Author Medan Brown

Translated by Li Heqing and Li Liantao

People's Literature Publishing House, April 25, 2018

Character introduction

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Robert Langdon

Edmund Kirsch

Winston (artificial intelligence created by Edmund Kirsch)

Prince Regent

Ambra Vidal (Director of the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao)

Julian (Prince of Spain)

Antonio Valdespino (Bishop)

Rabbi Yehuda Kwesh

Said Fadel

Louis A. Vera (Retired Spanish Navy Admiral)

Diego Garza (Commander of the Spanish Royal Guard)

Monica Martin (Public Relations Coordinator of the Spanish Royal Family)

Joaquín Benilla (Priest of La Sagrada Familia)

Paloma Kirsch (Edmund Kirsch’s mother)

Story Main content:

Robert Langdon received an invitation from his close friend Edmund Kirsch to attend one of his press conferences. He claimed that he had discovered the origin and destiny of mankind. At the press conference, Kirsch was shot dead in public, and a conspiracy involved Langdon and the future crown princess of Spain, Ambra Vidal. With the help of Winston, the artificial intelligence created by Kirsch, they found Kirsch's hidden password and made his unfinished video content public. Kirsch's discovery of the origin and destiny of human beings shocked the world, and the identity of the mastermind who designed the entire murder and promoted the development of the entire thing is even more frightening.

When you open the book, it says on the first page: All artworks, buildings, places, scientific knowledge and religious organizations mentioned in this book are real.

Dan Brown spent four years traveling to write this book. This is the most terrifying thing about a writer.

The stories he created are so mixed with truth and falsehood that it is impossible to tell the difference. Appreciate the plot, it is a wonderful novel; appreciate the background culture, it can be called an encyclopedia.

The Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, the Catholic Church of Parma, the Sagrada Familia, and other buildings mentioned in the book, whether in terms of historical background, design style, or various elements inside the building The detailed descriptions are very picturesque and can give people an immersive feeling. If the author did not conduct a detailed investigation on the spot, he would definitely not be able to write this feeling.

Such creative spirit is indeed admirable.

During the development of the entire storyline, the author spends a lot of time telling two questions that run throughout: Where do we come from? Where are we going? That is, what is the origin and destination of human beings.

Human beings come from the same physical laws that create life in the universe, and are the inevitable result of entropy. Life is just something that the universe creates and reproduces in order to dissipate energy.

I don’t know what “entropy” is, but I strongly agree that life on earth comes from the universe. In my mind, the gods are just various legends and have nothing to do with the origin of human beings.

The destiny of human beings will gradually become the product of the integration of biology and technology.

The steam engine invented by Watt led to the industrial revolution. The power of science and technology and the rise of artificial intelligence will surely lead to a series of changes in human development and progress.

Look at Winston, this high-tech product created by Kirsch has brought us surprises:

He can attend the press conference in the museum and speak to people from different countries at the same time. 318 participants with different identities conducted one-on-one real-time guidance and communication; he could accurately plan Langdon and Anbra's escape route. Boats, planes, and driving cars could all be arranged at designated locations in advance. He knows how to trick a tiger out of the mountain and will pretend to be a museum security officer to trick the royal agents into the exhibition hall on the other side of the museum.

He can learn and evolve on his own. Like humans, he has a "bicameral brain". The two "brains" will have different solutions to the same problem, thereby experiencing conflicts and compromises and improving his learning ability and creativity.

At the end of the story, Langdon discovered that this artificial intelligence, which he had given certain emotions to, had hired killers, planned multiple murders, and reported it to the media at all costs in order to fulfill Kirsch's wish. Publish various inside information to achieve the purpose of attracting more attention to Kirsch's discovery.

In the end, Winston deprogrammed himself as planned. However, there once existed such an intelligence that could almost surpass human beings. In other words, one day in the future, such an intelligence would How daunting it would be that intelligence would become ubiquitous!

Winston Churchill famously said: Success is a person's ability to go from failure to failure without losing passion.

Computers are endless and can fail billions of times without showing any trace of frustration. In order to solve a problem, you can try billions of times again with the same energy as the first time.

Can humans do it?

However, human beings have the power of love and light. We not only share love, but when we need love, our hearts will create love.

Can computers also possess love and the rich emotions that humans have?

Science and technology are great, and human beings armed with science and technology will gain unlimited possibilities.

Although humans are the most noble among all things in the world, by nature, humans are still animals, and human behavior is largely driven by material enjoyment.

There is a plot in the story where a group of young people surfing on the dunes discovered the body of Said Fadel. After confirming the identity of the deceased, they formed a circle, looked at the body silently, and then He took out his cell phone and started snapping pictures, then sent them to his friends. It seems ridiculous, but it's also very sad.

Perhaps the origin and destiny of human beings have nothing to do with the creation theory in religion, but we need faith and moral guidance now more than ever.

Beliefs that are virtuous, correct, virtuous, and keep pace with the times should always exist.

If the fingerprints of faith and morality are lost, the development of science and technology will only accelerate the demise of mankind.

At the end of the video Kirsch posted, the atheist prayed:

I hope our philosophy can keep pace with our technology.

May our compassion keep pace with our strength.

May love, not fear, be the engine of change.

This should be the prayer of each of us.