Autofac
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

"Autofac" is a 1955
science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
novelette by American writer Philip K. Dick that features one of the earliest treatments of
self-replicating machines A self-replicating machine is a type of autonomous robot that is capable of reproducing itself autonomously using raw materials found in the environment, thus exhibiting self-replication in a way analogous to that found in nature. The concept of ...
(and Dick's second, after his 1953 novelette ''
Second Variety "Second Variety" is a science fiction Novella#Versus novelette, novelette by American writer Philip K. Dick, first published in ''Space Science Fiction'' magazine, in May 1953, with illustrations by Alex Ebel. Set in a world where a war betwee ...
''). It appeared originally in ''
Galaxy Science Fiction ''Galaxy Science Fiction'' was an American digest-size science fiction magazine, published in Boston from 1950 to 1980. It was founded by a French-Italian company, World Editions, which was looking to break into the American market. World Edi ...
'' of November 1955, and was reprinted in several collections, including '' The Variable Man'' published in 1957, and '' Robots, Androids, and Mechanical Oddities'' published in 1984. It was adapted by Travis Beacham for an episode of the 2017 TV series, ''
Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams ''Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams'', or simply ''Electric Dreams'', is a science fiction television anthology series based on the works of 20th-century writer Philip K. Dick. Written by British and American writers, the series consists of te ...
'', with the same name as the short story.


Plot summary

Three men wait outside their settlement for an automated delivery truck. Five years earlier, during the Total Global Conflict, a network of hardened automatic factories ("autofacs") had been set up with cybernetic controls that determine what food and consumer goods to manufacture and deliver. Human input had been lost, and the men planned disruption to try to establish communication and take over control. They destroy the delivery, but the truck radios the autofac and unloads an identical replacement, then prevents them from reloading items. They act out being disgusted with the milk delivery and are given a complaints checklist. In a blank space, they write improvised semantic garble—"the product is thoroughly pizzled". The autofac sends a humanoid data collector that communicates on an oral basis but is not capable of conceptual thought, and they are unable to persuade the network to shut down before it consumes all resources. Their next strategy sets neighbouring autofacs in competition with each other for rare resources and succeeds in creating military conflict between the autofacs. After the autofac conflict seems to be resolved, the men explore the ruins of a destroyed autofac to see if there are any industrial machines that can be salvaged. They locate a hidden level. Inside they find that the factory is self-replicated, and sending out "metal seeds" configured to make miniature autofacs.


Translations

*French: "Le Règne des robots", anonymous, August 1956, in "Galaxie Anticipation" issue 33


Television version

The TV series ''
Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams ''Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams'', or simply ''Electric Dreams'', is a science fiction television anthology series based on the works of 20th-century writer Philip K. Dick. Written by British and American writers, the series consists of te ...
'' includes a one-hour episode based on the story, with considerable differences in the plot and outcome.Autofac (TV)
/ref>


References


External links


Autofac
at the
Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...
* {{Authority control Short stories by Philip K. Dick 1955 short stories Self-replicating machines in fiction Post-apocalyptic short stories Short stories about robots