Hard science fiction predominates in a very strong shortlist for this year鈥檚
Arthur C. Clarke Award. There are three near-future scenarios. Justina Robson鈥檚
excellent debut, Silver Screen (Pan), is an exploration of artificial
intelligence and the meaning of consciousness. Bruce Sterling鈥檚 Distraction
(Bantam) wittily details the machinations of a genetically altered political
campaign manager in a US reverting to tribalism. In Kathleen Anne Goonan鈥檚 The
Bones of Time (Voyager), problems of interstellar navigation and genetic
research mingle with the traditional culture of Hawaii to make a satisfyingly
rich adventure.
But Neal Stephenson鈥檚 huge Cryptonomicon (Heinemann) is borderline SF. It
follows the cryptographers of the Second World War and the setting up of a
modern offshore data haven鈥攁nd explores the potential of information flows
for coercion and freedom. Stephen Baxter鈥檚 Time (Voyager) is a tale of cosmic
dimensions, packed with ideas, while Vernor Vinge offers a complex first contact
in A Deepness in the Sky (Millennium).
It鈥檚 a tough one to call, but for sheer audacity and scope, it has to be
Stephenson鈥檚 Cryptonomicon.
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