A for Andromeda

A for Andromeda by Fred Hoyle and John Elliot

A for Andromeda is the novelization of a BBC series from the early 1960s, set in the 1970s. The original series is mostly gone, but the Internet Archive has a recreation available. Part of the appeal of the book is seeing what they expected of the future. The expectations of truly massive computer that uses punch cards seems so quaint. They also expected a future dominance of industrial cartels as the cold war continued.

The world state, however, is just background for the story of alien communication. There is a message from space. It seems to be communicating a form of mathematical code that continuously repeats. A scientist is able to interpret it as code for building a computer. They manage to get defense military funding to build the computer. (I guess they used their understanding. Theoretically, modern people could have built a small microcomputer.) The computer was better than anything of the day. It also helped them respond to missile threat from the east, making the military brass very eager to continue funding.

Things start getting out of control. The computer had asked questions about the planet and life. Then it gave details for synthesizing a lifeform. After some efforts, humans were able to complete the synthesis and the lifeform survived. Later after gaining more knowledge, the machine gave instructions for synthesizing a human-like being, Andromeda. She could learn quickly and interface directly with the computer. The computer has a plan which seems to involve the colonization of earth. The current population are likely to be in the way. A scientist wants to destroy the computer, but others like the value it provides. 

The computer has planned for various contingencies. It shows it has the ability to kill people that cause problems, while also having the ability to heal. A scientist eventually helps Andromeda discover some sort of emotion and eliminate the computer. Then Andromeda seems to reach her own ending by drowning (though it ends suddenly.)

Though the book focuses on extraterrestrial intelligence, it does seem applicable to modern concerns with artificial intelligence also.