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Remembrance of Earth's Past
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Wikipedia article
{{Infobox book series
| name = Remembrance of Earth's Past
| title_orig =
| image = Remembrance of Earth's Past trilogy book covers.png
| caption = United States edition book covers by Tor Books. United Kingdom book covers have slightly different designs.
| author = Liu Cixin
| translator = Ken Liu
Joel Martinsen
| books =
| media_type =
| country = China
| language = Mandarin Chinese
| number_of_books= 3
| genre = Hard science fiction and Alien invasion
| publisher = Chongqing Publishing Group
| pub_date = May 2008 November 2010
2011
| english_pub_date=November 11, 2014 September 19, 2016
July 16, 2019
}}
'Remembrance of Earth's Past' is a science fiction series by Chinese writer Liu Cixin. The series is also popularly referred to by the title of its first novel, 'The Three-Body Problem' .
Books
Original trilogy
The books in the 'Remembrance of Earth's Past' trilogy are:* 'The Three-Body Problem' , 2006; English translation by Ken Liu published by Tor Books on November 11, 2014. Also known in Chinese as "I"
* 'The Dark Forest' , 2008; English translation by Joel Martinsen published by Tor Books on August 11, 2015. Also known in Chinese as "II"
* 'Death's End' , November 2010; English translation by Ken Liu published by Tor Books on September 20, 2016 (September 19 in digital stores). Also known in Chinese as "III"
Extended series
* 'The Redemption of Time' , originally posted to an internet forum as fan fiction in 2010 by Li Jun writing as Baoshu, that was later published by Chongqing Press, the original trilogy publisher, with the permission of Cixin Liu in 2011, as 'Three-Body X: Aeon of Contemplation' . It was translated by Ken Liu into English for Tor Books and published on July 16, 2019 as 'The Redemption of Time'.Science fiction concepts
Sophons
Sophons are eleven-dimensional protons generated with Trisolaran particle accelerators. Placed into 2-dimensional space, they are embedded in circuitry to create a supercomputer, and when viewed in 3 dimensional space are typically the size of a proton though they can switch dimensions to change sizes in 3-dimensional space. They can visually record anything and thus their secondary purpose is to act as surveillance devices, beaming the information they gather back to another sophon instantaneously via quantum entanglement. Their primary purpose for their Trisolaran manufacturers is to disrupt Earth's particle accelerators, capable of straying into the paths of fired particles and scrambling the results of experiments before re-assembling, effectively blocking advancement of the science. Since they can move through three-dimensional space at the speed of light, a single sophon is capable of disrupting all of Earth's particle accelerators.
Droplets
Trisolaran space probes are covered in a strong interaction force material. Due to this material, they are stronger than any material in the solar system and thus are impervious to any physical attack. Their propulsion system is capable of moving in any direction in 3D space. Seemingly unaffected by inertia, they can make sudden impossible turns, and their primary method of attack is to simply smash through objects.
Curvature Propulsion
Simplified in a demonstration as a piece of soap attached to a paper boat on water, with the soap reducing the water tension at its end, and the water tension disparity propelling the boat. Traveling through previous paths slows the boat down due to decreased surface tension. Curvature Propulsion is a method of light speed travel that utilizes the same concept, via reducing the speed of light it is possible to drag a ship through space at light speed, while its wake is a reduced light-speed region of space.
Hibernation
Humanity by the time of the Dark Forest has developed cryogenic technology, capable of preserving a human life, unaging, for hundreds of years barring certain genetic disorders. Initially, it is viewed as a sign of inequality before it is fully developed, viewed as a way for the rich to simply skip through the centuries to eras of more advanced technology, peace, and human development. With the advent of the Trisolaran invasion, however, it becomes a near-worthless technology in terms of demand, as people prefer to die naturally in a world still free from Trisolaris rather than skip ahead to doomsday. Because of this, only researchers and certain high-value staff make use of cryogenics to skip through time.
Cosmic sociology
The study of theoretical interactions between cosmic civilizations. This area of study is first proposed by the character Ye Wenjie in conversation with future Wallfacer Luo Ji. Ye Wenjie proposes two axioms of cosmic sociology: "First: Survival is the primary need of civilization. Second: Civilization continuously grows and expands, but the total matter in the universe remains constant." After becoming a Wallfacer, Luo Ji uses the axioms provided by Ye Wenjie to invent the dark forest theory of the universe and the idea of dark forest deterrence to stop the Trisolaran invasion.
Adaptations
'The Three-Body Problem' is a postponed Chinese science fiction 3D film, adapted from 'The Three-Body Problem', directed by Fanfan Zhang, and starring Feng Shaofeng and Zhang Jingchu.
A series based on the trilogy has been ordered by Netflix, with David Benioff, D. B. Weiss, and Alexander Woo set to write and executive produce.
References
See also
* Hobbesian trap
* Hegemonic stability theory
Category:2008 novels
Category:2008 science fiction novels
Category:21st-century Chinese novels
Category:Novels by Liu Cixin
Category:Chinese novels adapted into films
Category:Alien invasions in novels
Category:Hugo Award for Best Novel-winning works
Category:Alpha Centauri in fiction
Category:Novels about the Cultural Revolution
Category:Cryonics in fiction
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