As a computing scientist, I love reading about Artificial Intelligence in fiction, whether it is the science behind it, the coding, or the ethical aspects and perceptions of humans. The Mother Code was a fantastic read that made me shed many tears. Going back and forth in time for Part 1 and then unifying the narrative of all the characters in Part 2, The Mother Code is the story about the dire situation in which intelligent robots were created to not only give successful birth to humans but also to keep them safe. It speaks to the struggles of creating such intelligent machines, while at the same time, exposing how much we really trust them. I loved how much thought went into this book and the care with which this delicate future was approached. If COVID-19 was as deadly as the virus in this book, this might be our near future.
Content Notes: Depictions of miscarriage, death, and long term illness.
Themes for Thought
The Mother Code begins with the birth of a child. Kai is born to Rho-Z and her instinct is to keep him safe. From there, we journey back in time, about fifteen years prior, and learn about the failed biological warfare experiment by the United States that caused a widespread epidemic. Bringing together expertise from numerous areas such as military, biology, immunology, programming, robotics, and psychology, a covert operation is launched with the intent to alter the human DNA in a way that humans may become immune to this disease.
However, as lethal as it is, there isn’t enough time to make a cure for everyone and people in charge of this operation decide to execute their last plan: Mothers that will give birth to children who will be immune, a whole new generation that will surely survive. Apart from Kai, we meet some other kids as well. The unique one is Misha, a girl born from one of the Mothers but saved by the humans when her mother bot is damaged beyond repair. There is so much to think about in this book and I want to focus on three main ideas.
On The Mother Code
Can we get machines to think? There are numerous algorithms out there, neural nets being the most prevalent ones used in deep learning, and truth be told, few people understand what they are and what they do. I find books with Artificial Intelligence fascinating because they take away the heavy mathematical side of these technologies and just imagine if we could use them, what would we do with them? It is in times of adversity when we are most creative and The Mother Code adequately represents the leaps and bonds of advances that happen with a looming epidemic.
The Mother Code is the code that represents each of the Mothers. It was created to preserve the essence of the true biological mothers of the children. We are not talking about one AI here – we are talking about a unique AI for each of the Mothers. The author, Carole Stivers, did a commendable job in my mind of explaining the reasoning behind doing that.
The Characteristics of The Mothers
Our family instils values in us, they teach us what is right and wrong, how to approach problems, and how to approach this world. Without my roots, I do not know where I would be. Rose McBride, the scientist who designed The Mother Code, realised this importance of heritage, stories, history, human connection, and bonds. She ensured that the Mothers are based on the true biological mothers of the children that they protect and these values are imparted to the children through the Mothers. For example, it was from his Mother (executed by robot and willed by the biological) that Kamal learned how to meditate.
“Her memories, her people and places she once knew, would be gone. But her beliefs, her way of seeing the world around her, would remain.” – The Mother Code
The Mother’s journey in this book with their child, the disconnection that they faced as well as the bond that existed between them has evolved from not just the original database they had access to but also with being with the kids and learning from them. I loved the representation of how the Mothers protected the children and there were times that they felt disconnected but were trying so hard to come and be in touch again, much like our own teenage years when we are busy figuring ourselves out and our parents can’t always reach us.
On The Choices We Make As Humans
The surviving humans were an integral part of the covert operation and got access to the medication to slow down the effects of the epidemic. They searched tirelessly for the kids. However, the Mothers prevented them from getting close for the longest time. Later, they made decisions without understanding the bond that the Mother and child shared, treating the eleven year old’s as having no say in the destiny of their single parent. This attitude speaks to what happens when we are under stress and operating under fear. Don’t worry, things will turn out okay, and just like the Mothers learn from their children, the humans will learn too.
Conclusion
This is a book I will go back to in the future. The ominous situation that the world was facing, the hard choices that people had to make to ensure that the children survived and were born with immunity formed an interesting narrative. I highly recommend it for readers who love reading about AI, advances in science and motherhood.
This is a standalone novel and I genuinely enjoyed the journey from the start to the end. It wrapped up nicely addressing all main points while shedding light on a future that is yet to come. Will it be in 2049? We will see…
The Mother Code is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore, as of August 25th 2020.
Will you be picking up The Mother Code? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
What it means to be human-and a mother-is put to the test in Carole Stivers’ debut novel set in a world that is more chilling and precarious than ever.
The year is 2049. When a deadly non-viral agent intended for biowarfare spreads out of control, scientists must scramble to ensure the survival of the human race. They turn to their last resort, a plan to place genetically engineered children inside the cocoons of large-scale robots–to be incubated, birthed, and raised by machines. But there is yet one hope of preserving the human order–an intelligence programmed into these machines that renders each unique in its own right–the Mother Code.
Kai is born in America’s desert southwest, his only companion his robot Mother, Rho-Z. Equipped with the knowledge and motivations of a human mother, Rho-Z raises Kai and teaches him how to survive. But as children like Kai come of age, their Mothers transform too–in ways that were never predicted. When government survivors decide that the Mothers must be destroyed, Kai must make a choice. Will he break the bond he shares with Rho-Z? Or will he fight to save the only parent he has ever known?
In a future that could be our own, The Mother Code explores what truly makes us human–and the tenuous nature of the boundaries between us and the machines we create.
