Swimming through the universe, one light-year at a time.

Swimming through the universe, one light-year at a time.
NCG 4631 "The Whale Galaxy"

Tuesday, December 09, 2008

A Late Tribute to Michael Crichton


I recently finished reading Crichton's Congo and am actually sorry that I'm done. This novel has completely enthralled and sustained me the past 2 weeks. There have been days when I literally woke up with the thought of continuing the next chapter as my only motivation to get out of bed. There is something so sharp about Crichton's writing: his ability to employ real-life concepts and modern events and then amplify it into a masterpiece of fiction. I'm not ashamed to admit that part of my interest in science has come from reading his works. Any author that has the ability to stir people's curiosity about the world, and in my case, the waking life deserves our ultimate respect and will be immortalized forever.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

He is a master of taking fact and taking it that next logical step to where it will probably go. Jurassic Park scared me as a Biology Student, since the science made sense.

State of Fear is an amazing read. It's more a fictional story with lots of science fact mixed in.

Sphere was a fun read, but definitely read it before you even think of looking at the movie.

Anonymous said...

Disclosure ftw.
Crichton was a true artist. Hardly a wasted word, unlike Stephen King or (a more worthy comparison) Thomas Pynchon. Neal Stephenson could learn a thing or two about concise flow of ideas and relevance.
The line between fact and fiction blurs; one wonders if corporations could actually copyright an endangered species or if genetic memory could surface in the paintings and sign language of an ape. One believes that dinosaurs could be cloned from fossilized dna.
RIP, sensei.

Anonymous said...

p.s. wiki quote can be interesting:
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Neal_Stephenson