Deze auteur verkent uitgestrekte kosmische landschappen en ongelooflijke avonturen, geïnspireerd door zowel klassieke als hedendaagse sciencefiction. Zijn schrijven kenmerkt zich door een mix van ontzag en spanning, die lezers meevoert naar verre sterrenstelsels. De auteur richt zich op thema's als de ruimte, sterren en de menselijke drang tot ontdekking. Zijn verhalen zijn fantasievol en weerspiegelen een levenslange passie voor het genre.
Exploring the imaginative concept of robots having dreams, this book delves into the intersection of technology and consciousness. It raises philosophical questions about artificial intelligence, emotions, and what it means to be sentient. Through engaging narratives and thought-provoking scenarios, readers are invited to consider the inner lives of robots and the implications of their potential desires and aspirations. The book combines elements of science fiction with deep reflections on humanity and the future of machines.
It is a hundred millennia after Iron Gods. The Spin is nearing the end of its life. Its inhabitants are divided between those who live unknowingly in the relative paradise of one of hundreds of Virtual Realities - vrealities - and those who scrape a living in what remains of the real world. The massive servers needed to maintain the vrealities are draining the resources of the Spin. And an escalating, desperate and seemingly futile war has begun between those who tend the servers and those who believe they should be shut down, killing millions. But one amongst these unwitting combatants will discover the real nature of the vrealities - and his role in their fate. From a remote star system, a being has been observing the Spin for several lifetimes. He is Skarbo the Horologist and he is about to die for the very last time. He has come to accept that he will never visit the object of his studies but is coerced into making one last journey. His final destination lies across a war-torn galaxy. And there he will learn of the Spin's past - and its astonishing future . . . Returning to the extraordinarily envisioned artificial planetary cluster called the Spin, Stone Clock is the dazzling new space opera from the acclaimed author of Creation Machine and Iron Gods.
International views of Russia have changed drastically in the last decade, due in part to the leadership of the decidedly pro-Western President Yeltsin. It was not without concern that we saw the next elected leader pulled from the ranks of the former KGB.Andrew Jack, former Moscow bureau chief for the Financial Times , uses in-depth research and years of journalistic experience to bring us the first full picture of Vladimir Putin. Jack describes how Putin grew to become the most powerful man in Russia, defying domestic and foreign expectations and presiding over a period of strong economic growth, significant restructuring, and rising international prestige. Despite criticism of his handling of the war in Chechnya and of the controls he introduced on parliament and the media, Putin has united Russian society and maintained extraordinarily high popularity.Inside Putin's Russia digs behind the rumors and speculation, illuminating Putin's character and the changing nature of the Russia he leads. It highlights some of the more troubling trends as he consolidates his leadership during a second presidential term marred by the Beslan tragedy, the attacks on Yukos and Russian policy towards Ukraine. Now with a new Epilogue by the author, this invaluable book offers important insights for anyone interested in the past, present, and future of Russia.
Debut novelist Andrew Bannister comes to the genre with his talents fully
formed in the ambitious, compulsively readable Creation Machine . . . [it] has
everything: intriguing far-future societies, exotic extra-terrestrial races,
artificial galaxies and alien machines dormant for millions of years.
Bannister holds it all together with enviable aplomb. Eric Brown GUARDIAN
Bannister has the knack of making the extraordinary seem normal and the normal
seem extraordinary. It all comes together in dazzling, pin-sharp storytelling,
where humour. acute social commentary and some terrific aliens jostle
together. Jamie Buxton DAILY MAIL
Kniha popisuje teplá moře celého světa, od často navštěvovaných a známých míst, kde fungují oblíbená a vybavená letoviska, po málo známé pobřežní útesy, kam je přístup možný jen na kajutových lodích za příznivého počasí.
Bohatý podmořský život, od fascinujících drobných oceánských forem života přes pestré měkké korály až po vzrušující hloubkové potápění a krmení žraloků, je podrobně zdokumentován v zasvěceném textu napsaném týmem uznávaných specialistů na určitý region.
Vše je doplněno vynikajícími snímky, které získaly mnohá ocenění v kategorii podmořská fotografie.
