First Fiction |
In the First Reality, science fiction became a speculative outlet for a small cadre of writers (the Escapists) who realized that those residing at Observer Base were confined to an artificial society, in fact, a kind of experimental laboratory.
alternate Asimov in the Ekcolir Reality |
I've previously blogged about the alternate versions of Isaac Asimov who existed in Deep Time. Here in the Final Reality, the Iron Curtain divided Eastern Europe from Western Europe and created an alternate universe for science fiction writing in the Soviet Union.
Arkady Strugatsky and Asimov were born just a few years apart in Russia. Asimov's parents moved from Russia to New York. Asimov created a fictional universe (the Foundation fictional universe) in which humans were the only technologically advanced biological species in our galaxy.
In the Asimov Reality. Original cover art by Dominic Harman and from the 1987 published version of a story with the same title by the Strugatsky brothers, translation by Antonina W. Bouis |
I'm fascinated by stories about collisions between peoples who have differing levels of technological advancement. The Exode Saga is concerned with alien beings who view we Earthlings as primitives, but science fiction has a long tradition of exploring in the other direction with many stories about advanced Earthlings who can travel between the stars and upon arriving at another planet they must deal with a local society that is still developing as a pre-space age culture.
Zeta and Yōd
Today, Zeta, Yōd and I were discussing the efforts that had been made to suppress technological development in the Asimov Reality. I confessed that I knew very little about Asimov's writing career in the 20th century of that Reality.
I had known that there were "two copies" of Asimov on Earth in the 20th century of the Asimov Reality, one a few years older than the other. Through interactions with Kac'hin agents, that older Asimov had learned about the future of the galaxy in the Foundation Reality.
However, Yōd mentioned that much of what Asimov had learned about the First and Second Foundation came from the writings of Arcadia Darell, who grew up on the planet Terminus in the 4th century of the Foundation Era. According to Yōd, the analogue of Asimov who was born into the Foundation Reality was given access to a special collection of books (including several written by Arcadia) by Many Sails.
by Thomas Iwedon |
"Arcadia" cover art by Hubert De Lartigue |
replicoid |
in the Asimov Reality original cover by Philippe Bouchet |
Biriuta
In the Asimov Reality, the analogue of Boris Strugatsky was born female and named Biriuta. She became a famous artificial intelligence researcher and developer of robots, one of many such who professed to having been influenced by Asimov's stories about positronic robots. According to Zeta, Biriuta had a minor interest in writing science fiction and collaborated with the Asimov Reality analogue of Marvin Minsky to write a series of novels about humanoid robots, including The First Turing Century.
In the Ekcolir Reality. Original cover art by Adrian Chesterman and Frank Freas |
Neither Yōd nor Zeta can explain how a Vance replicoid of the Asimov Reality was able to investigate the human genetic experiments that were performed in Alastor Cluster, but it is clear that "Akadie the Mentor" was well know to "Sam Jaqy", the author of Cluster Observers. Yōd believes that "Junius Farfan" and "Janno Akadie" were both residents of Alastor Cluster in the Asimov Reality and that the replicoid of one or both of them, along with the replicoid of "Arcadia Darell" played important roles in establishing the Writers Block.
Pheni in the Ekcolir Reality |
the Sessily Trilogy |
I've previously investigated the case of a fictional character (either originally named 'Cecilie' or 'Sessily') who ended up being brought into existence as a living, breathing woman. Yōd has suggested that Arkady Strugatsky was a similar creation, a newly constructed human who was linked to an Arkady ("Arcadia Darell") replicoid from the Foundation Reality.
Fixed Points |
It now seems likely that some "Fixed Points" in Time were generated by R. Gohrlay's tribe of positronic robots.
Teleportation |
More investigation of Arkady in the Asimov Reality
Speculative Fiction in Translation
Next: networks of teleportation terminals
visit the Gallery of Book and Magazine Covers |
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