Ni Kuang’s Science Fiction Prophecies: From the Wisely Series to Today’s Real‑World Science

Ni Kuang’s Science Fiction Prophecies: From the Wisely Series to Today’s Real‑World Science

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Fifty years ago, Mr. Ni Kuang created the first Wisely novel, The Diamond Flower, launching a series that used science fiction as a shell to constantly question the boundaries of humanity and science. His Wisely stories are not only entertainment; they also resonate surprisingly with the trajectory of real‑world scientific progress today.bailushuyuan+2

The Atomic Dimension (1966) and the End of the World: Nuclear War and Climate Crisis

The Atomic Dimension explores the fate of a world threatened by atomic energy and destructive technology. In today’s reality, nuclear proliferation, great‑power rivalry, and climate change have created a “slow‑motion apocalypse,” echoing Ni Kuang’s warning about technological失控 (loss of control). Scientific discussions of the “Anthropocene” are, in effect, a rational projection of “the end of the world”: not a single atomic blast, but the cumulative risk of countless small decisions.wikipedia+1

Pen Friend (1969) and Artificial Intelligence: From Chatbots to Large Language Models

Pen Friend tells the story of a person who forms an emotional bond with a computer, decades before today’s chatbots, virtual assistants, and large language models. Today’s AI systems such as ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude can simulate human conversation, provide companionship, and even offer psychological support, much like the “electronic lover” in Pen Friend. The difference is that AI is no longer science fiction; it is embedded in education, healthcare, and customer service, while also sparking new debates over privacy, ethics, and emotional dependence.bailushuyuan+1

Creation (1971) and DNA Modification: The Age of Gene Editing

Creation centers on genetic engineering and the “creation of life,” foreshadowing later developments in biotechnology. Today’s CRISPR gene‑editing technology can precisely modify the DNA of humans, animals, and plants, treating genetic diseases and improving crops, while also raising ethical debates about “designer babies.” The question Ni Kuang posed in the novel—whether humans have the right to play God—has become a real issue for scientists and society alike.wikipedia+1

The Building (1972) and Parallel Spaces: Quantum Physics and the Multiverse

The Building uses a mysterious skyscraper as a stage for the intersection of different dimensions, touching on parallel worlds and the multiverse. Contemporary quantum physics, including the “many‑worlds interpretation” and string theory, explores similar possibilities: the universe may not be unique, but one of countless branching realities. Although these theories are not yet fully proven, Wisely’s imagination of “another self” and “another world” aligns with cutting‑edge scientific speculation.bailushuyuan+1

Hair (1978) and the Origins of Religion: Myth, Faith, and Neuroscience

Hair investigates the origins of religion and miracles through a mysterious strand of hair, suggesting that faith might stem from supernatural or advanced‑technology forces. Today, neuroscience and psychology seek to explain the physiological basis of religious experience, such as brain activity linked to meditation, prayer, and trance states. At the same time, archaeology and anthropology are reinterpreting the origins of religion as early humans’ way of explaining natural phenomena and social order. Ni Kuang’s question—whether religion is merely a trick of a higher civilization—has become a philosophical issue worth pondering in the context of modern science.wikipedia+1

Reserve (1981) and Organ Replication: Regenerative Medicine and 3D‑Printed Organs

Reserve imagines organ replication and “backup bodies,” anticipating later advances in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering. Today, scientists can grow mini‑organs (organoids) from stem cells and experiment with 3D‑printed hearts, skin, and bones, offering new hope for transplants and regenerative therapies. Yet this also raises ethical concerns: if organs can be mass‑produced, will life become commodified? Ni Kuang’s exploration of “backup bodies” has become a focal point in medical ethics and legal debates.bailushuyuan+1

Other Wisely Themes and Today’s Science

Beyond these titles, other Wisely novels such as Blue Blood Man (extraterrestrial life), The Transparent Light(invisibility), The Golden Ball from Space (cosmic civilizations), and Virus (pandemics and biological weapons) also resonate with today’s space exploration, optical invisibility, searches for alien life, and the COVID‑19 pandemic. Ni Kuang’s science fiction is not pure fantasy; it extrapolates future technologies and social changes from the limited scientific knowledge of his time.wikipedia+1

Conclusion: A Dialogue Between Science Fiction and Science

The Wisely series is called a “prophecy book for science” not because Ni Kuang predicted every technical detail, but because he keenly captured humanity’s fear and curiosity about the unknown and turned it into narrative. When scientists today implement these “science‑fiction” ideas in laboratories, we realize that Ni Kuang’s true contribution is to hold up a mirror, inviting us to rethink humanity, ethics, and the future of civilization in an age of runaway technology.wikipedia+1

The Intellectual Proletariat: From Late Ming Tutors to the AI Era

 

The Intellectual Proletariat: From Late Ming Tutors to the AI Era

In the Late Ming Dynasty, a growing class of scholar-officials found themselves in a state of professional precariousness. Often failing to secure government positions, they turned to "private tutoring" (shushi) as a means of survival. This existence was defined by "finding a post" (miguan), a process reliant on fragile social credit and short-term contracts that rarely exceeded a single year. For these men, teaching was not a realization of their lofty Confucian ideals but a desperate strategy for "supporting one's studies through teaching" (jiduzisheng).

Today’s PhD graduates face a strikingly similar landscape. Much like the late Ming tutors, modern doctoral holders often find themselves in an "academic gig economy," moving between short-term post-doctoral fellowships and adjunct positions with little hope of tenure. The social credit once required to find a post has been replaced by hyper-competitive grant applications and publication metrics, yet the fundamental instability remains.

However, a new set of pressures complicates the modern intellectual's plight. While Ming tutors struggled with an oversupply of scholars, today’s educators face a shrinking demand due to plummeting birthrates in Western nations. With fewer students entering the pipeline, the traditional institutional roles for high-level intellectuals are evaporating. Simultaneously, the rise of Artificial Intelligence and advanced self-learning platforms is challenging the very necessity of a human mentor. Just as the late Ming tutor was forced to "flatter the student and the parent" to secure a post, modern academics find themselves competing not just with each other, but with algorithms that offer personalized, immediate, and infinitely scalable knowledge. The "Way of the Teacher" (shidao), already perceived to be in decline during the Ming, now faces a structural obsolescence in a world where the seeker of knowledge can bypass the master entirely

Modern AI Prompts: The New Age Witchcraft of Our Digital Era

Modern AI Prompts: The New Age Witchcraft of Our Digital Era

In the early 16th century, rural England grappled with ailments, lost possessions, and personal disputes by turning to local witches for remedies—rituals that appeared supernatural and inscrutable to most. As recorded around 1541, these "cunning folk" wielded what seemed like magical powers, inspiring both awe and fear and eventually prompting the enactment of the UK Witchcraft Act to regulate such practices2. Fast forward nearly 500 years, and the enigmatic allure once reserved for witches has found a new vessel in artificial intelligence (AI). The modern practice of crafting prompts to unlock AI's vast capabilities parallels the historic use of spells and incantations, transforming everyday users into digital sorcerers.

Quoting the spirit of Tudor concerns, the early legislators feared the "unascertainable power" of those who seemed to manipulate forces beyond common understanding. Today, asking an AI system for health advice, dispute resolution, or creative tasks produces results that can feel equally otherworldly, despite resting on scientific principles unseen to most2. AI’s magic lies in its complex algorithms trained on vast data, enabling it to generate text, images, and decisions with remarkable fluency and originality. This phenomenon recalls how witches were believed to marshal unseen energies through rituals, while practitioners today "cast" carefully worded prompts, effectively their modern incantations, to channel AI’s power6.

A poignant example is reflected in a contemporary story where a father, doubting his writing ability, witnessed his son’s invocation of ChatGPT, resulting in a flawless letter crafted in moments – an event the father could only describe as "witchcraft"4. This anecdote underscores how AI’s seemingly mystical fluency evokes the wonder once associated with sorcery.

Historically, witches’ magic was entwined with ritualistic language and symbolic gestures to harness invisible forces. Similarly, AI prompts operate as precise linguistic formulas that guide models to perform astonishing tasks — from creating intricate magic tricks using AI-powered illusions1 to generating personalized rituals blending mental well-being with mysticism3. Just as spells required exact wording and timing, AI prompts demand nuance and creativity to unlock the best results.

Experts have noted that AI is not merely a computational marvel but could emulate aspects of witchcraft by analyzing ancient rituals and optimizing their elements through pattern recognition and symbolic interpretation6. This merging of old mysticism and new technology suggests that AI, like witchcraft, traverses the boundary between the tangible and the intangible, inviting both fascination and caution.

As society stands at this crossroads, the lessons from regulating witchcraft—balancing potential benefits against risks of misuse—offer valuable guidance for modern AI governance2. The "spell" of AI prompts captivates and empowers, yet requires ethical stewardship akin to the measures once taken against unchecked sorcery.

The analogy between modern AI prompting and historic witchcraft spells illuminates how humans continue to seek mastery over complex, unseen forces. While the tools have changed—from herbs and chants to code and data—the human quest for knowledge, control, and wonder endures.