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Polish Radio unveils 'Lem Galaxy' in tribute to great sci-fi author

13.09.2021 10:15
Public broadcaster Polish Radio has launched a special interactive website in honour of the groundbreaking science-fiction writer Stanisław Lem, who was born a century ago.
galaktykalema.pl
galaktykalema.plPR/galaktykalema.pl/

The multimedia portal, galaktykalema.pl, offers an extraordinary, interplanetary journey through Lem's life, work, ideas and concepts, Polish Radio's IAR news agency reported.

"Users can immerse themselves in Lem's biography, discover his literary ploys and appreciate the brilliance of his mind," Krzysztof Kossowski, a senior executive at Polish Radio, said.

"It was Lem who, way back in the 1950s and '60s, predicted the emergence of the internet as well as virtual reality, personal computers, audiobooks, 3D printing, information warfare and many other technological aspects of the contemporary world," Kossowski added.

Polish Radio also led the way in sending Lem into space, specifically a recording of his voice. Broadcast in 1961, the audio clip broke through the atmosphere as a radio wave and has since been powering through the galaxy at the speed of light.

Fittingly, those visiting the Lem Galaxy website will be guided by the great author's own words, from Polish Radio's unique recordings, not aired since their original broadcasts.  

Users can also test their agility, as well as knowledge of all things Lem, by taking part in a special search-engine game, based on the iconic sci-fi writer's much-loved short-story collection, Fables for Robots, the IAR news agency reported.

Designed to bring various generations together, the game attempts to attract new readers to Lem's body of work.   

Not forgetting the sci-fi great's fans outside Poland, the new website includes an English-language version, Lemgalaxy.com, its developers said.

It is the latest in a series of tributes marking Lem's centenary, with a festival, Megabit Bomb, also currently under way in the southern Polish city of Kraków and a mural unveiled in Katowice, southern Poland, on Sunday, state news agency PAP reported.

Lem, who was hailed by many as a visionary, was one of Poland's most famous authors. His works have been translated into dozens of languages

His books, revolving around the future of planet Earth and the human species, were often turned into films. The George Clooney-starring Solaris (2002), for example, is based on Lem's 1961 novel of the same title.

Lem's oeuvre, which also features short stories and philosophical essays, contains acclaimed works such as Return from the Stars, Tales of Pirx the Pilot, The Cyberiad and The Chain of Chance.

Lem died in 2006 at the age of 85.

(pm/gs)

Source: IAR, PAP, galaktykalema.pl