Saturday 25 January 2020

Twenty Seven Potential Didonian Entities

The Rebel Worlds, CHAPTER ELEVEN.

Three Didonian entities, Cave Discoverer, Harvest Fetcher and Smith, accompany Flandry's 2000 kilometer trek to Port Frederiksen. Their nine units can recombine as, e.g., Iron Miner, Guardian of North Gate or Lightning Struck The House.

If we look back to the opening paragraphs of this novel, we find:

"Make oneness.
"I/we: Feet belonging to Guardian of North Gate and others who can be, to Raft Farer and Woe who will no longer be, to Many Thoughts, Cave Discoverer, and Master of Songs who can no longer be; Wings belonging to Iron Miner and Lightning Struck The House and others to be, to Many Thoughts who can no longer be; young Hands that has yet to share memories: make oneness." (p. 369)

Observations On These Paragraphs
(i) By CHAPTER ELEVEN, several of these designations have become familiar to us.

(ii) In the opening paragraphs, a noga ("Feet") and a krippo ("Wings") educate a ruka ("Hands").

(iii) Guardian of North Gate can be because all three of his units are still alive.

(iv) Raft Farer and Woe will no longer be because it has been decided not to reassemble them - I think.

(v) We already know that Many Thoughts, Cave Discoverer and Master of Songs share their noga and ruka. (See Three Didonians.)

(vi) These three entities can no longer be because their noga, ruka or both are dead.

(vii) Iron Miner, Lightning Struck The House and others are to be because their reassembly is intended.

En route, rukas leave linkage to gather berries while krippos leave linkage to fly as scouts whereas nogas plod forward, carrying equipment:

"Separated, the animals could carry out routine tasks and recognize a need for reunion when it arose." (p. 472)

Imagine:

your hands leave your body to gather fruit;
your eyes fly up to scout;
your body walks, carrying luggage;
while separated, your three sections are unintelligent.

Each of three nogas can link with each of three rukas. Each of these nine two-way linkages can link with each of three krippos. Thus, nine units can potentially form twenty seven entities.

4 comments:

Sean M. Brooks said...

Drat! I wrote a rather complex comment and it failed to upload. This is a test.

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

I will try to recreate the gist of the comment I failed to upload.

The Didonians we see in THE REBEL WORLDS has to be the STRANGEST of all the intelligent non human races Poul Anderson speculated about. But, fascinating as the Didonians were, I can't help but notice what seems to be very serious practical limitations they have to live with.

A fully intelligent Didonian needs a linkage comprising a noga, ruka, and krippo. One thing I've already thought about was how much a RUKA has to do because only that "unit" has functional arms and hands. I've wondered how far medicine and surgery can advance on Dido because I don't think a ruka will be able, due to the need to stay linked with the noga, to adequately examine or perform surgery on other rukas, nogas, and krippos.

Mention was made of the most advanced tribes on Dido mastering metals like iron. But how was it possible for Didonians to mine, smelt, and work metals? It seems to me most of the finer work would have to be done by rukas--and would a ruka not linked with a noga/krippo retain enough intelligence and memories to be able to mine, smelt, and work metals?

Many thoughts, to coin a phrase, like these comes to mind!

Ad astra! Sean

paulshackley2017@gmail.com said...

Sean,
A ruka has to be linked to remain intelligent so there is a problem.
Paul.

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

Many problems! I have to conclude this three way linkup and its practical limitations will make technological advances very, very, very slow and difficult to attain on Dido.

Ad astra! Sean