I'm re-reading Anathem now (my favourite book). Something I noticed on my second reading is Stephenson describes Sammann's physical appearance exactly once in t

I'm re-reading Anathem now (my favourite book). Something I noticed on my second reading is Stephenson describes Sammann's physical appearance exactly once in the book and I must have missed it the first time around. I always pictured the Ita as wearing elaborate robes with hoods darkening their faces due to their secretive nature. But in fact he describes Sammann as looking basically just like Gilfoyle from Silicon Valley, including the way he dresses. Which is amazing given the roots of the Ita (he describes the word as coming from Information Technology and the meaning of the A is lost to time, but it's obvious to a 20th century Earth-born reader it comes from IT Administrator). There are so many delightful details in Anathem, it's well worth a second reading.