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The sophons were so annoying. So they build these god-in-a-box fundamental particles that would be perfect for scouting out all nearby solar systems for habita

The sophons were so annoying. So they build these god-in-a-box fundamental particles that would be perfect for scouting out all nearby solar systems for habitable planets, and they instead use them only to give the human race a wedgie. Also, humanity just deciding one day that exploration is lame and unfair so they'll forever be against letting people leave the solar system was beyond annoying. And that forever is forever, humanity as a whole never changes their mind, even when they're being murdered by the dumbest smart weapon of all time.

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
SkyMarshal 5y ago
> Also, humanity just deciding one day that exploration is lame and unfair so they'll forever be against letting people leave the solar system was beyond annoying. This is one aspect I liked of the books because it is an exploration into the difficulty of big decision-making, and how various human biases can result in poor decisions. Numerous critical decisions were wrong throughout the series, - the battle plan of the first engagement vs the Trisolaris probe, choice of Luo Ji’s successor, banning light speed research, strategy for defending against a Dark Forest attack, etc. This may partly derive from the world view of a Chinese author who is old enough to know about all of the CCP’s big decisions and failures over the years - Great Leap Forward (famine), Cultural Revolution (destroyed knowledge, science, and truth), Tiananmen Square, etc. Another compelling aspect was that it faced humanity with an adversary that was not only technologically superior, but also superior at decision-making and strategy. Every decision the Trisolarans made was clearly calculated, and all possible outcomes clearly understood by them. They were only thwarted in the end by random dumb luck (the human broadcast ships and Trisolaris escort probes flying through a region of space that disabled the probes). I found it all culturally and psychologically insightful.
- slyall 5y ago
  I remember when I first read it I found the periodic "mass panics" unrealistic. As in about 10 times in the book the entire world population goes nuts. Then I remembered Chinese history.
- jandrese 5y ago
  For me it was using game theory as a justification for all of the stupid decisions (so they can never be challenged, since they are proven with math) was one of the worst offenses. If you make up arbitrary input conditions you can make justify anything. The Dark Forest theory is a prime example of it. Step 1 is "assume growth without bound", like you're on one of those finance shows trying to hock the hottest new startup stock by only talking about the YoY growth percentage. Everything after that is garbage, yet it is treated like gospel.
martindbp 5y ago
> humanity just deciding one day that exploration is lame and unfair so they'll forever be against letting people leave the solar system was beyond annoying Kind of like how sea trade and settlement was banned in China after Zhenghe's travels? (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haijin https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haijin) A big reason for liking the book for me was just a different perspective on politics and human psychology. Not saying it was always believable, but it was certainly something fresh and new to a westerner.
SkyMarshal 5y ago
> The sophons were so annoying. So they build these god-in-a-box fundamental particles that would be perfect for scouting out all nearby solar systems for habitable planets, and they instead use them only to give the human race a wedgie. Just a note on this - "Trisolaris" is that species' name for themselves and their star system in the books, but the actual location is Alpha Centuari, which is the closest star system to Earth, just 4 light years (400yrs at .01c). The Trisolarans actually did exactly what you say, used the Sophons to find nearby habitable planets. It's just that the nearest one was already inhabited, so they chose to invade and colonize it instead of finding another further away. Not terribly implausible, especially since the 400yr journey to Earth was already high-risk to the survival of their species, and a longer journey to a further planet would be even moreso. https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/chandra/images/alpha-centauri-a-triple-star-system-about-4-light-years-from-earth.html https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/chandra/images/alpha-cent...

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

SkyMarshal 5y ago

> Also, humanity just deciding one day that exploration is lame and unfair so they'll forever be against letting people leave the solar system was beyond annoying. This is one aspect I liked of the books because it is an exploration into the difficulty of big decision-making, and how various human biases can result in poor decisions. Numerous critical decisions were wrong throughout the series, - the battle plan of the first engagement vs the Trisolaris probe, choice of Luo Ji’s successor, banning light speed research, strategy for defending against a Dark Forest attack, etc. This may partly derive from the world view of a Chinese author who is old enough to know about all of the CCP’s big decisions and failures over the years - Great Leap Forward (famine), Cultural Revolution (destroyed knowledge, science, and truth), Tiananmen Square, etc. Another compelling aspect was that it faced humanity with an adversary that was not only technologically superior, but also superior at decision-making and strategy. Every decision the Trisolarans made was clearly calculated, and all possible outcomes clearly understood by them. They were only thwarted in the end by random dumb luck (the human broadcast ships and Trisolaris escort probes flying through a region of space that disabled the probes). I found it all culturally and psychologically insightful.

slyall 5y ago
I remember when I first read it I found the periodic "mass panics" unrealistic. As in about 10 times in the book the entire world population goes nuts. Then I remembered Chinese history.
jandrese 5y ago
For me it was using game theory as a justification for all of the stupid decisions (so they can never be challenged, since they are proven with math) was one of the worst offenses. If you make up arbitrary input conditions you can make justify anything. The Dark Forest theory is a prime example of it. Step 1 is "assume growth without bound", like you're on one of those finance shows trying to hock the hottest new startup stock by only talking about the YoY growth percentage. Everything after that is garbage, yet it is treated like gospel.

martindbp 5y ago

> humanity just deciding one day that exploration is lame and unfair so they'll forever be against letting people leave the solar system was beyond annoying Kind of like how sea trade and settlement was banned in China after Zhenghe's travels? (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haijin https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haijin) A big reason for liking the book for me was just a different perspective on politics and human psychology. Not saying it was always believable, but it was certainly something fresh and new to a westerner.

SkyMarshal 5y ago

> The sophons were so annoying. So they build these god-in-a-box fundamental particles that would be perfect for scouting out all nearby solar systems for habitable planets, and they instead use them only to give the human race a wedgie. Just a note on this - "Trisolaris" is that species' name for themselves and their star system in the books, but the actual location is Alpha Centuari, which is the closest star system to Earth, just 4 light years (400yrs at .01c). The Trisolarans actually did exactly what you say, used the Sophons to find nearby habitable planets. It's just that the nearest one was already inhabited, so they chose to invade and colonize it instead of finding another further away. Not terribly implausible, especially since the 400yr journey to Earth was already high-risk to the survival of their species, and a longer journey to a further planet would be even moreso. https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/chandra/images/alpha-centauri-a-triple-star-system-about-4-light-years-from-earth.html https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/chandra/images/alpha-cent...