Starfish (Rifters Trilogy)
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Community Reviews
Starfish (Rifters #1)
by Peter Watts
My take:
The story is often creepy and has suspense that borders on horror at times. Very interesting science fiction elements. Bioengineered humans living on the bottom of the ocean is a premise that is unforgettable.
Several things that stuck with me: they gave one of the main characters false memories of child molestation. They accidentally programed neural net computers to prefer simplicity over complexity. And finally the idea of a form of life that living only at the deep sea vents that could out compete everything on earth if it were to make it to the surface.
Style:
Third person present tense. Maybe the only third person present tense I can think of.
Characters:
Lenie Clark - crew on Beebe
Jennette Ballard- crew on Beebe
Ken Lubin - crew on Beebe
Gerry Fisher - crew on Beebe; pedophile, arrested and recruited
Judy Caraco - crew on Beebe
Brander- crew on Beebe
Alice Nakata- crew on Beebe
Acton - crew on Beebe, replacement for Gerry Fisher
Kevin
Dr Scanlan -
Patricia Rowan -
Joel Kita - runs a tourist bathoscaphe.
Story:
The story opens on Beebe station deep under the ocean near Juan de Fuca Ridge. They are their to get a geothermal power station online. The tone is tense and ominous as Lenie Clark and Jennette are all alone and out of touch with the station up top. There are quakes, creaks and groans of the station, and the ever present thumping of the under sea creature hiring the hull.
Early in the story, Ken Lubin replaces Ballard.
Soon after Ken Lubin arrives, a full crew is sent down. Much of the book details their life on the sea floor. Maintenance, going out, tremors, encounters with the fauna, etc., but it is mostly about the characters as they sort of go mad in a horror movie sort of way. They are all more than a little crazy to start with (that is a premise that they were chosen because they are so damaged and or crazy).
Gerry Fisher wanders away to live out in deep - apparently he can. The deeps seems to call to some of them and they even sleep out in it. Some never coming back into the base.
When Dr. Scanlan comes down for an extended observational visit, they seem all the more bizarre from his point of view. They are reckless and antisocial to say the least. He refers to them as vampires. He is surprised to find that Fisher is still alive, having lived out in the deep for seven months. He realizes they have all âgone nativeâ and wonât want to come back up. He also realizes that some of them at least were artificially psychologically damaged.
Near the end of the story, the story completely changes and becomes about a quarantine - first of Judy Caraco and then of Dr Scanlan. It become apparent that something is happening outside of the scope of the story so far. The characters on Beebe have been so isolated, so cut off that the change in focus is jarring.
Also of note, the chapters above are in past tense instead of the present tense of the scenes below which comprise most of the book. It is nearly 80 % into the book that we hear that the quarantine is about âsomething from belowâ but the treat is really vague.
Until the end of the book there is also very little focus on what is called âsmart gelâ or alternatively âhead cheeseâ which is a sort of learning computing system. It is mentioned a few times.
The rifters figure out that there is a bomb with a computer doing simulation on the damage a tremor would cause. The assumption is that they are trying to prevent quakes, but one of them supposes what if they are calculating the least amount of damage they can expect from setting off a quake that would destroy the rift?
At the same time they figure this out (or speculate it), Rowan explains it all to Scanlan who is still in quarantine. They have discovered an ancient form of life at the rift that could potentially infect the rest of the world and out compete everything else. Currently contained in the environment around the rift, humans could bring it up. They name it âbeta lifeâ and it is already out (brought up by construction crew of Beebe) but they are trying to contain it. They gave control of the containment protocols to a smart gel.
It was the smart gel that ordered the installation that is currently running simulations that the rifters discovered.
The trouble that Dr Scanlan figures out, and then the reader is let in on via a POV of the gel, is that the gel was in charge of disinfecting the net. That is eliminating viruses and protecting data files. The trouble is that viruses are complicated every changing bits of evolving code. Data is simple. Structured. From the gels POV simple is always better. That is the deepest and most immutable reenforced pattern it has. And the beta life is simple. The gel was asked to make a decision between the entire biosphere of the earth and the beta life.
They figure that out too late to stop the detonation that was supposed to destroy the life at the rift with âacceptable lossâ to the rest of the world.
Lenie Clark escapes to the surface and the story ends on that cliff hanger.
by Peter Watts
My take:
The story is often creepy and has suspense that borders on horror at times. Very interesting science fiction elements. Bioengineered humans living on the bottom of the ocean is a premise that is unforgettable.
Several things that stuck with me: they gave one of the main characters false memories of child molestation. They accidentally programed neural net computers to prefer simplicity over complexity. And finally the idea of a form of life that living only at the deep sea vents that could out compete everything on earth if it were to make it to the surface.
Style:
Third person present tense. Maybe the only third person present tense I can think of.
Characters:
Lenie Clark - crew on Beebe
Jennette Ballard- crew on Beebe
Ken Lubin - crew on Beebe
Gerry Fisher - crew on Beebe; pedophile, arrested and recruited
Judy Caraco - crew on Beebe
Brander- crew on Beebe
Alice Nakata- crew on Beebe
Acton - crew on Beebe, replacement for Gerry Fisher
Kevin
Dr Scanlan -
Patricia Rowan -
Joel Kita - runs a tourist bathoscaphe.
Story:
The story opens on Beebe station deep under the ocean near Juan de Fuca Ridge. They are their to get a geothermal power station online. The tone is tense and ominous as Lenie Clark and Jennette are all alone and out of touch with the station up top. There are quakes, creaks and groans of the station, and the ever present thumping of the under sea creature hiring the hull.
Early in the story, Ken Lubin replaces Ballard.
Soon after Ken Lubin arrives, a full crew is sent down. Much of the book details their life on the sea floor. Maintenance, going out, tremors, encounters with the fauna, etc., but it is mostly about the characters as they sort of go mad in a horror movie sort of way. They are all more than a little crazy to start with (that is a premise that they were chosen because they are so damaged and or crazy).
Gerry Fisher wanders away to live out in deep - apparently he can. The deeps seems to call to some of them and they even sleep out in it. Some never coming back into the base.
When Dr. Scanlan comes down for an extended observational visit, they seem all the more bizarre from his point of view. They are reckless and antisocial to say the least. He refers to them as vampires. He is surprised to find that Fisher is still alive, having lived out in the deep for seven months. He realizes they have all âgone nativeâ and wonât want to come back up. He also realizes that some of them at least were artificially psychologically damaged.
Near the end of the story, the story completely changes and becomes about a quarantine - first of Judy Caraco and then of Dr Scanlan. It become apparent that something is happening outside of the scope of the story so far. The characters on Beebe have been so isolated, so cut off that the change in focus is jarring.
Also of note, the chapters above are in past tense instead of the present tense of the scenes below which comprise most of the book. It is nearly 80 % into the book that we hear that the quarantine is about âsomething from belowâ but the treat is really vague.
Until the end of the book there is also very little focus on what is called âsmart gelâ or alternatively âhead cheeseâ which is a sort of learning computing system. It is mentioned a few times.
The rifters figure out that there is a bomb with a computer doing simulation on the damage a tremor would cause. The assumption is that they are trying to prevent quakes, but one of them supposes what if they are calculating the least amount of damage they can expect from setting off a quake that would destroy the rift?
At the same time they figure this out (or speculate it), Rowan explains it all to Scanlan who is still in quarantine. They have discovered an ancient form of life at the rift that could potentially infect the rest of the world and out compete everything else. Currently contained in the environment around the rift, humans could bring it up. They name it âbeta lifeâ and it is already out (brought up by construction crew of Beebe) but they are trying to contain it. They gave control of the containment protocols to a smart gel.
It was the smart gel that ordered the installation that is currently running simulations that the rifters discovered.
The trouble that Dr Scanlan figures out, and then the reader is let in on via a POV of the gel, is that the gel was in charge of disinfecting the net. That is eliminating viruses and protecting data files. The trouble is that viruses are complicated every changing bits of evolving code. Data is simple. Structured. From the gels POV simple is always better. That is the deepest and most immutable reenforced pattern it has. And the beta life is simple. The gel was asked to make a decision between the entire biosphere of the earth and the beta life.
They figure that out too late to stop the detonation that was supposed to destroy the life at the rift with âacceptable lossâ to the rest of the world.
Lenie Clark escapes to the surface and the story ends on that cliff hanger.
Starfish (Rifters #1)
by Peter Watts
My take:
The story is often creepy and has suspense that borders on horror at times. Very interesting science fiction elements. Bioengineered humans living on the bottom of the ocean is a premise that is unforgettable.
Several things that stuck with me: they gave one of the main characters false memories of child molestation. They accidentally programed neural net computers to prefer simplicity over complexity. And finally the idea of a form of life that living only at the deep sea vents that could out compete everything on earth if it were to make it to the surface.
Style:
Third person present tense. Maybe the only third person present tense I can think of.
Characters:
Lenie Clark - crew on Beebe
Jennette Ballard- crew on Beebe
Ken Lubin - crew on Beebe
Gerry Fisher - crew on Beebe; pedophile, arrested and recruited
Judy Caraco - crew on Beebe
Brander- crew on Beebe
Alice Nakata- crew on Beebe
Acton - crew on Beebe, replacement for Gerry Fisher
Kevin
Dr Scanlan -
Patricia Rowan -
Joel Kita - runs a tourist bathoscaphe.
Story:
The story opens on Beebe station deep under the ocean near Juan de Fuca Ridge. They are their to get a geothermal power station online. The tone is tense and ominous as Lenie Clark and Jennette are all alone and out of touch with the station up top. There are quakes, creaks and groans of the station, and the ever present thumping of the under sea creature hiring the hull.
Early in the story, Ken Lubin replaces Ballard.
Soon after Ken Lubin arrives, a full crew is sent down. Much of the book details their life on the sea floor. Maintenance, going out, tremors, encounters with the fauna, etc., but it is mostly about the characters as they sort of go mad in a horror movie sort of way. They are all more than a little crazy to start with (that is a premise that they were chosen because they are so damaged and or crazy).
Gerry Fisher wanders away to live out in deep - apparently he can. The deeps seems to call to some of them and they even sleep out in it. Some never coming back into the base.
When Dr. Scanlan comes down for an extended observational visit, they seem all the more bizarre from his point of view. They are reckless and antisocial to say the least. He refers to them as vampires. He is surprised to find that Fisher is still alive, having lived out in the deep for seven months. He realizes they have all âgone nativeâ and wonât want to come back up. He also realizes that some of them at least were artificially psychologically damaged.
Near the end of the story, the story completely changes and becomes about a quarantine - first of Judy Caraco and then of Dr Scanlan. It become apparent that something is happening outside of the scope of the story so far. The characters on Beebe have been so isolated, so cut off that the change in focus is jarring.
Also of note, the chapters above are in past tense instead of the present tense of the scenes below which comprise most of the book. It is nearly 80 % into the book that we hear that the quarantine is about âsomething from belowâ but the treat is really vague.
Until the end of the book there is also very little focus on what is called âsmart gelâ or alternatively âhead cheeseâ which is a sort of learning computing system. It is mentioned a few times.
The rifters figure out that there is a bomb with a computer doing simulation on the damage a tremor would cause. The assumption is that they are trying to prevent quakes, but one of them supposes what if they are calculating the least amount of damage they can expect from setting off a quake that would destroy the rift?
At the same time they figure this out (or speculate it), Rowan explains it all to Scanlan who is still in quarantine. They have discovered an ancient form of life at the rift that could potentially infect the rest of the world and out compete everything else. Currently contained in the environment around the rift, humans could bring it up. They name it âbeta lifeâ and it is already out (brought up by construction crew of Beebe) but they are trying to contain it. They gave control of the containment protocols to a smart gel.
It was the smart gel that ordered the installation that is currently running simulations that the rifters discovered.
The trouble that Dr Scanlan figures out, and then the reader is let in on via a POV of the gel, is that the gel was in charge of disinfecting the net. That is eliminating viruses and protecting data files. The trouble is that viruses are complicated every changing bits of evolving code. Data is simple. Structured. From the gels POV simple is always better. That is the deepest and most immutable reenforced pattern it has. And the beta life is simple. The gel was asked to make a decision between the entire biosphere of the earth and the beta life.
They figure that out too late to stop the detonation that was supposed to destroy the life at the rift with âacceptable lossâ to the rest of the world.
Lenie Clark escapes to the surface and the story ends on that cliff hanger.
by Peter Watts
My take:
The story is often creepy and has suspense that borders on horror at times. Very interesting science fiction elements. Bioengineered humans living on the bottom of the ocean is a premise that is unforgettable.
Several things that stuck with me: they gave one of the main characters false memories of child molestation. They accidentally programed neural net computers to prefer simplicity over complexity. And finally the idea of a form of life that living only at the deep sea vents that could out compete everything on earth if it were to make it to the surface.
Style:
Third person present tense. Maybe the only third person present tense I can think of.
Characters:
Lenie Clark - crew on Beebe
Jennette Ballard- crew on Beebe
Ken Lubin - crew on Beebe
Gerry Fisher - crew on Beebe; pedophile, arrested and recruited
Judy Caraco - crew on Beebe
Brander- crew on Beebe
Alice Nakata- crew on Beebe
Acton - crew on Beebe, replacement for Gerry Fisher
Kevin
Dr Scanlan -
Patricia Rowan -
Joel Kita - runs a tourist bathoscaphe.
Story:
The story opens on Beebe station deep under the ocean near Juan de Fuca Ridge. They are their to get a geothermal power station online. The tone is tense and ominous as Lenie Clark and Jennette are all alone and out of touch with the station up top. There are quakes, creaks and groans of the station, and the ever present thumping of the under sea creature hiring the hull.
Early in the story, Ken Lubin replaces Ballard.
Soon after Ken Lubin arrives, a full crew is sent down. Much of the book details their life on the sea floor. Maintenance, going out, tremors, encounters with the fauna, etc., but it is mostly about the characters as they sort of go mad in a horror movie sort of way. They are all more than a little crazy to start with (that is a premise that they were chosen because they are so damaged and or crazy).
Gerry Fisher wanders away to live out in deep - apparently he can. The deeps seems to call to some of them and they even sleep out in it. Some never coming back into the base.
When Dr. Scanlan comes down for an extended observational visit, they seem all the more bizarre from his point of view. They are reckless and antisocial to say the least. He refers to them as vampires. He is surprised to find that Fisher is still alive, having lived out in the deep for seven months. He realizes they have all âgone nativeâ and wonât want to come back up. He also realizes that some of them at least were artificially psychologically damaged.
Near the end of the story, the story completely changes and becomes about a quarantine - first of Judy Caraco and then of Dr Scanlan. It become apparent that something is happening outside of the scope of the story so far. The characters on Beebe have been so isolated, so cut off that the change in focus is jarring.
Also of note, the chapters above are in past tense instead of the present tense of the scenes below which comprise most of the book. It is nearly 80 % into the book that we hear that the quarantine is about âsomething from belowâ but the treat is really vague.
Until the end of the book there is also very little focus on what is called âsmart gelâ or alternatively âhead cheeseâ which is a sort of learning computing system. It is mentioned a few times.
The rifters figure out that there is a bomb with a computer doing simulation on the damage a tremor would cause. The assumption is that they are trying to prevent quakes, but one of them supposes what if they are calculating the least amount of damage they can expect from setting off a quake that would destroy the rift?
At the same time they figure this out (or speculate it), Rowan explains it all to Scanlan who is still in quarantine. They have discovered an ancient form of life at the rift that could potentially infect the rest of the world and out compete everything else. Currently contained in the environment around the rift, humans could bring it up. They name it âbeta lifeâ and it is already out (brought up by construction crew of Beebe) but they are trying to contain it. They gave control of the containment protocols to a smart gel.
It was the smart gel that ordered the installation that is currently running simulations that the rifters discovered.
The trouble that Dr Scanlan figures out, and then the reader is let in on via a POV of the gel, is that the gel was in charge of disinfecting the net. That is eliminating viruses and protecting data files. The trouble is that viruses are complicated every changing bits of evolving code. Data is simple. Structured. From the gels POV simple is always better. That is the deepest and most immutable reenforced pattern it has. And the beta life is simple. The gel was asked to make a decision between the entire biosphere of the earth and the beta life.
They figure that out too late to stop the detonation that was supposed to destroy the life at the rift with âacceptable lossâ to the rest of the world.
Lenie Clark escapes to the surface and the story ends on that cliff hanger.
Starfish (Rifters #1)
by Peter Watts
My take:
The story is often creepy and has suspense that borders on horror at times. Very interesting science fiction elements. Bioengineered humans living on the bottom of the ocean is a premise that is unforgettable.
Several things that stuck with me: they gave one of the main characters false memories of child molestation. They accidentally programed neural net computers to prefer simplicity over complexity. And finally the idea of a form of life that living only at the deep sea vents that could out compete everything on earth if it were to make it to the surface.
Style:
Third person present tense. Maybe the only third person present tense I can think of.
Characters:
Lenie Clark - crew on Beebe
Jennette Ballard- crew on Beebe
Ken Lubin - crew on Beebe
Gerry Fisher - crew on Beebe; pedophile, arrested and recruited
Judy Caraco - crew on Beebe
Brander- crew on Beebe
Alice Nakata- crew on Beebe
Acton - crew on Beebe, replacement for Gerry Fisher
Kevin
Dr Scanlan -
Patricia Rowan -
Joel Kita - runs a tourist bathoscaphe.
Story:
The story opens on Beebe station deep under the ocean near Juan de Fuca Ridge. They are their to get a geothermal power station online. The tone is tense and ominous as Lenie Clark and Jennette are all alone and out of touch with the station up top. There are quakes, creaks and groans of the station, and the ever present thumping of the under sea creature hiring the hull.
Early in the story, Ken Lubin replaces Ballard.
Soon after Ken Lubin arrives, a full crew is sent down. Much of the book details their life on the sea floor. Maintenance, going out, tremors, encounters with the fauna, etc., but it is mostly about the characters as they sort of go mad in a horror movie sort of way. They are all more than a little crazy to start with (that is a premise that they were chosen because they are so damaged and or crazy).
Gerry Fisher wanders away to live out in deep - apparently he can. The deeps seems to call to some of them and they even sleep out in it. Some never coming back into the base.
When Dr. Scanlan comes down for an extended observational visit, they seem all the more bizarre from his point of view. They are reckless and antisocial to say the least. He refers to them as vampires. He is surprised to find that Fisher is still alive, having lived out in the deep for seven months. He realizes they have all âgone nativeâ and wonât want to come back up. He also realizes that some of them at least were artificially psychologically damaged.
Near the end of the story, the story completely changes and becomes about a quarantine - first of Judy Caraco and then of Dr Scanlan. It become apparent that something is happening outside of the scope of the story so far. The characters on Beebe have been so isolated, so cut off that the change in focus is jarring.
Also of note, the chapters above are in past tense instead of the present tense of the scenes below which comprise most of the book. It is nearly 80 % into the book that we hear that the quarantine is about âsomething from belowâ but the treat is really vague.
Until the end of the book there is also very little focus on what is called âsmart gelâ or alternatively âhead cheeseâ which is a sort of learning computing system. It is mentioned a few times.
The rifters figure out that there is a bomb with a computer doing simulation on the damage a tremor would cause. The assumption is that they are trying to prevent quakes, but one of them supposes what if they are calculating the least amount of damage they can expect from setting off a quake that would destroy the rift?
At the same time they figure this out (or speculate it), Rowan explains it all to Scanlan who is still in quarantine. They have discovered an ancient form of life at the rift that could potentially infect the rest of the world and out compete everything else. Currently contained in the environment around the rift, humans could bring it up. They name it âbeta lifeâ and it is already out (brought up by construction crew of Beebe) but they are trying to contain it. They gave control of the containment protocols to a smart gel.
It was the smart gel that ordered the installation that is currently running simulations that the rifters discovered.
The trouble that Dr Scanlan figures out, and then the reader is let in on via a POV of the gel, is that the gel was in charge of disinfecting the net. That is eliminating viruses and protecting data files. The trouble is that viruses are complicated every changing bits of evolving code. Data is simple. Structured. From the gels POV simple is always better. That is the deepest and most immutable reenforced pattern it has. And the beta life is simple. The gel was asked to make a decision between the entire biosphere of the earth and the beta life.
They figure that out too late to stop the detonation that was supposed to destroy the life at the rift with âacceptable lossâ to the rest of the world.
Lenie Clark escapes to the surface and the story ends on that cliff hanger.
by Peter Watts
My take:
The story is often creepy and has suspense that borders on horror at times. Very interesting science fiction elements. Bioengineered humans living on the bottom of the ocean is a premise that is unforgettable.
Several things that stuck with me: they gave one of the main characters false memories of child molestation. They accidentally programed neural net computers to prefer simplicity over complexity. And finally the idea of a form of life that living only at the deep sea vents that could out compete everything on earth if it were to make it to the surface.
Style:
Third person present tense. Maybe the only third person present tense I can think of.
Characters:
Lenie Clark - crew on Beebe
Jennette Ballard- crew on Beebe
Ken Lubin - crew on Beebe
Gerry Fisher - crew on Beebe; pedophile, arrested and recruited
Judy Caraco - crew on Beebe
Brander- crew on Beebe
Alice Nakata- crew on Beebe
Acton - crew on Beebe, replacement for Gerry Fisher
Kevin
Dr Scanlan -
Patricia Rowan -
Joel Kita - runs a tourist bathoscaphe.
Story:
The story opens on Beebe station deep under the ocean near Juan de Fuca Ridge. They are their to get a geothermal power station online. The tone is tense and ominous as Lenie Clark and Jennette are all alone and out of touch with the station up top. There are quakes, creaks and groans of the station, and the ever present thumping of the under sea creature hiring the hull.
Early in the story, Ken Lubin replaces Ballard.
Soon after Ken Lubin arrives, a full crew is sent down. Much of the book details their life on the sea floor. Maintenance, going out, tremors, encounters with the fauna, etc., but it is mostly about the characters as they sort of go mad in a horror movie sort of way. They are all more than a little crazy to start with (that is a premise that they were chosen because they are so damaged and or crazy).
Gerry Fisher wanders away to live out in deep - apparently he can. The deeps seems to call to some of them and they even sleep out in it. Some never coming back into the base.
When Dr. Scanlan comes down for an extended observational visit, they seem all the more bizarre from his point of view. They are reckless and antisocial to say the least. He refers to them as vampires. He is surprised to find that Fisher is still alive, having lived out in the deep for seven months. He realizes they have all âgone nativeâ and wonât want to come back up. He also realizes that some of them at least were artificially psychologically damaged.
Near the end of the story, the story completely changes and becomes about a quarantine - first of Judy Caraco and then of Dr Scanlan. It become apparent that something is happening outside of the scope of the story so far. The characters on Beebe have been so isolated, so cut off that the change in focus is jarring.
Also of note, the chapters above are in past tense instead of the present tense of the scenes below which comprise most of the book. It is nearly 80 % into the book that we hear that the quarantine is about âsomething from belowâ but the treat is really vague.
Until the end of the book there is also very little focus on what is called âsmart gelâ or alternatively âhead cheeseâ which is a sort of learning computing system. It is mentioned a few times.
The rifters figure out that there is a bomb with a computer doing simulation on the damage a tremor would cause. The assumption is that they are trying to prevent quakes, but one of them supposes what if they are calculating the least amount of damage they can expect from setting off a quake that would destroy the rift?
At the same time they figure this out (or speculate it), Rowan explains it all to Scanlan who is still in quarantine. They have discovered an ancient form of life at the rift that could potentially infect the rest of the world and out compete everything else. Currently contained in the environment around the rift, humans could bring it up. They name it âbeta lifeâ and it is already out (brought up by construction crew of Beebe) but they are trying to contain it. They gave control of the containment protocols to a smart gel.
It was the smart gel that ordered the installation that is currently running simulations that the rifters discovered.
The trouble that Dr Scanlan figures out, and then the reader is let in on via a POV of the gel, is that the gel was in charge of disinfecting the net. That is eliminating viruses and protecting data files. The trouble is that viruses are complicated every changing bits of evolving code. Data is simple. Structured. From the gels POV simple is always better. That is the deepest and most immutable reenforced pattern it has. And the beta life is simple. The gel was asked to make a decision between the entire biosphere of the earth and the beta life.
They figure that out too late to stop the detonation that was supposed to destroy the life at the rift with âacceptable lossâ to the rest of the world.
Lenie Clark escapes to the surface and the story ends on that cliff hanger.
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