Artificial intelligence is slowly taking over the world. There’s a lot of good that comes with it, but there is a dark side that overshadows the convenience AI brings. Machines are so advanced now that one can’t help but be concerned about what a future with AI looks like.
Krest author, S. Misra, has given us an insight into the possibilities of what that world could look like in his novel Simba Singh and the Tears of India.
Author Bio
S Misra is a science fiction author, futurist and computer scientist. He can be found reading comics, sci-fi and fantasy books, and playing PC games. If you can’t find him there, he’s most likely working on his website, kardashev.fandom.com and mingling with the supportive community of like-minded individuals who have a shared
interest in the future of humanity.
You can find S. Misra on Instagram and Facebook.
About the book:
A sci-fi adventure set in a futuristic world where technology is used to advance the human race. This is an 18-year-old’s adventure against those who would abuse mind-bending technology for their own gain.
Simba is an 18-year-old rebellious orphan living a desperate life with no future. That is until a mysterious benefactor arrives and whisks him off to a world he never imagined could exist.
A futuristic world where others like him will experience the impossible as routine. A world with usable dark energy, smartphone weapons, and a smug quantum supercomputer just for starters. A world where exotic particle science is used to accelerate the evolution of the human race. However, in this world of mind-bending technology and life-altering science, some wish to abuse this power.
Will Simba and his friends escape their tears and embrace the gift of their new world, or will the founders of an enigmatic organisation be thwarted by a sworn enemy?
Q&A:
1. What was the inspiration behind Simba’s character?
Doing research into futurism at https://kardashev.fandom.com inspired me to write about a young Simba and his friends joining an accelerated evolution programme. This is one of the steps mankind can take towards becoming a Type I civilisation.
2. Are there any messages that you hope your readers take away from Simba’s adventures?
What was science fiction not long ago has suddenly become reality. Some of the concepts in this book are already being talked about in the news. ChatGPT is already not too far behind QUARK, our resident sapient supercomputer. The book is about how an organisation attempts to use science to help people overcome their problems and “tears.” The issues of India are similar everywhere in the world. We should all embrace and enjoy science, as it’s used to improve our quality of life.
3. Your depiction of the world that Simba lives in is vivid. What type of world-building processes did you use to create it?
I kept the world-building gradual so Simba discovers the world as the reader does. The mysterious high-tech of TEAR can be overwhelming to both Simba and the reader, so the concepts are explained to them by the directors of the organisation. There is a lot more to TEAR than meets the eye, so I keep the reader guessing.
4. If you could bring a piece of technology used in your book into real life, which would it be and why?
It would be QUARK, the sapient AI. I will explore AI in more detail in the second book, which takes a dystopian turn. There is a lot of concern in the world now about AI being an existential risk, and so if I had control of QUARK in real life, I would make sure he and his successors would be benevolent to mankind. It is the malevolent AI that we have to worry about, and we have to mitigate that risk. The ways to do this are written about in fiction and in real life, and it’s important to make sure that we use the power of AI to benefit mankind going forward.
Where to buy:
Copies of Simba Singh and the Tears of India are available from:
– Amazon
– The Krest House
– Dot Dot Direct
Hard copies can be requested from the following stores:
– Wordsworth Books
– Exclusive Books
– Bargain Books