David Brin
The Practice Effect

I couldn't say right offhand if that phrase about the ultimate razor blade having already been invented but never marketed to avoid the industry's collapse is specifically attributed to someone in particular. It is a rather amusing statement that may hide some truths, just as it often represents what are genuine conspiracy theories. In any case, it prompts reflection on our economic system and, in general, on what is referred to as a consumer society. Those considerations like things used to be made to last, whereas today (also due to true revolutions like plastic) everything is made to be replaced, and according to many, even if this leads to lower and more accessible prices, it is still considered a system that is psychologically and ideologically harmful. Not to mention its environmental impact. On the other hand, someone, referring to a thought that I believe can be defined as Keynesian, argues that the more you spend, the more you produce: consequently, there would be more people working and earning, etc., etc. This last consideration contains some truths. It must be said that in any case, one of the limitations of the Western world and Europe, in particular, is having given up production. Saying that there are no investors with money is clearly nonsense, but other types of financial operations, which are unproductive, seem evidently more appealing. Only then to explode with all their contradictions, as in the case of the 2007 crisis.

I definitely digressed with this long introduction, but the most interesting aspect of this 1984 novel by David Brin titled "The Practice Effect" lies precisely in some considerations (that follow) about production and how things are meant to last over time. The protagonist of the story is a physicist named Dennis Nuel. Head of the department of the Sahara Institute of Technology, he is chosen for a particular operation that, through a "gateway," will lead him to an unknown planet whose characteristics are apparently similar to those of planet Earth (the settings, however, are very much like those of a world anchored to a medieval historical phase), except for an alteration in the laws of thermodynamics, where all things that are used, or rather "practiced," instead of deteriorating, improve directly proportionally and evolve into better objects and more advanced technology.

The production systems are therefore completely unknown in this class-divided world where the poor are forced to "practice" for the rich, and where Dennis, due to his knowledge and understanding of the mechanism, will appear to everyone as a sort of wizard. Having arrived on the planet to carry out a scientific mission (a simple repair), he will ultimately become involved in its affairs, immersing himself fully in the context, to the point where even the writer forgets why and how the story began. Balancing between science fiction and the imaginative fairy-tale, yet based on complex scientific principles, "The Practice Effect" is a simple story and written in a fluent manner. In general, however, I do not overly enjoy fairy-tale characterizations, and I admit that this time I even found myself bored finishing the reading, despite greatly appreciating this author. However, it remains the great primary intuition that constitutes the true reason for the novel and is sincerely brilliant, which for this reason makes the work a kind of great modern classic of the genre.