It’s 1964, one of the greatest Polish science-fiction writers and futurologists is about to finish his latest book called “Summa Technologiae”. The name refers to the “Summa Theologiae” by Thomas Aquinas, which in the 13th century was the compendium of all the main theological teachings. It summed up the current state of knowledge. Similarly, in the middle of 1960s Lem sets off to a meta-journey to recon the world of technology, armed only with his intellect bounded by the restrictions of the Iron Curtain.
To approach this book without consideration of its historical and geopolitical background would be inappropriate. Moreover, hardly could we appreciate the charm of the writer, who, 26 years before the Internet became public, foresaw that for people to become a singular intelligent organism they would need “some kind of telephone” for sharing information globally…
Despite some years have passed from the premiere and the fact, that in terms of technological development we should look at those years rather in exponential scale, it’s still actual. Lem touches the nanotechnology potential, discusses the quirks of living in a universal simulation, tries to explain why we as humans haven’t found any signs of extraterritorial life, glorifies the self-building organic machines, which we all are and much more…
I liked the elaboration on the topic of self-organizing self-building mechanism, which all live form area. It is the information, which is important, not a factory, which builds it. I foresee that might be the ultimate goal of the whole industry, which started with sole professionals, then moved to manufactures, then automated factories, which is essentially the same but polished idea. However, currently, many products could be made using 3D printers, which changes the paradigm of production. That’s because we exchange information instead of a finished product and built it wherever we want, given we have the materials. The next step would be a self-creating machine, soaking required substance from its environment, just as the living creatures do in a womb or an egg.
Another interesting comment I noted down is that in any time in history humanity foresaw progress as much richer and bigger ‘it’ of what it already saw. Like in the Paleolithic era, we would express progress in terms of bigger and sharper spears. In medieval times, people expect the future to bring even higher castles, most robust cathedrals, and way bigger sea ships. However, evolution and technological progress brought way different tools…
If you’re into futurology, like thinking about the abstractions of the surrounding world, give this book a shot. Chances are you’ll be grasped by the ideas that sparked Lem’s mind, ideas which will live forever (or until the last ‘information carrier’ standing).
