The second entry in the “false blindness” of Peter Wats

Back in 2010, I acquired a paper version of Peter Wats’s book False Blind.
The book then published in the series “Science Fiction”.
I acquired by a hunch, the author did not know then, but there were already several books of this series, so I decided to diversify my library, plus on the cover there was an inscription that the nominee nominee “Hugo” award

К сожалению тогда одолел всего процентов десять книги, поскольку перевод, увы, был мягко говоря не очень. In my opinion, the failure of the translation was not only in some problems of the translator with cases and endings, but also in the fact that the author himself is very deeply digging in a scientific manner. According to official figures, Peter Wats consulted with a large number of American scientists and used more than a hundred scientific papers.So the translator simply sometimes did not understand the essence.

I somehow forgot about this book for a long time. And literally this week I learned that in 2015 a special reprint of the novel “False blindness” was released. Moreover, this is not just a reprint in a new, by the way, very beautiful, cover. The publication is specially edited again. By the way, in the NF community they say that the author himself is very warm to the Russian fantastic community and made special edits and explanations for the new publication. In addition, he gave his exclusive story “The Gods of Insects” as a bonus.

Without thinking twice, he decided to defeat this book.

The new edition is really pleasing. The translation was corrected and much more footnotes appeared of which at least approximately one can understand what exactly is being discussed. True, this does not cancel the fact that no, no, yes, you have to climb at least in Vikipedio in order to familiarize yourself in more detail with a particular concept.
Wats can really be called the author of real solid science fiction. Sometimes it seems that no tooth can really break about her.

The world invented by the author is very pleasing. Despite the fact that most of the novel occurs in space, from the memoirs of the protagonist, it is still possible to look closer at this world of the late XXI century. The proportions are observed very competently. The world consists of different shades, it is like a classic scientific fantastic world of the future with a light raid of cyberpank as well as a mystical aroma. For example, there is the concept of “vampire”, but not in the classical sense of the word, rather in scientific. People learned to endure their entities after death in a sort of digital space. Earthlings mastered space flights, though the development of the solar system stalled on the asteroid belt. Further development was calculated simply unprofitable, to the event of a lot of changed.

In 2082, the probes of aliens were drawn around the earth. 65 thousand probes at once. But immediately flashed and disappeared. As the novel, the earth was simply photographed in the novel. They took a picture and that’s it. Who are they? Why did they do it? Earthlings cover paranoia heated by the fact that aliens do not show themselves in any way, not friendly, not hostile. Scientists manage to determine the coordinates of the object in the Gallalax, far beyond the orbit Pluto, where it is supposed to be extraterrestrial generally generalized in this event. Naturally decides to send a scientific expedition, on the spacecraft of the thesis, a special group of one of the members of which is the main character of the novel flies.

Meeting with a ship of aliens, but not quite a meeting and not quite a ship. Negotiations on a walkie -talkie with aliens, who were not at all negotiations. Penetration on someone else’s ship, first physical contact. And all the same again – not at all like in tradition.

I repeat, the work is very https://nonukonlinecasinos.uk/review/spins-heaven/ complicated. Questions in the head are questions, questions, and again questions.
But despite this, it holds strongly. At the moment, a percent of forty book has been swallowed. Alas, there is not much time to devote it to complete immersion. I hope that in the New Year’s weekend I can plunge completely.

I am very glad that such a good reprint came out and that it allowed to touch good literature again. Peter Wats, in my opinion, is an excellent science fiction author who very competently combines these two concepts of science and science.

The best comments

Author, do not disgrace. Two falee attempts to read one book: the first attempt is 10%, and the second 40% and to make an attempt to leave a review is at least dumb.

Well, in general, the blog is more not about the book, but about the new edition of the annual work, which for people with weak English is good news especially with not the best quality of the 1st attempt

Firstly, science fiction in fiction is not and cannot be, just for the reason that science is, damn it, it is difficult. And this is known to everyone who has read real scientific literature at least once. Now macrophysics has reached its ceiling and all scientific riddles have reached a micro level of quantum physics. And you cannot describe it in any way in the framework of fiction.

Well, there is a “ass, but there is no word”, just the opposite: D is a fiction of science fiction for decently years, and then suddenly it turns out that it does not exist? With Chet there is generally training, etc? All fantasy a priori refers to fiction and does not carry a clear educational aspect. Yes, something can be underline, but this is not a textbook of physics. Just in scientific variation – with physics it at least does not conflict to a certain extent.

The second sentence is generally not clear. Why advise a person of the same savage without knowing his tastes, nothing, especially provided that he did not ask for advice?

Yes, I know that I should not read the usual cattle-one at all, and the books are intended only for elite intelligence, but it would not be better to just take some one or two scientific ideas as the basis and develop them during the narrative, coming to certain conclusions, and not just to nourish the whole book with various scientific facts and somehow glue everything together, still remaining with anything else

There are a lot of literature, just find what you will be interested in.
The firm NF was often just like that, the works of Arthur Clark were generally considered something between a technical reference book and a stationery inventory.
There is a soft science fiction.You can rummage there.
Moreover, now finding a work to taste is much easier than before when you had to look for books by shops, bazaars, and markets ..

I read this novel in the first edition, although I almost broke my head, trying to figure out what the characters and the author say, but I still defeated the book and the conclusion in the end suggested like this: mortal boredom.
I don’t understand at all what kind of audience was focused on Wats, because as a work of art it is very empty, the characters are almost everything like robots, one charismatic character and he died in the middle of the story, the rest do not interact with each other at all and there is no talk of any personal relationships, if someone shows emotions, then he does not empathize with his drop, but it is strange to me.the text seems that the character is replaying or does not defuse his role.
The plot also did not please with its presence, the dynamics completely absent, all events stretch like jelly, periodically interrupting the flashbacks of the protagonist, interesting or shocking turns happens quite rarely and the action is quickly tired and everything returns to the “jelly”. The ending simply discouraged me, I was hoping that “well-hunger now something interesting would begin!”Iiiiiiii all, the book just ended, waving a pen … Well, yesaaaa, it takes a breath directly from such a surprise (no)
The only thing I liked was the dialogs stuffed with scientific terms and philosophical subtext, many interesting facts and entertaining theories, the benefit of the translator transferred the author’s links for explanations, but besides a couple of interesting thoughts, he did not find anything interesting in the novel. In general, if you cut out all possible dialogs from the book, you just get one big dry report on scientific expiration in space, which began not very entertaining and also ended.
I don’t know this may simply not mine, but in my opinion too much time is devoted to scientific terms and theories and too few characters and stories about them, the book reminds me of a textbook more than a novel, is it not better to do the other way around? Yes, I know that I should not read the usual cattle-one at all, and the books are intended only for elite intelligence, but it would not be better to just take some one or two scientific ideas as the basis and develop them during the narrative, coming to certain conclusions, and not just to nourish the whole book with various scientific facts and somehow glue everything together, still remaining with anything else

Wats Author, so to speak, from a new wave … But this is purely my conditional, designation. For me, a serious hobby of the NF (well, by past read to the holes of the Strugatsky in early childhood) began with the authors of the Golden Library of Science Fiction, who came out in the legendary series, thanks to her, I met the novels of Frank Herbert, Budzhiat, Winja, Peter Gamamons, Dena Simmons and many others … Summarizing that this is a set of authors of the epoch60s-90s, many of which have already become mastodons of the genre.

Watts published his first novel in 1999, “False Blindness” abroad went in 2006.
And now he got acquainted with the second edition, I can say that he became for me one of the few authors of the era of the beginning of the two thousandths, which was very hooked.
From the same subsection of writers, only Scott Westerfeld and his dilogy “sequence” also read it, although it is quite soft NF.

Fuh. I ate a book. I have not read such a suitable NF for a long time. Right now. I liked that the author at the end gives explanations with references to scientific literature, also tells how he came up with some things.

Author, do not disgrace. Two falee attempts to read one book: the first attempt is 10%, and the second 40% and to make an attempt to leave a review is at least dumb.

Firstly, science fiction in fiction is not and cannot be, just for the reason that science is, damn it, it is difficult. And this is known to everyone who has read real scientific literature at least once. Now macrophysics has reached its ceiling and all scientific riddles have reached a micro level of quantum physics. And you cannot describe it in any way in the framework of fiction.

Secondly, if you want something that will truly take out the brain and teach you something useful, then read the simulacra and simulation from Bodyar, or better start with the foundations and with Philip Dick, for example, Valis, my favorite book. Philosophy is the maximum that fiction can offer, but not physical revelations in any way.