[FRIAM] Homo Hiveus or Bio Slime?

[Steve Smith]

Dave -
> Interesting / recommended:
>
> Movie — Mortal Engines.  "We have to destroy London"  London traveling
> around the globe destroying all other mobile cities.

Thanks...  I have read the book and seen the movie.  I've been a fan of
Steam Punk since Gibson/Sterling coined the genre with "The Difference
Engine", even though *most of it* is pretty weak, more like fan-fiction
than anything else.   I suppose that Mortal Engines is closer to Diesel
Punk which I also (can) enjoy.   The image of city-scale vehicles (with
city styling, presumably pulled up by the roots and made mobile by giant
traction engines) with what felt like collective personalities (from
their residents, weighted by the powerful of course) with their own
agency (at least a hunger to consume other cities for their fuel? and
materials and citizenry?).

I'm a sucker for a good Post Apocalyptic and they have become wildly
more clever over the decades.   Though going back to Canticle for
Leibowitz and Wells' work is good too.

>
> Book — SEVENEVES by Neal Stephenson. Black hole destroys moon, three
> arcologies (one a space station, one undersea, and one in Alaskan
> mine, survive but ethnic strife among the seven "races" (each the
> descendants of one of the Eves) survives as well.

I'm a big fan of Stephenson, starting with Zodiac and peaking with
Snowcrash and Diamond Age.   Diamond Age was an epic in it's own right
and virtually everything he has written since has been an Epic
squared.   I did read Seveneves and enjoyed it as much as I have
most/all of his other Epic^2 works.   I'm stuck halfway through "Fall;
Dodge in Hell" which as you must know is somewhat focused on  a
dystopian (utopian for some) post-upload/AI future.

- Steve


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