How Noble in Reason

by Alyn Rockwood

Artificial Intelligence has already pervaded our lives in so many subtle ways, but how will humans react to the creation of a completely sentient super computer: a hyper-intelligent brain without a body who is as omniscient and omnipresent as the internet itself? How will people approach something that is distinguishable from a human only in its appearance? Rockwood imagines the ramifications in this futuristic novel where Dr. Andreas Rasmusson, inventor...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1568812884
• ISBN13: 9781568812885
• Release Date: May 2006
• Publisher: A K PETERS
• Length: 214 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Outstanding Sci-Fi Work!

I'll start by admitting that I'm not a sci-fi thriller fan, but this book was recommended to me and I took a chance. I'm glad I did! This is an outstanding piece of work written by an individual who must know a great deal about high-technology advancements and the field of artificial intelligence. The book kept me enthralled and engaged every bit of the way. Anyone who likes thrillers, knows anything about computers and the advancements made, underway, and those yet to come, will find this book a must read. Mr. Rockwood has a promising future for writing and I look forward to reading more of his work.

Daring, Compelling Science Fiction

So much of Science Fiction has been dominated by the techno-thriller prolepses of Gibson and the vast rambling scientific recreations of Stephenson and all their imitators that the philosophical and speculative roots of the genre seem all but lost at times. "How Noble in Reason" is a return to the brave, imaginative values of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne. Like those pioneers Rockwood begins with a daring and original speculation for a real future which he then explores through the lives of credible, conflicted characters about whom we come to care deeply. The novel also feels almost Nietzschian at times, both in the way it rapidly and wryly touches numbers of philosophical issues and its central, highly original speculation. Nevertheless, like the stories of Wells and Verne, it is great fun to read. Rockwood is a scientist and Mathematician and he knows how human science actually is and how it's done. That experience lends the book the same level or authenticity that has made the books of Tom Clancy so successful. Read the book because it is good, original Science Fiction. And don't be surprised if you find afterwards that you see the world you live in now in a very different way.

Symbolism in Science Fiction

The genre of science fiction is not my forte', but I read this book because I've known Alyn from the time we were in grade school and wanted to be supportive of an old friend. I was impressed with Alyn's technical mastery of computers and of the idea of computers being designed to have feelings and character traits, an idea I had never considered. I was mostly impressed, however, with the symbolic nature of the book. I related to the theme of Job in the story, and ultimately of the restoration of things taken away, as Job also experienced. More than that, I was touched by the love a father has for a son, and tributes celebrating that love. Alyn contibutes to the lives of the masses through personal and individual accomplishment. I appreciated the insight I received as a result of reading this book.

Destined for the New York Times best-seller list!

It is the year 2051 and Dr. Andreas Rasmusson's comfortable existence is about to unravel. The underlying source of the destruction ... a three-year-old unsolved murder of his closest friend, Bee, a nonorganic sentient. Ostracized from the Cornell University academic community, Rasmusson finds temporary solace within the bucolic lifestyle of Colorado. Yet, peace is short-lived. In his quest to prove his innocence and solve the crime, Rasmusson is plunged into a world of deceit, espionage, and madness. *** When I began reading How Noble in Reason, I anticipated it to be a murder mystery sci-fi thriller, and it was! The story takes the reader on an exciting emotional roller coaster ride with shocking plot twists and turns. Author Alyn Rockwood drops enough red herrings to confuse but not sidetrack to extreme. So, what sets this novel apart from other techno-thrillers? How Noble in Reason is a powerful love story! The prevailing theme of unconditional love flows through the story on many levels: between human intelligence and artificial intelligence, father and son, boy and dog, husband and wife, lovers, friends, nature, and even enemies. In a futurist world, where artificial intelligence is a perceived threat to the human race, love is the one tie that binds humanity and machine. Alyn Rockwood writes in a crisp Michael Crichton style, with the perfect blend of suspense, techno-speak, subtle humor, underlying romance, and human drama. It is one of the few books I have read with several "I never saw that coming" moments. How Noble in Reason is destined for the New York Times best-seller list! Dee Marie

A Thought Provoking Sentient Drama

"The Soul that rises with us, our life's Star, Hath had elsewhere its setting, And cometh from afar." -- Quoting How Noble quoting Wordsworth Who are we human beings? Why are we here? (Which restaurant are we going to? Maybe not this one) What makes us unique, or are we unique just as everything else? Are we given dominion over this planet, or have we, from our own perspective, achieved it merely through applying our survival instinct? Has there always been a Higher Being guiding us? Where is the limit of intelligence? How does one view the Dichotomy of Good and Evil? A confluence of those questions we forever ask resurfaces in the reader's mind when the book poses such a situation where, for the first time, human beings are faced with the question as whether and how to coexist with the gem of his own creation - sentient beings (as if we don't have enough problems already with the Big Creation). Who bestowed those inalienable rights upon us? Is it up to us to bestow them upon the sentient machines, who have achieved higher individual intelligence and claim to have feelings and even love? Can we human beings create something that can love, or are we merely a co-creator in the process of making sentient machines? Have we been guided to do so to get a glimpse of what true creation is like? Faced with this collective "human identity crisis", different personalities clash in a drama of conspiracy. In a way, this novel can be read as a stereotypical government conspiracy thriller. I personally find stereotypes ranging from funny to fascinating. They tell so much both about the type formers and the type models. Forming stereotypes seems to be an essential step in our learning process, although it shouldn't be the ultimate one. Therefore, as I read the book, I tried to put myself in the shoes of all the different characters, how am I most likely going to feel and act? and I found out that I have formed a similar conspiracy. Maybe the author's suggestion is too strong. The ending is optimistic either unpredictablly or predictablly, depending upon whether you follow the cue of the story or of the author. Not having a strong interest in Sci-fi, I enjoyed this book more as a human-sentience drama. A tight plot rendered in crisp language enabled me to finish the book in one shot, sending my thoughts reeling. Three characters are particularly well developed, while others seem a little thin (or stereotypical :-)) Maybe they serve not to divert reader's attention from the main theme. I would not be surprised when a trilogy comes out of Dr. Rockwood's quest into the nature of human and sentience. Maybe more characters will grow fuller while new dramas unfold, probing even deeper into, well, us.