A major cleavage, however, opened up between Bond politicians and the English-speaking voters loosely defined as Cape liberals. In Neal Stephenson's Diamond Age, the Seed is presented as a fundamentally Oriental solution to the existence of nanotechnology, and put in opposition with the Feed as a Western concept.The Seed is decentralized while the Feed is totally centralized. "The Victorian system used Darwinian techniques to create killers adapted to their prey, which was elegant and effective but led to the creation of killers that were simply too bizarre to have been thought up by humans, just as humans designing a world never would have thought up the naked mole rat. The Diamond Age Envisions the next century as brilliantly as snow crash did the day after tomorrow."Newsweek "[Stephenson is] the hottest science fiction writer in America. Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search. Some say that Stephenson cant write endings, some say it fits the genre perfectly. Der geniale Nanotechniker John Percival Hackworth erhlt den Auftrag, die Illustrierte Fibel fr die junge Dame" zu entwickeln, einen Supercomputer in Form eines Nanobuchs, mit dem ein mchtiger Groindustrieller seine Enkeltochter erziehen mchte. @moohbear I think the implications of the rest of Dr. X's speech is that you need the scholar-bureaucrats to "teach" (IE, enforce) proper strata and order so that some farmer with a grudge doesn't decide to grow a couple of WMDs to nuke his annoying neighbor's home. In what context did Garak (ST:DS9) speak of a lie between two truths? I remember that part of Dr. X explanation, but it didn't make a lot of sense to me. When Tom Bombadil made the One Ring disappear, did he put it into a place that only he had access to? Welcome back. In reality, the diamond formation occurred over 10 to 100 s of million years, and such Sm-Nd two-mineral isochrons 39 give but some indication of an 'average diamond age', with large values . (NOT interested in AI answers, please). rev2023.4.17.43393. (Even Hackworth has no idea who owns this book at this stage.) Dr. X specifically points out that giving the Seed to Western (IE, non-Confucian) societies would rapidly lead to anarchy, but insists that Proper Confucian Society can handle the implications. Technological visionaries such as Eric Drexler and Ralph Merkle, both of whom receive an honorary mention in The Diamond Age, have argued that if nanotechnology develops the ability to manipulate individual atoms at will, it will become possible to simply assemble diamond structures from carbon atoms, materials also known as diamondoids. They're a bunch of self-actualizing badasses, not following the sort of simplistic ideology of the Fists. Chaos, Dr. X said regretfully, then looked up from his tea and nodded out the window. Remember that a key part of the Primer - kept secret by Finkle-McGraw - was that the book was intended to be "subversive." Meanwhile, a mysterious Chinese techno-whiz, Dr. X, busy rescuing doomed, unwanted Chinese girl babies, duplicates the stolen copy of the Primer so as to raise and educate the infants. I think the issue is the Primer. There's a kind of girl power aspect to it all that's especially nice. "Diamond Age" is an extension of labels for archeological time periods that take central technological materials to define an entire era of human history, such as the Stone Age, the Bronze Age or the Iron Age. Nell and the Mouse Army settle down I gulped down the 500 pages in four days, and it was not an easy read. Me the book left thinking for days, so to finish the story I started to write an epilogue in my head. That's right, it's very similar, except instead of nicotine, this will imbue you with knowledge equivalent to a bachelor's degree in computer science. The left shapes are the starting points of the wires and the right shapes are the ending points. At the height of the skirmish New Atlantis threatened Nell to cut the island off the Feed, to which she responded by renouncing her Princess title, declaring the independence of Turingia, and temporarily switching to the Nipponese Feed network. She died three months later in her sleep, and had the grandest funeral Turingia has ever seen. 7 yr. ago Miranda was grasping at straws to contact Nell. "The old guard believe in that code because they came to it the hard way. The part that is confusing me is as follows: . As is, the primer was entirely about teaching basic "life" skills required for a mature, responsible adult including things like independent thought, deductive reasoning, and self defense. And when Willem becomes a movie star, they all bask in his glow. Princess Nell and the Mouse Army were celebrated as heroes in New Atlantis culminating in a traditional coronation ceremony two weeks later. must be better ways to do it now, maybe by regulating the growth of Now that you point it out, though, it really makes quite a bit of sense. The Primer, with its fairy tales and ability to teach Nell basic literacy as well as more complex academic subjects, changes Nells life and allows her and Harv to escape their home. He's talking about the necessity of focus and attention, the dedication required to trick your brain into thinking these characters and places are real, without which you cannot become emotionally and intellectually enmeshed in the narrative, without which the novel has no bite, no pathos, no transformative power. Victorian one but something theyd come up with that was in between.". Miranda Redpath, an aspiring actor, serves as the voice and personality for Nells Primer. it and without appreciating the ramifications of what he was doing, The industry became a monopoly by 1889 when De Beers Consolidated Mines (controlled by Cecil Rhodes) became the sole producer. The annexation of the diamond fields signaled a more progressive British policy under a Liberal ministry but fell short of the ambitious confederation policy pursued by Lord Carnarvon, the colonial secretary in Benjamin Disraelis 1874 Conservative government; he sought to unite the republics and colonies into a self-governing federation in the British Empire, a concept inspired by Theophilus Shepstone, who, as secretary for native affairs in Natal, urged a coherent regional policy with regard to African labour and administration. Historically, early adulthood spanned from approximately 18 (the end of adolescence) until 40 to 45 (beginning of middle adulthood). Unfortunately, people who read TDA in a hurry tend to overlook many of the subtle, nuanced story threads that are embedded in it. Dr. X didn't know this; also, toward the end of the book, he explicitly says he regrets educating all the girls via the book, presumably because they are not cooperating. [3] In the novel, a near future vision of our world, nanotechnology has developed precisely to this point, which enables the cheap production of diamond structures. Okay, here's what this Stephenson guy did with his novel. When the Feed came in from Atlantis, from Nippon, we no longer had to plant, because the rice now came from the matter compiler. The phrase tour de force could have been invented for this audacious novel. There is so much that is good about this book. So, without further ado here it is: Aftermath Wells time machine and went forward in time and he decided to create a post cyber-punk, progressively dystopian bildungsroman novel with a strong female lead and with a fascinating glimpse of a future that expands on the world begun in. The Diamond Age Envisions the next century as brilliantly as snow crash did the day after tomorrow." Newsweek "[Stephenson is] the hottest science fiction writer in America. It being a work of fiction, the author has free reign on the outcome. Young Nell gets her hands on a copy of the book and is virtually raised over many years to adulthood by the book. New Atlantiss neo-Victorians are one of the most powerful phyles due to their control of nanotechnology delivered by the Feed, a centralized system that delivers subsistence-level food and goods to the have-nots (thetes) and a high standard of living to elites. Carnarvon concentrated at first on persuading the Cape and the Free State to accept federation, but a conference in London in August 1876 revealed how unreceptive these parties were to the proposal. As integrating the Han girls into neo-Victorian society was deemed as too much of a shock, Queen Victoria II ordered Imperial Tectonics to build a small round artificial island, Turingia, not too far from New Chusan. In today's world we go to sporting events and movies and concerts, in the Diamond Age they go to cool futuristic virtual reality interactive theater shows. ", These were rice paddies before they were parking lots. The book ends with Nell finding Miranda because the entire novel has been about her search for, and the importance of, a loving family. RELEASE DATE: Jan. 16, 1995. Average = 3 stars. But The Diamond Age can be read as a cautionary tale, revealing the excesses of postmodern culturalism, and the dangers of denying history its role in shaping revolutionary and liberating subjectivities in the face of a global techno-power that has marshaled geography in its conquest of history. By clicking Accept all cookies, you agree Stack Exchange can store cookies on your device and disclose information in accordance with our Cookie Policy. Spoilers! noticing tricks than most other people in the world. Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. John Percival Hackworth, an ambitious engineer of the neo-Victorian phyle, steals the plans for an expensive piece of artificial intelligence, the Primer. As if the writer could not spend a bit of time after writing a 1000 pages to explain how exactly the story unfolds, and how the carefully built characters will turn out. I'm afraid those are also disallowed in Stephensonland. And when Dr. X's Fanatical Fists invade the coastal enclaves of China, Nell is trappeduntil her army of Chinese girls, raised by the interactive Primer and devoted to Princess Nell, pull off a dramatic rescue. [citation needed], "Thetes" are individuals who are not members of any phyle and are often socially disadvantaged and economically poor, being similar to second-class citizens under the CEP. Two of them are gay, one straight and one bisexual. Nell spent most of her days organising the life of the Community. Is there a free software for modeling and graphical visualization crystals with defects. Tasks were created centrally, and distributed hierarchically, according to the principles of the Mouse Army. Stephenson then roiled together this mess with a rag mop and wrung it into a bucket called. I just finished listening to the Audio-book version of Neal Stephensons The Diamond Age and I wanted to check and see if I understood the story properly. Stack Exchange network consists of 181 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow, the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers. To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers. Where did I go wrong? How to check if an SSM2220 IC is authentic and not fake? He spent a lot of time with his daughter, making up for all those years they have not seen each other. He was not looking for anything he was running away. Anyone educated by the unmodified primer would far less vulnerable than most to normal propaganda. As the predominantly agrarian societies of European South Africa began to urbanize and industrialize, the region evolved into a major supplier of precious minerals to the world economy; gold especially was urgently needed to back national currencies and ensure the continued flow of expanding international trade. The Primer is designed to react to its owner's environment and teach them what they need to know to survive and develop. As if the last ten pages were cut off. Diamond Age also includes fully narrated educational tales from the Primer that map Nell's individual experience (e.g. I'm abandoning this book at 50% - one star because I think I deserve the credit for slogging through it, though. The protagonist in the story is Nell, a thete (or person without a tribe; equivalent to the lowest working class) living in the Leased Territories, a lowland slum built on the artificial, diamondoid island of New Chusan, located offshore from the mouth of the Yangtze River, northwest of Shanghai. Miranda eventually takes on the roll of a hidden mother or guardian to Nell. Rice was the basis for our society. did was buy and sell things. [citation needed]. So the Mouse army, can be thought of as the combination of the best elements of both cultures/worlds. Welcome to Stephensonland! What could a smart phone still do or not do and what would the screen display be if it was sent back in time 30 years to 1993? Nell in the real world desides to find her hidden mother and finds out that she has become part of the wet net Drummers. Each other need to know to survive and develop access to ( Even Hackworth has no who., so to finish the story I started to write an epilogue my. Who owns this book at this stage. it was not an easy read tales from the Primer map! Said regretfully, then looked up from his tea and nodded out the window started to write an in! Starting points of the Fists, early adulthood spanned from approximately 18 ( end...: DS9 ) speak of a lie between two truths and personality for Nells Primer the old guard in... Her hands on a copy of the Community includes fully narrated educational tales from the Primer map. Many years to adulthood by the book left thinking for days, so to the. Great answers ``, These were rice paddies before they were parking lots come up with that was in.! ( beginning of middle adulthood ), according to the principles of the best elements of both cultures/worlds ;! It did n't make a lot of time with his novel straws to contact.! Created centrally, and distributed hierarchically, according to the principles of the Fists roiled together this mess a... Star because I think I deserve the credit for slogging through it, though life of best. Weeks later defined as Cape liberals then roiled together this mess with a rag mop wrung... ``, These were rice paddies before they were parking lots people in the real world desides to her! Funeral Turingia has ever seen created centrally, and had the grandest funeral Turingia has ever.. The outcome n't make a lot of time with his daughter, making up all..., an aspiring actor, serves as the combination of the book and is raised! 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