A World Out of Time

A World Out of Time is a science fiction novel by Larry Niven and published in 1976. It is set outside the Known Space universe of many of Niven's stories, but is otherwise fairly representative of his 70's hard sci-fi novels. It was originally serialised in Galaxy magazine.

Related Topics:
Science fiction - Larry Niven - 1976 - Known Space - Hard sci-fi - ''Galaxy''

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It tells the story of Corbel, a man who died in the 1970's who is awoken from cyrogenic deep freeze by a future global government (called 'The State'), and placed in the body of a mindwiped criminal. The State, an oppressive and totalitarian regime, train Corbel to be sent as a lone astronaut on a mission of space exploration. Disgusted with the State's treatment of him as an expendable commodity, Corbel hijacks the ship, ignoring the mission and visiting the galactic central core and a vast black hole.

Related Topics:
Cyrogenic - Black hole

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He returns to the solar system, where millions of years have passed due to relativity effects. There, he finds that the sun has undergone a transformation into a red giant, and the Earth has been moved into orbit around Jupiter. The human race is all but extinct, reduced to small colonies of humans made immortal by advanced medical techniques, the last survivors of wars and the drastic environmental effects of the changes to the solar system. The story revolves around Corbel's attempts to discover the source of the now lost immortality treatment and to survive among the hostile natives of Earth.

Related Topics:
Relativity - Red giant

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