Original subtitles

WITHOUT COMPROMISE, PERFORMANCE WITHOUT SACRIFICE. Narrator: WHAT IS REALITY?

DID THE PAST REMEMBER ACTUALLY HAPPEN? CAN YOU EXIST IN TWO REALITIES

AT ONCE? ARE YOU WHO YOU THINK YOU ARE? SCIENCE FICTION AUTHOR PHILLIP

K. DICK SAYS WE'LL ALL BE ASKING SUCH QUESTIONS. JUST ONE OF HIS LATEST.

ALL OF HIS NOVELS COMBINED TOGETHER ACCURATELY PREDICTED THE WORLD THAT WE'RE IN NOW.

TOMORROW BEGINS THE SPARK OF IMAGINATION, A FLASH OF INSIGHT AND INSPIRES TECHNOLOGIES TO

CREATE NEW WORLDS. I'M RIDLEY SCOTT, AND THESE ARE THE "PROPHETS OF SCIENCE

FICTION." I THINK PHILIP K. DICK IS ALMOST LIKE THE CHARLES DICKENS

OF SCIENCE FICTION. IN HIS SHEER DENSITY AND DETAIL, NEARLY ALL OF HIS STUFF COMES

FROM THE REAL PLACE, WHICH IS REALITY, WHAT HE SEES AS CORRUPTION.

AND IT WAS SEWING THAT THE DARK SIDE WAS ROMANTIC. THERE WAS A ROMANTIC ASPECT TO

THAT DARK ELEMENT, THOSE DARK CORNERS. Narrator: INSIDE THAT

DARKNESS, PHILIP K. DICK CREATES 44 NOVELS AND 120 SHORT STORIES IN A CAREER SPANNING 30 YEARS.

HE WRITES HIS SCIENCE FICTION WHEN COMPUTERS ARE EXPERIMENTAL AND TELEPHONES ARE TETHERED BY

WIRES. YET PHILIP K. DICK FORESEES A FUTURE WHERE SCIENCE WILL CHANGE

OUR PERCEPTION OF WHAT IS REAL. IN HIS MOST PARANOID MOMENTS, HE FEARS THE CHANGES HAVE ALREADY

COME. ONE CRISP NOVEMBER DAY, HE FINDS HIS HOUSE RANSACKED.

HIS FIREPROOF SAFE BLOWN APART. HIS FINANCIAL RECORDS AND MANUSCRIPTS DESTROYED.

HIS MIND REELS WITH THE POSSIBILITIES. DID ONE OF HIS BOOKS ABOUT

GOVERNMENT CONSPIRACY GET TOO CLOSE TO THE TRUTH? DID ADDICTS BREAK IN, ACTING ON

SOME DRUG-INDUCED HALLUCINATION? OR IS HE THE ONE HALLUCINATING? HAS SOMEONE FOOLED HIM INTO

THINKING THAT HIS HOUSE WAS BROKEN INTO? OR IS THIS A VISION OF THE

FUTURE THAT HASN'T HAPPENED YET? DICK HAS A LONG HISTORY OF VISIONS ATTRIBUTED TO

SCHIZOPHRENIA, TO DRUGS, TO PARANOIA. NO ONE HAS A DEFINITIVE ANSWER.

WHATEVER THEIR CAUSE, DICK'S DOUBTS ABOUT REALITY ARE THE FUEL FOR DECADES OF MIND-BLOWING

FICTION. I THINK PHILIP DICK IS THE MOST IMPORTANT FIGURE IF SCIENCE

FICTION, EVEN MORE SO PERHAPS THAN H.G. WELLS. PHILIP K. DICK IS AN

EXTREMELY IMPORTANT FIGURE IN SCIENCE FICTION BECAUSE OF THE DARKER VIEW THAT HE TOOK ON THE

EFFECTS OF TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE. Reporter: DICK'S WORK EXPLORES TECHNOLOGY'S IMPACT.

HIS PROTAGONISTS STRUGGLE. THE MOVIE "BLADE RUNNER" IS BASED ON "DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF

ELECTRIC SHEEP?" IT SUGGESTS THAT THESE ANDROIDS MIGHT HAVE

CONSCIOUSNESS, THAT THEY AREN'T JUST COMPUTERS GOING THROUGH RAPID CALCULATIONS BUT THAT THEY

ARE ACTUALLY THINKING BEINGS THAT MIGHT ALSO DREAM, SLEEP. AND SO PUTTING IT IN THE FORM OF

A CHRISTIAN LEADS TO LARGER QUESTION OF THAT BOOK WHICH IS WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE HUMAN?

Narrator: DICK CREATES A PROTAGONIST WHO EMBODIES THE CONFLICT OF COMPETING REALITY.

IN THE FILM "BLADE RUNNER," RICK DECKERT IS A BOUNTY HUNTER, CHASING DOWN ROGUE ANDROIDS OR

REPLICAS PORTRAYED IN THE MOVIE AS EERILY HUMAN. NOT ONLY ARE THEY AS SMART AS

HUMANS, BUT THEY COME EQUIPPED WITH EVEN MEMORIES. I REMEMBER BEING DEEPLY

UNSETTLED BY THAT WORLD, IN PARTICULAR, AND BY THE NOTION THAT NOTHING IS WHAT IT SEEMS.

HE DEPICTS THE ANDROIDS DISTURBINGLY VERY MUCH LIKE OURSELVES.

THEY WANT TO KNOW WHERE THEY CAME FROM. AND THEY RAGE AGAINST THEIR OWN

MORTALITY. IF WE CAN CREATE A ROBOT THAT IS VIRTUALLY INDISTINGUISHABLE

FROM A HUMAN, THEN WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE HUMAN? WHAT HAPPENS IF A ROBOT HAS

EMOTIONS? WHAT DIFFERENTIATES US FROM THE MACHINES?

Narrator: OVER FOUR DECADES LATER, SCIENCE IS ON THE CUSP OF REALIZING DICK'S VISION OF

HUMANIZED ANDROIDS. TO DEVELOP AN ANDROID, YOU NEED MANY KINDS OF TECHNOLOGIES

BROUGHT TOGETHER. WE CALL THIS BIOINSPIRED ENGINEERING.

THIS INVOLVES NUMEROUS DISCIPLINES RANGING FROM MECHANICAL DESIGN TO MATERIAL

SCIENCE, SKIN MATERIAL THAT SIMULATES HUMAN FACIAL FLESH. WE'RE EVOLVED OVER MILLIONS OF

YEARS TO WORK TOGETHER USING OUR FACES. SO WE USE THE COGNITIVE SCIENCE

OF HUMAN FACIAL EXPRESSIONS. TO DEVELOP NEW MATERIALS L LIKE WHAT WE CALL FRUBBER OR FACE

RUBBER. SO FRUBBER IS THIS REALLY NICE SPONGY RUBBER MATERIAL.

IT'S POROUS. AND WHAT THAT MEANS IS IT'S FILLED WITH A SORT OF FLUID THAT

ALLOWS IT TO BE REALLY SOFT AND TAKES VERY LITTLE ENERGY TO MAKE EXPRESSIONS THAT LOOK VERY

NATURAL. IMAGINE HOW SOFT OUR FACES ARE ALONG WITH THE ELASTICITY AND

THE ABILITY TO WRINKLE AND FOLD. WE THEN TAKE OUR FRUBBER MATERIAL AND CONNECT IT TO

MOTORS THAT ARE INSIDE THE HEAD. SO FRUBBER ALLOWS US TO SIMULATE MUCH BETTER FACIAL EXPRESSIONS.

Narrator: THANKS TO DAVID HANSON, THERE IS NOW A DUPLICATE OF PHILIP K. DICK.

THIS IS MY FAVORITE PROJECT. THE ANDROID PORTRAIT OF PHILIP K. DICK.

WE SEE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE PLAY IN NUMEROUS AREAS ON THE ANDROID.

WHEN HE'S MOVING LIKE THIS, HE'S DISPLAYING THE FACIAL EXPRESSIONS SOMETIMES IN

RESPONSE TO WHAT'S BEING SPOKEN. PHILIP K. DICK HAS INFLUENCED ANDROID ROBOTICS IN MORE WAYS

THAN CAN BE COUNTED. GREAT ANDROID DESIGNERS AND DEVELOPERS OF THE WORLD WILL

POINT TO THE MOVIE "BLADE RUNNER" AND THE WORKS OF PHILIP K. DICK AS MOTIVATING FACTORS.

Narrator: BUT WHEN ROBOTS MIRROR THE APPEARANCE OF HUMAN REALITY TOO CLOSELY, WE FIND

OURSELVES REPELLED BY THE REFLECTION. ANDROID DESIGNERS AND COMPUTER

ANIMATORS DESCRIBE THIS PHENOMENON AS THE UNCANNY VALLEY.

THE ONE CANNY VALLEY IS A THEORY POSITIVED BY A JAPANESE RESEARCHER.

IT BASICALLY SUGGESTS THAT THE MORE REALISTIC THAT YOU MAKE A ROBOT, THE MORE APPEALING IT

BECOMES UNTIL IT STARTS BECOMING REALLY REALISTIC. AND THEN IT BECOMES VERY

UNAPPEALING. BUT AT SOME POINT OF REALISM WHERE YOU MAKE IT

INDISTINGUISHABLE FROM A PERSON, THEN IT BECOMES APPEALING AGAIN. ANDROIDS THAT LOOK EXTREMELY

HUMANLIKE MAKE PEOPLE NERVOUS BECAUSE WE WONDER, DO THEY HAVE A SOUL?

ARE THEY GOING TO SHARE OUR VALUES? OR ARE THEY FROM THIS WEIRD

TRIBE OF MACHINE BEINGS THAT ARE INVADING OUR WORLD? Narrator: STRANGE AS IT MAY

SEEM, ONE OF YOUR CHILDREN OR GRANDCHILDREN MIGHT MARRY AN

ANDROID. I BELIEVE THAT WITHIN 20 YOERS, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

WILL ACHIEVE HUMAN-LEVEL CAPABILITIES ACROSS THE BOARD. AT THAT POINT, OUR HARDWARE WILL

BE BACKED UP BY A BRAIN. AND YOU WON'T KNOW THAT THEY'RE ANDROIDS.

Narrator: IN THE MOVIE "BLADE RUNNER," BECKER USES A COMPLEX MACHINE, THE EMPATHY TEST, TO

DETERMINE IF HE'S DEALING WITH A HUMAN OR REPLICANT. THE LACK OF THIS UNIQUELY HUMAN

TRAIT IS USED IN THE MOVIE TO INDICATE AN ANDROID. THE REVELATION COMES AS A SHOCK

TO THE ANDROID ITSELF, HAVING HAD PREINSTALLED MEMORIES OF A WHOLE LIFE THEY NEVER REALLY

LIVED. BUT IF MEMORIES CAN BE FAKED, NO ONE CAN BE SURE OF THEIR OWN

IDENTITY. RICK DECKERD RECALLS PASSING THE TEST.

BUT IS IT POSSIBLE HE, TOO, IS AN ANDROID? ONE OF THE THINGS THAT PHIL

DIG LIKED TO DO IN HIS BOOKS WAS TO HAVE A SENSE THAT REALITY IS NOT WHAT IT SEEMS ON THE

SURFACE. SO IF A BUG WENT INTO YOUR EAR THAT GAVE YOU YOUR PAST AND IT

DIDN'T EVEN EXIST A WEEK BEFORE, THIS IS WHAT HE LIKED TO DO, WHAT I CALL THE REALITY

BREAKDOWN. Narrator: THE THEME OF IMPLANTED MEMORIES IS CLOSE TO

PHILIP K. DICK'S HEART BECAUSE HE SOMETIMES STRUGGLES WITH HIS OWN CONFUSION ABOUT REALITY.

HE ASKS HIMSELF, ARE MEMORIES REAL? Narrator: IN 1928,

DEPRESSION-ERA CHICAGO, TWINS ARE BORN. PHILIP K. DICK AND HIS SISTER,

JANE. JANE IS PHIL'S CONSTANT COMPANION AND BECOMES THE MOST

INFLUENTIAL PERSON IN THE SCIENCE FICTION WRITER'S LIFE. YET HIS TWIN SISTER DIED WITHIN

SIX WEEKS OF HER BIRTH. SO HE GREW UP IN THIS KIND OF LONELY ENVIRONMENT AND HEARD

ABOUT HIS MISSING TWIN SISTER. AND THAT HAD TO HAVE HAD A PROFOUND EFFECT ON HIM.

Narrator: TO YOUNG PHILIP, JANE IS A MISSING PART OF HIMSELF.

IN HIS WORLD, SHE IS REAL. HE HAD A GREAT IMAGINATION. HE'S BEEN TOLD THE STORY.

AND A NATURAL THING FOR SOMEONE TO DO, WHEN THEY ARE TOLD A STORY, IS TO MENTALIZE THAT.

THAT OFTEN COMES WITH IMAGERY. I CAN IMAGINE IT. I WANT TO IMAGINE WHAT MY BABY

SISTER MUST HAVE LOOKED LIKE AND SO ON. Narrator: PHIL DICK SEES HIS

SISTER IN VIVID DETAIL. THERE ARE PSYCHOLOGISTS WHO ATTRIBUTE THESE VISIONS TO

MENTAL ILLNESS OR DRUGS. PHIL KNOWS MOSTLY THAT THE VISIONS AREN'T TOTALLY REAL.

BUT THEY MAKE HIM THINK. WHAT MAKES ME ME? THE SUM TOTAL OF EXPERIENCES.

FUNERALS. WEDDINGS. BIRTHDAYS.

CHILDHOOD FEARS. ALL THE MEMORIES OF A LIFETIME ADD UP TO MAKE A UNIQUE PERSON,

BUT WHAT IF SCIENCE HAD A WAY TO PLANT FALSE RECOLLECTIONS OF A LIFE NEVER LIVED?

WHAT IF AN UNHAPPY CHILDHOOD OR THE LOSS OF A SIBLING COULD BE TURNED INTO HAPPY MEMORIES?

SCIENCE FICTION WRITER PHILIP K. DICK IMAGINED THE NOT-TOO-DISTANT FUTURE IN WHICH

DESIRABLE MEMORIES CAN BE PURCHASED. HIS 1966 NOVELLA, "WE CAN

REMEMBER IT FOR YOU WHOLESALE," DESCRIBES A MARKET FOR UNCONVINCING BUT ARTIFICIAL

EXPERIENCES. IMPLANTS MEMORIES ARE A FORM OF ADVENTURE TRAVEL.

THE BASIC MARS PACKAGE, 899 CREDITS. NOW, THAT'S FOR TWO FULL WEEKS

OF MEMORIES COMPLETE IN EVERY DETAIL. HOW REAL DOES IT SEEM?

AS REAL AS ANY MEMORY IN YOUR HEAD. Narrator: UNABLE TO AFFORD A

TRIP TO MARS, AN ORDINARY MAN SEEKS THE NEXT BEST THING. SURGICALLY IMPLANTED MEMORIES OF

A THRILLING MARS ADVENTURE. WHY GO TO MARS AS A TOURIST WHEN YOU CAN GO AS A FAMOUS

JOCK. SECRET AGENT. HOW MUCH IS THAT?

Narrator: BUT WHAT IF THE MEMORY WAS IMPLANTED WITHOUT YOUR KNOWLEDGE?

HOW CAN YOU KNOW IF YOU ARE THE REAL YOU? IN THE ORIGINAL STORY, IT

DOES IMPLANT MEMORY. WHETHER THAT'S TRUE OR NOT, THAT'S ANOTHER QUESTION.

BUT THE PROTAGONIST FEELS THAT THE MEMORY HAS BEEN IMPLANTED, AND IT MOVES THEM INTO A CERTAIN

DIRECTION. SO THAT'S SOMETHING. GET READY FOR THE BIG

SURPRISE. YOU ARE NOT YOU. YOU'RE ME.

Narrator: IN PHILIP DICK'S VISION OF THE FUTURE, TECHNOLOGY HAS THE ABILITY TO CHANGE OUR

PERCEPTION OF TRUTH. HIS HERO CAN'T BE SURE IF HE'S AN AVERAGE MAN WHO DREAMS OF

SECRET AGENT OR A SECRET AGENT PROGRAMMED TO THINK HE'S NOT. WE TRIED AS HARD AS POSSIBLE

TO DO ONE THING, WHICH WAS HAVE TWO STORIES, PARALLEL STORIES. ONE IS IT'S A DREAM, AND

EVERYTHING HAPPENS BASICALLY BECAUSE THIS THING IS PUT IN HIS HEAD.

THE OTHER ONE, IT'S TRUE. AND WHAT WE TRY TO DO IS HAVE THESE TWO PARALLEL STORIES

CONTINUOUSLY BELIEVABLE TILL THE VERY END. Narrator: PHILIP K. DICK

PROPHECIZES A WORLD. RECENT BREAKTHROUGHS IN NEUROSCIENCE SUGGEST THIS COULD

BE BIOLOGICALLY POSSIBLE. THE IMPORTANT THING TO RECOGNIZE HERE IS THAT THAT

IMAGINED EXPERIENCE IS NOT ALL THAT DIFFERENT FROM A REAL EXPERIENCE.

NEURONS ARE DISCHARGING IN CERTAIN PATTERNS, IN PARTICULAR PARTS OF THE BRAIN GENERATING

BIOCHEMICAL ACTIONS. AND THOSE VERY SAME PROCESSES ARE WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU

ACTUALLY HAVE AN EXPERIENCE. NEUROSCIENTIST STUDIES HOW THE BRAIN CATALOGS MEMORIES.

IN THE BRAIN, IT SEEMS THERE'S A PARTICULAR MOLECULE THAT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR MEMORY

STORAGE ACROSS LONG PERIODS OF TIME. AND IT'S BY INTERFERING WITH

THAT PERPETUAL MACHINERY THAT YOU CAN CREATE, DESTROY, ENHANCE, YOU KNOW, MANIPULATE

THE INFORMATION. Narrator: PHILIP K. DICK IS NOT A SCIENCE WHO UNDERSTANDS

THE BIOMECHANICS OF MEMORY. BUT HE IS ABLE TO IMAGINE THAT TECHNOLOGY MIGHT SOON BE ABLE TO

CHANGE PERCEPTIONS OF THE PAST. PERHAPS HIS MIND TRAVELS THIS ROAD BECAUSE HIS OWN PAST IS A

BLUR OF REAL AND UNREAL. FULL OF EVENTS THAT MIGHT NOT HAVE HAPPENED.

ONE THING IS CERTAIN. PHIL DICK'S INSIGHT INTO THE FLEXIBLE NATURE OF REALITY ARE

PROPHETIC. HE ENVISIONS A DWIS THAT WHO ALLOW PEOPLE TO ENTER AN UTTERLY

CONVINCING BUT ENTIRELY SIMULATED WORLD. THE BOX IS AN EARLY EXAMPLE

OF VIRTUAL REALITY. WHEN PHIL DICK WROTE IT, THERE WAS NO SUCH THING AS

VIRTUAL REALITY, AND THE TERM ITSELF DID NOT EXIST. AND SO FOR PHIL DICK WRITING IN

THE LATE '60s, HE WAS WRITING ABOUT WHAT IF THE TV HAD TAKEN OVER OUR LIVES?

Narrator: DICK'S CONCEPTS MAY HAVE SEEMED OUTLANDISH AT THE TIME, BUT TODAY THEY ARE AS

CLOSE AS YOUR VIDEO SCREEN. WE'RE ALREADY STARTING TO BLUR THE LINE BETWEEN VIRTUAL

REALITY AND REAL REALITY. Narrator: AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-SAN DIEGO, THOMAS

DEFONTAE HAS DESIGNED A ROOM THAT TAKES VIRTUAL REALITY TO THE NEXT LEVEL, THE STAR CAVE.

THE STAR CAVE IS A PLACE THAT SCIENTISTS, MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS, ARTISTS, PEOPLE

FROM MANY DIFFERENT WALKS OF LIFE, COME TO SEE THEIR 3-D IMAGERY AND TO BE INSIDE OF IT.

THE STAR CAVE IS THE TYPE OF ROOM THAT YOU WALK INTO THAT HAS REAR-PROJECTED WALLS SO THAT

EVERY SURFACE IS AN IMAGE. WHEN YOU WALK IN THE STAR CAVE, YOU PUT ON A HAT THAT'S GOT

SILVER BALLS ON IT. THIS ALLOWS THE CAMERAS THAT ARE PUTTING OUT INFRARED LIGHT TO

TRACK WHERE YOU ARE. THEN YOU USE A WAND IN YOUR HAND TO ESSENTIALLY CONTROL THE

DRIVE-AROUND JUST LIKE YOU USE A GAME CONTROLLER. Narrator: THE STAR CAVE IS

MORE THAN A STUNNING VISUAL EXPERIENCE. THERE ARE PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS

AS WELL. WE CAN DISPLAY OBJECTS THAT CAN'T BE SEEN IN REALITY AND

THAT ARE VERY HARD TO IMAGINE. FOR INSTANCE, PROTEIN STRUCTURES, AND VISUALIZING

THOSE THINGS IN VIRTUAL REALITY IS VERY VALUABLE BECAUSE IT CAN GIVE SCIENTISTS A COMPLETELY NEW

UNDERSTANDING THAT THEY CAN'T OTHERWISE GET FROM JUST LOOKING AT IMAGES, FOR INSTANCE.

Narrator: RECENTLY, ENGINEERS OF SAN FRANCISCO'S BAY BRIDGE EMPLOYED THE STAR CAVE TO

EXAMINE THEIR DESIGN IN WAYS THAT WERE UNIMAGINABLE BEFORE. IT ALLOWS THEM TO FIND ERRORS

IN THE MODELS EARLY ON WHICH CAN THEN SAVE THEM MILLIONS OF DOLLARS.

FOR THEM, IT DOESN'T MATTER IT'S THE STAR CAVE. WHAT MATTERS IS THEY GET TO SEE

WHAT ONLY THEIR MINDS CAN SHOW THEM OTHERWISE. IN A FEW YEARS, WE'RE GOING TO

HAVE ENVIRONMENTS THAT ARE MUCH MORE REALISTIC WHERE WE FEEL THE OBJECT THAT WE ACTUALLY TOUCH

AND MAYBE THE TEMPERATURE AND MAYBE THE TEXTURE. AT SOME POINT THE USER WHO USES

THESE SYSTEMS WILL BE UNABLE TO DISTINGUISH THE VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENT AND THE REAL WORLD.

Narrator: COULD VIRTUAL REALITY EVER BECOME TOO YEAR? DICK IMAGINES IT TO FOOL PEOPLE.

HE ALSO SEES THE POTENTIAL THAT VIRTUAL REALITY MIGHT BECOME AN UNHEALTHY ESCAPE FROM DAILY

LIFE. I THINK CERTAINLY DICK SORT OF TOOK THAT UP.

AND THAT'S WHERE WE ARE TODAY. WE ARE COMPLETELY OBSESSED BY CYBER EXPERIENCE.

WE ARE ALREADY SEEING THAT CHILDREN CAN BE DRAWN INTO VIRTUAL REALITY AND MADE

ADDICTS. Narrator: AS TECHNOLOGY CATCHES UP WITH PHILIP K. DICK'S

VISION, IT'S TOUGH TO THINK HOW THE WRITER MIGHT REACT TO OUR PROGRESS.

I THINK PHILIP K. DICK, PART OF HIS LEGACY IS FRANKLY A WARNING THAT IT'S VERY EASY TO

LOSE YOURSELF WHEN THE TECHNOLOGY AROUND YOU IS BECOMING SO UBIQUITOUS AND

THERE'S AN INTERESTING DEBATE THAT GOES ON IN A LOT OF HIS WORK.

WHERE WOULD YOU RATHER BE? WOULD YOU RATHER BE IN THE HERE AND NOW?

OR WOULD YOU RATHER BE IN A POTENTIAL FANTASY OF YOURS? AND IS THE FANTASY SOMETIMES

FRANKLY BETTER THAN KNOWING THE REALITY? Narrator: DICK KNOWS THAT

WHEN TECHNOLOGY INVADES THE MIND, EVEN OUR OWN THOUGHTS ARE NO ESCAPE.

IN THE 21st CENTURY, DICK'S PARANOIA IS TRANSFORMING REALITY.

Narrator: IT'S 1971. PHILIP K. DICK IS 43 YEARS OLD AND LIVING IN NORTHERN

CALIFORNIA. GROUND ZERO FOR THE COUNTERCULTURAL REVOLUTION OF

DRUGS, POLITICS, WAR, SEX AND RELIGION. THE EARLY 1970s WAS A VERY

MUCH A TUMULTUOUS PERIOD. IN AMERICAN LIFE, IT WAS THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION.

THERE WERE PARANOIA OF THE VIETNAM WAR. IT FELT LIKE ANYTHING COULD

HAPPEN. IT INFLUENCED DICK AND YOU COULD KIND OF SAY IT WAS A PHILIP K.

DICK MOMENT IN HISTORY. PHIL OPENED UP HIS HOUSE TO YOUNG PEOPLE, SOME OF WHOM WERE

ACTIVE IN THE DRUG WORLD, OTHERS WHO WERE JUST DISSIDENTS. THINGS WERE FALLING APART FOR

HIM. AND DRUGS WERE BEGINNING TO HAVE THEIR INFLUENCE.

AND THEN SOME PECULIAR EVENTS BEGAN TO MAKE HIM A LITTLE BIT MORE PARANOID THAN HE WAS

BEFORE. Narrator: DICK HAD BEEN WRITING ABOUT MIND-ALTERING

DRUGS, REALITY, POLICE POWER AND CORPORATE COVER-UPS SINCE THE 1950s.

NOW THE WORLD IS CATCHING UP WITH HIM, AND HE SUSPECTS HE IS BEING TARGETED BECAUSE OF WHAT

HE KNOWS. PHILIP DICK CHANNELS HIS PERSONAL FEARS INTO HIS ART.

HE PROJECTS HIS PARANOIA INTO A NEAR FUTURE IN WHICH THE GOVERNMENT USES INVASIVE

TECHNOLOGY TO MONITOR THE POPULATION. MAKING PRIVACY OBSOLETE.

THE RESULT IS 1977'S "A SCANNER DARKLY." IT'S A GREAT PORTRAIT OF LIFE

IN THE EARLY '70s, AT LEAST LIFE THAT PHIL LIVED IN THE EARLY 1970s.

Narrator: SOME OF THE SURVEILLANCE TECHNOLOGY THAT DICK IMAGINES IN THE '70s IS NOW

IN USE. FOR BRAD BARKER, PRESIDENT OF THE HALO CORPORATION

SPECIALIZING IN KIDNAP AND RESCUE AND COUNTERTERRORISM, HI-TECH SURVEILLANCE IS A

NECESSARY REALITY OF MODERN EXISTENCE. MANY COUNTRIES AND EVEN PRIVATE

CORPORATIONS NOW HAVE MAPPING SATELLITES CAPABLE OF AERIAL SURVEILLANCE.

BUT THE MOST POWERFUL SPY SATELLITES ARE BELIEVED TO BE THOSE BELONGING TO U.S.

INTELLIGENCE AGENCIES. TODAY SATELLITE TECHNOLOGIES FROM SPACE CAN ZOOM ALL THE WAY

IN TO READ A NEWSPAPER AD, READ A LICENSE PLATE OFF THE BACK OF A CAR, EVEN DOWN TO MILLIMETERS

OF VISIBILITY. Narrator: LIKE THE UNDERCOVER COPS FROM "A SCANNER DARKLY,"

BARKER'S AGENTS ARE ARMED WITH HIGH-TECH GADGETS. THIS IS AN ARTICULATING FIBER

OPTIC CAMERA. IT ALLOWS US TO POINT INTO AREAS WHERE A CAMERA WOULDN'T NORMALLY

GO. WE USE VARIOUS TYPES OF TELESCOPES, NIGHT VERSION,

THERMAL VISION, HYPER SPECTRAL, MULTISECOND TRAL, SATELLITE IMAGERY.

NOT ONLY DO WE HAVE THE GEAR, BUT WE CAN PUT IT ALOFT IN UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES.

YOU CAN'T SEE IT, YOU CAN'T HEAR IT, BUT WE CAN SEE AND HEAR YOU. WE ARE RIGHT NOW IN THE MIDDLE

OF A TECHNOLOGICAL RENAISSANCE. IF YOU JUST LOOK AT WHAT HAS HAPPENED IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS

ON OUR COMMERCIAL OFF-THE-SHELF CELL PHONES, IMAGINE WHAT IS HAPPENING WITH OUR GOVERNMENT

AGENCIES. Narrator: JUST AS DICK FORESEES IN "A SCANNER DARKLY,"

THE SHEER VOLUME OF SURVEILLANCE DATA BEING COLLECTED IS OVERWHELMING.

TO MAKE SENSE OF IT ALL, BARKER COMES HERE. SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY'S

IMMERSIVE VISUALIZATION CENTER. RIGHT NOW WE'RE IN THE VISUALIZATION LABORATORY.

IT'S A CONVERGENCE OF SURVEILLANCE TECHNOLOGY AND HUMAN INTELLIGENCE THAT'S ALL

BROUGHT HERE INTO THIS COMMAND AND CONTROL CENTER. YOU'D NORMALLY SEE THINGS LIKE

THIS IN THE SITUATION ROOM OR IN THE PENTAGON. THE VIZ LAB IS LABEL TO GLEAN

BITES OF DATA AND TAKES ALL THAT DATA AND DISPLAYS IT IN A GRAPHICAL FORMAT.

NSA, FBI, THEY'RE USING TOOLS JUST LIKE THIS TO COMPLETE THEIR MISSION.

Narrator: WHETHER ALL THIS TECHNOLOGY IS GOOD OR BAD DEPENDS ON YOUR PERSPECTIVE.

PHILIP K. DICK'S PROPHECY IS THAT IT WOULD BE SUFFOCATING. A FORM OF PRISON.

A BARRIER TO FREE EXPRESSION AND DISSENT. WHAT HE DOES NOT FORESEE IS THAT

SO MANY OF US WOULD BE WILLING PARTICIPANTS. CATCH, CHAT, TWITTER, PAPER,

WIRELESS, E-MAIL, VIDEO, VOICE, IT'S ALL SURVEILLANCE DATA. Narrator: YET FEW OF US SEEM

TO CARE THAT OUR COMMUNICATIONS CAN BE MONITORED FOR GOOD OR ILL.

THE PROBLEM IS, TECHNOLOGY IS ADVANCING FASTER THAN THE APTITUDE AND COMPREHENSION OF

THOSE THAT CONSUME IT AND HOW TO DEFEND THEMSELVES WHILE USING IT.

Narrator: WHAT WOULD PHILIP K. DICK THINK OF MODERN SURVEILLANCE CAPABILITIES?

IF DICK WERE ALIVE TODAY, I THINK HE WOULD BE BOTH HORRIFIED AND TO A CERTAIN EXTENT PLEASED

BECAUSE ALL OF THESE THINGS THAT WE SEE HAPPENING IN THE WORLD, HE REALLY SOLIDLY PREDICTED IN

ADVANCE. RAPID TECHNOLOGIES, A SENSE THAT REALITY IS SHIFTING UNDER

OUR FEET. A WORLD THAT IS FAMILIAR TO US. AND HE CAPTURED IT WELL IN

ADVANCE, SO THAT MAKES HIM A PROPHET. Narrator: A DETAILED RECORD

OF YOUR MOVEMENTS, IDEAS, MISTAKES AND OFFHANDED COMMENTS CAN NOW LIVE ON FOREVER

DIGITALLY. ONLINE FOR ALL TO SEE. TECHNOLOGY HAS RENDERED YOUR

PRIVATE PAST AN OPEN BOOK. BUT THE PARANOID SCIENCE FICTION OF PHILIP K. DICK GOES ONE STEP

FURTHER. IN HIS WORLD, NOT EVEN YOUR FUTURE IS SAFE FROM PRYING EYES.

I'M PLACING YOU UNDER ARREST FOR THE FUTURE MURDER OF SARA MARKS TAKING PLACE TODAY, APRIL

22nd, AT 0800 Narrator: IN 1974, PHILIP K. DICK'S LIFE ENTERS A NEW PHASE

SET IN MOTION BY AN OTHERWORLDLY ENCOUNTER. HE MOVED DOWN TO FULLERTON,

QUICKLY GOT MARRIED, HAD A KID. AND IT REALLY REPRESENTED ONE OF THE MOST STABLE AND HAPPIEST

PERIODS OF DICK'S LIFE. Narrator: THEN ONE DAY, THE SCIENCE FICTION WRITER HAS A

VISITOR. THE MOMENT IS BROUGHT TO LIGHT BY FELLOW VETERAN OF '60s

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA, ALTERNATIVE COMIC ARTIST R. CRUM. PHIL DICK HAD A KNOCK AT THE

DOOR. HE ANSWERED IT, AND IT WAS A YOUNG WOMAN WITH A CHRISTIAN

NECKLACE AROUND HER NECK THAT WAS HANDING OUT SOME CHRISTIAN LITERATURE.

AND DURING THEIR CONVERSATION, A PINK BEAM OF LIGHT WENT OFF IN PHIL DICK'S HEAD.

SHE WAS WEARING A GOLDEN FISH AND PROFILE ON HER NECK LASS. THE SUN STRUCK IT, AND IT SHONE.

AND I WAS DAZED BY IT. AFTER THAT HE HAD ABOUT 24 TO 48 HOURS OF HALLUCINATIONS.

IT WASN'T LIKE AN ALTERNATE REALITY. IT WAS WHAT I CALL A

TRANSTEMPORAL CON STANCY, AN ETERNAL TRUTH WHERE EVERYTHING WAS ALWAYS HERE AND WOULD ALWAYS

BE THAT WAY. Narrator: DICK RECEIVED VISIONS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.

THE PINK BEAM OF LIGHT HE THINKS IS INTELLIGENCE. IT BRINGS HIM KNOWLEDGE,

SAVES HIS SON'S LIFE. PHIL TOLD ME HE WAS SITTING THERE IN HIS APARTMENT LISTENING

TO "STRAWBERRY FIELDS FOREVER" BY THE BEATLES. HIS WIFE, TESS, IS CARING FOR

THEIR INFANT SON. ALL OF A SUDDEN HE FELT THIS ENORMOUS SOURCE OF LIGHT HITTING

HIM AND THIS KNOWLEDGE HIT HIM THAT HE NEEDED TO DO SOMETHING RIGHT AWAY TO RESCUE HIS SON.

HE GOT UP AND HE TOLD HER, WOVE GOT TO GET HIM TO THE HOSPITAL.

HE HAS AHERN YA. I SAID, TESS, HE'S GOT A BIRTH DEFECT, AND IT'S GOING TO

KILL HIM. HE HAS A RIGHT INGENUAL HERNIA THAT'S POPPED THE HYDRO SEAL.

HE TOOK HIM IN, AND THAT WAS INDEED WHAT WAS THE PROBLEM. Narrator: PHILIP DICK

BELIEVES IT GIVES HIM KNOWLEDGE OF THE FUTURE. THE LAST RELIGIOUS VISION HE

HAD SHORTLY BEFORE HE DIED WAS OF A WORLD BEING DESTROYED THROUGH ECOLOGICAL COLLAPSE.

AND THAT, UNFORTUNATELY, MAY BE HIS GREATEST PROPHECY. Narrator: PHILIP K. DICK

EXPLORES THE RAMIFICATIONS OF KNOWING THE FUTURE IN SEVERAL WORKS, INCLUDING HIS 1956 SHORT

STORY "THE MINORITY REPORT." IT DESCRIBES A GROUP OF MUTANTS WHO HELP POLICE SOLVE CRIMES

BEFORE THEY OCCUR. THESE RARE INDIVIDUALS KNOWN AS PRECOGS CAN SEE WHAT IS ABOUT TO

HAPPEN. PRECRIME, IN HIS SHORT STORY, "MINORITY REPORT," THERE'S IN

NOTION THAT YOU CAN BE ARRESTED FOR AND THAT YOU HAVEN'T DONE YET.

IF THE PRECOGS ENVISION THAT YOU ARE ABOUT TO COMMIT A CRIME. Narrator: IF A CLASSIC, A COP

WHO SPECIALIZES IN PRECRIME FINDS HIMSELF ACCUSED OF ONE. THE PRECOGS SEE HIM COMMIT A

FUTURE MURDER OF SOMEONE HE HASN'T EVEN MET YET. THE MOVIE IS DIRECTED BY STEVEN

SPIELBERG. BUT A FEW YEARS EARLIER, THE PROJECT WAS ON THE DESK OF PAUL

BEARHOVAN. THE COMPANY THAT I WAS WORKING FOR OPTIONS "MINORITY

REPORT," AND WE WERE SUPPOSED TO DO THAT AS A SEQUEL. THE FIRST ONE WAS ABOUT, IS IT A

DREAM OR IS IT REALITY? THE SECOND ONE WAS IS OUR FATE PREDESTINED, OR CAN WE CHANGE

THE FUTURE WHENEVER WE WANT? YOU CAN CHOOSE. Narrator: TODAY

GROUNDBREAKING CRIME PREVENTION TECHNOLOGY BRINGS US EVER CLOSER TO THE WORLD OF THE MINORITY

REPORT. THERE ARE NOW TECHNOLOGIES THAT CAN HELP PROTECT CRIMES IN

SPECIFIC AREAS. THEY HAVE TO DO WITH STATISTICS OF ANALYZING WHERE CRIMES TOOK

PLACE BEFORE, AND THEN YOU CAN PREDICT WHERE THEY'RE LIKELY TO TAKE PLACE IN THE FUTURE.

Narrator: POLICE IN MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE, UTILIZE CUTTING-EDGE, ANALYTIC SOFTWARE DESIGNED TO

PREDICT AND STOP CRIME BEFORE IT HAPPENS. THIS PRECRIME TECHNOLOGY DOESN'T

USE CLAIRVOYANT USES. IT RELIES ON STATISTICAL DATA TO CREATE A MAP OF FUTURE CRIMINAL

ACTIVITY. OFFICERS IN MEMPHIS CREDIT IT WITH A 31% DROP IN SERIOUS

CRIME. PREVENTING CRIME IS A GOOD THING.

BUT PHILIP K. DICK COULD ALWAYS SEE THE DARK SIDE. T POTENTIAL FOR ANY SCIENCE TO

BE TAKEN TO EXTREMES. PRECOGNITION WAS PART OF HIS NOTION THAT IF THE POLICE COULD

KNOW AHEAD OF TIME THE THINGS THEY WERE GOING TO DO WRONG, THEN THEY COULD ARREST YOU

BEFORE YOU DID THE CRIME. SO FOR HIM THIS WAS KIND OF A NIGHTMARE.

PRECOGNITION IS GOING TO BE HAPPENING TECHNOLOGICALLY. AND THE QUESTION IS, HOW WILL WE

STAY FREE? WHEN THE CAMERAS ARE EVERYWHERE AND THE POLICE WILL BE ABLE TO

ZOOM IN ON A CRIME, IN EFFECT, BEFORE IT'S HAPPENED. Narrator: IN "MINORITY

REPORT," POLICE CHANGE FATE BY PREVENTING WHAT IS DESTINED TO OCCUR.

EACH TIME A CRIME IS PREVENTED, AN ULTIMATE REALITY EMERGES. A VERSION OF THE WORLD IN WHICH

THE CRIME NEVER HAPPENED. FOR DICK, THE REALITY IS JUST ONE OF HIS LAYERS.

HE PLAYS AROUND WITH IT AND UNDERMINES IT AND AND BEHAVIOR. IT'S THE OTHER WORLD, THE OTHER

POSSIBILITIES OF THE WORLD THAT THERE ARE OTHER UNIVERSES THAT MIGHT BE THERE, BASICALLY ARE

DIFFERENT THAN THE ONE WE NORMALLY HAVE. Narrator: PHILIP K. DICK

EXPLORES THE CONCEPTS OF ALTERNATE FUTURES AND PASTS IN SEVERAL WORKS OF SCIENCE

FICTION. HE DEPICTS THE HORROR OF TECHNOLOGY BREAKING OUR GRIP ON

TIME. BUT THERE'S ALSO A DESPERATE HOPE IN THIS CONCEPT OF OTHER

WORLDS. PERHAPS SCIENCE CAN TAKE HIM TO A PLACE WHERE HIS TWIN SISTER

NEVER DIED. Narrator: SCIENCE FICTION AUTHOR PHILIP K. DICK WRITES

ABOUT THE FUTURE, BUT HE IS HAUNTED BY THE PAST. HE IMAGINES THE TWIN SISTER WHO

DIED WHEN THEY WERE BOTH INFANTS. AS AN ADULT, ALIVE AND HEALTHY

IN A MIRROR WORLD WHERE LIFE UNFOLDED DIFFERENTLY. LIFE HASN'T TURNED OUT HOW HE

WISHED. IN HIS MID-30s AFTER WRITING TEN NOVELS AND DOZENS OF SHORT

STORIES, HE BEGINS TO QUESTION THE CHOICES HE'S MADE. SO HE GAVE UP WRITING.

HE WORKED IN HIS WOIF'S JEWELRY BUSINESS, HELPING SET UP ANDICK JEWELRY WHICH IS REALLY NICE

HANDSMADE JEWELRY. Narrator: THE JEWELRY BUSINESS IS REALLY MORE

LUCRATIVE THAN HIS WRITING, BUT HIS OVERACTIVE MIND WON'T BE STOPPED.

HE THINKS ABOUT TWISTS OF FATE THAT CAN SET HISTORY ON A NEW COURSE.

AND A NEW IDEA STARTS BREWING. AN AMBITIOUS, COMPLICATED NOVEL OF INTERWOVEN PLOTS AND MULTIPLE

TIME LINES. HE WAS SUDDENLY POSSESSED BY THE STORY OF THE MAN IN THE HIGH

CASTLE. Narrator: IN THIS BOOK, REAL HISTORY MIXES WITH ALTERNATE

VERSIONS OF TODAY. A PARALLEL UNIVERSE. IN "THE MAN IN THE HIGH

CASTLE," FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT IS ASSASSINATED DURING THE DEPRESSION.

AMERICA IS LEFT HELPLESS WHEN WORLD WAR II BEGINS, AND THE NAZIS AND THE JAPANESE IMPERIAL

ARMY SLICE AMERICA RIGHT IN HALF. IT'S AN ALL EASTERN TIF

HISTORY WHERE YOU GO BACK IN THE PAST AND POSTULATE SOMETHING DIFFERENTLY HAPPENED.

Narrator: IN 1963, "THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE" EARNS HIM ONE OF THE HIGHEST HONORS IN

SCIENCE FICTION. THE BOOK IS ABOUT HOW CHANCE HELPED DETERMINE TO TRY TO

ANSWER THE PLOT. RATHER THAN ROLL TWICE, HE CONSULTS AN ANCIENT CHINESE

METHOD OF DEFINING THE FUTURE. DICK POSES A QUESTION, THEN TOSSES THREE BRAD COINS IN THE

AIR SIX TIMES. HE USES NUMBERS ON THE COIN TO CREATE 1 OF 164 POSSIBILITIES.

HE LOOKS IT UP IN THE BOOK. THEN HE WAS PLOT HIS NOVELS USING IT.

IF HE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED NEXT, HE WOULD STOP, THROW THE COINS AND CONSIDER AND TELL

PEOPLE THAT HE'D TELL THEM WHAT TO DO. Narrator: IN EACH ALTERNATE

PATH LIES AN ALTERNATE REALITY. IN THE BOOK IS A REALLY COOL THING.

WHICH IS INSIDE THAT WORLD, IN WHICH THE ALLIES WON WORLD WAR II.

SO IT'S AN ALTERNATIVE HISTORY WITHIN AN ALTERNATIVE HISTORY. Narrator: PARALLEL UNIVERSITY

IS A QUINTESSENTIAL CONCEPT. 20 YEARS AGO IF YOU WERE TO ASK A SCIENTIST ABOUT THIS, THEY

WOULD SAY PREPOSTEROUS. Narrator: HIS VISIONS OF PARALLEL UNIVERSE HAVE BECOME

MORE ACCEPTING. NOW TAKE POSSIBILITY THAT PERHAPS THERE ARE PARALLEL.

IN THE SUBATOMIC REALM, WE DEAL WITH EERSZS ALL THE TIME. THEY CAN DISAPPEAR.

THEY CAN BE TWO PLACES AT THE SAME TIME. THAT'S WHY WE HAVE LASER BEAM.

ELECTRONS CAN DANCE BETWEEN PARALLEL UNIVERSES. AND IF ELECTRONS CAN DO IT, WHY

CAN'T WEE? ERNESTO STRENGTH THEORY OR "N" BECAUSE IT POSITIVES THE

EXISTENCE OF PARALLEL DIMENSIONS, Narrator: ALTHOUGH WE CAN'T

OBSERVE OR DIRECT, PARTERS OF AN ATOM MIGHT PASS BETWEEN THEM. BUT THE NEW WRINKLE IN ALL THIS

IS THAT WE BELIEVE THERE ARE OTHER BUBBLES OUT THERE, A MULTIVERSE OF PARALLEL UNIVERSE.

Narrator: EVEN THOUGH PHIL DICK KNOWS VERY LITTLE ABOUT STRING THEORY.

WE MIGHT NOW CALL HIM A PROPHET, BUT IN HIS LIFETIME, HE IS A POOR AUTHOR ON THE FRINGES OF A

GENRE THAT GETS LITTLE RESPECT. THEN SOMETHING FICTION. SCIENCE FICTION GOES MAINSTREAM,

AND HOLLYWOOD Narrator: IN 1980, PHILIP K. DICK ENTERS A NEW UNIVERSE.

ONE OF HIS NOVELS WAS BEING ADAPTED INTO A MOVIE, "BLADE RUNNER."

OUR FIRST MEETING WAS, I THINK, TEMPERED WITH A LITTLE BIT OF IRRITATION FROM HIM.

I DON'T THINK HE WAS NECESSARILY ALTOGETHER HAPPY WITH THE ADAPTATION BECAUSE PHILIP DICK'S

WORK IS ALWAYS SO DENSE. AND SCREENPLAYS TEND TO BE LESS DENSE.

SO HE MAY HAVE THOUGHT WHAT HE WAS ABOUT TO SEE WAS THIS HIS DREAM?

BUT THEN HE SAW PARTS OF THE FILM, HE WAS ACTUALLY STUNNED THAT COULD BE PUT ON FILM AND

LOOK SO REALISTIC. THE VISION OF WHAT HE SAW I THINK IT WAS LARGER THAN HE

EXPECTED. AND SO THAT WAS A GOOD MEETING. Narrator: JUST MONTHS LATER

AT AGE 53, PHILIP K. IN 1982, PHIL IS BURIED NEXT TO HIS TWIN SISTER, JANE.

HIS LIFE WAS DEFINITELY CUT SHORT. IF PHIL WOULD HAVE LIVED TO A

NORMAL SPAN, HE WOULD HAVE SEEN MOVIES BASED ON HIS WORK, MILLIONS OF DOLLARS.

FOR DICK'S WORK HAD BEEN CELEBRATED ONLY BY THE COUNTERCULTURE.

I THINK PHILIP DICK, IF HE WERE ALIVE TODAY, WOULD BE VERY PLEASED AT THE WAY HE'S WORK HAS

BEEN TAKEN OFF IN. LAR CULTURE. NOW AN AMBASSADOR TO THE ENTIRE

PLANET. Narrator: HE ONCE STRUGGLED ON THE FRINGES.

BUT NOW PHIL I K. DICKEY. I WOULD DEFINE THAT AS SURREAL SCIENCE FICTION.

DEEPLY FUNNY. AT THAT POEMT WHEN ALL OF THE

KREE. THEY'RE TRYING TO MAKE SENSE OF THE WORLD AND IT MAKES NO

SENSE. THE WORLD KIND OF FEELS LIKE

THAT MOST TIMES. Narrator: PHILIP K. DICK TRANSFORMS PARANOIA,

HALLUCINATIONS, IN AN ENDURING BODY OF SCIENCE FICTION.

HIS WORK INSPIRES GENERATIONS OF ARTISTS AND SCIENTISTS TO QUESTION REALITY.

PHILIP K. DICK HAS ALWAYS BEEN AN INSPIRATION AND THE COMMUNITY CAN BE PROUD OF.

PHILIP'S WORK STILL CAPTURES OUR IMAGINATION BECAUSE IN A WAY IT'S NO LONGER IMAGINATION.

IT'S REALITY. HE CHANGED HOW WE THINK ABOUT MODERN TECHNOLOGY.

HE'S REALLY ONE OF THE BEST. HE MANAGED TO BE CONCISE ENOUGH TO GET DOWN ON PAPER IN BETWEEN.

HIS WRITING WAS