Five SFF Books About the Dangers of Dabbling in Archaeology

Poking around in the relics of long-dead civilizations is a great way
to meet your doom.

https://reactormag.com/five-sff-books-about-the-dangers-of-dabbling-in-archaeology/
--
My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
My tor pieces at https://www.tor.com/author/james-davis-nicoll/
My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
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On 2/15/2024 11:11 AM, James Nicoll wrote:
> Five SFF Books About the Dangers of Dabbling in Archaeology
>
> Poking around in the relics of long-dead civilizations is a great way
> to meet your doom.
>
> https://reactormag.com/five-sff-books-about-the-dangers-of-dabbling-in-archaeology/

Zero for five here.

There needs to be at least one Jack McDevitt book here.
https://www.amazon.com/Talent-War-Alex-Benedict-Book/dp/1472203070/

Lynn

On 2/15/2024 3:49 PM, Lynn McGuire wrote:
> On 2/15/2024 11:11 AM, James Nicoll wrote:
>> Five SFF Books About the Dangers of Dabbling in Archaeology
>>
>> Poking around in the relics of long-dead civilizations is a great way
>> to meet your doom.
>>
>> https://reactormag.com/five-sff-books-about-the-dangers-of-dabbling-in-archaeology/
>
> Zero for five here.
>
> There needs to be at least one Jack McDevitt book here.
>    https://www.amazon.com/Talent-War-Alex-Benedict-Book/dp/1472203070/
>
> Lynn

Maybe "Ancient Shores" would be better.
https://www.amazon.com/Ancient-Shores-Jack-McDevitt/dp/0061054267/

Lynn

In article <uqm0so$3g63k$1@dont-email.me>,
Lynn McGuire <lynnmcguire5@gmail.com> wrote:
>On 2/15/2024 11:11 AM, James Nicoll wrote:
>> Five SFF Books About the Dangers of Dabbling in Archaeology
>>
>> Poking around in the relics of long-dead civilizations is a great way
>> to meet your doom.
>>
>>
>https://reactormag.com/five-sff-books-about-the-dangers-of-dabbling-in-archaeology/
>
>Zero for five here.

For me as well, but that's not hugely suprising. The example that
immediately came to mind for me (probably because I was 13 when I read
it) is Andre Norton, EXILES OF THE STARS. But I had to read the
jacket copy to re-confirm that there was in fact an archaeology angle.

-GAWollman

--
Garrett A. Wollman | "Act to avoid constraining the future; if you can,
wollman@bimajority.org| act to remove constraint from the future. This is
Opinions not shared by| a thing you can do, are able to do, to do together."
my employers. | - Graydon Saunders, _A Succession of Bad Days_ (2015)

On 2/15/24 12:11 PM, James Nicoll wrote:
> Five SFF Books About the Dangers of Dabbling in Archaeology
>
> Poking around in the relics of long-dead civilizations is a great way
> to meet your doom.
>
> https://reactormag.com/five-sff-books-about-the-dangers-of-dabbling-in-archaeology/

Hm - Revelation Space (Reynolds) certainly sees people Dabbling in
Archaeology.

How about Piper's Omnilingual?

The way you're envisioning this, does exploring Big Dumb Objects (BDO)
count as dabbling in Archaeology? Ringworld, Rama, etc etc etc

Tony

In article <ur6b6o$3fv0t$2@dont-email.me>,
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
>On 2/15/24 12:11 PM, James Nicoll wrote:
>> Five SFF Books About the Dangers of Dabbling in Archaeology
>>
>> Poking around in the relics of long-dead civilizations is a great way
>> to meet your doom.
>>
>>
>https://reactormag.com/five-sff-books-about-the-dangers-of-dabbling-in-archaeology/
>
>Hm - Revelation Space (Reynolds) certainly sees people Dabbling in
>Archaeology.
>
>How about Piper's Omnilingual?
>
>The way you're envisioning this, does exploring Big Dumb Objects (BDO)
>count as dabbling in Archaeology? Ringworld, Rama, etc etc etc

Most BDOs are still working, so not quite what I had in mind.

--
My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
My tor pieces at https://www.tor.com/author/james-davis-nicoll/
My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll

On 2/21/2024 8:19 PM, James Nicoll wrote:
> In article <ur6b6o$3fv0t$2@dont-email.me>,
> Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
>> On 2/15/24 12:11 PM, James Nicoll wrote:
>>> Five SFF Books About the Dangers of Dabbling in Archaeology
>>>
>>> Poking around in the relics of long-dead civilizations is a great way
>>> to meet your doom.
>>>
>>>
>> https://reactormag.com/five-sff-books-about-the-dangers-of-dabbling-in-archaeology/
>>
>> Hm - Revelation Space (Reynolds) certainly sees people Dabbling in
>> Archaeology.
>>
>> How about Piper's Omnilingual?
>>
>> The way you're envisioning this, does exploring Big Dumb Objects (BDO)
>> count as dabbling in Archaeology? Ringworld, Rama, etc etc etc
>
> Most BDOs are still working, so not quite what I had in mind.
>
Kind of like the planet Earth is still working?

--
I've done good in this world. Now I'm tired and just want to be a cranky
dirty old man.

On 22/02/2024 04:19, James Nicoll wrote:
> In article <ur6b6o$3fv0t$2@dont-email.me>,
> Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
>> On 2/15/24 12:11 PM, James Nicoll wrote:
>>> Five SFF Books About the Dangers of Dabbling in Archaeology
>>>
>>> Poking around in the relics of long-dead civilizations is a great way
>>> to meet your doom.
>>>
>>>
>> https://reactormag.com/five-sff-books-about-the-dangers-of-dabbling-in-archaeology/
>>
>> Hm - Revelation Space (Reynolds) certainly sees people Dabbling in
>> Archaeology.
>>
>> How about Piper's Omnilingual?
>>
>> The way you're envisioning this, does exploring Big Dumb Objects (BDO)
>> count as dabbling in Archaeology? Ringworld, Rama, etc etc etc
>
> Most BDOs are still working, so not quite what I had in mind.

I sort of feel that a "Big Dumb Object"
should not have anything to be "working",
except for "formerly working".

But maybe I need to allow, "if working,
we don't know how - not yet." "We" being
mainly the reader.

Maybe require that when first seen,
it's not /visibly/ doing anything.
Then it can wake up.

Examples in <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Dumb_Object>
include Rama, and the black slabs in _2001_.

I would make it something big enough for you
to walk across as a significant decision,
although to do so may be unwise for some reason.

_Ringworld_ - as retconned - needs governance.
Speaking astrophysicslly.

James Nicoll wrote:

> Five SFF Books About the Dangers of Dabbling in Archaeology
>
> Poking around in the relics of long-dead civilizations is a great way
> to meet your doom.
>

I read the entire Well of Souls series, but that's the only one of that
list.

In the Murderbot stories, alien remnants are found in various places.
These are sometimes tech, or biological, or some sort of mix of the
two. One of the few things the Corporations mostly agree on is that no
one should be messing with them. Unless you're sufficiently sneaky and
ruthless.

Brian