The Inside Scoop on Gaming

Michael Crichton has built a reputation for well-crafter thrillers that are also well-researched. Jurassic Park built it's dinosaurs on the current theories on the creature at that time. The sequel, The Lost World, showed how quickly those theories can change, such as the vision of the T-rex which was motion-based in the first book, but full-color in the second. The point is, Crichton took the time to find out what experts in the field believed.

Timeline represents Crichton's return to action/adventure style stories he had done in Jurassic Park, Congo, and Eaters of the Dead after doing a series of techno/corporate thrillers like Disclosure and Airframe.

It begins when a corporation, led by the caustic Robert Doniger builds a machine that can travel in time.

Actually that's not right at all. You can't travel through time. It's not a place you can visit and set up a summer time share in. It doesn't flow and ebb like a river. Traveling through time is impossible.

But you can travel to other dimensions.

The logistics are based heavily on quantum theory. Quantum theory can be a little dense, but Crichton makes good use of it and explains effectively in lay terms. At least, as well as anyone can explain quantum theory. Scientists who win prizes for their contribution to quantum theory must admit they really don't understand it.

The machines in Timeline are based on the multiverse theory, that there are many parallel universes and they overlap and interact with each other. These universes can have subtle differences, like being exactly the same except for being set 600 years in the past.

This time travel concept does away with most of the usual problems time travel stories have, like paradoxes. Since you don't really go back in time, you can't change your past, only the past of a "you" in another universe.

They accidentally discovered this form of time travel trying to build a three-dimensional Fax machine, but an object they attempted to transmit never materialized. It went into another universe.

Once ITC figured out what was happening, they completely changed the focus of the project. Doniger was determined to make his technology a new tool for studying the past. But then problems arise.

The biggest problem is something called "transcription errors" creep in when people use the machines. These are errors that happen when the person is rebuild, almost like the problems when you enlarge a gif and see the blockiness of the digitized picture. Transcription errors can misalign blood vessels so a limb will grow gangrenous due to a lack of blood or effect the mind so the person becomes demented. To minimize these errors, the machines are launched from a room shielded by water, which reduces quantum interference which causes the errors.

ITC, meanwhile, has been funding an archeological dig of a medieval castle site in France headed by professor Edward Johnson. His team includes Andre Marek an historian who had been living and breathing the medieval period to the point of obsession, Chris Hughes a historical technology with a weakness for women, Kate Erickson an architecture expert and rock climber, and Daniel Stern a quantum physics student.

It appears that ITC may be hold out on information on the site to the professor when an ITC executive let slip a more information on the layout of the site than his team has uncovered yet and an ITC scientist mysteriously appears in the New Mexico desert with a detailed map of the monastery at the dig site. He decides to got to ITC headquarters and find out exactly what is going on and disappears.

Doniger has the rest of the team brought in to find him. All but Stern agree to make the trip. The plan is for the students, with two marine escorts in tow, will use their knowledge of the site and the period to quickly find the professor and get back again. Minutes after they arrive, the marine escort is slaughtered wholesale by a group of mounted knights, one making it back to his machine with a grenade, destroying the transit pad and the all-important water shields.

The story then plays out with the students and the professor getting caught up in a war over the very castle they've been excavating in 14th century France while Stern tries to help his friends as best he could from the present, although he mostly provides a mcguffin for the explanation of what the ITC scientist have to do to fix things.

Timeline gives an interesting angle on medieval life through the eyes of the students as they stumble through at first and quickly become accustomed to their dangerous surrounding. Crichton also uses this as a platform to dispell some common modern misconceptions on medieval life, which should prove interesting to most role players who can't help but think of weapons in terms of damage dice and combat in terms of action rounds.

It the end, Timeline is an exciting story and well worth reading and re-reading. The fact that it happens to be set in the middle ages makes it of special interest to fantasy gamers who want a fresh look on the period as well as an interesting variation of the time travel genre.

Style: 5 (Excellent!)
Substance: 5 (Excellent!)

Topics	Author	Date	Latest Reply
This Book Deserves no 5 (2) new	Blowhard	11-29-2000 19:29	11-30-2000 16:01 new
Deus Ex Quantum (1) new	Michael Powers	11-27-2000 09:12	11-27-2000 09:12 new
Nitpick (9) new	Chris	11-22-2000 22:55	12-01-2000 22:31 new

Timeline
Author: Michael Crichton Category: novel Company/Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf, publisher, New York Line: n/a Cost: HC $26.95 Page count: 450 ISBN: 0-679-44481-5 Capsule Review by Dungeon Curmudgeon on 11/15/00. Genre tags: Science fiction Historical	Michael Crichton has built a reputation for well-crafter thrillers that are also well-researched. Jurassic Park built it's dinosaurs on the current theories on the creature at that time. The sequel, The Lost World, showed how quickly those theories can change, such as the vision of the T-rex which was motion-based in the first book, but full-color in the second. The point is, Crichton took the time to find out what experts in the field believed. Timeline represents Crichton's return to action/adventure style stories he had done in Jurassic Park, Congo, and Eaters of the Dead after doing a series of techno/corporate thrillers like Disclosure and Airframe. It begins when a corporation, led by the caustic Robert Doniger builds a machine that can travel in time. Actually that's not right at all. You can't travel through time. It's not a place you can visit and set up a summer time share in. It doesn't flow and ebb like a river. Traveling through time is impossible. But you can travel to other dimensions. The logistics are based heavily on quantum theory. Quantum theory can be a little dense, but Crichton makes good use of it and explains effectively in lay terms. At least, as well as anyone can explain quantum theory. Scientists who win prizes for their contribution to quantum theory must admit they really don't understand it. The machines in Timeline are based on the multiverse theory, that there are many parallel universes and they overlap and interact with each other. These universes can have subtle differences, like being exactly the same except for being set 600 years in the past. This time travel concept does away with most of the usual problems time travel stories have, like paradoxes. Since you don't really go back in time, you can't change your past, only the past of a "you" in another universe. They accidentally discovered this form of time travel trying to build a three-dimensional Fax machine, but an object they attempted to transmit never materialized. It went into another universe. Once ITC figured out what was happening, they completely changed the focus of the project. Doniger was determined to make his technology a new tool for studying the past. But then problems arise. The biggest problem is something called "transcription errors" creep in when people use the machines. These are errors that happen when the person is rebuild, almost like the problems when you enlarge a gif and see the blockiness of the digitized picture. Transcription errors can misalign blood vessels so a limb will grow gangrenous due to a lack of blood or effect the mind so the person becomes demented. To minimize these errors, the machines are launched from a room shielded by water, which reduces quantum interference which causes the errors. ITC, meanwhile, has been funding an archeological dig of a medieval castle site in France headed by professor Edward Johnson. His team includes Andre Marek an historian who had been living and breathing the medieval period to the point of obsession, Chris Hughes a historical technology with a weakness for women, Kate Erickson an architecture expert and rock climber, and Daniel Stern a quantum physics student. It appears that ITC may be hold out on information on the site to the professor when an ITC executive let slip a more information on the layout of the site than his team has uncovered yet and an ITC scientist mysteriously appears in the New Mexico desert with a detailed map of the monastery at the dig site. He decides to got to ITC headquarters and find out exactly what is going on and disappears. Doniger has the rest of the team brought in to find him. All but Stern agree to make the trip. The plan is for the students, with two marine escorts in tow, will use their knowledge of the site and the period to quickly find the professor and get back again. Minutes after they arrive, the marine escort is slaughtered wholesale by a group of mounted knights, one making it back to his machine with a grenade, destroying the transit pad and the all-important water shields. The story then plays out with the students and the professor getting caught up in a war over the very castle they've been excavating in 14th century France while Stern tries to help his friends as best he could from the present, although he mostly provides a mcguffin for the explanation of what the ITC scientist have to do to fix things. Timeline gives an interesting angle on medieval life through the eyes of the students as they stumble through at first and quickly become accustomed to their dangerous surrounding. Crichton also uses this as a platform to dispell some common modern misconceptions on medieval life, which should prove interesting to most role players who can't help but think of weapons in terms of damage dice and combat in terms of action rounds. It the end, Timeline is an exciting story and well worth reading and re-reading. The fact that it happens to be set in the middle ages makes it of special interest to fantasy gamers who want a fresh look on the period as well as an interesting variation of the time travel genre. Style: 5 (Excellent!) Substance: 5 (Excellent!)