I recently read "Solaris" by Stanislaw Lem and was blown away by some concepts I had only seen in BOTNS. Lem is listed as a correspondant of Wolfe's on the master thread.

Has this been explored somewhere before? I've searched Reddit, and haven't heard this on any podcasts (Alzebo Soup or Re-Reading Wolfe).

Detail for those who are interested: Solaris is about scientists studying a sentient planet. It's unknowable, and at least one character portrays it as potentially a limited god (similar to the many limited god figures in BOTNS). There are ghosts that are created technologically from the memories of a person (aquasters). The name "Roche" appears. Some thematic elements re-occur, like rational, atomic human beings expanding their emotional or spiritual side.