Blood Music

Cover of first edition (hardcover)
Author	Greg Bear
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Science fiction novel
Publisher	Arbor House
Released	1985
Media type	Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages	262 pp
ISBN	ISBN 0-877-95720-7

Blood Music is a science fiction novel by Greg Bear (ISBN 0-7434-4496-5). It was originally published as a short story in 1983, winning the 1983 Nebula Award for best novelette and the 1984 Hugo Award in the same category. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 405 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (430 × 637 pixel, file size: 81 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Low res scan of book cover (Blood Music by Greg Bear, 1985 Arbor House first edition hardcover) for use in illustrating article about book. ... Gregory Dale Bear (born August 20, 1951) is a science fiction author. ... In political geography and international politics a country is a geographical entity, a territory, most commonly associated with the notions of state or nation. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Some notable science fiction novels, in alphabetical order by title: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke 334 by Thomas M. Disch An Age by Brian Aldiss The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton The Atrocity Exhibition by J.G. Ballard... A publisher is a person or entity which engages in the act of publishing. ... 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... An ISBN barcode; the machine-readable barcode represents the 13-digit ISBN (e. ... Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals. ... Gregory Dale Bear (born August 20, 1951) is a science fiction author. ... See also: 1982 in literature, other events of 1983, 1984 in literature, list of years in literature. ... The Nebula is an award given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), for the best science fiction/fantasy fiction published in the United States during the two previous years (see rolling eligibility below). ... The 2005 Hugo Award with base designed by Deb Kosiba. ...

Greg Bear published an expanded version in novel form in 1985. The completed novel was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1985 and the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1986. 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Nebula is an award given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), for the best science fiction/fantasy fiction published in the United States during the two previous years (see rolling eligibility below). ... Winners of the Nebula Award for Best Novel. ... The 2005 Hugo Award with base designed by Deb Kosiba. ... The Hugo Awards are given annually for the best science fiction or fantasy works. ...

Blood Music deals with themes including biotechnology, nanotechnology (including the grey goo hypothesis), the nature of consciousness and of artificial intelligence. The structure of insulin Biological technology is technology based on biology, especially when used in agriculture, food science, and medicine. ... Buckminsterfullerene C60, also known as the buckyball, is the simplest of the carbon structures known as fullerenes. ... Grey goo refers to a hypothetical end-of-the-world scenario involving molecular nanotechnology in which out-of-control self-replicating robots consume all living matter on Earth while building more of themselves (a scenario known as ecophagy). ... Consciousness is a quality of the mind generally regarded to comprise qualities such as subjectivity, self-awareness, sentience, sapience, and the ability to perceive the relationship between oneself and ones environment. ... Garry Kasparov playing against Deep Blue, the first machine to win a chess game against a reigning world champion. ...

Plot summary

In the novel, renegade biotechnologist Vergil Ulam creates noocytes, simple biological computers based on his own lymphocytes. Faced with orders from his nervous employer to destroy his work, he injects them into his own body, intending to smuggle the noocytes out of the company and work on them elsewhere. Inside Ulam's body, the noocytes multiply and evolve rapidly, altering their own genetic material and quickly becoming self-aware. The nanoscale civilization they construct soon begins to transform Ulam, then others, until eventually assimilating most of the biosphere of North America, and then the entire world. This civilization, which incorporates both the evolved noocytes and recently-assimilated conventional humans, is eventually forced to abandon the normal plane of existence. The reason for the noocytes' inability to remain in this reality is somewhat related to the strong anthropic principle. This is one of the more extreme cases of the technological singularity found in science fiction literature. A scanning electron microscope (SEM) image of a single human lymphocyte. ... In physics and cosmology, the anthropic principle is an umbrella term for various dissimilar attempts to explain the structure of the universe by way of coincidentally balanced features that are necessary and relevant to the existence of observers (usually assumed to be carbon-based life or even specifically human beings). ... When plotted on a logarithmic graph, 15 separate lists of paradigm shifts for key events in human history show an exponential trend. ... Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals. ...

The book's structure (its sections are titled telophase, anaphase, etc.) mirrors the major phases of mitosis, a metaphor for the splitting off of the new noocyte civilisation from humanity. The novel has been criticized for overestimating the speed and effectiveness of the noocytes' growth and evolution, and for the apparent ease with which they become intelligent and with which they construct their immense civilisation. However, the realistic treatment of biotechnology and the depiction of existence in a subjective realm where one's consciousness can be cloned and modified may make this a prescient novel. It anticipates themes which were tackled by the postcyberpunk generation of writers. In particular, it is reminiscent of Permutation City, the Greg Egan novel which deals with computer-based consciousness. 68. ... This article or section is missing references or citation of sources. ... Permutation City is a science fiction novel (ISBN 1-85798-218-5) by Greg Egan which explores quantum ontology via the various philosophical aspects of artificial life and simulations of intelligence. ... Greg Egan (August 20, 1961, Perth, Western Australia) is an Australian computer programmer and science fiction author. ...

Allusions/references from other works

The Outer Limits (1995 revival) episode "The New Breed" has heavy similarities to Blood Music, although it portrays the similar events on a more personal scale. It may well be that the episode was inspired by Bear's writing, although it must also be said that similar scenarios are somewhat common in sci-fi, and more so in modern sci-fi. The Outer Limits is an American television series. ... The New Breed is an episode of The Outer Limits television show. ... Sci-fi is an abbreviation for science fiction. ...