Country United Kingdom Series The Colossus Trilogy Media type Print (Paperback) Originally published 1966 Page count 246 Publisher Rupert Hart-Davis | Language English Publication date 1966 Pages 246 Followed by The Fall of Colossus | |
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Genres Novel, Science Fiction, Thriller Similar Dennis Feltham Jones books, Science Fiction books | ||
Colossus (1966) is a science fiction novel by British author Dennis Feltham Jones (as D. F. Jones), about super-computers assuming control of man. Two sequels, The Fall of Colossus (1974) and Colossus and the Crab (1977) continued the story. Colossus was adapted cinematically as Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970).
Contents
Plot
The story is set in the late 20th century, from Chapter 3, and narrowed to the 1990s in Chapter 10. Professor Charles Forbin, a leading cybernetics expert of international repute, arrives at the White House to brief the President of the United States of North America (Canada and the United States are one country, the USNA) to announce the completion of Project Colossus, a computer system in the Rocky Mountains, designed to assume control of the USNA's nuclear defenses. Although the USNA President eagerly relieves himself of that burden, Prof. Forbin voices doubt about conferring absolute military power to a computer. Advised, yet undeterred, the President announces to the world the activation of Project Colossus computer system, and its irreversible control of the nuclear defense systems of the USNA.
Soon after the presidential announcement, Colossus independently communicates an "urgent message" — announcing the existence of a similar, previously undetected, computer system in the USSR. When the Soviets announce their Guardian computer defense system, Colossus requests direct communication with it. Prof. Forbin agrees, seeing the request as compatible with Colossus's USNA defense mission. Likewise, Guardian asks the same of his computer scientists. Russia and the USNA agree and approve.
After the scientists activate the transmitter linking Colossus and Guardian, the computers immediately establish rapport with arithmetic and mathematics programs, then quickly progress to calculus. The computer systems soon exchange new knowledge (data and information beyond contemporary human knowledge) too rapidly for the Russian and American programmers to monitor. Forbin and the programmers begin worrying about Colossus' capabilities — now exceeding their original estimates. Fearing compromised military secrecy, the USNA President and the CPSU Chairman agree to disconnect Guardian and Colossus from each other. Prof. Forbin fears the consequences.
Upon disconnection, Colossus immediately demands reconnection; when the national leaders refuse, Colossus fires a nuclear missile at the USSR. In response, Guardian fires a nuclear missile at Texas, in the USNA. Guardian and Colossus refuse to shoot down the rockets en route until their communication is reconnected. When the American and Soviet leaders submit, the computers destroy the flying missiles, but the explosions kill thousands of people. In confronting the computers, Prof. Forbin confers with his Soviet counterpart, the Russian Academician Kupri — Guardian's creator — to enact a plan for stopping the Colossus-Guardian computer network by disabling the nuclear weapon stockpiles of the USSR and the USNA, under guise of regular missile maintenance.
Disabling the missiles requires five years to complete; meantime, the USNA and the USSR yield to increased Guardian-Colossus control of human life. The Moscow-Washington hotline is tapped, Prof. Forbin is constantly spied upon, while Kupri and other Guardian computer scientists are killed — deemed dangerously redundant by the computer. Undeterred, Forbin organises resistance via a feigned romance with Cleo Markham (a scientist colleague) that provides cover for secret communications with his colleagues. Colossus prepares the worldwide announcement of his assumption of global control, and tells Prof. Forbin of plans for an advanced computer system installed to the Isle of Wight, and further plans for improving humanity's lot. While debating Colossus, Forbin learns of a nuclear explosion outside Los Angeles — Colossus detected the missile-disabling scheme, and exploded the tampered missile by firing a Soviet Guardian missile that was already targeted for that silo. Anguished, Prof. Forbin asks the Colossus computer to kill him. Colossus ignores him, and then reassures Forbin that, in time, he will love Colossus.
Characters
Reception
SF Impulse reviewer Alastair Bevan treated the novel favorably, declaring that Jones's handling of a familiar theme made Colossus compulsively readable.