Blind Lake

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Posted by timothy on Friday September 12, 2003 @04:20AM from the visualaqua dept.

Tom Alaerts writes "I discovered Robert Charles Wilson because of the curiosity-inducing Slashdot review of his previous novel, The Chronoliths. I had read a lot of SF in the past but over the last 10 years I drifted away from the genre. The Chronoliths sparked my interest again, and this was largely because Wilson, next to an interesting story, gives a lot of attention to the character development. I really liked the deliberate pacing of the book (I can understand that some might find it slow), following the characters through a carefully constructed story. It made me curious about his other works such as Darwinia or the short story collection The Perseids. And now Wilson's new novel Blind Lake is available." Read on for his review. Blind Lake author Robert Charles Wilson pages 399 publisher Tor rating 8/10 reviewer Tom Alaerts ISBN 0765302624 summary A book about alien contact and the difficulty of interpretation

Blind Lake takes place in a close future and deals with alien contact and the difficulty of interpreting alien behavior. If you don't want to read further (but I will not include real spoilers, only the setting of the book), I can already summarize as follows: if you liked The Chronoliths or Darwinia, then you will like Blind Lake.

In the book, Blind Lake is one of two locations with an ultra-advanced telescope. This device doesn't work optically, and in fact nobody really understands exactly how it works (there is some amusing technobabble in the book about infinite complexity, adaptive self-programming and the like -- you know the drill), since it was invented accidentally. Anyway the result is that with this telescope, scientists can examine the surface of very far planets in great detail, they can even track an intelligent alien being through its daily life. The book follows Marguerite, a team leader at Blind Lake, her ex-husband, her young daughter (who suffers from a mild personality disorder), and a team of journalists. Marguerite leads a team of "interpreters," which leads to plenty of interesting discussions on how difficult this work is -- it is almost impossible to write the life story of the alien, since we tend to map what we observe to our own habits. Is the alien admiring the view or is he enjoying the air pressure? Etc, etc. Already from the very start of the story, Wilson injects a thriller element: Blind Lake goes into quarantine, with robot drones guarding the perimeter. Nobody knows why. Did something happen with the other telescope? Why are all data streams blocked?

Blind Lake is written with the same attention to detail as The Chronoliths, and the characters are equally well developed. There isn't much adventurous action in the book; it is built rather like a mystery novel with thriller elements, interjected with several interesting ideas. The pacing is similar to that of The Chronoliths. Wilson takes time to flesh out his characters and various background details. I like this thoughtful approach. Towards the end, various new ideas are introduced which are bigger in scope than the original storyline.

While I liked the almost metaphysical (even somewhat new age) concepts introduced in the later chapters, I actually preferred the original storyline (I had the same feeling with Darwinia, which evolves from an alternative history novel into a totally different story). Still, this is only a minor issue and most SF readers will experience a great deal of satisfaction with this book.

I would score Blind Lake 8/10. As a comparison with other Wilson books: I think it's as good as The Chronoliths, while I would rate Darwinia as a 7/10.

Interesting links

Author's homepage
Interesting reviews of Wilson's books
The Blind Lake page at Barnes&Noble has interesting other comments (maybe even already a bit too much info if you haven't read the book yet).

You can purchase Blind Lake from bn.com. Slashdot welcomes readers' book reviews -- to see your own review here, read the book review guidelines, then visit the submission page.

121 comments

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deliberate pacing? by stdcallsign · 2003-09-12 04:25 · Score: 2, Funny

I really liked the deliberate pacing of the book (I can understand that some might find it slow), following the characters through a carefully constructed story. Slow? It makes Ayn Rand novels look like a choose your own adventure.
1. Re:deliberate pacing? by stdcallsign · 2003-09-12 04:29 · Score: 2, Funny
  
  Jesus, how the hell can you comment on literary content with a message that looks like that?
  
  This would be better:
  I really liked the deliberate pacing of the book (I can understand that some might find it slow), following the characters through a carefully constructed story.
  
  Slow? It makes Ayn Rand novels look like a choose your own adventure.
2. Re:deliberate pacing? by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 04:29 · Score: 0
  
  what a poorly formatted post! go back to the drawing board.
  you might want to google for 'html for asshats'
3. Re:deliberate pacing? by tamen · 2003-09-12 08:30 · Score: 1
  
  "html for asshats"
  
  'Nuff said.
4. Re:deliberate pacing? by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 12:56 · Score: 0
  
  I didn't say to use quotes around it you dumb fucking nigger! You stupid fucking coon - go pick some cotton.
  FAGGOT
  Man, some fucking losers have too much time. Let me guess what you're going to do tonight - watch something on SciFi, play Starcraft, and NOT TOUCH A WOMAN. Congrats, you're a fucking loser!
5. Re:deliberate pacing? by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 13:00 · Score: 0
  
  I noticed that you had some pictures at www.cloudhouse.dk
  Did you know that you're a fat fuck? Try eating less.
6. Re:deliberate pacing? by tamen · 2003-09-12 17:36 · Score: 1
  
  Sorru about the quotes, is there anything more useful in this search: html for asshats?
Voyeurism by sssmashy · 2003-09-12 04:26 · Score: 1

Anyway the result is that with this telescope, scientists can examine the surface of very far planets in great detail, they can even track an intelligent alien being through its daily life.

Sounds like the ultimate unreality show.
1. Re:Voyeurism by Danse · 2003-09-12 08:43 · Score: 1
  
  Sounds like a Southpark episode...
  
  --
  It's not enough to bash in heads, you've got to bash in minds. - Captain Hammer
I have always wondered... by watzinaneihm · 2003-09-12 04:27 · Score: 4, Interesting

Light emanating from earth really does'nt die out, right? So if it was possible for us to either travel faster than light or warp space time into a circle and then get a powerful enough telescope, then we should be able to see events from the past, right?

That is travel faster than light, to a long distance, turn around and then look at earth with a powerful telescope, we should be able to see kennedy getting shot? wouldnt we? Or maybe bend spacetime so that all the light which left earth years ago comes back to earth ?

--
.ACMD setaloiv siht gnidaeR
1. Re:I have always wondered... by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 04:31 · Score: 0
  
  Every time you look at the stars, you see events from the past.
2. Re:I have always wondered... by Rinikusu · 2003-09-12 04:32 · Score: 1
  
  I think that was a major "plot device" in Battlefield Earth (the book) to determine the actual fate of the Psyclos...
  
  --
  If you were me, you'd be good lookin'. - six string samurai
3. Re:I have always wondered... by SQL+Error · 2003-09-12 04:49 · Score: 1
  
  If it wasn't for those pesky laws of physics.
  
  You'd need a telescope with a mirror several light-years across the see the Kennedy assassination now. (Even if you could travel faster than light, which you can't.) Constructing such a thing is problematic, to say the least.
4. Re:I have always wondered... by stratjakt · 2003-09-12 04:49 · Score: 1
  
  Light emanating from earth really does'nt die out, right?
  
  Sure it does, if you assume the universe is infinate, eventually it's going to be blocked by a planet or moon or asteroid or nebula or sucked into a black hole or some kind of magical space jibber jabber.
  
  Space is only mostly empty.
  
  --
  I don't need no instructions to know how to rock!!!!
5. Re:I have always wondered... by Syberghost · 2003-09-12 04:59 · Score: 1
  
  Sure it does, if you assume the universe is infinate, eventually it's going to be blocked by a planet or moon or asteroid or nebula or sucked into a black hole or some kind of magical space jibber jabber.
  
  Why would you assume it's infinite, though? Most of the scientific community at this point agrees it's finite but unbounded, don't they?
  
  The advantage of that theory is that it gives me an equally valid claim on the being the center of the universe as anyplace else.
6. Re:I have always wondered... by jpnews · 2003-09-12 05:00 · Score: 1
  
  It's a nice thought experiment, to be sure. One, in fact, that I've used many times to assist in teaching rudimentary physics to children and, for instance, my wife.
7. Re:I have always wondered... by aborchers · 2003-09-12 05:03 · Score: 2, Interesting
  
  You'd need a telescope with a mirror several light-years across the see the Kennedy assassination now.
  
  Given that the poster already is postulating travel at v > c, is it not unreasonable to also assume a telescope based on a design other than our lens- or mirror-based technology? For example, he/she might use some sort of gravitational lensing technology to focus the collected light.
  
  Also, c as a cosmological speed limit has come into a share of contraversy from what I've been reading lately. Granted, we're a long way from "travelling" at v > c, but there have been experiments that appear to accelerate light past c. (I don't know what their review status is, but such work has been published.)
  
  --
  Trouble making decisions? Just flip for it.
8. Re:I have always wondered... by mforbes · 2003-09-12 05:17 · Score: 2, Informative
  
  This is true, but remember, there's always that nasty square/cube law. Thus, for your example, Kennedy's assassination occurred in 2003. That's 50 years ago, so you'd have a bubble 50 lightyears in radius from which you could see the event. Remember, that's fifty lightyears and no less (barring such events such as light circling around a black hole, much like water around a sink's drain, before escaping to continue on)-- you can only see the assassination if you're 50 light years out. Or 51 next year, 52 the year beyond, etc.
  Now, from any point on the surface of this 100-lightyear-diamater sphere, how many individual photons from the original event will be visible?
  Without even bothering to do a back-of-the-napkin calculation, I think we can assume it's so few that the event itself is simply not witnessable at that distance.
  Data about the event, however, if properly encoded and broadcast at the right frequencies with enough power (i.e., more photons), would still be decodable.
  
  Sorry if this is really simplistic, perhaps someone who actually majored in physics can explain it better (it's just a hobby for me, and I read far too much Scientific American).
  
  --
  Allegedly real newspaper headline from 1998:
  Man Struck by Lightning Faces Battery Charge
9. Re:I have always wondered... by Grab · 2003-09-12 05:20 · Score: 2, Funny
  
  Magical space jibber jabber?
  
  "I ain't gettin' on no space shuttle, fool!"
  
  Grab.
10. Re:I have always wondered... by jeffasselin · 2003-09-12 05:31 · Score: 1
  
  That is travel faster than light
  
  Ever heard of a scientist named Einstein? He wrote of a very important theory: Relativity.
  And one of the major points of this theory is that the speed of light is an absolute. You cannot go faster. You can't even REACH light-speed if you have any mass, because that would require an infinite amount of energy.
  There are other things that might allow you to get there before the light. A wormhole, being a "hole" in space-time joins two places so they are very close through the hole while they're farther away through normal space-time. But you're NOT going faster than light.
  There have also been theories that the universe is curved, and that the light would come back. But that would take more than 15 billion years...
  
  --
  If he explores all forms and substances Straight homeward to their symbol-essences; He shall not die.
11. Re:I have always wondered... by GoofyBoy · 2003-09-12 05:51 · Score: 1
  
  > He wrote of a very important theory:
  
  Look up what a theory is. Its not a law. Just the best guess based on current observations. It doesn't meant that it its really is impossible to move faster than light, its just what we think now.
  
  --
  The surprise isn't how often we make bad choices; the surprise is how seldom they defeat us.
12. Re:I have always wondered... by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 05:56 · Score: 0
  
  The speed of light has been described as "the universe's speed limit."
  
  This shouldn't be a problem. Have you seen the drivers on the 101 lately?
13. Re:I have always wondered... by stratjakt · 2003-09-12 06:00 · Score: 1
  
  Well, then the light hits the wall at the end of the universe. Either way, a straight line couldn't extend infinitely.
  
  Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn.
  
  --
  I don't need no instructions to know how to rock!!!!
14. Re:I have always wondered... by Syberghost · 2003-09-12 06:08 · Score: 1
  
  No, finite but unbounded. There is no edge; the light goes on forever, but if you could go faster than light, you'd end up where you started eventually.
  
  And, since there is not infinite mass, there may be some paths that never intersect an object. Since the universe is expanding, there are more of them over time, not less.
15. Re:I have always wondered... by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 06:25 · Score: 0
  
  And one of the major points of this theory is that the speed of light is an absolute. You cannot go faster.
  
  WRONG. He postulated that the speed of light is the fastest speed, and based all the rest of his mathematics around that. It is neither the result of his theory, nor a prediction of anything but his own wild mind. The theory of relativity has two core assumptions:
  1. the laws of physics are identical in all inertial frames
  2. the speed of light is identical in all inertial frames, and is the fastest speed.
  
  the result of those two postulations is the whole of relativity: time dilation, space/time reversal, singularities and wormholes, etc.
16. Re:I have always wondered... by daniel_yokomiso · 2003-09-12 06:53 · Score: 1
  
  Hmmm, let me see. First common light doesn't propagate in a straight line, it goes in all directions (module obstacles), so the intensity from a light source decreases with the square of distance. Second a object is visually smaller accoding to the distance, so we can estimate the Earth size from forty light years:
  
  (radius of Earth * 2) / (40 light years) = 3.37090051 x 10-11
  
  This is the arc in the sky from a disc with Earth's diameter from 40 light years. Roughly this is the fraction of the original energy of the light-wave from Kennedy's murder, it's pretty small, enough to the quantum effects wreck havoc (Heisenberg uncertainty principle affects both momentum/position and energy/time). With all these in mind I can say that the chance of us seeing the scenes from JFK shot in the head is smaller than it becoming some sort of creepy rerun of Friends.
  
  --
  Disclaimer: If I disagree with you I'm probably trolling...
17. Re:I have always wondered... by Mogombus · 2003-09-12 07:47 · Score: 2, Funny
  
  Dude... your wife is a child? Don't they have laws against that sort of thing?
18. Re:I have always wondered... by identity0 · 2003-09-12 08:17 · Score: 2, Funny
  
  Thus, for your example, Kennedy's assassination occurred in 2003. That's 50 years ago ...
  
  JESUS CHRIST We've finally done it! A slashdotter from an alternate dimention has managed to cross-post here! Oh wait...
19. Re:I have always wondered... by jeffasselin · 2003-09-12 08:21 · Score: 1
  
  At some point, you need to move beyond the "best guess" and realize that it's valid. There is at this point no theory or observation that doesn't validate relativity.
  Which means we have to assume that it's valid. Just like I know the Sun may not come up tomorrow morning, since my belief is just based on induction, but to actually fear it might not come up, or to argue a point based on that possibility, is just childish and not very contructive. I know relativity might be wrong. I'm just putting that aside and accepting the theory as valid.
  It's the same argument some people have with the theory of evolution, saying "it's just a theory", at some point the evidence is so overwhelming you have to accept it as a real law of nature, accept that it's not just belief but knowledge, and the real work is to nail out the details, and refine it. Although a theory may not be perfect, that does not invalidate it. Just like general relativity was a refinement of Newton's gravitation theory.
  Would you disbelieve that most of the little pinpricks of light in the sky are actually of the same nature as our Sun? I certainly hope not, and yet we've never been so close to them, and we have more direct evidence that relativity is a correct theory than we do about the nature of stars.
  
  If you don't accept relativity as correct, I'd really like to hear your arguments against it. Unless you have some good ones, I'll stick to my knowledge that the speed of light is an absolute maximum within the space-time fabric of our Universe, and build arguments and ideas around that knowledge, rather than trying to build arguments on some superstition or some science-fiction belief.
  
  --
  If he explores all forms and substances Straight homeward to their symbol-essences; He shall not die.
20. Re:I have always wondered... by tamen · 2003-09-12 08:34 · Score: 1
  
  Granted, we're a long way from "travelling" at v > c, but there have been experiments that appear to accelerate light past c.
  
  Sooo... What we've got is light that travels faster than light?
  
  Dont mind me, Im tired and I couldnt help it ;)
21. Re:I have always wondered... by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 08:43 · Score: 0
  
  Yeah and to all the frumpy professors weighing in on how this requires FTL travel or wormholes, both of which are improbable, well, look at those magnificent gravity lenses all across the sky. Some regions of the universe are thereby visible from two angles and time.
  
  Put that bourbon nutcake tobacco in your pipe and smoke it.
22. Re:I have always wondered... by haystor · 2003-09-12 09:15 · Score: 1
  
  First, it would dissipate beyond any possible measure by this point.
  
  If the impact of photons were infinitely divisible then we could just read the disturbances in the waves as they continue to propogate here on earth, no reason to travel anywhere.
  
  Just try figuring out the aperture on a camera located 50 light years away. You'll need a small opening in order to filter out the rest of the universe's light.
  
  Alternately you could put your camera in Utah, which is roughly 40 years behind the rest of the US.
  
  --
  t
23. Re:I have always wondered... by GoofyBoy · 2003-09-12 11:10 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  There is at this point no theory or observation that doesn't validate relativity.
  
  Its a wild and wacky world out there.
  
  rather than trying to build arguments on some superstition or some science-fiction belief.
  
  All scientific theories were once wacky out-there beliefs. Instead of saying "What are you an idiot thinking you can break some well accepted theory! Conform, damn you!", perhaps you should explain why they are wrong.
  
  Everthing is a theory until is proven wrong.
  
  --
  The surprise isn't how often we make bad choices; the surprise is how seldom they defeat us.
24. Re:I have always wondered... by jeffasselin · 2003-09-12 13:03 · Score: 1
  
  Tachyons? Come on, these are a pretty wild conjecture, and the fact that their existence would violate special relativity tells me that they most likely do not exist, instead of believing that special relativity can't be true because tachyons might exist.
  All scientific theories were once wacky out-there beliefs.
  
  To those who didn't understand them, maybe, but to other scientists they're not. There's a difference between "wacky" and "widely disbelieved".
  I'm not saying I'm not ready to believe a different theory, but "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence". Before you posit a theory or suggestion that violates relativity you'd better have thought about it for a LONG time and built a pretty good argument. No, referencing "tachyons" doesn't do it.
  Everthing is a theory until is proven wrong.
  
  That's pretty, but that doesn't stop me from taking relativity as granted for the time being. I'll revise my opinions when and if anything comes, but I strongly suspect it will not redefine relativity, but instead will add to it and enlarge our understanding of it by adding more detail.
  
  --
  If he explores all forms and substances Straight homeward to their symbol-essences; He shall not die.
25. Re:I have always wondered... by mforbes · 2003-09-12 13:24 · Score: 1
  
  lol, "oops"
  
  Let's try 1953
  
  silly proofreaders.
  
  --
  Allegedly real newspaper headline from 1998:
  Man Struck by Lightning Faces Battery Charge
26. Re:I have always wondered... by nhaines · 2003-09-12 18:52 · Score: 1
  
  Or in some dimensions, 1963. :P
27. Re:I have always wondered... by GoofyBoy · 2003-09-13 02:02 · Score: 1
  
  >Tachyons? Come on, these are a pretty wild conjecture,
  
  So therefore we should reject it? "Its too crazy therefore its wrong"? Is that your scientific reasoning?
  
  >and the fact that their existence would violate special relativity tells me that they most likely do not exist, instead of believing that special relativity can't be true because tachyons might exist.
  
  So you accept one theory over another because you favour it? A personnal preference? Are you arbitarily chosing to ignore a theory, just like the orginal poster did.
  
  > Before you posit a theory or suggestion that violates relativity ...
  
  You are the one said that you didn't know of one theory that violated special relativity. I just showed you one and provided you with a link. You can do research on the subject as much as you like and YOU can evaluate the evidence. If you think that tachyons do not exist as the theory states then publish a paper. Lots of people would be interested.
  
  BUT it seems like your whole argument is "Impossible! I reject it because it doesn't fit into the way I personally see the world" and this doesn't seem to be very scientific, does it?
  
  --
  The surprise isn't how often we make bad choices; the surprise is how seldom they defeat us.
28. Re:I have always wondered... by aborchers · 2003-09-13 13:27 · Score: 1
  
  Sooo... What we've got is light that travels faster than light?
  
  Exactly! And that's not the weirdest part. The experiment involved shooting a pulse of light through a gas that accelerated it. The result was that the pulse appeared to exit the gas chamber before it entered it!
  
  --
  Trouble making decisions? Just flip for it.
29. Re:I have always wondered... by tamen · 2003-09-13 17:53 · Score: 1
  
  So all we need is a very long gas chamber and we will start receiving messages from the future?
30. Re:I have always wondered... by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-15 03:12 · Score: 0
  
  not since Eve, anyway...
Slow? by Bendebecker · 2003-09-12 04:29 · Score: 2, Insightful

It's sad that people's attention spans have dropped to the point that just the thought of a book being slow is enough to drive ppl away. I bet if someone a hundred years ago picked up the book, they would say it was lightning fast.

--
There's a growing sense that even if The Future comes,
most of us won't be able to afford it.
-- Lemmy
1. Re:Slow? by Prince_Ali · 2003-09-12 04:53 · Score: 3, Funny
  
  A hundred years ago was roughly the end of the Victorian era, so yes they would think it was lightning fast, but that is only because Victorian novels were the slowest novels ever written, and will probably hold that honor for some time to come.
  
  --
  Slashdotter are stupid and biased.
2. Re:Slow? by Bendebecker · 2003-09-12 05:01 · Score: 1
  
  "Two legs better!"
  Four legs are better than two!
  
  --
  There's a growing sense that even if The Future comes,
  most of us won't be able to afford it.
  -- Lemmy
3. Re:Slow? by gregarican · 2003-09-12 06:19 · Score: 2, Informative
  
  Dear Prince_Ali,
  The Victorian Era did *NOT* product the slowest novels of all time.
  Sincerely,
  Marcel Proust
4. Re:Slow? by daniel_yokomiso · 2003-09-12 06:57 · Score: 1
  
  I guess you'd never read Anne Rice's novels.
  
  --
  Disclaimer: If I disagree with you I'm probably trolling...
5. Re:Slow? by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-13 19:53 · Score: 0
  
  Ah, if I were you I'd look at the novels of the late 18th century. Ie, Pamela, Clarissa, Tom Jones, etc. They make Victorian novels seem lightning quick. It's all relative. Fact is, people have grown more and more interested in entertainment and less and less interested in craft. While I must admit to being put off by the 18th century novel, I do see the popularity of pulp fiction as excessive and shameful.
Re:Why by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 04:32 · Score: 0

Happens on Mozilla, but only sometimes. Other times, it works fine.
Re:Why by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 04:36 · Score: 0

Well, I'm just happy it doesn't only happen to me. I thought it was because I use somewhat large fonts.
Sounds exciting by Timesprout · 2003-09-12 04:36 · Score: 1

NOT! For a much better book on Aliens watching us try Armageddon, the Musical. Guaranteed to raise more than a chuckle.

--
Do not try to read the dupe, thats impossible. Instead, only try to realize the truth
What truth?
There is no dupe
Darwinia is quite good . . . by Jack+William+Bell · 2003-09-12 04:41 · Score: 1

Darwinia is quite good, with a surprising twist about halfway through and yet another twist at the end. In a way it reads like three different books. I recommend it highly.

--
- -
Are you an SF Fan? Are you a Tru-Fan?
1. Re:Darwinia is quite good . . . by HalfFlat · 2003-09-12 13:46 · Score: 1
  
  Must say that I thought Darwinia was a terrible disappointment. Fantastic set-up, and even the twist was interesting, but then ... it just got silly. Incomprehensibe character motivations, illogical extrapolations from the premises, and worst of all, the abandonment of all the interesting story shoots from the beginning of the book.
  
  I enjoyed the first half of Darwinia, but the second half made me hate it.
Never never never again... by Dread_ed · 2003-09-12 04:42 · Score: 2, Insightful

...will I read a /. review of a fiction book.

As an entertainment form, I value reading higher (WAY higher) than movies and television. Combine that with a fickle disposition for genre and style and the result is that there are too few fiction books that will satisfy me. The last thing I need is some amateur wack job disclosing the whole plot in a "review" and ruining the book entirely.

IMHO, the "review" that I am referring to should have been removed faster than a goatse link on the main page labeled "microsoft goes bankrupt."

Thanks for the reviews guys, but fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice and I'll have to murder you and your whole family with a pack of silly straws and a cantaloupe.

--
When the only tool you have is a claw hammer every problem starts to look like the back of someone's skull.
1. Re:Never never never again... by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 04:50 · Score: 1, Interesting
  
  I am the reviewer of the book.
  Rest assured, your frustration is unfounded. When it comes to plot details, I basically presented what you can read on the first few pages and on the dustjacket, plus only a few of the many ideas in the book.
  I think it would be very difficult to write a meaningful review if you can't mention anything at all about the story.
  
  best regards, Tom
2. Re:Never never never again... by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 05:03 · Score: 0
  
  I forgot to mention that I compose all my reviews while wearing lacy women's underwear. I feel silk panties and a garter belt minimize the likelihood of mistakenly including spoilers. If there is anything more I could do to improve the reviews, please let me know.
  
  best regards, Tom
3. Re:Never never never again... by eoinatstraylight · 2003-09-12 07:21 · Score: 1
  
  I read the chronoliths, and I must say.. it was perhaps the worst book I've ever read. Not just due to the fact that the plot lept about like an inebreated baboon, nor that the ending was "just plain crappy"(tm) but the fact it was disappointing. The concept was clever and held such promise, and the author did absolutely nothing with it. I only ended up with the feeling that he rushed to get this out in order to plant his flag as the first book to use this concept.
  
  If The Chronoliths was an example of Robert Charles Wilson's usual fare (and God forbid this was above average) I can only implore people to save an evening of their lives.
4. Re:Never never never again... by Dread_ed · 2003-09-12 08:08 · Score: 1
  
  My apologies for the ambiguity, but I was referring to another review which I had thought I linked to in my post.
  
  Unfortunately, I did not preview after editing.
  
  The link is here now: Decipher review
  
  I have not read your review (nor will I read a reveiw on /. again, like I stated in my post), and I ment no offense to you personally or professionally.
  
  In addition I would like to commend you on your integrity. Your reply to my post was controlled, intelligent, and non-confrontational considering what was probably construed by you as a personal attack. Thank you.
  
  --
  When the only tool you have is a claw hammer every problem starts to look like the back of someone's skull.
5. Re:Never never never again... by haystor · 2003-09-12 09:25 · Score: 1
  
  Excellent wrap up of a most disappointing book. I'm still a bit ticked that I read that.
  
  I did pick up one good tip on /. when someone knocking Gooding's crap suggested George R.R. Martin.
  
  --
  t
The Sparrow by gwernol · 2003-09-12 04:42 · Score: 3, Informative

Another fairly recent sci-fi book that tackles the problems in interpreting alien behavior is Mary Doria Russell's The Sparrow. The book follows a technician at SETI who discovers an alien signal from a nearby star and eventually is drafted onto the first mission to explore this newly discovered civilization. Interestingly the spaceship and crew is provided by the Jesuits.

That may sound odd, but this is an exceptionally fine book with well-developed characters and a compeling story. Russell is an anthropologist by training and her understanding of what it means to encounter a truly alien society and the consequences of that are profound and impactful.

Highly recommended if the wider implications of Blind Lake appeal to you, or you enjoy thought-provoking literature.

--
Sailing over the event horizon
1. Re:The Sparrow by KnightStalker · 2003-09-12 05:18 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  I'll second the recommendation for this excellent book. I appreciated the religious themes more than the sci-fi aspects, though, and I'm an atheist. Most of the SF elements were fairly realistic. Without revealing too much, the alien society and the humans' interaction with it sort of serves as a very loose metaphor for the Christian myth of God's relationship to humans, but you should really read the whole book before thinking about what it means. Also, definitely check out the sequel, Children of God.
  
  --
  * And remember, it's spelled N-e-t-s-c-a-p-e, but it's pronounced "Mozilla."
2. Re:The Sparrow by blamanj · 2003-09-12 05:38 · Score: 1
  
  Russell is an anthropologist by training and her understanding of what it means to encounter a truly alien society and the consequences of that are profound and impactful.
  
  I had read that and had high hopes for the book, but personally, I found it quite disappointing. While it does some a couple of good characters and the seeds of some very interesting ideas, about 2/3 of the book is spent not on the alien society, but on the process of choosing the crew (rather unbelievable), who's pining after who on board the ship (dull), and issue of getting the main character to talk about his experience.
  
  The aliens take up a relatively small part of the book and the story eventually hinges on what I thought were rather improbable practices anyway.
3. Re:The Sparrow by Mooncaller · 2003-09-12 05:56 · Score: 2, Informative
  
  Like SJ in space? Try James Blish's "A Case of Conscience". Its old style SF, short and sweet, and will make you think.
4. Re:The Sparrow by IowaFarmer41 · 2003-09-12 05:58 · Score: 1
  
  Truly excellent, but needs to be read with the next novel _The Children of God_ to really understand the first novel. Deals with serious issues far more realistically than is usual.
5. Re:The Sparrow by wildwood · 2003-09-12 06:03 · Score: 1
  
  This "interpretation of alien cultures" theme reminds me a lot of Vernor Vinge's "A Deepness in the Sky", which uses "golden age translation" as a plot device to make aliens seem more human to the reader than the humans do.
  
  Except in reverse, I guess.
  
  --
  normal(adj)- people who don't sit on slashdot all day wondering why everyone else isn't building robots [DECS]
6. Re:The Sparrow by gwernol · 2003-09-12 08:45 · Score: 1
  
  I'll second the recommendation for this excellent book. I appreciated the religious themes more than the sci-fi aspects, though, and I'm an atheist. Most of the SF elements were fairly realistic. Without revealing too much, the alien society and the humans' interaction with it sort of serves as a very loose metaphor for the Christian myth of God's relationship to humans, but you should really read the whole book before thinking about what it means. Also, definitely check out the sequel, Children of God.
  
  I agree about the religious themes, and I'm also an atheist. Fascinating insights into a world view that is not my own.
  
  Interestingly the author is herself a recent convert to Judaism after many years as a self-described agnostic. So the Jesuits were an "alien" culture to her too.
  
  Also interestingly she said she originally wrote about the Society of Jesus because they were amongst the first westerners to encounter many human tribes, especially those in Papua New Guinea. She recounts the tale of one priest who was terribly mutilated by the tribe he made first contact with because of the clash of cultures. IIRC both his hands were cut off. After returning to Italy to recuperate he later voluntarily returned to the tribe to "carry out God's mission" to them. A remarkable thing to do, even if you don't believe in God. Also a clear inspiration for the story.
  
  As you say Children of God, the sequel, is also essential reading.
  
  --
  Sailing over the event horizon
i didn't know geeks read books like this by phaetonic · 2003-09-12 04:42 · Score: 1, Funny

unless they're in front of their computers without a shirt and sweat droplets dripping down while waiting for an IM to pop up, eating cheetos with one hand and flipping pages with their big toe on their left foot.
Darwinia by Dr.+Photo · 2003-09-12 04:47 · Score: 1

I would score Blind Lake 8/10. As a comparison with other Wilson books: I think it's as good as The Chronoliths, while I would rate Darwinia as a 7/10.

I read Darwinia last week, and I think the reviewer here is underrating it. Then again, I also thought that the giant midbook twist (which he complains about above, and which I won't spoil here) was possibly the best part.
1. Re:Darwinia by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 05:07 · Score: 0
  
  He's underrating it? You think that he actually liked the book more than he realized and that for him, it was actually a 9/10? Opinions are subjective and I don't think that he would underrate his enjoyment of the book.
2. Re:Darwinia by Dr.+Photo · 2003-09-12 08:14 · Score: 1
  
  He's underrating it? You think that he actually liked the book more than he realized and that for him, it was actually a 9/10? Opinions are subjective and I don't think that he would underrate his enjoyment of the book.
  
  Oh, I am by no means seeking to criticise his enjoyment or lack thereof. Nor am I in any way claiming that he misrepresented his own subjective opinion of the book.
  
  I am, however, giving his opinion on the book a 5 out of 10. ;-)
Old Plot by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 04:52 · Score: 0

It appears that the plot of the book was stolen from a late 70's early 80's short cartoon depicting Martians viewing earth thorough a telescope and concluding that machines are the dominate species with an unknown virus consistently destroying all of the machines creations.

Anyone else remember this cartoon. It was around the same time that the Gods Must Be Crazy was released.
1. Re:Old Plot by stdcallsign · 2003-09-12 05:04 · Score: 1, Funny
  
  Yea! There was this "Marvin the Martian" character that had this funny voice. He had a big telescope he looked at the earth with. But he was going to blow up the earth, not study it. Then there was this rabbit that kept doing cooky things and foiling his plans.
  
  ... I never did consider that sci-fi though.
2. Re:Old Plot by La+Temperanza · 2003-09-12 09:51 · Score: 1
  
  That was probably first the story, probably collegiate in origin, with aliens thinking that cars specifically were the planet's dominant lifeform and humans were their symbiotes.
  
  --
  
  --
  est modus in rebus
Advertisebot? -- Re:save $2.50 on this book by Jack+William+Bell · 2003-09-12 04:52 · Score: 2, Interesting

I hope /. is getting some money for this kind of thing even if a real person is posting it. But it sure makes me wonder if Amazon has some kind of bot that watches for book reviews and posts the 'save money' thing as an AC.

Note to moderators -- pleez do not moderate this kind of thing up. We are all smart enough to shop around if we want to save money and it just encourages them...

--
- -
Are you an SF Fan? Are you a Tru-Fan?
Re:save $2.50 on this book by daeley · 2003-09-12 04:55 · Score: 5, Informative

FYI, the above link gives money to the linker.

--
I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate.
Lame by gregarican · 2003-09-12 05:13 · Score: 0, Troll

You know an original post, the review, and the book itself must be pretty lame when the most interesting comments are from the troll gallery. In honor of John Ritter I think I'll do a comedic pratfall on top of my cubicle.
Already been done? by microTodd · 2003-09-12 05:15 · Score: 0, Troll

This sounds an awful lot like "Macroscope" by Piers Anthony. Has anyone read both books? Ripoff or coincidence?

--
"You cannot find out which view is the right one by science in the ordinary sense." - C.S. Lewis on Intelligent Design
1. Re:Already been done? by dbateman · 2003-09-12 05:38 · Score: 1
  
  Hah, I was thinking exactly the same thing. Though you beat me to saying it first on slashdot :-)
  
  One probably difference, although I like Piers Anthony and have read quite a bit of his stuff, character development is not what you'd call one of his strong points. This review leading me to believe the opossite is true in Blind Lake.
  
  So, I wait anxiously for the response to your question from someone who has read both.
  
  Cheers
  D.
tag error by mzs · 2003-09-12 05:17 · Score: 2, Informative

Maybe an editor will notice this post and fix the article.
In the source for the end of the article:
I would score Blind Lake 8/10. As a comparison with other Wilson books: I think it's as good as The Chronoliths, while I would rate Darwinia as a 7/10.
<cite>Darwinia<cite>
should be changed to:
<cite>Darwinia</cite>
Specifically the cite tag needs to be closed properly. The way the article is now, all of the text after the article (including the comments) is italicized.
1. Re:tag error by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 07:18 · Score: 0
  
  Thanks for fixing this timothy.
Sounds like Macroscope... by MopOfJustice · 2003-09-12 05:20 · Score: 1

I'm 2/3s of the way through Macroscope right now, and this sounds kind of similar...

--
----------- Sig what?
1. Re:Sounds like Macroscope... by MopOfJustice · 2003-09-12 05:23 · Score: 1
  
  Sorry, that's Piers Anthony's Macroscope...
  
  --
  ----------- Sig what?
Re:Wow by Zeriel · 2003-09-12 05:31 · Score: 1

Just out of curiousity, are you ignored a lot in middle school? Does ranting stupidly on slashdot give you feelings of power that almost make up for the fact you're uniformly rejected by your peers and members of the opposite sex?

Yeah, I thought so.

--
"America has done some terrible things. But I know that Americans don't cheer when innocents die." -Dave Barry
Re:Why by Zeriel · 2003-09-12 05:35 · Score: 1

Doesnt' happen with me, latest version of Firebird.

Maybe you have your system fonts set ridiculously huge? Or maybe you're talking out of your ass--like EVERY OTHER COMMENT YOU MAKE. =P

--
"America has done some terrible things. But I know that Americans don't cheer when innocents die." -Dave Barry
Re:save $2.50 on this book by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 05:35 · Score: 0

Before you shop for BN online, you might want to take a gander at this link: Tell us how you really feel!
Re:Advertisebot? -- Re:save $2.50 on this book by 3terrabyte · 2003-09-12 05:39 · Score: 1

As a side note, you can always save money compared to Amazon by buying the books at buy.com
Read the reviews at amazon, shop at buy.com!

--
Why are there only 19 people folding@home for slashdot?
Skyshadow's Late Summer Reading List by Skyshadow · 2003-09-12 06:02 · Score: 0, Offtopic

I always look at the book review forums as a good place to pick up on authors I haven't read yet (other than the one actually reviewed), so I usually post this thread to get things started. Please feel free to add onto it; this is what I'd recommend reading right now.
On reflection, I've spent most of the summer reading nonfiction for a change...
Jarhead by Anthony Swofford
Swofford was a Marine sniper during Gulf War I, and this book talks about that experience and his experience in the Corps. It's an extremely good read, and unlike most "military" theme books it is neither "pro" nor "anti" war, but instead lays the whole deal on the table with a tremendous amount of honesty and self-awareness from one grunt's somewhat nihilistic point of view.
Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand
I know what you're thinking: I only read the book when the movie came out. You're right. That doesn't change the fact that this is an extremely interesting read, which is especially impressive given the lack of embellishment and the attention to historical detail. If you just saw the movie, you're missing out -- some of the most interesting parts of the book come as Hillenbrand sets up the reader's understanding of 1920-30's horseracing and introduces the people around Seabiscuit.
Holy War: The Crusades and their Impact on Today's World by Karen Armstrong
This is a bit more challenging than my previous two selections, but is more than worth the effort. Just after the second anniversary of 9-11, the vast majority of Americans still have no understanding of the history of east/west emnity (which probably explains how Bush Jr. can paint the whole complex affair in simplistic terms of good and evil without getting laughed at). This book covers the root causes of the Crusades and follows the results all the way to modern day. Written in 1988, this book seems almost eerie today in predicting the renewal of this ancient conflict. Armstrong takes hard history and makes it approachable without talking down to the reader -- she's one of those rare authors who can really get your brain in gear with an understanding of complex events rather than just awareness of them. As I mentioned, this book is somewhat of a challenge to read, but the understanding it will impart will leave you much more capable of understanding our modern world.

--
Every year during my review, I just pray the words "slashdot.org" aren't mentioned.
Please post by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 06:05 · Score: 0

Let's hope this thread breaks 100 posts. At least to make Michael feel better.
Re:Advertisebot? -- Re:save $2.50 on this book by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 06:17 · Score: 0

It's not Amazon. It's an Amazon associate who gets between 2.5% and 15% commission, depending on the item. I don't see what everybody's problem is. If you want to give the loser Amazon associate a commission, click on the link. Otherwise, navigate directly to amazon.com and Amazon will get that $1 instead of paying it to the loser.
Re:Advertisebot? -- Re:save $2.50 on this book by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 06:45 · Score: 0

www.alldirect.com is even cheaper!
The book flaps contain MORE spoilers! by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 06:50 · Score: 1, Informative

I checked the book flaps on amazon.com, these are actually more detailed than the reviewer's (probably on purpose) quite vague description of the story beginning.
The reviewer could maybe just have said "Blind Lake takes place in a close future and deals with alien contact and the difficulty of interpreting alien behavior", but would that be enough to form an opinion?
In short, maybe you're overreacting a little...
Give it a rest by bstadil · 2003-09-12 07:28 · Score: 1

If you are so 1337 why don't you try and post some intelligent comments.
I looked at your other /. contributions an this silly rant is, at 2, one point higher that every other comment you posted.
Maybe the "review" was just to bring a special author to the attention of a bigger crowd. I personally enjoy reviews as I get pointers among the higher ranked comments to authors that I might like.

--
Help fight continental drift.
-1 Informative by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-12 08:18 · Score: 0

How the hell can it be modded -1 Informative?
A way around the FTL limitation by spineboy · 2003-09-12 08:31 · Score: 1

I guess if you had a rather large gravity well and could curve the light back at the source, you could make it do a 180 deg turn and thus see the past. We just have to find the right black hole and look close to it.

--
..........FULL STOP.
Idea for the Dashboard guys: by Rinikusu · 2003-09-12 08:34 · Score: 1

Implement a kind of .plan file for Dashboard for users who desire it. In this (preferrably XML-based) file, it contains a reading list for the user (and even a music list). More interesting (seeings how the Amazon.com stuff is already in the code) would be to link those book selections to Amazon for some good 1-click shopping. Add in a referral reference (maybe have a standard one for the GNOME foundation?) and it could make for a small revenue stream for the developers, although it would make sense to 1) disable such feature 2) change the referral ID to someone else and definately 3) make the user aware of such referrals. (Add in music lists (using GStreamer), same Amazon links, and even maybe implement "streaming" so you have a listen before you buy.. hrm)

And on topic: This is the first /. review that's actually gotten me to go buy a book. Not the book reviewed, however, I instead bought The Harvest by the same auther at the local used book store around the corner. They also have Darwinia which looks nifty and I'll be stopping by the library tomorrow for others. Thanks for the "review" as it did introduce me to a new (to me) author!

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If you were me, you'd be good lookin'. - six string samurai
NOT a "minor issue". by Wolfkin · 2003-09-12 08:57 · Score: 2, Informative

Wilson's stuff consistently fails to deliver on the promise of the first 1/3 of the book. I've been suckered twice by him, once for "Harvest" and once for "Cronoliths".

Wilson's books seem to focus on the main characters' ordinary lives, even in the face of something really interesting happening, *somewhere else*. You keep hoping that we'll get to see the interesting things, but that never happens.

--
Property law should use #'EQ, not #'EQUAL.
Re:Lorentzian Relativity by nimblebrain · 2003-09-12 13:04 · Score: 1

One of the alternate theories to General Relativity is Lorentzian Relativity. It doesn't require (or indeed, perhaps, allow) time to run backwards, or time to stop, which also doesn't leave us in the lurch the same way trying to imagine what a 0 or -n result from General Relativity means.
Tom Van Flandern uses it to postulate FTL behavior of gravity and electromagnetic effects. Electromagnetic effects include the deflection of particles based on the other particle's "actual location" (as would be based on a much faster than light propagation) as opposed to their "apparent location" (which would be based on a propagation of the field at the speed of light). He proposes something similar for gravity.

Far-flung, perhaps, but objecting to it solely on the grounds that GR is "right" would fly in the face of the whole research process.

--
Binary geeks can count to 1,023 on their fingers :)
Re:Why? by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-13 20:11 · Score: 0

I'd just love to hear what qualifications you have to make any sort of grand judgements on literature. While I would agree to the extent that science fiction is generally pulp and better for little else than entertainment, I have yet to hear anyone who has a f*cking clue what they're talking about dismiss Science Fiction as a genre. Who are you to dismiss Clockwork Orange, Brave New World, 1984, Slaughterhouse Five and countless other important works of literature as "garbage"? Why don't you try reading what world-renowned theorists such as McHale or Baudrillard or Lyotard have to say before imposing your own under-read opinions here?
Not sure... by inertia187 · 2003-09-14 08:04 · Score: 1

I kind of like my science fiction with a high threshold on geek plots, and a low threshold on substance...but that's just me. If I wanted substance, I'd read a non-scifi book. Still, I can see how people would be interested in it.

More Information

--
A programmer is a machine for converting coffee into code.
Re:save $2.50 on this book by frankie · 2003-09-17 15:06 · Score: 1

Amazon has this book for $2.50 less than bn
Both AddAll and Froogle show it at Overstock.com for $5 less than Amazon, with the advantages that they don't give referrer fees to anonymous trolls or support obnoxious patents.
Re:save $2.50 on this book by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-18 08:27 · Score: 0

If you like, I'll post an overstock referral link next time....jackass
Re:save $2.50 on this book by Anonymous Coward · 2003-09-19 12:20 · Score: 0

no, I don't like...leech

purchasing links should point to search engines rather than individual stores (especially not Amazon) and NEVER with referral fee links.