Talk:Feersum Endjinn

Novels Mid‑importance

	Novels portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Novels, an attempt to build a comprehensive and detailed guide to novels, novellas, novelettes and short stories on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the project and contribute to the general Project discussion to talk over new ideas and suggestions.NovelsWikipedia:WikiProject NovelsTemplate:WikiProject Novelsnovel articles
Mid	This article has been rated as Mid-importance on the project's importance scale.

Not set in the Culture universe?[edit]

While it's safe to say there are no direct references to the Culture in this book, I think you can interpret as being set on Earth after the Culture has departed, and that the Feersum Endjinn itself was perhaps constructed by the Culture/Minds in anticipation of the coming Encroachment. I'd go as far as to say that's what the book is implying, even though it doesn't call out the Culture directly.

Tarcieri (talk) 23:18, 8 September 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Unknown[edit]

Unknown to most of humanity, the Solar System is drifting into an interstellar molecular cloud ("the Encroachment"), which will eventually dim the Sun's light sufficiently to end life on Earth.

I got the impression everyone knew this was happening? Did I read it wrong..? I did leave the book and come back to it, so maybe I did... -- Sam

It is indeed common knowledge.

I've removed this: (though the story is compatible with the sci-fi universe Banks has created in the Culture books, meaning it could be assumed to be a prelude). IT's in Earth's distant future, so how can it be a prelude to the Culture? (Given that, for example, the Idiran War takes place around 1100 AD) -- Tarquin 12:57 23 Jul 2003 (UTC)

Oh, yes, of course; and I wrote the article on the Idiran-Culture War too... (though I think you'll find you are 200 years out : ) -- Sam

oops! - Tarquin

I won't tell them if you don't. -- Sam

Not an ant?[edit]

Thought this was interesting. When you look up what an 'ergates' is, it is six-legged and black but not exactly an ant: https://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?enlarge=0000+0000+1008+0033 Spined woodborer, which explains a bit. "Came out of the woodwork" and all that. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.72.57.58 (talk) 22:36, 26 December 2017 (UTC)[reply]