SciFi Review: Childhood's End

     In case you didn't know this about me, though I don't know how you could not know this about me, I'm a little bit of a massive nerd. I love science fiction, especially classic SciFi novels. There are enough reasons behind this obsession to fill an entire post but I suppose the main thing is my love of science and how it affects every aspect of our lives. From the computer I type this on to the fingers with which I type, science is there. Science is in art, in business, even in religion. There is literally nowhere we can go and nothing we can do which isn't in some way concerned with science. I love that notion and so do SciFi writers.

     The great thing about science fiction is how philosophical it can be. Many of the best works of SciFi are structured upon astute concepts of life and death, the scope of the universe, the capabilities of the human mind, and so forth. Other genres certainly do this too but the thing that draws me to science fiction is that creative spark melded with actual science. So often it has been the case that a SciFi author in the 50's dreamt up a futuristic gadget or idea based upon some new or rudimentary science and any number of years later another appreciator of science reads this work and realizes that with modern technology such a thing can be made (an entire series on the Science Channel called Prophets of Science Fiction speaks to this fact)! Let's face it, there will never be Harry Potter type witches and wizards who can cast wondrous spells with a magical stick (and even if there were it would be based upon science at some level) but there may just be stardrives powering interstellar space travel in our future. I guess at the core of it, what I love most about science fiction is its ability to be almost unbelievably fantastic yet always based upon some shred of truth which leaves you wondering.

     With that said let me tell you about my latest SciFi read. If you're into this kind of thing and find this review helpful I could not be more pleased but if you don't care in the slightest and have already clicked away from this nerd fest that is fine too as I feel that writing about literature helps the mind to process and absorb it... so, yeah, I guess you could say I am doing this for my health.

Childhood's End

by Arthur C. Clarke

Cool Science Moment: "He was peeping through a microscope into what looked like a small bomb. Presumably it was a pressure-capsule containing some specimen of deep-sea life, still swimming happily around under its normal tons-to-the-square-centimeter conditions."

Cool Fiction Moment (still a bit science-y): "Miss Morrel's mind was the channel that, if only for a moment, let through knowledge which no one at that time could possess. It could only have come from another mind immediately linked to hers. The fact that it was a mind not yet born was of no consequence, for Time is very much stranger than you think."

     Arthur C. Clarke is most definitely one of the greats of classic SciFi. His stories tend to be very philosophical and often deal with religion at least obliquely. His short story The Nine Billion Names of God is one of my all time favorite pieces of science fiction. It essentially discusses using science/technology to prove the existence of God and the consequences that may come of this proof.

     Childhood's End also looks at the role of religion in human society but only in brief snippets relating to the larger story of mankind's possible future. The story not so much follows as touches on then moves away from various characters' lives as they deal with the arrival of an alien race dubbed the Overlords on Earth. When the Overlords reveal themselves to man they make it known that they are in charge, all powerful, and will be guiding mankind to some distant but specific future. Though man never knows what this future is a few individuals find the courage to seek it, this is their story perhaps more than it is the Overlords'. Under the reign of the Overlords, Earth becomes a utopia which opens the narrative up to the contemplation of what constitutes a utopia (a world where every person has the necessities of life and the freedom and education to pursue only their own interests?) as well as the price at which such a utopia would come (namely boredom). Erring more on the side of fiction than of science this is at once a very beautiful and extremely sad story of the end of mankind.

     Though there are many interesting characters in this story few are well established and seem to blink out of existence just as their role gains momentum. This can make the beginning sections of the book a bit hard to get through but it is worth it. What the book may lack in dramatic story telling or adventurous plot it more than makes up for in beautiful passages that broach concepts such as what it means to be human and man's place in the universe with incredible force delivered with equally incredible delicacy. The ending of the book, and indeed of man, is absolutely beautiful though there are many preceding passages which earned a folded corner for reasons of scientific and literary greatness.

     To the established SciFi fan I whole heartedly recommend this book with the warning that it is more the thoughtful type than the adventurous type. For those just setting foot in the SciFi realm I would caution the story's somewhat disjointed nature and slower passages which may or may not be made up for by its more artistic and thought evoking passages. Certainly have a go at it but don't swear off SciFi if it's not your cup of tea!

     Now promise me this; if you do read it or have read it, let me know what you thought!



Musings of a School Year

     The end of the school year is always a bit surreal, isn't it? Invariably you will eventually find yourself with all your finals behind you, hopefully feeling confident and accomplished, and facing the sisyphean task of moving a year of your life out of your dorm. A task which is not made any easier by the peculiar trait of dorm rooms that seem to compress your belongings in such a way that they all fit comfortably in the room but once move to the hallway they expand exponentially into an imovable pile of terror.
     On the bright side, while you're stuck out by the elevator guarding your stack of bins like the royal guard who drew the short straw, you have a bit of time to think back over the year. Your journey of reminicence is guided through the past year by the proddings of momentos, notes, and artifacts that whisk your thoughts back to the time you accquired them as they come thumping off the top of your stack of bins and jam into the elevator doors in front of every other hurried mover in your hall. You are mortified and nostalgic.
    Far and away the worst culprit of this offense is the text book that is either in your bag attempting to rip your shoulder off or in the bottom of some bin thinking heavy thoughts. You can't help but let your thoughts dwell on its immense weight as you shuffle across the parking lot, knuckles burning, knees rhythmically slaming into the back of the bin. As the pain in your fingers begins to dull your mental faculties your mind may wander back through the times you've had with that book or any of its equally massive cohorts. With any luck you will find yourself recalling interesting facts, arcing concepts, and genuinely useful knowledge. After all, that is, at the heart of the matter, what each of those text books is aiming to impart on its owner; the back problems, panic attacks, and sleep deprivation that they provide are just bonuses!
     I joke about it here but I must honestly say that I have really enjoyed this whole year. Actually I tend to enjoy school in general. Call me a nerd but I genuinely love learning. No, I don't always love studying, taking notes, or going to classes. I said I'm a nerd not a masochist! In general though I tend to like school and I'm pretty good at it. My mom is always saying that I'm going to be one of those people who is in school forever, a prefessional student. Aside from the fact that I don't think my body can handle the amounts of Mountain Dew that suh a life style would require I must admit it wouldn't be the worst thing. I already consider myself extremely lucky to be in the position I am in. My day to day life consists of going to classes lead by lovely, intelligent, passionate professors (for the most part) who are there for the sole purpose of sharing their knowledge and passion with us. Yes, it can be tedious or hard or boring at times but for the most part it is really great. I firmly believe that there is no such thing as useless knowledge. Everything in he universe is connected in some way so it follows that all knowledge would be similarly connected. Thus the more you know about anything the more you know about everything. (*note: keep an eye out for an entire entry dedicated to this subject that I wrote during a Mountain Dew fueled existential revelation... let's just say it needs some editing*) With that said I feel lucky and awed and exhilerated to know that, for the time being, my entire purpose in life is to acquire as much knowledge as I can!
   
     This year has been such an amazing year for me. As I look over my overfloing bins I am reminded of so many facets of the wonderful experience these few short months have been for me. From where I stand I see stacks of sheet music that I have performed, books of scores that I have studied, sheets of facts and data that I have analyzed, and pages upon pages of notes I have compiled. All signs of a productive school year well spent. Packed carefully in a bin of their own is a pile of framed photos and momentos bearing red buses, iconic clock towers, and Union Jacks. My heart swells a little as I consider these trinkets and think back to that most astounding experience that they represent. Three whole months in a city that has come to occupy a special spot in my heart. My life and my thoughts are now puctuated with funny little colloquialisms, traditions, and tastes that weren't there before. These bits and bobs are more than welcome now, little hold overs from a fantastic time spent in London that I won't soon forget. Yet another thing to be thankful for that this year has given me.
     Last, but certainly not least, are the plentiful memories that are scattered all about your room in little scraps of paper, movie stubs, and post it notes. On the surface they appear to be little more than meaningless clutter but they are life's momentos of time spent with friends. This year has certainly been a great one for friends! I started off my time in London all on my own but came back with a friend that I'm pretty sure I might actually share thoughts with across great distances. And back in the US I had the pleasure of living with friends as roommates for the first time. What an adventure that has been! Oh the things that room 555 has seen between our attempts at cooking eggs, fallible forks, and slippery counter tops! And the best part is that I get to look forward to another year of mayhem and hilarity with the girls when we return to 555 in the fall!
     Returning to 555 in the fall may well be the strangest part of this experience yet as it will mark the beginning of my final year at DU. I haven't always loved it, in fact I've rather detested it at times, but there is no arguing how much I have gotten out of this establishment. I will miss it when I leave to go on to the next adventure but I think the hardest part will be watching everyone scatter. I have some pretty amazing and talented friends, here at DU and elsewhere, and I know they will go on to do wonderful things all around the country and the world (the universe even? Any hopeful astronauts among us?). Of course I am excited to see what the future holds for everyone but I take no shame in my selfishness when I say I am glad that we have another year here in our little bubble together before we must face the real world!
     My friends will do great things, I have no doubts about that. But what the hell am I going to do? Currently, I find myself at a bit of a turning point in my education. I am nearly finished with the requirements for my music major, assuming I don't fail tomorrow's final (which I ought to be studying for at the moment) my biology minor is all but complete, and I have a few classes next year lined up to complete my general education requirments and a second minor in psychology. I feel like I am at a point of transition where my music studies have to go on the back burner as I turn my attention to science. I love science and I am excited to pursue it further in the future but as I finished my last required musicology final yesterday I was shocked to realize how fast the 2 years of required musicology classes flew by and how much I had come to enjoy a subject that I had previously known absolutely nothing about. In my last year here at DU I am lucky enough to have the freedom to fill my schedule with pretty much whatever interests me which I could not be more excited about but what comes next? Next I suppose it's specialization, more schooling, more degrees? I find myself torn between science and music, my two loves with the hope that they can be reconciled in my future. I hate the thought of having to choose one over the other. Maybe I'll just travel with the circus until I can sort it out.
     I don't know which I would choose but I hope I never really have to. For now all I know is that I have another year of learning ahead of me and then... well, more learning. One day I will have to stop being a student but I do not intend to let that stop me learning. So here's to it, a wonderful year and another to come!