AE-35

The first science fiction I ever read was 2001: A Space Odyssey, when I was ten. This morning I just finished re-reading it.

While, unsurprisingly, I got more of the symbolism this time, I'm a bit puzzled by the blurbs describing the story itself as an allegory. But I did just get an idea while reading this article about the AE-35 unit: https://www.shmoop.com/2001-a-space-odyssey/AE-35-unit-symbol.html

It says, "The most human part of the ship, then, is in some sense this little gadget." And this reminds me of something I heard a few years ago at a filk circle. There was a song called "Lab 35," and it was an allegory about the creation of humanity by God. It was explained to me that the title refers to the fact that the Hebrew numerals for 35 also form the word meaning "human." Perhaps the designation Clarke gave this unit wasn't random.

I think the image below was the cover of the copy I read when I was ten, or something very much like it.