Book Review: How to Kill an Asteroid: The Real Science of Planetary Defense by Robin George Andrews

Cover of the book How to Kill an Asteroid: The Real Science of Planetary Defense by Robin George Andrews — *How to Kill an Asteroid: The Real Science of Planetary Defense*
by Robin George Andrews
Norton, 2024

This review was first published by Booklist on September 1, 2024.

**STARRED REVIEW** It’s impossible to prevent most natural disasters. The exceptions to this are asteroid and comet strikes—stopping cosmic impacts is possible and could save literally billions of lives. Framed around an account of NASA’s recent DART mission (Double Asteroid Redirection Test), Andrews takes readers on an exciting tour of how the science of planetary defense was born and where scientists are hoping to take it from here. He interviewed several of the most prominent people involved in planetary defense, sharing their firsthand accounts of their work and motivations, which provide compelling insight into this growing field. We know how to stop asteroids and comets from hitting Earth, using everything from deflecting them with fast rockets to disintegrating them with nuclear bombs. The challenge is mostly in how we detect these threats, especially smaller “city killers,” and Andrews offers compelling arguments for the need to build a stronger detection network. Andrews’ writing style is funny, wry, passionate, and deeply informed. How to Kill an Asteroid is one of the most entertaining pop-science reads of the year.

Book Review: Supremacy: AI, ChatGPT, and the Race That Will Change the World by Parmy Olson

Cover of the book Supremacy: AI, ChatGPT, and the Race That Will Change the World by Parmy Olson — *Supremacy: AI, ChatGPT, and the Race That Will Change the World*
by Parmy Olson
St. Martin’s, 2024

This review was first published by Booklist on September 1, 2024.

**STARRED REVIEW** The current ascendancy of artificial intelligence has been driven mostly by two men: Sam Altman, creator of ChatGPT, and Demis Hassabis, creator of DeepMind. Both idealists, Altman and Hassabis are driven by a conviction that AI can solve society’s deepest problems and make things better for humankind. Both men set out to ensure AI would be developed responsibly and kept out of the hands of profit-driven Big Tech corporations, and both men soon enough sold control of their creations to Microsoft and Google. This is a tale of competitive nature run amok, where the need to be first led to the abandonment of cautious plans in favor of rapid development and poorly planned deployment. It’s a frankly terrifying exposé of the dangers posed by the current, unregulated technology market. Perhaps most importantly, Olson warns against our popular obsession over the existential threat AI poses to humanity at the cost of ignoring real harms AI is already causing: it perpetuates bias and fuels polarization in society and removes human oversight from crucial decisions that affect people’s lives. Olson’s warning is clear; we’re losing control over our own creation. Add this to the growing stack of recent books sounding the alarm about unchecked tech.

Book Review: Devil in the Stack: Searching for the Soul of the New Machine by Andrew Smith

Cover of the book Devil in the Stack: Searching for the Soul of the New Machine by Andrew Smith — *Devil in the Stack: Searching for the Soul of the New Machine*
by Andrew Smith
Grove, 2024

This review was first published by Booklist in August 2024.

**STARRED REVIEW** Many of us have a sense that modern technology, especially social media, is damaging human society and relationships. Smith was curious to understand if that’s true and, if so, why. Here, he takes a deep dive into the culture of computer coders: he learned to code, attended coding conferences, and interviewed some of the most eminent persons of the coding world. Along the way, he offers a course in the history of the creation and development of computers and code, a necessary context to understand how we got to where we are today. He explores the nature of coding itself: is it more math or language, science or art, and how do human brains process it? He also calls our attention to the divisive, often counterintuitive history of diversity in tech. Smith believes modern technology is doing harm to society and ultimately suggests a well-reasoned argument for why, with suggestions to address the damage. But technology also offers tremendous potential to do good, and much of the culture around tech is deep with creativity, imagination, and hope. Devil in the Stack is a humane, nuanced, humorous, insightful work and a much-needed call for greater due diligence around some of the most impactful innovations in human history.

Book Review: The Mercy of Gods by James S. A. Corey

Cover of the book The Mercy of the Gods by James S. A. Corey — *The Mercy of the Gods*
by James S. A. Corey
Orbit, 2024

This review was first published by Booklist on July 15, 2024.

**STARRED REVIEW** No one remembers how humanity came to live on the planet Anjiin. Then the alien Carryx arrive to enslave mankind. Caught up in an age-old conflict they had no idea was even happening, and thrust into a far wider galactic community of aliens, the survivors from Anjiin must figure out how to navigate their subjugation and maybe even find a path back to freedom. Writing duo Corey (Memory’s Legion, 2022) once again does a masterful job of populating their settings with deeply drawn, unique characters. The settings are immersive and interesting, and the history of the Carryx provides compelling depth to the grand conflict of the story. The Carryx are an insectoid villain race, but Corey explores their worldview, mindset, and culture more deeply than is typical, making them more believable and interesting than the usual genre stereotype. They’re the most well-developed insectoid baddies since Orson Scott Card’s original Ender Trilogy. The Mercy of Gods starts in an unspecified part of the galaxy, assumed to be far from Earth, at an unspecified, far-future time, giving it a more speculative, fantastical feel compared to Corey’s Expanse series. This is old-fashioned space opera on a grand scale and a promising start for an epic new series.

Book Review: Ka-Boom! The Science of Extremes by David Darling

Cover of the book Ka-Boom! The Science of Extremes by David Darling — *Ka-Boom! The Science of Extremes*
by David Darling
Oneworld, 2024

This review was first published by Booklist on June 14, 2024.

People are perennially fascinated by extremes. What’s the most massive object we know of? The fastest computer? The loudest sound? The longest-lived being? The coldest temperature? The biggest explosion? Darling serves up a fun, informative, and quirky overview of some fascinating science facts. He surveys physics, space, materials, technology, and the natural world, offering myriad examples of the extremes we’ve discovered in the course of our exploration of our universe. There’s something for everyone in this quick and engaging read. There may not be much new information here for existing science aficionados, he repeats a few examples in different subject sections, and he doesn’t go into much depth on any of them, but his delight in exploring this material is invigorating. Even inveterate science geeks should enjoy this time spent with fascinating facts. Ka-Boom! is most valuable as an ideal introduction to the science of extremes for people just starting out on their journey into the vast realms of scientific knowledge.

Book Review: The Book of Elsewhere by Keanu Reeves and China Miéville

Cover of the book The Book of Elsewhere by Keanu Reeves and China Miéville — *The Book of Elsewhere*
by Keanu Reeves and China Mi&eacuteville
Del Rey, 2024

This review was first published by Booklist on June 1, 2024.

A warrior who can’t be killed and who doesn’t understand why. A government agency studying him. Ancient powers who worship him and seek to destroy him. And an immortal deer-pig. A novel cowritten by beloved sf movie star Reeves and beloved sf author Miéville (The Last Days of New Paris, 2016) doesn’t disappoint, but it may not be quite what anyone expects. Set in the same universe as Reeves’ BRZRKR graphic novel series, the nature of the narrative is revealed somewhat slowly, and the writing style is oddly anachronistic and very erudite. It’s stylistically daring, combining sf, fantasy, parascience, history, and action. It’s violent, propulsive, and introspective, ultimately offering a philosophical exploration of identity and the meaning of mortality, chaos, and entropy. The Book of Elsewhere gets under your skin and into your mind and revels in a pervasive sense of mystery. Or it could just be a weird riff on some of the most popular Reeves internet memes. Whatever it is, it works.

HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Reeves and Miéville each have their own legions of fans, and their collaboration is bound to draw both groups in.

The Core Conflict in Science Fiction

Most of my favorite science fiction authors were members of the literary science fiction movement. These are authors who grew up reading pulp, Golden, and Silver Age scifi. They loved the scope and potential of these types of speculative stories, but they were frustrated by the lack of artistry in the writing. A lot of classic scifi was, let’s be honest, pretty poorly written. Hugely imaginative but there wasn’t much style. When their turn came to become authors and storytellers, they wanted to play in this genre but they also wanted to innovate stylistically, to explore the potentials of language and storytelling structure in a way that matched the technological and scientific innovation that drove scifi from the beginning. They wanted to transform scifi into a literature with deeper artistic merit.

And that’s how most of us tend to understand literary scifi: it made scifi more artsy.

Continue reading →

Book Review: Rogue Sequence by Zac Topping

Cover of the book Rogue Sequence by Zac Topping — *Rogue Sequence*
by Zac Topping
Tor, 2024

This review was first published by Booklist on May 1, 2024.

Ander Rade is a genetically modified and psychologically conditioned corporate soldier-for-hire. Imprisoned after a failed mission, he’s released by a new U.S. government agency to help stop a terrorist attacking corporate sites—a terrorist who used to be a member of Rade’s squad. Set in a near-future, reshaped United States, this taut, violent, race-against-time thriller is a tale of one man coming to terms with the evils of his past and exploring the possibility of redemption. It’s also a stark warning about the dangers of unchecked corporate power and government corruption. Topping (Wake of War, 2022) refuses to make simplistic judgements about his characters. While it’s clear who the good and bad guys are, they all have understandable reasons for what they do, and they’re all caught up in the larger machinations of powerful corporate and government interests. Topping’s military experience shines in the vivid fight scenes and his descriptions of the characters’ surroundings. It makes the action more believable and compelling. Recommended for fans of espionage thrillers, as well as military sf readers.

Book Review: Math-ish: Finding Creativity, Diversity, and Meaning in Mathematics by Jo Boaler

Cover of the book Math-ish: Finding Creativity, Diversity, and Meaning in Mathematics by Jo Boaler — *Math-ish: Finding Creativity, Diversity, and Meaning in Mathematics*
by Jo Boaler
HarperOne, 2024

This review was first published by Booklist on May 1, 2024.

Math-ish is an invigorating call to reform how we teach mathematics. Math can be creative and beautiful, but you’d never know that from the way it is normally taught. Professional mathematicians report that what is taught in schools has little bearing on the math we need to drive innovation in the real world. Mathematics achievement in U.S. schools has been plummeting since the mid-twentieth century. The traditional methods of rote learning and prescribed formulae don’t work and exclude far too many people. These exclusionary methods cost us by keeping different perspectives and ideas out of STEM careers that require advanced mathematics education. Boaler, an education specialist at Stanford University, draws on evidence from educational pedagogy, neuroscience, and psychology to build strong, evidence-based arguments for how we should transform mathematics education and the benefits we could reap. Math should allow for multiple approaches to problem-solving, embrace sensory methods for interacting with concepts, and celebrate the learning that happens when people make mistakes. She presents a future for mathematics that’s more creative, diverse, and successful.

Book Review: Mal Goes to War by Edward Ashton

Cover of the book Mal Goes to War by Edward Ashton — *Mal Goes to War*
by Edward Ashton
St. Martin’s, 2024

This review was first published by Booklist on March 15, 2024.

Ashton (Antimatter Blues, 2023) sets his latest stand-alone in a near-future world where artificial intelligences exist and humans—especially wealthy ones—technologically enhance their bodies, while a growing movement of dispossessed people opposes this use of technology. Armed conflict flares between the enhanced Federalist forces and unenhanced Humanists. But not all is as it seems, and the Humanists may not be as pure as they claim. Mal, an artificial intelligence living in the infosphere who specializes in infiltrating other systems, embeds himself in the corpse of a cyborg human to learn more about the conflict on the ground. Through a series of gruesome and darkly comic mishaps, he becomes deeply embroiled and cut off from the infosphere. This is a funny, fast-paced, fish-out-of-water tale that should satisfy Ashton’s growing fan base. Exploring the nature of AI is a hot topic, and the contrast between the literalism of computers and human emotions is perennially fascinating. As we’ve seen in his Mickey7 series, Ashton has a talent for handling nonhuman characters. This should also appeal to fans of Martha Wells’ Murderbot Diaries series.