Customer Reviews

Palniverse

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have to admit, I read this book primarily so that I could selfishly affirm what I thought of as my theory: that in two dimensions, gravity would be proportional to the inverse of distance, as opposed to the inverse square law we know and love. I was surprised and overwhelmed that Dewdney includes this observation as one among many, of which others are much more important. Dewdney crafts this discussion of two-dimensions by setting up a fictional university scenario and aside from addressing the implications of a 2D world, also adds the implications and disbelief that a discovery of this kind might cause on earth. The story is one for anyone who has thought about differences in dimension, and truly made me think about how simple, yet complex our world would seem to a four dimensional being. Dewdney even includes an appendix of distinct ramifications of two-dimensions on different fields of science. (Maybe the fact that every reviewer so far has given this book five stars means something... GO READ IT!)

When I was in high-school I had a very intelligent and immensely helpful English teacher, who taught me much of what writing skill I possess today. He came in highly excited one morning, to share with us about a new book he'd come across. Evidently, they had, through a computer, discovered an entirely new reality, that was two-dimensional! And this was an actual event, cutting edge stuff.

Well, a few days later, he came in, quite chagrined, to tell us that, as he read further through the book, he realized it was a work of fiction. But his description had been interesting enough to motivate me to read the book.

The Planiverse's reality is that real, and supported by that much scientific and mathematical principle- Dewdney has done his research, to bring us one of the most delightful what-ifs I've found. Imagine reality just like ours, but take out the third dimension. Everything is well supported, every area of life covered, and the drawings immensely helpful. You truly begin to feel for all the characters in the book. But it's not just an exercise in mathematical possibility. It is a rich story, telling of spiritual journey and insight, as Yendred travels to find his answers. And I still remember the ending as grippingly and eerily numinous, as we realize how closely the Planiverse and our Universe are connected, and how limited we are in comparison to the Eternal.

Once every hundred years or so, a new reality is discovered. In 1884 Edwin Abbott's classic, Flatland, captured readers' imaginations with and ingenious excursion into a two-dimensional society. Now, a century later, Dr. Alexander Keewatin Dewdney, a theoretical computer scientist, takes us on an exciting journey through and an amazingly complex, self-consistent two-dimensional universe. The Planiverse combines science and speculation, technology and metaphysics, in an astonishing work of the imagination that is elegant, witty, and wonderful. Dr. Dewdney created a hypothetical two-dimensional universe as an exercise for his computer science students. They developed a program called 2DWORLD to model a detailed, although somewhat primitive, planet. then one day in May 1980, something extraordinaty happened. One of the creatures began to use a word not in the computer's vocabulary--YNDRD. And as the simple graphics generated by the program grew more detailed, a strange four-armed creature appeared, surrounded by a bizarre alien landscape. Somehow, the 2DWORLD program had conected with a real two-dimensional world. the creature who appeared became known as yendred, a youthful inhabitant of Arde, a planet somewhere inside the planiverse. And so began a fantstic odyssey into a two-dimensional world--as Dr. Dewdney and his students followed Yendred on a journey across Arde, sharing his adventures, learning his history, and discussing his philosophy. With over 125 illustrations and diagrams generated from Arde, The Planiverse is a record of that contact period--the computer-aided exploration of a new reality--complete with its own physics, chemisty, biology, philosophy, and civilization. Join Yendred and Dr. Dewdney and discover new possibilities and concepts that will change the way you look at your own world. (This is one of the best books I have ever read. I stayed up late many a night reading it, totally engrossed. I became attached to the characters, I saw the whole world that is The Planiverse through the illustrations. I was dissapointed when the book had to end, I wish it could have gone on longer.)

This book is simply amazing. It tells the story of
YNDRD, a two-dimensional being who makes contact with
people on Earth through a computer program based on a
hypothetical 2-D world. The tale is written as a summary of
the computer-aided correspondence between Prof. Dewdney and
his colleagues and the so-called "planiverse", with excerpts
of the dialogue as it was received on the computer print-out.
Immense detail is given to the descriptions of the way of
life on the two-dimensional planet, including technology,
government and law, music, sports, science, and even religion.
Religion was, in fact, one of the aspects which gave me
extra admiration for the book and its author, because it
explores not only the religion of the Nsana (as the flat
people call themselves), but religion in general, giving insight
into a scientific and somewhat objective view of religion.
The story and its forays into alien culture are heightened
in effect by the great illustrations, and the technical
sections which go into the most detail about 2-D life.
I say again, this book is simply amazing, and conclude
with a recommendation to all interested in bizarre creatures,
science, or just really good books.

One of the greatest books of all-time. I don't want to over-sell it, so judge for yourselves. (heh) Seriously, this is probably the most complete fictional universe ever created. It reads like a dream and when it first came out (and I was a kid) I often wondered whether the events in the book had REALLY happened. It is that well constructed.

Before it originally went out of print I bought two extra copies so that I'd never be without it, I honestly suggest you read it, and if you like it at all - do the same. It will never leave your mind, and you'll be happy about that.

I encourage others to pick this book up. It's great for an inquisitive high schooler (as I was) or an adult.

Dewdney does an excellent job of pulling the reader into the story- one feels as if they are sitting there right next to the screen, waiting for the next contact.

Difficult to put down, and difficult to go back to reality afterwards.

I found this in the ECSU library, and had a wonderful time perusing it when I was supposed to be doing classwork. The only thing disappointing is that it's fiction. Other then that, it's a rather realistic portrayal of some startling events. Putting aside that the computer project come to life thing is pretty obvious, the rest of this stuff is just too original to pass up. Reading the account of two foreign cultures trying to communicate through a computer program, and having the participant on their side being rather of a mystic bent, makes for some very interesting stuff, as simple as kid's adventure, and as inspiring.

I read the older paperback version (with black and green) and a picture of YNDRD on the cover. I assume it is not too different from the reprinted version.

When I was a child, I used to draw Flatland style landscapes and imagine physical processes like erosion occurring. Only when I was halfway through this magical book did I recall this memory of my youth, some 33 years ago! I used to draw lots of 2-d drawings of fake biological creatures like sea anemones, so I was predisposed to like the book or at least its concept.

Yet I was disconcerted till I got about halfway through the book. I guess I found the 2-d world stifling and crazy, and stupid. But the more I read the more I marveled at Dewdney's inventiveness and his skill at both story-telling and technical detail.

DO READ THIS BOOK! It is truly spectacular science fiction. (At least I hope it is fiction! Ha ha ha)

The business about computer science professors and students getting distracted from their work rings a bell.... I too teach CS at a college though I haven't had these adventures.

Having praised the book deservedly, I want to point out a few things I didn't like. THough I liked the spiritual quest of YNDRD and thought that was truly neat, I felt Dewdney could have wrapped it up in a somewhat more satisfying manner. Also the intimations of Craine, the CS student who came back mysteriously to warn off the professor, were wasted. Why have that? It piqued curiosity to no purpose. My copy of the book must have missing pages or something.

Otherwise a great book!

Computer scientist, mathematician, and contributor to "Scientific American", A. K. Dewdney's The Planiverse: Computer Contact With A Two-Dimensional World is a superbly crafted tale of discovery and community with the two-dimensional civilization of Arde, first published in 1984 and now brought back into print by Copernicus Books. The setting is 1981 and in the computer lab of a large university a group of graduate students and their professor are hard at work on the departmental mainframe, graphically modeling an imaginary two dimensional world. The project is proceeding very well when one student suddenly notices that the world they are building on-screen is inhabited! Although a work of pure fiction, it incorporates sound mathematics and principles of computer science. The Planiverse delights the reader's imagination while serving as a cautionary tale about the difficulties of communication between one totally alien world to another.

I really enjoyed this novel! Along with an interesting story, Dewdney does a thorough job of explaining the culture and science of a two dimensional world. He really displays some great scientific insight, clearly explained in side figures. The novel has such a complete description of another world, I doubted it was fiction for a while.

I apologize for the shameless plug, but a song is also included in the novel (on page 178 of my book). I finally made a recording of this music (a fugue), so that fans can listen to the theme of Planiverse. Search the web for "Planiverse and thaliasdog."