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19-470: Gregory Dale Bear (August 20, 1951 – November 19, 2022) was an American science fiction writer. His work covered themes of galactic conflict ( Forge of God books), parallel universes ( The Way series), consciousness and cultural practices ( Queen of Angels ), and accelerated evolution ( Blood Music , Darwin's Radio , and Darwin's Children ). His last work was the 2021 novel The Unfinished Land . Greg Bear wrote over 50 books in total. He

38-430: A Harsh Mistress (1966). Bear, Gregory Benford , and David Brin wrote a trilogy of prequel novels to Isaac Asimov 's Foundation trilogy. Bear wrote the middle book named Foundation and Chaos . While most of Bear's work is science fiction, he has written in other fiction genres. Examples include Songs of Earth and Power (fantasy) and Psychlone ( horror ). Bear has described his Dead Lines , which straddles

57-450: A common plot device in science fiction , especially in the space opera subgenre. In contrast, the term intergalactic war refers to war between combatants from different galaxies , and interplanetary war refers to war between combatants from different planets of the same planetary system. Michael H. Hart argued that if humans ever spread to other planetary systems, the actual likelihood of interstellar war would be low due to

76-519: A detailed description of a near-future nanotechnological society. This historical sequence continues with Heads —which may contain the first description of a so-called "quantum logic computer"—and with Moving Mars . The sequence also charts the historical development of self-awareness in artificial intelligence . Its continuing character Jill was inspired in part by Robert A. Heinlein 's self-aware computer Mycroft HOLMES in The Moon Is

95-515: A physics based on information exchange between particles, capable of being altered at the "bit level." In Moving Mars , that knowledge is used to remove Mars from the Solar System and transfer it to an orbit around a distant star. Blood Music was first published as a short story (1983) and then expanded to a novel (1985) features nanotechnology. In later works, beginning with Queen of Angels and continuing with its sequel, Slant , Bear gives

114-568: Is the second part of the Second Foundation Trilogy and takes place almost entirely in the same time frame as "The Psychohistorians", which is the first part of the novel Foundation . In addition to telling a more expanded version of Hari Seldon 's confrontation with the Commission of Public Safety it also interweaves R. Daneel Olivaw 's struggle against a sect of robots who oppose his plans for humanity. While covering

133-568: The Fermi paradox , supposing that the galaxy is filled with potentially predatory intelligences and that young civilizations that survive are those that do not attract their attention but stay quiet. In Queen of Angels , Bear examines crime, guilt, and punishment in society. He frames these questions around an examination of consciousness and awareness, including the emergent self-awareness of highly advanced computers in communication with humans. In Darwin's Radio and Darwin's Children , he addresses

152-464: The Museum of Science Fiction . Bear was also one of the five co-founders of San Diego Comic-Con . In 1975, Bear married Christina M. Nielson; they divorced in 1981. In 1983, he married Astrid Anderson, the daughter of the science fiction and fantasy authors Poul and Karen Anderson . They had two children, Chloe and Alexandra, and resided near Seattle , Washington. Bear died on November 19, 2022, at

171-418: The 1980's Ace Books published a 3-volume science fiction anthology called The Future at War , edited by Reginald Bretnor . The first volume, Thor's Hammer , contained stories about wars on Earth and in near-Earth space. The second volume, The Spear of Mars , had stories depicting interplanetary war. And the third volume, Orion's Sword , treated interstellar war. Foundation and Chaos The novel

190-581: The Worlds ). Writers such as Larry Niven have developed plausible interplanetary conflict based on human colonization of the asteroid belt and outer planets by means of technologies utilising the laws of physics as currently understood. However, now that the other planets of the Solar System are believed to be devoid of intelligent life, sci-fi writers generally posit some form of faster-than-light drive in order to facilitate interstellar war. In

209-494: The age of 71, from multiple strokes, caused by clots that had been hiding in a false lumen of the anterior artery to the brain since a surgery in 2014. After he had been on life support for two days and was not expected to recover, per his advance healthcare directive , life support was withdrawn. Novels in internal chronology: Interstellar war An interstellar war is a hypothetical space war between combatants from different planetary systems . The concept provides

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228-533: The human species matures. The novel’s primary issue is whether Olivaw’s ends justify his means. Does the ancient Auroran robot really serve humanity’s greater good? Should Olivaw decide this for himself? Seldon seems unaware of Olivaw’s role in perpetuating brain fever and other dampeners. But Seldon would probably approve, considering his quarantining of the New Renaissance worlds when Seldon served as Imperial 1st Minister. Foundation and Chaos portrays

247-574: The immense distances (and hence travel times involved)—interstellar war would require a vastly greater investment of time and resources than present-day intraplanetary wars involve. By contrast, Robert Freitas argued that the energy expenditure required for interstellar war would be trivial from the viewpoint of a Type II or Type III civilisation on the Kardashev scale . The earliest fictional references appear to deal with interplanetary, not interstellar war (e.g. H. G. Wells ' 1898 novel The War of

266-502: The level of scientific detail in his work. Early in his career, he also published work as an artist, including illustrations for an early version of the reference book Star Trek Concordance and covers for periodicals Galaxy and F&SF . He sold his first story, "Destroyers", to Famous Science Fiction in 1967. In his fiction, Bear often addresses major questions in contemporary science and culture and proposes solutions. For example, The Forge of God offers an explanation for

285-545: The line between science fiction and fantasy, as a "high-tech ghost story ". He has received many accolades, including five Nebula Awards and two Hugo Awards . Bear cited Ray Bradbury as the most influential writer in his life. He met Bradbury in 1967 and had a lifelong correspondence. As a teenager, Bear attended Bradbury lectures and events in Southern California. He also served on the Board of Advisors for

304-501: The problem of overpopulation with a mutation in the human genome making, basically, a new series of humans. The question of cultural acceptance of something new and unavoidable is also indicated. One of Bear's favorite themes is reality as a function of observation . In Blood Music , reality becomes unstable as the number of observers (trillions of intelligent single-cell organisms) spirals higher and higher. Anvil of Stars (sequel to The Forge of God ) and Moving Mars postulate

323-601: The rise of mentalics (telepaths who can influence other’s thoughts) such as Wanda Seldon and Stettin Palver, who will form the Second Foundation. Twisted rogue mentalic Vara Liso even foreshadows the mutant Magnifico’s spectacular rise 310 years later. Powerful Public Safety Commissioner Linge Chen again plays a prominent role as the true Imperial power behind fatuous playboy Emperor Klayus. Reconstructed super-robot Dors Venabili appears as well. This article about

342-589: The same period as in Asimov’s "The Psychohistorians", Foundation and Chaos focuses more on paternal super-robot R. Daneel Olivaw than on Hari Seldon. Olivaw’s 20 millennia of machinations and contrivances are questioned by “Calvinian” robots who do not observe Olivaw’s Zeroth Law (“No robot may harm humanity or, through inaction, allow humanity to come to harm”) developed in Asimov’s Robots and Empire. Olivaw’s actions dampen human intellectual growth and variation until

361-478: Was one of the five co-founders of San Diego Comic-Con . Greg Bear was born in San Diego, California . He attended San Diego State University (1968–1973), where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree. At the university, he was a teaching assistant to Elizabeth Chater in her course on science fiction writing, and in later years her friend. Bear is often classified as a hard science fiction author because of

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