I had thought that this story, although it has a fully consistent Psychotechnic History background, was incompatible with the rest of the series because it ends with its protagonist, Dunham, returning to civilization with a matter duplicator which would completely revolutionize society yet is not mentioned anywhere else in the series.
However, according to the Chronology, "Symmetry," the second last title in the list, is set in the 3100s and the Third Dark Ages, when a lot of technology could well have been lost, began in 3200. The only remaining instalment, "The Chapter Ends," is set tens of thousands of years later and there is an argument to the effect that it does not belong in the series in any case.
Thus, maybe Dunham died in an accident before returning to civilization or maybe his discovery did revolutionize part of the Galaxy for a while before the current civilization came to an end in any case.
I think that "Symmetry" can stay where it is in the Chronology.
5 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
The oddity of that non-re-occurrence of the matter duplicator is a possible weakness in the Psychotechnic series.
Ad astra! Sean
Sean,
But, as I now argue, Symmetry" is placed so late in the Chronology that maybe that does not matter.
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
I also think it's an indication of how and why Anderson became so dissatisfied with the Psychotechnic series.
Ad astra! Sean
I recall stories by authors other than Anderson in which some sort of matter duplicator is discovered.
In these stories this is so disruptive to economies, that a total rearrangement of society is necessary.
Perhaps Anderson though one possibility was that the rearrangement was handled poorly, leading to the 3rd Dark Age, possibly with the loss of the technology of matter duplication.
Kaor, Jim!
That makes more sense than anything I might have suggested!
Ad astra! Sean
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