Greetings, Carbon-Based Bipeds! - Hardcover

Clarke, Arthur C.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 000224697X ISBN 13: 9780002246972

Publisher: Voyager, 1999

Synopsis

The most visionary and versatile thinker of this century here gathers together in a single volume his most significant and prophetic nonfiction writings to present a personal view of the twentieth century.

Sir Arthur C Clarke lucidly demonstrates in this beautiful book that he not only anticipated many of the twentieth century’s great inventions and scientific innovations, he also inspired the careers of thousands of scientists, and in fact has shaped our path ahead in to the next millennium.

The reader is swept into the course of events and becomes an active and informed participant rather than a remote bystander. From predicting the role of geosynchronous satellites decades before they existed to his groundbreaking reporting from Kennedy Space Center in the 60s, to anticipating the internet decades before it happened, Clarke has acted both as technological prophet and cultural conscience, celebrating the great scientific powers of man – but simultaneously warning of the perils of a world where power and greed reign unchecked.

Each essay has a new introduction by Clarke to provide perspective. The pieces themselves enable the reader to experience the excitement of taking part in a journey of discovery. Sir Arthur’s bona fide scientific understanding is combined with a generosity of spirit, the interests of a new renaissance man, a sublime lack of false modesty and a great flair for the dramatic.

This is arguably the crowning achievement of an unrivalled personal odyssey that began in England in 1917 and has ascended to the stars. It will very possibly be one of the few uplifting accounts around!

About this title

Review:

The wonderfully titled Greetings, Carbon-Based Bipeds! is a collection taken from Sir Arthur C Clarke's non-fiction writing from over half a century's prolific output. It might seem a rather daunting book at first sight: 110 separate pieces of writing, well over 500 pages, but in fact it's an excellent read, either from beginning to end or simply dipping in at whim.

There are, as might be expected, popular science articles, pieces about space exploration and, of course, science fiction; there are also numerous sideswipes at uninformed UFO believers, spoonbenders, assorted New Agers and Creationists; and there are several fascinating and informative articles on Clarke's great loves, underwater exploration and Ceylon/Sri Lanka.

Clarke completists may already have a few of the pieces in earlier volumes such as Profiles of the Future, but most of them are available in an accessible form for the first time, taken from The Journal of the British Astronomical Society, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, The Times Higher Education Supplement and other similarly disparate sources. A number of Clarke's speeches are also included.

There are numerous references to the film and book 2001: A Space Odyssey. Speaking of the late Stanley Kubrick, Clarke writes, "One of my deepest regrets now is that we will not be able to share the year 2001 together." It's good to see that Clarke, in poor health for some years, is still hard at work. --David V. Barrett

Review:

‘3001 is not just a page-turner, plugged in to the great icons of HAL and the monoliths, but a book of wisdom too, pithy and provocative’
New Scientist

‘He is the prophet of the space age’
The Times

‘Arthur C. Clarke is blessed with one of the most astounding imaginations ever encountered in print’
New York Times

‘One of the truly prophetic figures of the space age... the colossus of science fiction’
New Yorker

About this edition

• Publisher: Voyager
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 000224697X
• ISBN 13: 9780002246972
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 576