Brain Wave [Paperback]

Poul and Phil Kirkland Anderson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1974

From the back cover: "Imagine that an I.Q. of 500 becimes commonplace, a moron has the thinking capacity of yesterday's intellectual, and animals begin to pass the mental levels of humanity. This is the provocative and absorbing thesis upon which Poul Anderson has based his novel; and his plausible exploration of the theme makes for an unusually stimulating study of vast world-changes and the intimate human story of some individuals. Few novels have revealed more skill simultaneously in scientific speculation and in fictional warmth and feeling." -- New York Herald Tribune. Fifth printing, January 1974 edition. Paperback. Ballantine Books, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 164 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books, Inc.; Fifth Printing, January 1974 edition (1974)
• Language: English
• ASIN: B000B84IWC
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,890,498 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An IQ of 400+ for everybody in the world, December 29, 2000

By 

mathilde de gardin "mathilde_de_gardin" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brain Wave (Mass Market Paperback)

What if - - - . What if earth, after millennia, leaves a part of space in which an unknown phenomena has (up untill then) dampened the IQ of the earthlings? What if everyone's IQ suddenly jumps up with 400%?

Morons become "normal", pigs get smart and the great masses of normal people become geniuses over night, all bilions of them. Are they glad, can they cope with it, and what does it do to society? Poul Anderson explored these questions in 1954, in a book that is still fresh today. He succeeds very well in describing the changes in thinking and feeling patterns in people that evolve from normal to incredible high IQ. A good and interesting read, that is highly probable, once you have accepted the premisse. It'll set your mind in motion.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Intelligence enhancement: gift & curse., October 22, 2004

By 

Maximiliano F Yofre "Maxi" (Buenos Aires, Argentina) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Brainwave : The Greatest Masterpiece by the Science Fiction Grandmaster (Paperback)

I've read this novel when I was a teenager in the mythical Argentinean sci-fi magazine "Más Allá". It was published in the last two volumes edited. I've treasured my collection for more than 40 years. Time and again I reread the most outstanding novels and short stories kept there as in a time shell.

"Brain Wave" is one of the best novels written by Poul Anderson.

The argument is great: suddenly all sentient beings start to change. Everybody is more intelligent each day. Cattle start to avoid slaughter. Horses refuse to be saddled. Brock, a moron peasant, start to have lucid insights and want to read.

The rest of humankind tries to cope with emotional disturbance, weird dreams, creativity shocks, religious surges and many more strange "symptoms".

Anderson analyzes this impossible situation and shows the reader a kaleidoscopic maddening universe. Little by little things began to fall in place and a new civilization emerges from chaos.

The follow up of the story is done by some key characters ranging from the retarded Brock, thru the ordinary housewife distressed by the new unsolicited abilities till her scientific husband and his neighbors.

The novel has an optimistic conclusion as was styled in the blessed `50s sci-fi.

Take a romp thru it, you won't be disappointed!

Reviewed by Max Yofre.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Optimistic, old-school hard SF, September 17, 2004

By 

ensiform (Dallas, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brainwave : The Greatest Masterpiece by the Science Fiction Grandmaster (Paperback)

The Earth moves out of some kind of force field, and suddenly, all electromagnetic and -chemical processes; not only do intruments go out of wack, everyone and everything with a brain triples in intelligence. For some individuals, this is liberating, albeit terrifying; some crack under the strain of such a jump. The human race as a whole, indeed, finds itself wondering what wo do with itself. This is a pretty good piece of speculative fiction, the idea taken to the limit. There are great bits, like intelligent chimps rising elephants and teming with African tribes; the story of Brock, the one-time moron, is particularly resonant. Overall, it's certainly a supremely optimistic view. As one character in the book notes, just because people are smart doesn't stop them from doing stupid things like speeding or smoking; nor does intelligence always erase prejudice. Yet Anderson envisions a human race that, due solely to higher intelligence, (after a lengthy period of great strife) transcends war, patriotism, and borders - indeed, seems at the end to have formed into some unified collective mind. I'm not so sure that all this necessarily follows from increased intelligence, even such an exponential leap in brain activity; but I see that Anderson is actually painting humans as the wise celestial visitors that most SF authors depict alien beings as. It's sort of a nice touch. Recommended.