Planiverse was one of my favorite books in my teenage years, and by chance last week I started reading it again. What a coincidence to see the author's name on HN front page today. May he rest in peace, his mind influenced many of us.
I love the concept of the story, that something life-like can emerge from computer software, and the illustrations in the book are wonderful. I also like that the author included a kind of mystical or metaphysical point - similar to Flatland - about our own existence and reaching for what's beyond it.
> is there something like it out there?
Somewhat in the same direction is "Lenia - Biology of Artificial Life".
> We report a new system of artificial life called Lenia (from Latin lenis "smooth"), a two-dimensional cellular automaton with continuous space-time-state and generalized local rule. Computer simulations show that Lenia supports a great diversity of complex autonomous patterns or "lifeforms" bearing resemblance to real-world microscopic organisms.
I love the concept of the story, that something life-like can emerge from computer software, and the illustrations in the book are wonderful. I also like that the author included a kind of mystical or metaphysical point - similar to Flatland - about our own existence and reaching for what's beyond it.
> is there something like it out there?
Somewhat in the same direction is "Lenia - Biology of Artificial Life".
> We report a new system of artificial life called Lenia (from Latin lenis "smooth"), a two-dimensional cellular automaton with continuous space-time-state and generalized local rule. Computer simulations show that Lenia supports a great diversity of complex autonomous patterns or "lifeforms" bearing resemblance to real-world microscopic organisms.
https://arxiv.org/abs/1812.05433