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Comment by tribeofone | Hacker News Reader

There is never a bad time to plug Egan on HN. Diaspora is one of his novels around just this topic. If you decide to read it, strap in, you're going for a mind bending ride. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/156785.Diaspora

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If I remember correctly part of the book is set in a universe with 6 spatial dimensions - and that's possibly one of the relatively straightforward parts....

A great book.

Another recommendation for this book - I am pretty sure its my favorite fiction novel and I have read it many times. So many interesting and thought provoking parts.

I feel that rereading a book is the height of praise. So you've hooked me I'm going to pick up Diaspora.

Returning the favor I've reread "A Fire Upon the Deep" a few times now. Vernor Vinge scifi author who taught comp sci and mathematics at university.

I like Vinge very much, but Egan is really in another level.

I have read Diaspora three times and I can't decide if I like it more than my favorite other book by him: Permutation City.

That's a pretty fantastic book; I'd put in as just above stranger in a strange land in terms of mind-opening experiences for me, personally.

Ill chime in and say that Egan is my favorite author alive right now. He is absolutely producing the best hard sci-fi there is and I have consumed everything he has written that I can get my hands on.

I would also suggest reading Permutation City and the Clockwork Rocket trilogy by him.

Reading permutation city right now. Egdan is a master at what he does, just don’t except strong characters, that’s not what he’s about!

The first chapter is available to read on Egan's website:

https://www.gregegan.net/DIASPORA/01/Orphanogenesis.html

The first chapter is utterly uninspiring. I almost put the novel down due to the cheesiness of the cyberspaceness of it.

Well thank goodness I didn’t. This novel was eye opening as a treatise on small and large scale mortality. One of the most thought provoking pieces of science fiction out there.

I love this book. It opens with a beautiful description of the creation of an artificial mind. Worth reading for that alone.

I've not read Diaspora, but I have read Schild's Ladder. I found it difficult to follow in parts ( the science explanations ) but some of the themes it touches on are absolutely fascinating. Fans of hard science fiction novels will enjoy.

Thank you for the mention, it looks worth reading. I'm not into SciFi - but the concept seems a relative given outcome of the future of humanity.

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