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 message}s 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.
[glossary]
[Reference(s) to this entry by made by: {ARMM}{bounce message}{sorcerer's apprentice mode}]