The theme of technology
The book entirely talks about technology in the futuristic world. The futuristic society heavily depends on technology. For instance, the narrator in the story “Saying Goodbye to Yang” buys a robotic son called Yang to give his daughter company and make her happy. The reader realizes that the people in this society cannot do anything without technology. There are other innovations, such as virtual reality, which people utilize to remember the past. The engineers also work hard to create virtual children who are intelligent and smart. Most parents purchase these intelligent virtual children and integrate them into their families. However, technology makes people lazy, and they want everything to be done by virtual creations. For example, the childless couples in the story "The Children of New World" spend most of their time online purchasing a virtual child instead of engaging in economic activities.
Backward evolution
The theme of backward evolution is dominant in the story “Ice Age," where people realize that the technology they are used to is no longer in place. It is still in the future, but many people have died due to the cold weather. The backward evolution takes place when the few remaining people realize that for them to eat, they must go hunting and gathering. Additionally, people must devise creative ways to keep warm because no heating appliances exist. Consequently, this futuristic society finds itself doing its ancestors' activities for survival. Therefore, the author hints that a time will come when there will be no more innovation, and people will prefer to go back to factory settings and do what their ancestors did to survive.
Manipulation
In the story “A Brief History of the Failed Revolution,” scientists are using technology to manipulate people. For instance, engineers want to control the human mind and soul by intruding into human consciousness using technology. The virtual creations that influence people’s memory illustrate how scientists use technology to control people. Things only start to slow down when there is a societal controversy surrounding the intentions of scientists. Consequently, technology is good, but it can also destroy the people it intends to help.
