"'Our intelligence reports, interrogation of prisoners, evaluation of explorers' observations, and so on, all indicate that three or four different species in this region possess the hyperdrive. The Adderkops themselves aren't certain about all of them. Space is so damned huge.'" (p. 567)
OK. We get it that space is big. But three or four species with hyperdrive? On "'...the very fringe of human civilization...'"? (p. 564) Then how many in the galaxy? Why do they not overlap and interact like the civilization-clusters in Poul Anderson's After Doomsday?
The Aenean rebels exiled by Dominic Flandry flee into another spiral arm. Do they enter another civilization-cluster? Why do exiles or explorers not arrive in known space from further away? Why not some very occasional intergalactic travel?
Intergalactic travel occurs:
8 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
Good questions, some of which I had thought of asking Anderson how he might answer them in one one or two of my letters to him. I could argue, keeping in mind how BIG space is, it's not really too surprising why we don't see beings from truly distant parts of the galaxy.
I suggested some years ago that Nicholas van Rijn might choose as the destination for one last long voyage of exploration going to the Magellanic Clouds, satellite galaxies of the Milky Way. David Birr responded that, according to his calculations of how the Technic hyperdrve FTL system worked, journeying to the Magellanic Clouds would take about thirty years to complete.
Too long for most people to find acceptable. And hyperdrive ships would need to stop sometimes for inspections, overhaulings, repairs, etc. And, even with antisenescence, Old Nick could only hope to live to about 110 if he started his journey of exploration sometime around age 85 to 90.
Ad astra! Sean
Drat. First sentence of my comment above should read, in part: "Good questions, some of which I wish I had thought of asking..."
Sean
I do wonder why the rebels bothered to flee to another spiral arm. Simply traveling 300 light-years in a straight line would take them well beyond the Empire's influence; and Earthlike planets seem to be fairly common. A little scouting would show that they weren't being pursued.
The rebels' settlement would be an interesting eugenic experiment. The average intelligence would be quite high, since being in the crew of a spaceship would require that. Quite varied backgrounds, too. Probably a very high-quality group.
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
I agree, the McCormac rebels would only need to flee 300 or 400 years to both take them beyond involuntary contact with the Empire and any temptation by McCormac to attempt a comeback. I recall Flandry stressing to McCormac the need to go really FAR, and 300-400 light years should be enough.
The Kirkasanters we see in "Starfog" might descend from McCormac rebels who, for whatever reason, split off from the main fleet. Not all of them were likely to stay happy with him!
And since the crews of most of McCormac's flotilla were ex-Imperial Navy personnel, that increases the likelihood of them being high quality and intelligent.
Ada astra! Sean
Sean: that would have interesting consequences.
Whatever it is IQ tests measure, it's important(*) and largely, about 80%, hereditary.
Even allowing for regression to the mean, the baseline IQ of a planetary population derived from Imperial Navy spacefolk would probably be about 125 or more, as opposed to our 100.
That would have unforeseeable circumstances.
All human societies developed in an environment where the overwhelming majority of adults are in the 90-110 IQ range.
If the -minimum- IQ in the hypothetical population was 100, and most of the population was in the 115-125 range, you'd have a different balance of personality types.
If there was grunt-work, for example, who'd do it?
And social rivalries and competition would be something to behold.
(*) as to the importance of IQ, it's the best predicator of lifetime income. The -second- best predicator is your parents' social/economic status.
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
I agree, mostly with these comments. I do think, assuming the McCormac exiles settled mostly on a very terrestroid planet, that would encourage regressing "more" to the mean. A harsh planet, like Kirkasant, would tend more to encouraging intelligence, in those who survived there. Which is what we see in "Starfog."
Ad astra! Sean
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