Manifold: Space
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| Manifold: Space | |
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| Author | Stephen Baxter |
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| Country | Great Britain |
| Language | English |
| Series | Manifold |
| Genre(s) | Science fiction novel |
| Publisher | Voyager (UK) & Del Rey Books (US) |
| Publication date | 6 October 2000 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 464 p. (UK hardback edition) & 512 p. (US paperback edition) |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-00-225771-8 (UK hardback edition) & ISBN 0-345-43078-6 (US paperback edition) |
| Preceded by | Manifold: Time |
| Followed by | Manifold: Origin |
Manifold: Space is a science fiction book by author Stephen Baxter, first published in the United Kingdom in 2000, then released in the United States in 2001. It is the second book of the Manifold series and examines another possible solution to the Fermi paradox. Although it is in no sense a sequel to the first book it contains a number of the same characters, notably Reid Malenfant, and similar artifacts. The Manifold series contains four books, Manifold: Time, Manifold: Space, Manifold: Origin, and Manifold: Phase Space.
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[edit] Synopsis
Alien activity is discovered in a Kirkwood gap; the aliens are identified as self-replicating machines (von Neumann probes). Their activity is potentially an immense threat, as Malenfant notes in an earlier speech: "A target system, we assume, is uninhabited. We can therefore program for massive and destructive exploitation of the system's resources, without restraint, by the probe. Such resources are useless for any other purpose, and are therefore economically free to us. And so we colonize, and build."
The self-replicating spacecraft are named Gaijin (Japanese: "foreigner"), after their discovery by a Japanese observer on the Moon. The story follows the human reaction to the Gaijin, and the efforts of expansionist colonization. A small group of humans use anti-aging techniques and an alien form of interstellar teleportation[1] to "parachute" in on the changing solar system over many centuries.
Eventually, it is revealed that in this version of the Fermi paradox, sentient life is endemic throughout the universe; Humanity simply hadn't noticed it earlier because the universe destroys any race before it becomes advanced enough to develop a Type IV civilization. The story ends with Malenfant helping the Gaijin build a shield to prevent a pulsar from sterilizing a large part of the galaxy. Although this project will not be completed before another predicted pulsar event wipes out all extant species, it is hoped to give the sentient aliens who develop from the aftermath of the coming extinction a better chance at long term survival.
[edit] Characters
- Reid Malenfant – The main protagonist in all four Manifold Books.
- Madeleine Meacher – Other main character, former pilot of the futuristic space vehicles.
- Nemoto – Lunar Japanese woman who mysteriously lives for many centuries, guiding humanity against the 'alien threat'
- Cassiopeia – Malenfant's Gaijin companion in his explorations
[edit] Publication history
- 2000, UK, Voyager ISBN 0-00-225771-8, Pub date 6 October 2000, hardback
- 2001, USA, Del Rey Books ISBN 0-345-43077-8, Pub date ? February 2001, hardback
- 2002, USA, Del Rey Books ISBN 0-345-43078-6, Pub date ? January 2002, paperback
[edit] Notes
- ^ Teleportation using quantum entanglement - EPR correlation - to travel at light speed between transmitter and receiver
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