I got around to reading the book about a week ago. When I was in Cali early this year, I picked up a paperback of the first book from Logos, an excellent indie book store in Santa Cruz. I remember enjoying it and really liking the film version of the first book, entitled "Colossus: The Forbin Project." Over time, I lost or gave away my copies of these books. I read the Colossus trilogy back in the 80s. It may be the peace of plenty and content, or the peace of unburied death. "I am the voice of world control," it famously begins. The Colossus of the book seems to want to use one last shred of human credibility to deliver his message, and he writes a statement to be delivered by the shambling, powerless heads of state: In the movie, Colossus recites it himself. Forbin's slow realization that they are the natural consequence of Colossus being programmed (by Forbin and his team) to protect humans is fairly well doneĪnd Colossus' prepared statement to the world, making "his" case to several billion obsolete humans that they're better off with him as their god than any of the gods they've conjured up over their history is spectacular. (Cleo accepts this without comment, so even she realized the comparison is fair.)Īs in the movie, there are dual payoffs: After being given a voice (of its own design), Colossus and Forbin discuss the full extent of Colossus' control and goals. "No, not tortuous," Forbin replies, "but complex, possibly devious, almost feminine." "If it is true, then Colossus has a most tortuous mind." Markham suggests that "the idea of Colossus seeking intelligence" seems unlikely to her. As Colossus becomes sentient, and starts exploring the world it will eventually rule, Charles Forbin (Colossus' creator, and eventual slave) and his assistant (and love object) Cleo Markham (sorry.DOCTOR Cleo Markham) are trying to figure out what Colossus is up to, in particular what "thoughts" have led it to particular actions. I love these retro-future books that imagine sentient computers with which we communicate over teletype, and that imagine air-car taxis but not cell phones.Īnd, a little like Stranger in a Strange Land (the most glaring example I can think of), there's a charming, off-handed sexism. " And (when Forbin points out it's late in the day): "Day and night are one to us man can work in shifts." Judging by the book, he'd never heard an American speak, and it hurts to read ostensibly American characters referring to the Secret Service as "you lot." The best lines are reserved for Colossus. The flap says Jones "was a commander in the British Navy throughout WW II" and worked as a radio operator, bricklayer and gardener. Wonderful, overblown, dated doomsday story. It's actually easy to forget Forbin created Colossus, everyone almost acts as if Colossus is some force of nature, and they only can react to it. The book also seems very quick to accept Colossus' demands, I understand they don't really have a choice, but you'd expect more discussion, and at least some anger, directed towards Forbin and his team. The book also starts mere hours before activating Colossus, and I kind of miss some more discussion about how the project started. The book is more nuanced than the movie - Forbin has his doubts about Colossus before switching it on. And a pretty engaging story about an Artificial Intelligence spinning out of control, into control of humanity. It's even more of its time - a lot of obviously outdated sexism (men be like, women be like). It certainly is of its time (1970, with mostly 60s sensibilities), and it also is a little silly. It isn't a classic, but it's also isn't bad. The choice is yours."Ĭolossus: The Forbin Project, which is based on this book, is one of my go-to sci-fi movies. It may be the peace of plenty and content or the peace of unburied death. The computer he built shouldn't be able to ask at all. Forbin is concerned when Colossus asks-asks-to communicate with Guardian. However, the USSR quickly announces that it too has a supercomputer, Guardian, with capabilities similar to that of Colossus. The President hands off full control of the nation's missiles and other defense protocols to Colossus and makes the announcement to the world that he has ensured peace. But Colossus soon exceeds even Forbin's calculated expectations, learning to think independently of the Colossus Programming Office, processing data over one hundred times faster than Forbin and his team had originally anticipated. Colossus is a supercomputer capable of in-taking and analyzing data rapidly, allowing it to make real time decisions about the nation's defense. Charles Forbin has dedicated the last ten years of his life to the construction of his own supercomputer, Colossus, rejecting romantic and social endeavors in order to create the United States' very first Artificially Intelligent defense system.
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