Multiple species evolving sentience on a single world seems unlikely to this observer. One would expect the evolution of sentience to be extremely rare. We know how the Cats came to be – an evil gengineer – and why. But so many species on a single world. Are we talking uplift as in David Brin’s works?
Don’t know uplift, but the separate species were created by the Elder Gods because they were bored and wanted entertainment.
Or the one original race wanted more intelligent pets, and the experiment got away from them, or something.
I don’t know…
Uplift, in author David Brin’s fictional universe is the process in which a “patron” species genetically modifies a pre-sapient “client” species until it is sapient. Glen David Brin (born October 6, 1950) is an American scientist and author of science fiction. He has won the Hugo, Locus, Campbell and Nebula Awards. His novel The Postman was adapted into a 1997 feature film starring Kevin Costner. In Brin’s universe the client species is typically indentured to its patron species for 100,000 years. Humans have no apparent “patron” species and consider themselves to be a “wolfling” species. In Brin’s books humans have “uplifted” multiple species – dolphins, chimpanzees, gorillas and dogs. In Brin’s telling the original uplifting species is called the “Progenitors”. Perhaps “Elder Gods” is another designation for Progenitors. Anyway Brin is a good writer and all his books are good reads. I haven’t read him in years but the description of all the species on a single planet got me thinking about Brin’s work.
Larry Niven’s Brainwave has another concept. There is a (naturally occurring as far as anyone knows) beam of energy being emitted from the black hole at the center of the galaxy (across the disk instead of along the axis, as you would expect) that greatly inhibits neural activity. So, while ordinarily one species would develop to sapience, stop for lack of evolutionary pressure and inhibit any others from becoming competition, when Sol LEFT the beam, several Terran species suddenly had enough brain power to achieve sapience, and humanity became something … beyond that they are still exploring.
Back in 88 I spent 15 minutes alone with Larry Niven. I had just finished a contract job on an early version of the touch screen technology we all take for granted now. He was amazed that what he had seen as so SciFi in “Integral Trees” was already becoming. I worked on a technology which allowed retrofitting any CRT monitor to work as a touch screen. He was such a nice guy. For years afterward whenever I read something of his I heard him narrating the story. Met several authors at that con. It helped get me through a dark period in my life. Met and visited with Niven, Ben Bova, Algis Budrys, and the remarkable Dean Ing. The highlight was watching all three of the original Star Wars films back to back in a room full of fans. Kinda like a showing of Rocky Horror Picture Show but a touch less rowdy.
All good SF works like that. Take one premise, assume it is true whether it is likely or not, then extrapolate the consequences logically and consistently. For instance, the way PC has done with being able to generate coherent beams of gravitons, essentially gravity lasers.
Given that, PC, you probably should decide what the truth is that caused the several sapient races to arise on the same planet, just to keep the stories consistent, but you don’t have to EVER reveal that truth to us if you don’t want to. And feel free to change it if you decide something else later, just pick another answer that still fits whatever hints you have dropped.
Did Cheryl just buy a Morgan plus 4? That is what it looks like to me from what I can see of the grill.
It’s a modern reproduction. More details in later strips.
I want one. They are a sweet ride.
Anyone remember Harold?
And Maud?
I do drive a hearse, but it’s an ’87.
I watched that movie in college. My roommate screamed in horror at one point — when Harold walked toward the Jag with the blowtorch.
So does my daughter…..as an everyday “driver”. She runs a store in SLC that deals in Halloween year-’round.
https://www.deviantart.com/cat-man-dancing/art/The-Hearse-V-125957966
Was he the restaurant owner near the campgrounds, where there was the shootout?
No, that guy was bald.
Multiple species evolving sentience on a single world seems unlikely to this observer. One would expect the evolution of sentience to be extremely rare. We know how the Cats came to be – an evil gengineer – and why. But so many species on a single world. Are we talking uplift as in David Brin’s works?
Don’t know uplift, but the separate species were created by the Elder Gods because they were bored and wanted entertainment.
Or the one original race wanted more intelligent pets, and the experiment got away from them, or something.
I don’t know…
Uplift, in author David Brin’s fictional universe is the process in which a “patron” species genetically modifies a pre-sapient “client” species until it is sapient. Glen David Brin (born October 6, 1950) is an American scientist and author of science fiction. He has won the Hugo, Locus, Campbell and Nebula Awards. His novel The Postman was adapted into a 1997 feature film starring Kevin Costner. In Brin’s universe the client species is typically indentured to its patron species for 100,000 years. Humans have no apparent “patron” species and consider themselves to be a “wolfling” species. In Brin’s books humans have “uplifted” multiple species – dolphins, chimpanzees, gorillas and dogs. In Brin’s telling the original uplifting species is called the “Progenitors”. Perhaps “Elder Gods” is another designation for Progenitors. Anyway Brin is a good writer and all his books are good reads. I haven’t read him in years but the description of all the species on a single planet got me thinking about Brin’s work.
Larry Niven’s Brainwave has another concept. There is a (naturally occurring as far as anyone knows) beam of energy being emitted from the black hole at the center of the galaxy (across the disk instead of along the axis, as you would expect) that greatly inhibits neural activity. So, while ordinarily one species would develop to sapience, stop for lack of evolutionary pressure and inhibit any others from becoming competition, when Sol LEFT the beam, several Terran species suddenly had enough brain power to achieve sapience, and humanity became something … beyond that they are still exploring.
Back in 88 I spent 15 minutes alone with Larry Niven. I had just finished a contract job on an early version of the touch screen technology we all take for granted now. He was amazed that what he had seen as so SciFi in “Integral Trees” was already becoming. I worked on a technology which allowed retrofitting any CRT monitor to work as a touch screen. He was such a nice guy. For years afterward whenever I read something of his I heard him narrating the story. Met several authors at that con. It helped get me through a dark period in my life. Met and visited with Niven, Ben Bova, Algis Budrys, and the remarkable Dean Ing. The highlight was watching all three of the original Star Wars films back to back in a room full of fans. Kinda like a showing of Rocky Horror Picture Show but a touch less rowdy.
All good SF works like that. Take one premise, assume it is true whether it is likely or not, then extrapolate the consequences logically and consistently. For instance, the way PC has done with being able to generate coherent beams of gravitons, essentially gravity lasers.
Given that, PC, you probably should decide what the truth is that caused the several sapient races to arise on the same planet, just to keep the stories consistent, but you don’t have to EVER reveal that truth to us if you don’t want to. And feel free to change it if you decide something else later, just pick another answer that still fits whatever hints you have dropped.