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Redshift rendezvous
Review -
133
of human situations, the lack of spontaneous interest in long-term issues, the difficulty experienced in thi~~g integmtively and ~~~elation~ly, and the lack of innate concern for the well-being of members of outgroups” (p. 319). These are deficiencies under present circumstances, but Boyden contends they may lead, in the context of the population explosion, possession of weapons of mass destruction, and discharge of wastes into the environment, to the extinction of our species. The best hope is education. “Effective adaptation to the major culturally induced threats to the world’s ecosystems and to humanity will depend on a greatly improved unde~~ding in society as a whole of the human situation in the biosphere” (p. 321). As an interdisciplinary field, biohistory is an important bridge between the biological and the social sciences. This book is an excellent effort at building such a bridge. It is based on sound theory-modem evolutionary theory-and the accumulating knowledge that supports that theory. It deserves careful attention by economists, historians, sociologists, and political scientists who too often have overlooked the necessity of developing hypotheses that are consistent with and build upon knowledge in the biological sciences.
Red%@ Rendezvous, by John E. Stith. New York Ace, 1990, 256 pp. Reviewed by Paul Levinson, ~itor-in-thief,
JSES
Faster than light travel has been one of the most intriguing and frustrating challenges of science fiction, which generally distinguishes itself from fantasy by writing about technologies and events that are at least scienti~c~ly plausible. But according to Einstein’s theory of special relativity, movement at faster than light speeds is flatly impossible, and the slightly more lenient theory of general relativity insists that objects attain infinite mass at light speeds. So how, then, is science fiction to write about human relations across star systems and galaxies in human time frames? One approach might be to contest Einstein’s proscriptions on super-luminary travel on scientific or philosophic of science terms. If we agree with Karl Popper that even the best corroborated scientific theories arc nonetheless highly fallible and destined for falsification-as Einstein himself did-then fiction writers should have little trouble amending Einstein much the same as Einstein amended Newton. But few science fiction writers seem aware of Popper, or indeed sophisticated discussions of philosophy of science, at least insofar as these might pertain to speed of light1 The result has been a science fiction that by and large has repealed Einstein without much of a hearing. Whether the hyperspace drive of Asimov in the 40s or the warp drive of Star Trek and most else in between, travel at faster than light speeds has been more of an assumption than a challenge in a genre which is supposed to engage rather than subsume technological puzzles. (Cryogenic solutions that posit transport of frozen humans to be wakened upon reaching their destination at least have the merit of not ignoring Einstein. Frank Herbert’s approach of beings “folding” space in the Dune series has an Einsteini~ plausibility, but relies a bit too much on the quantum mechanical-cum Fritz Capra-idea of mind pushing matter to be satisfyingly scientific, at least for me.) Even more disappointing than the repeal by fiat of Einstein has been science fiction’s
134
-
JOURNAL OF SOCIAL AND EVOLUTIONARY SYSTEMS
treatment of human relations in the faster than light environments. That treatment has usually been a simple transplantation of human dynamics from Earth to far vaster realms, with the assumption that travel from here to Tau Ceti and beyond should in principle be no different in terms of human effects than our capacity to easily travel now from New York to Los Angeles. But history and philosophy of technology have shown over and over again that new modes of transportation profoundly transform their passengers-the medium is the message, as McLuhan pointed out, whether communication or transportation-and science fiction that treats a trip across the galaxy as no different in human principle than a trip across the country thus short changes its readers. Which is why John Stith’s Redshijl Rendezvous is so refreshing. The book is in many respects a standard adventure of murder and hijacking in space. But in one crucial regard this book is extraordinary in science fiction: it deals with the human detail of faster than light travel. Indeed, speed of light and its consequences is the real hero of this book. The “Redshift” is a ship that travels faster than light, and Stith posits that speed of light inside the ship is therefore reduced to some ten meters per second, or 30 million times slower than its usual speed. This is far from always pleasant, and passengers are advised to keep their lifebelts on at all times (in order for their neural chemistry to operate at normal speeds), and trust their kinesthetic rather than optical perceptions. Simple dining can be very interesting in this environment-a morsel of fish turns indigo as it enters its eater’s mouth and lifefield-but committing and solving murders are even more so (the latter can be done by removing the victim’s lifebelt). The chief security officer single-handedly manages to nearly disable an entire terrorist crew by virtue of his superior understanding of human movement and vision aboard his ship, and in the end he calls upon the physics of the ship’s corridors to quite literally hoist the villain on her own petard. If you like your science fiction to treat faster than light travel with a bit more respect than Dorothy clicking her heels together three times to go from Oz to Kansas, you’ll enjoy this book. I look forward to return voyages on the Redshift and other Stith vessels that speculate on the stretching of natural laws and its effect on humans. Note 1. In addition to stressinga comprehensivefallibilism, Karl Popper in an interesting coincidence has also argued for an Einsteinian or realist interpretation of quantum mechanical experimental results, which “would go against Einstein’s interpretation of special relativity and in favor of Lorentz’s interpretation and its formulae of Newton’s ‘absolute space”’ (Popper, Quanrum Mechanics and the Schism in Physics, London: Hutchinson, 1982, p. 25)-in other words, a universe ironically lacking Einsteinian proscriptions on faster than light speeds. See Levinson, Mind at Large: Knowing in the Technological Age, Greenwich, CT: JAI Press, 1988, pp. 236-237 for more.
133
of human situations, the lack of spontaneous interest in long-term issues, the difficulty experienced in thi~~g integmtively and ~~~elation~ly, and the lack of innate concern for the well-being of members of outgroups” (p. 319). These are deficiencies under present circumstances, but Boyden contends they may lead, in the context of the population explosion, possession of weapons of mass destruction, and discharge of wastes into the environment, to the extinction of our species. The best hope is education. “Effective adaptation to the major culturally induced threats to the world’s ecosystems and to humanity will depend on a greatly improved unde~~ding in society as a whole of the human situation in the biosphere” (p. 321). As an interdisciplinary field, biohistory is an important bridge between the biological and the social sciences. This book is an excellent effort at building such a bridge. It is based on sound theory-modem evolutionary theory-and the accumulating knowledge that supports that theory. It deserves careful attention by economists, historians, sociologists, and political scientists who too often have overlooked the necessity of developing hypotheses that are consistent with and build upon knowledge in the biological sciences.
Red%@ Rendezvous, by John E. Stith. New York Ace, 1990, 256 pp. Reviewed by Paul Levinson, ~itor-in-thief,
JSES
Faster than light travel has been one of the most intriguing and frustrating challenges of science fiction, which generally distinguishes itself from fantasy by writing about technologies and events that are at least scienti~c~ly plausible. But according to Einstein’s theory of special relativity, movement at faster than light speeds is flatly impossible, and the slightly more lenient theory of general relativity insists that objects attain infinite mass at light speeds. So how, then, is science fiction to write about human relations across star systems and galaxies in human time frames? One approach might be to contest Einstein’s proscriptions on super-luminary travel on scientific or philosophic of science terms. If we agree with Karl Popper that even the best corroborated scientific theories arc nonetheless highly fallible and destined for falsification-as Einstein himself did-then fiction writers should have little trouble amending Einstein much the same as Einstein amended Newton. But few science fiction writers seem aware of Popper, or indeed sophisticated discussions of philosophy of science, at least insofar as these might pertain to speed of light1 The result has been a science fiction that by and large has repealed Einstein without much of a hearing. Whether the hyperspace drive of Asimov in the 40s or the warp drive of Star Trek and most else in between, travel at faster than light speeds has been more of an assumption than a challenge in a genre which is supposed to engage rather than subsume technological puzzles. (Cryogenic solutions that posit transport of frozen humans to be wakened upon reaching their destination at least have the merit of not ignoring Einstein. Frank Herbert’s approach of beings “folding” space in the Dune series has an Einsteini~ plausibility, but relies a bit too much on the quantum mechanical-cum Fritz Capra-idea of mind pushing matter to be satisfyingly scientific, at least for me.) Even more disappointing than the repeal by fiat of Einstein has been science fiction’s
134
-
JOURNAL OF SOCIAL AND EVOLUTIONARY SYSTEMS
treatment of human relations in the faster than light environments. That treatment has usually been a simple transplantation of human dynamics from Earth to far vaster realms, with the assumption that travel from here to Tau Ceti and beyond should in principle be no different in terms of human effects than our capacity to easily travel now from New York to Los Angeles. But history and philosophy of technology have shown over and over again that new modes of transportation profoundly transform their passengers-the medium is the message, as McLuhan pointed out, whether communication or transportation-and science fiction that treats a trip across the galaxy as no different in human principle than a trip across the country thus short changes its readers. Which is why John Stith’s Redshijl Rendezvous is so refreshing. The book is in many respects a standard adventure of murder and hijacking in space. But in one crucial regard this book is extraordinary in science fiction: it deals with the human detail of faster than light travel. Indeed, speed of light and its consequences is the real hero of this book. The “Redshift” is a ship that travels faster than light, and Stith posits that speed of light inside the ship is therefore reduced to some ten meters per second, or 30 million times slower than its usual speed. This is far from always pleasant, and passengers are advised to keep their lifebelts on at all times (in order for their neural chemistry to operate at normal speeds), and trust their kinesthetic rather than optical perceptions. Simple dining can be very interesting in this environment-a morsel of fish turns indigo as it enters its eater’s mouth and lifefield-but committing and solving murders are even more so (the latter can be done by removing the victim’s lifebelt). The chief security officer single-handedly manages to nearly disable an entire terrorist crew by virtue of his superior understanding of human movement and vision aboard his ship, and in the end he calls upon the physics of the ship’s corridors to quite literally hoist the villain on her own petard. If you like your science fiction to treat faster than light travel with a bit more respect than Dorothy clicking her heels together three times to go from Oz to Kansas, you’ll enjoy this book. I look forward to return voyages on the Redshift and other Stith vessels that speculate on the stretching of natural laws and its effect on humans. Note 1. In addition to stressinga comprehensivefallibilism, Karl Popper in an interesting coincidence has also argued for an Einsteinian or realist interpretation of quantum mechanical experimental results, which “would go against Einstein’s interpretation of special relativity and in favor of Lorentz’s interpretation and its formulae of Newton’s ‘absolute space”’ (Popper, Quanrum Mechanics and the Schism in Physics, London: Hutchinson, 1982, p. 25)-in other words, a universe ironically lacking Einsteinian proscriptions on faster than light speeds. See Levinson, Mind at Large: Knowing in the Technological Age, Greenwich, CT: JAI Press, 1988, pp. 236-237 for more.