The Three-Body Problem

The Three-Body Problem is a mysterious, philosophical science fiction novel that approaches the issue of first contact with an alien civilization in a totally fascinating way. The book opens during China's Cultural Revolution; an scientist is interrogated on a public stage and eventually beaten to death for not complying with his interrogators. In the audience is his daughter, another scientist, and her witness of his senseless murder is essentially the spark that leads to first contact. Ye Wenjie, the daughter, becomes convinced that humanity will never evolve beyond a certain point without outside help; her experiences in the brutal Revolution both convince her of humanity's inability to save itself and give her the opportunity to contact another civilization. Ye and her compatriots invent a game called the Three Body Problem, an immersive virtual reality experience in which scientists (the only ones who play the game) must learn to predict how three bodies will orbit around one planet.

There's an interesting parallel between Three-Body, where players log in as historical figures in science and philosophy, and the Cultural Revolution that sparked the action in the book. In the Cultural Revolution, those who rose to power sought to crush science that relied on "Western, capitalist" thinking; they destroyed people and places thoughtlessly, purposely ignoring science that didn't suit their worldview. In Three-Body, brilliant scientists immerse themselves in the high-level physics and engineering required to solve the game, some to the point of ignoring what that might mean in the real world. Between them is Sha Qiang, a rude policeman who might not have lofty academic credentials, but whose groundedness makes him the only one who can find solutions to certain problems. His outside the box thinking surpasses science in some ways, doing what both science and the Cultural Revolution could not. He offers hope even after first contact makes humanity's destruction seem inevitable.

I can't wait for the rest of the series. Just as the game is described, the book is plain and simple on the surface but contains more and more information the deeper you look.

Lo bueno:

- La cantidad de ciencia, especialmente fisica. Lo bien que esta encaja en la historia y lo bien explicada que esta.

- Muchas ideas originales

- El final

Lo malo:

- El lenguaje es bastante bleh

- Las conversaciones a veces son artificiales. Lo que hace ver a los personajes artificiales

- Todo esta narrado en tercera persona aunque a veces sean explicaciones de una persona sobre su propio pasado. Algo asi:

- wenxia : "dejame contarte sobre lo que paso esos años:

- "Aquellos años Wenxia era una pequeña...."

Fijate como ha cambiado la narracion otra vez a tercera persona.

I actually found reading the Wikipedia synopsis much more interesting and compelling than the book itself.

This book had such an interesting concept, but the execution was just not there. The writing, the characters, all of it fell flat. I don't know if it was a translation issue, or if the writing is this jilted and dry in the original Chinese, but I'm really at a loss for why this book is so popular.

Well at the any rate, I'm sure the Netlfix series will be bomb, so there's that to look forward to.

Got to know so much about Chinese history and the cultural revolution that took place in the 60s. Never knew something like this happened merely 50-60 years ago.

Looking forward to the next 2 parts.

Really good science fiction book. Combines the cultural aspects of China with adavnced technology. Reads more like a mystery thriller than normal sf book. Looking forward to read next two entries of the series.

Needs more realistic characters

The book revolves around the idea of solving the three-body problem in physics, which involves predicting the motion of three celestial bodies in space.

The story is complex, and it combines elements of science, politics, philosophy, and cultural history in a way that is both fascinating and thought-provoking.

The characters in the book are well-developed, and their struggles and experiences are compelling. The pacing of the story is slow and deliberate, which allows for a thorough exploration of the themes and ideas presented.

Overall, "The Three-Body Problem" is an outstanding work of science fiction that will appeal to anyone interested in physics, astronomy, or the possibility of extraterrestrial life. It is a must-read for fans of the genre and an excellent introduction to Chinese science fiction for those who have yet to explore it.