I was directed to this dystopian sci-fi novel by two bloggers, WinExtra and Engtech. Dystopian means it’s similar to many of the strange seventies sci-fi films I got caught up in a while back. So it proved to be an entertaining read that I polished off relatively quickly.

First, it should be noted that the Brunner uses a futuristic vernacular that at first I found a bit hard to get my head around, along with jumpy, extremely brief chapters that flit from subject to subject. However, I soon grew used to the quick, jumpy pace.

Brunner is remarkably priescent in regards to the future. He predicts the Internet quite accurately as a “datanet” where computers are connceted via computer terminals in every home. But he goes a bit further in his description of how the network impacts culture:

One and only one thing preserved even the illusion of national integrity. The gossamer strands of the data-net proved amazingly strong.

Poeple drew comfort from knowing there were certain objects near at hand… of which they could boast, “This is the biggest/longest/fastest frammistan on Earth!” Alas, however, tomorrow it might not be. Paradoxically, therefore, they derived even more emotional sustenance from being able to say, “This is the most primitive potrzebie, you know, still at work in any industrialized country!”

Other pages are similarly spot on in their descriptions that could be yanked from today’s headlines. One mentions low quality foods coming from overseas that have made their way into the food supply. Another mentions how people chase celebrity in their attempt to be famous for ten minutes. There was a huge earthquake in San Francisco which nearly bankrupts the nation and exposes their apathy (reminiscent of New Orleans). There’s even a mention of Paris Hilton – well, the hotel, not the celebrity, but I chuckled a bit at that lucky choice of words.

In the future, the most common problem is a “jacked in” lifestyle that many people are psychologically unable to cope with – referring to the ever-quickening pace of technology and the quest to keep up. This reminded me of the Ray Kurzweil theory of a coming singularity where computer technology surpasses the computing power of the human brain. Keeping in mind Moore’s Law, after that point, artificial intelligence’s continued exponential development will surpass our ability to comprehend it – technology will continue growing at an exponential rate without us, unless we “jack in” and join the burgeoning intelligence in hybrid human-technological fashion.

Now that is an optimistic viewpoint, but what Brunner gets right is that we’re unlikely use this technology to augment our intelligence, instead culturally devolving into a wasteland of televised gladiator fights, games, and advertising, while the government employs technology to control the population. Every American is given a number, used to build an identity to be tracked through the datanet, and after taking sedatives to cope with the culture shock, the average citizen’s biggest concern is how much the government hands them in the form of credit.

Eventually the plot moves to the hero, Nickie Haflinger, who grew up in a government lab, where through genetic manipulation smarter humans are being created in hopes that they can cope with the technological onslaught. I won’t spoil the ending, but I will mention that I found it oddly optimistic. I suppose I expected some bombs going off and martyrdom. I also didn’t care for this book as much when it started describing the quasi hippie society in California, that with its description of earthen homes reminded me strangely of an idealized Hobbiton. But I chalk this up to the book’s inception in 1975, just a few years after the hippie counter culture movement when it might have seemed possible that California could lead a world-changing, social revolution.

More appealing to me is the geek fantasy that instead, through a clever bit of computer code, one can change the world. I found that part pretty cool, as I did the aforementioned surprisingly accurate prognostications of the future. This book inspires me to read more science fiction.

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