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One doesn't have to know the world perfectly, in order to know it better. That lesson--first taught by Galileo--dwells at the core of both science and science fiction, according to legendary author David Brin. Dangers and great challenges confront the characters of his stories and award-winning novels such as The Uplift War and The Postman. But even when the odds are steep and disaster looms, there remain possibilities... ...such as when a hero climbs an impossible mountain to confront Fate itself, in "The Loom of Thessaly," or when world powers battle over a Vegas magician's knack for prediction, in "The Tell," or uncovering ancient terrors long-buried under an urban landfill ("Detritus Aff...
David Brin's first Uplift trilogy - SUNDIVER, STARTIDE RISING and THE UPLIFT WAR - stands as one of the most extraordinary science fiction sagas ever written. In 1995, BRIGHTNESS REEF, the first book in a second trilogy, marked a long-awaited return to the Uplift universe, followed by INFINITY'S SHORE. Now, with HEAVEN'S REACH, David Brin concludes his epic tale of passion, imagination and adventure.
“The Uplift books are as compulsive reading as anything ever published in the genre.”—The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction In all the universe, no species has ever reached for the stars without the guidance of a patron—except perhaps mankind. Did some mysterious race begin the uplift of humanity aeons ago? And if so, why did they abandon us? Circling the sun, under the caverns of Mercury, Expedition Sundiver prepares for the most momentous voyage in our history. A journey into the boiling inferno of the sun . . . to seek our destiny in the cosmic order of life. David Brin's Uplift novels are among the most thrilling and extraordinary science fiction ever written. Sundiver, Startide Rising, and The Uplift War—a New York Times bestseller—together make up one of the most beloved sagas of all time. Brin's tales are set in a future universe in which no species can reach sentience without being “uplifted” by a patron race. But the greatest mystery of all remains unsolved. . . . “Superb”—Science Fiction Times
The second book in David Brin's second Uplift trilogy is a magnificent addition to one of science fiction's most ambitious and compelling series. The six races had been living in exile on the planet Jijo for two thousand years before they were discovered by the Five Galaxies. Now they are alone again, but they know it is only a reprieve . . . Fleeing across space following an alien attack on Earth, the spaceship Streaker finds itself stranded near an uninhabited planet. Kaa is sent to the surface to investigate. All seems quiet. He doesn't yet know that the planet is Jijo.
Al Morris is a private investigator. Actually, he's lots of private investigators. For he lives in a world in which every person, every day, can be in any number of places at the same time. It's the world of dittos. It is our world. Welcome to the future. In a business where information is the currency, Al's dittos are loaded. And with a number of cases on the go at once, it is crucial that Al keeps track of what's going on. What he doesn't know is that he is about to be drawn into a plot that could throw this delicately balanced world into chaos. It seems that the technology has been developed for dittos to replicate themselves. It seems that real people may no longer be necessary. And, suddenly, it seems that mankind's dream of immortality could turn into a nightmare. Look out for more information about this book and others at www.orbitbooks.co.uk
The problem of the nature of being was central to ancient and medieval philosophy, and continues to be relevant today. In this collection of thirteen recent essays, Peter van Inwagen applies the techniques of analytical philosophy to a wide variety of problems in ontology and meta-ontology. Topics discussed include the nature of being, the meaning of the existential quantifier, ontological commitment, recent attacks on metaphysics and ontology, the concept of ontological structure, fictional entities, mereological sums, and the ontology of mental states. Van Inwagen adopts a generally 'Quinean' position in meta-ontology, yet reaches ontological conclusions very different from Quine's. The volume includes two previously unpublished essays, one of which is an introductory essay where van Inwagen explains his conception of the relation between the language of 'the ordinary business of life' and that of 'the ontology room'. The volume will be an important collection for students and scholars of metaphysics.
The long-awaited new novel by the award-winning, bestselling author of Startide Rising and The Uplift War--an epic novel set fifty years from tomorrow, a carefully-reasoned, scientifically faithful tale of the fate of our world. "One hell of a novel . . . has what sci-fi readers want these days; intelligence, action, and an epic scale".--Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine. Line drawings.
Long ago, the Founding Mothers left old Earth and the Phylum Worlds, seeking a hidden place to reforge human destiny. Through genetic wizardry, they have altered human sexual patterns. For most of the year, any child born on the planet Stratos is a clone of her mother, identical to all the sisters in her veritable clan. Only in summer are 'vars' conceived - old-fashioned, gene-mixed girls, and even sometimes boys - each one garishly, ignobly unique. Maia, one lonely young var, grows up knowing she must summon all her skill to win a place in this world run by and for high-caste clanswomen, a world far gentler than those of the old Phylum . . . except for those rare seasons of change, when the planet seems to call its people forth to glory. Rich in texture, universal in theme, monumental in scope, GLORY SEASON is a saga of remarkable passion and drama, set in a faraway place and time but shining light upon issues vexing our own confused era.
In New York and Baltimore, police cameras scan public areas twenty-four hours a day. Huge commercial databases track you finances and sell that information to anyone willing to pay. Host sites on the World Wide Web record every page you view, and “smart” toll roads know where you drive. Every day, new technology nibbles at our privacy.Does that make you nervous? David Brin is worried, but not just about privacy. He fears that society will overreact to these technologies by restricting the flow of information, frantically enforcing a reign of secrecy. Such measures, he warns, won't really preserve our privacy. Governments, the wealthy, criminals, and the techno-elite will still find ways ...
On the distant planet of Jijo, six exiled races live side by side. Only ancient relics from their home planets, fragments of half-forgotten stories and the crumbling ruins of the mysterious and god-like Buyur remind the dispossessed of a more noble past, whe they were full citizens of the Five Galaxies. The races of Jijo, it seems, have been forgotten, along with whatever crimes thay committed. But for how long? It is at the time of the Gathering, the council of the sages, when the spacecraft is first spotted. For some, it offers a new hope. For others, it heralds a time of reckoning. Brightness Reef is the compelling story of a world threatened by its past and fighting for its future. With a gallery of extraordinary characters, and awealth of thought provoking ideas, it is a novel fuelled by the spirit of adventure and discovery. David Brin at his very best.