From: Damien Broderick (d.broderick@english.unimelb.edu.au)
Date: Wed Jul 10 2002 - 23:56:00 MDT
Maybe this novel has been discussed here since it was published in 1999,
but I don't recall seeing the thread if so. I mention it not because it's a
wonderful novel (while it's very readable, the thing jumps all over the
place, warms you up on characters A, B and C, then ignores them for 100s of
pp until A returns so changed he might as well be Z, etc) but as a recent
example of an sf `social point mutation' thought-experiment.
It's published as by ARTHUR C. CLARKE and Michael Kube-McDowell. Here's
what I think this means:
arthur c. clarke (1 page note to agent: Suppose a post-Final Theory
experiment gave you a `field' that causes nitrate explosives to burn or go
blooie *at a distance*?)
MICHAEL KUBE-McDOWELL (550 pp of densely researched and written imaginary
near future, c. 2010-2015).
The book's texture actually reminds me much more of, say, that excellent,
solid, humanistic and now alas dead British writer Bob Shaw (you know,
`slow glass') than ACC.
Many people on this list will abhor the world created by this `fast bang'
invention, and even more deplore the presentation of an NRA lookalike
organization and its conniving, wicked leaders. Perhaps fewer will feel
much sympathy for the inevitable crazed `Christian' militia. Never mind,
ignore your gored-oxen of choice and read it as an interesting example of
how to think through many likely and surprising impacts of a radical
technology that upends a major plank of the current world order.
Damien Broderick
[please don't turn this post into an excuse for another tiresome g*ns
thread]
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