."

"Thanks for the heads up," Dani said.

And then she paused.

"Wait, I have an idea. You're friends with the Interior Minister, right? I want you to call him and tell him you need him to come to the airport as a personal favor," Dani told Mr. Brooks.

Then she looked at me.

"James, do you trust me?"

I nodded.

"Good, just listen to Mr. Brooks and do what he wants you to do. Don't do anything against him."

"What are you going to do?" I asked.

"You will see," she said.

She then got up out of her seat, and she and Mr. Brooks stepped back a few steps.

I could see them whispering in conversion, but could not make out what they were talking about.

Dani was still standing when the chief of police came into view a few minutes later, accompanied by 4 large, armed men.

"Dani, I have received intelligence that you are trying to smuggle items out of our country. If you could please accompany me, to the police station, we can get this sorted out," he said walking up to my wife.

"Please, sir. I haven't done anything wrong. I also have my flight. Can we avoid going to the police station," Dani said in her most plaintive voice.

I could see him thinking.

Then a grin formed across his face. He looked at Dani and then at me and Mr. Brooks.

When he looked back at my wife, his expression reminded me of a big cat that has caught its prey, and wants to play with it a while.

"A simple search should tell us one way or another if you are speaking the truth. Do you want me to do the search here, instead of taking you to the police station?"

"Yes," she squeaked quietly. She looked at me and Mr. Brooks and I could see the faint glimmer of the expression she has when something she plans is working out.

"Ok. But I expect full cooperation, otherwise, I will take you in."

She nodded.

The chief then started circling my wife.

"I will start at your head and work down," he informed Dani. "Please keep your hands at your side.

He then moved until he was directly in front of her. He gently ran his hands all over her face.

As soon as she felt him touch her, a look of disgust crossed my wife's face.

But she just stood quietly.

He then walked behind my wife and began running his fingers through her hair. I noticed he was also sniffing her hair as he inspected her.

After running his hands through her scalp, he moved her hair to the side, and began running his hands along the back and sides of her neck. I could see goosebumps form on my wife's skin from the contact.

He then moved on to her shoulders, massaging them.

"This suit jacket is too bulky, Dani, for me to do a proper search. Please take it off."

Dani unbuttoned her suit jacket, took it off and handed it to him.

The chief just took it and threw it on the floor.

She stood there in her sleeveless white blouse.

"Hold your arms straight out to the side," he ordered.

Dani complied.

He then started at her right arm and slowly began running his fingers all along the length of her arm.

By this time, the search had attracted some attention, as there was not much else going on in the terminal. Soon, a small crowd of onlookers, mostly men, had gathered to watch this pretty, professional woman, get searched.

The chief noticed.

"Dani, looks like we have attracted some attention. Are you sure you want me to continue your search in front of all these people? I can take you back to the station where you can have some privacy," he offered with a grin.

Dani looked around nervously at all the people watching her search, then back at Mr. Brooks.

She shook her head.

"All right then, we will have an audience for your search."

He then lifted up her arm, and sniffed her exposed armpit.

"Did you know that when a person is nervous, their armpits sweat more?" he asked rhetorically.

"I can smell the fear!" he announced

He leaned in closer. I saw my wife flinch, as he flicked out his tongue and licked her armpit.

"I can even taste the fear!" he announced.

"Are you nervous because you are hiding something?"

"Or are you nervous because you are wondering how much I will expose you to everyone during the search?" he asked, looking predatorily at my wife.

She just shivered.

He laughed.

"Don't worry my dear, I promise that I won't strip you completely naked in front of everyone!"

I could see my wife taking deep breaths trying to maintain her composure.

He then moved to her left arm, and again felt it thoroughly. Once he finished, he moved behind her.

He began running his hands along her shoulder and back and then her sides.

My wife stiffened.

"Relax, Dani, you are so tense. This part is just like a massage, for free, compliments of the police," he teased, rubbing and squeezing her shoulders.

Dani remained quiet, not responding to his banter.

He then moved his hands to her front, placing them on her belly, right above her waist.

My wife drew a sharp breath, as he slowly started moving them up, closer and closer to her breasts.

Slowly the hands inched upwards. I could see the crowd of onlookers hold their breath.

I could see the flight or fight response well up in my wife's eyes. She was about to get her breasts felt up in public, by this guy that was clearly doing it for his kicks.

I sensed Mr. Brooks stiffen, like a cat that is about to pounce. I knew he was getting ready to act.

Dani must have sensed this. She looked over at me, and then at Mr. Brooks. She subtly shook her head.

The chief's hands had now found her blouse-covered boobs.

He looked over at Mr. Brooks and me with an expression halfway between a sneer and a grin.

Then while still looking at us, he began to squeeze and maul Dani's breasts.

"I am molesting your wife in public, right in front of you, and there is nothing you can do about it!" his eyes seemed to shout!

I felt the blood rush to my face, and my hands balled up into a fist.

Mr. Brooks laid his hand on my arm and squeezed, urging me to calm down.

I realized that I had to trust that my wife knew what she was doing.

"Your breasts feel very nice, Dani. Tell me are they all natural, or do you have implants?"

"No implants sir," she managed to say quietly.

"It feels like you have something around your breasts, what is it?"

"It's my bra, sir."

He stopped feeling her up, and walked around to her front.