Loss of an exceptional mind

Legendary science fiction writer and futuristic prophet to many Arthur Clarke passed away on March 19, 2008.Clarke was 91 years old.

Author of the cult masterpiece 2001: A Space Odyssey Arthur Clarke has passed away at the age of 91 in Sri Lanka. Born on Dec. 16, 1917, Clarke went on to write over 100 novels and stories during his lifetime. His works were treasured by millions of readers around the world. At his 90th birthday celebration, Clarke willed mankind to end the civil war in Sri Lanka, shift to ecologically clean fuel and find evidence of extraterrestrial life.

Much of what Clarke fantasized in fiction became reality. A prime example is the author's 1945 prediction of low-orbiting satellites hovering close to Earth to improve global communication. The geostationary orbit where these satellites travel today is known as Clarke's Orbit.

In 2000, on the threshold of the 21st Century, Clarke spoke with KP correspondent Svetlana Kuzina. Here are a few captivating moments from the interview.

KP: Will clone people exist?

Arthur Clarke: I wouldn't be surprised. I have information about one clone existing already, but I don't know where.

Q: Do you want to be cloned?

A: I have the chance to rise again. NASA is launching a small satellite with hairs taken from renowned individuals. They took 6 of mine [ed. patting his thin head of hair]. Another civilization might find my hairs in 1,000,000 years. Extraterrestrials may extract my DNA and get a wonderful Clarke specimen.

Q: Are we alone in the Universe?

A: At the moment, the most probable location of living organisms is Jupiter's satellite Europe. I still don't know if there was or remains life on Mars although I wrote a book [on the subject].

Q: Is there a God?

A: I have known several Creationists [ed. academics asserting that God created Earth], but I couldn't understand if they were truly mad or just pretending to be. If I were a believer, then Creationism would be blasphemy. Its supporters imagine God to be a Universal liar, who created our entire geological history book only in an effort to confuse mankind. According to their theory, God is a clumsy master of misfortune, constantly changing his creations and throwing out entire species from the evolutionary chain along the way – specifically those that Darwin didn't discover and contemporary biologists haven't been able to find. You would much more revere the Creator who established evolution as the foundation for the entire future at the beginning of time. Even the Vatican – while holding onto its position of the human spirit's divine origin -- said that the theory of biological evolution is more than a hypothesis in 1996.

Q: How do you see the 21st Century?

A: No one can tell the future. I always opposed attempts to label me as a prophet. I prefer to be called an "extrapolater." I try to highlight possible variants of the future, while at the same time pointing out that unexpected discoveries or events can make all prognoses absurd within a matter of several years. I can personally be tested for accuracy only on Dec. 31, 2100. [ed. Clarke outlined the future until the 22nd Century, when he asserts "real history begins." Earlier, though, around the mid-21st Century, nanotechnology will reach the level where all objects -- ranging from technical to edible -- can be put together with separate atoms. As a result, industry and agriculture will become superfluous and disappear.