Today we are in a universe that contains us and lots of cool stuff and alien space bats. Yesterday we were in a universe that included us and lots of cool stuff: stars, galaxies, plasmas, cometary bodies, planets, and cows and giraffes and AIs and blue-green algae and lichen and micro-organisms. It addresses the well-worn questions of how you deal with such a situation, and indeed what it means to discover that you are not alone in the universe. Learning the World is, in the fine tradition of The Mote in God’s Eye and A Deepness in the Sky, a first contact story told simultaneously from the point of view of both species: in this case the earthlings and the bat people of Ground (as they call their home world). Not long thereafter two agents from the Sight, the royal intelligence agency, come to call. They are proud of their discovery of the mysterious comet, or whatever it is, and they publish details. Nevertheless, they are intelligent people - university professors no less. Perhaps it is their fur-covered bodies, their leathery wings, or their habit of hanging upside down and getting drunk on fermented fruit. But it soon becomes obvious to the reader that there is something different about them. sensationalism of the vulgar."ĭarvin and Orro, of course, refer to themselves as "men" in their own language. "I suppose because it's all so wretched hypothetical, old chap, and so embarrassing to seem to confirm the myths of religion and the. "Life around the stars would be the most significant finding of astronomy!"ĭarvin thought about it, chewing on the strip. "Why has more not been made of this?" Orro almost shouted. And that, of course, is the stuff of "engineering tales". Not unless there is something on them to make them slow down. He asks Orro for help with the orbital mathematics, but the physicist is just as puzzled. Darvin has discovered what appears to be a new comet, but it is behaving strangely, appearing to be slowing down as it approaches the Sun. Meanwhile Darvin the astronomer and his physicist friend, Orro, have a mystery to solve. What Atomic and her fellow passengers don’t know, however, is that it already is. The second planet in the Destiny system looks very much capable of supporting life. It is also the destiny for Atomic and thousands more young people just like her, born and bred on the ship with the intention that they will become the inhabitants of a new world. Indeed, she’s light years and millennia away on a generation ship called Sunliner, speeding towards Destiny.ĭestiny is the name of the star system into which Sunliner is currently decelerating. As you might guess from her name, she’s not from around here.
It is also the title of a "biolog" by a fourteen year-old girl called Atomic Discourse Gale. Learning the World is the title of the new novel from Ken MacLeod. Miscellany – The Locus Awards and other news Out of Synch – Is out of content this month Interview – Cheryl talks to Chris Teague of Pendragon PressĮxtensible Hugos – This Year’s Likely WSFS Controversy Horrors of War – Mario Guslandi looks at a Paul Finch collection Scotland the New – Your sampler for Scottish SF&FĮndangered Species - Jeffrey Ford worries about minotaursĬomic Debuts – The premier issues of Albion and Neverwhere Shadow’s End - Michael Cobley concludes the Shadowkings sagaĪ Swarm of Wings - Deborah Miller’s flight of fantasy The God of Small Things - Gary Gibson notes that humans are not the only species that might seek god War in Heaven - Hal Duncan explores the Word of God
The Life of Lanark - Alisdair Gray’s Great Scottish Novel The Future Is Us – Joel Garreau contemplates the prospect of human evolution Talking Lobsters in Space - Charlie Stross rushes into The Singularity Girl Meets World – and learns a lot with Ken MacLeod There is a wealth of Scottish-originated fiction here for visitors to Glasgow to seek out. Many of these people, and a lot more besides, are showcased in the Scottish Writers anthology, Nova Scotia. And there are newer writers such as Gary Gibson and Hal Duncan. There are well-established British names who have not yet made it across the Pond, such as Mike Cobley and Debbie Miller. There are big names, such as Charlie Stross and Ken MacLeod. Indeed, an awful lot of these books are by people who live in or near Glasgow. And this year is a little special because most of these books are by British authors, many of whom will be unknown to the American fans visiting Glasgow. As always around this time of year, books are being issued to coincide with Worldcon.
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