Why did Wernher von Braun and Norbert Wiener write novels and stories? Based on the fiction of the so-called "father of the American lunar program," and of the founder of cybernetics, this lecture explores the peculiar phenomenon wherein some scientists-- who played a leading role in launching the technical achievements of the 20th century-- engaged in literary avocations. The fact that they wrote at all is as significant as the works themselves. This talk asks about the place that literature plays within the rocketry of von Braun and the cybernetics of Wiener. In what ways does technology rely on fiction? And what does this say about literature?

Philipp Schönthaler is a German author who writes both fiction and non-fiction. He has written on Survival and Storytelling. In his latest books he considers digital technologies and their relationship to literature. „Die Automatisierung des Schreibens & Gegenprogramme der Literatur“ ("The Automation of Writing & Literary Counterprograms") came out in 2022, the novel „Der Weg aller Wellen“ ("The Way of all Waves") in 2019. He lives in Berlin.

Photographer: Julia von Vietinghoff.  Copyright: Matthes & Seitz Berlin.