His Master's Voice

By: Stanislaw Lem

Published by MIT Press, 2020-02-18

Scientists must decode a message from intelligent beings in outer space in this classic science fiction tale by the legendary author of Solaris.

“The universe is still struggling to catch up with the vast creative force that was Stanisław Lem.” —Washington Post

By pure chance, scientists detect a signal from space that may be communication from rational beings. How can people of Earth understand this message, knowing nothing about the senders—including whether or not they even exist?
 
Written as the memoir of a mathematician who participates in the government project (code name: His Master’s Voice) attempting to decode what seems to be a message from outer space, this classic novel shows scientists grappling with fundamental questions about the nature of reality, the confines of knowledge, the limitations of the human mind, and the ethics of military-sponsored scientific research.