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The Mercury Relay

$14.07

In the year 3123, three friends set out to change the fabric of the space colonies through a new innovation in communications technology. They soon find others have different ideas for their invention and for the colonies at large. Will the young astronauts be able to navigate the politics of early space settlement, or will the past that haunts their parents come back to foil even their best-laid plans?

Highlights

Hard science fiction
Mystery
Multi POV
Silly robots

Summary

Earth, Proxima Centauri B, Tau Ceti F, Teegarden's Star C: the disparate settlements of an early space-faring humankind. On a world covered in ice, one stripped of all atmosphere by solar winds and another with a strange orbit through habitable and inhabitable seasons, a new generation of astronauts seeks to find its place. For El, the inventive information scientist, and Cai, colonial engineer dropout, will this mean unifying the colonies through a new superluminal quantum communications technology to bridge the parsecs between? Or, will the secrets that rocked the colonial expedition some 20 years ago, which still haunt the gruff detective, Japh, rear their heads again to take the new technology in more destructive directions than the younger ones could have imagined? Somehow, the parent generation knows more than they let on, including Zed, the tinkerer, and Shiev, the cyberneticist, who have caught Japh's wary eye. Read on as a young generation finds its way in a society more complicated than it seems, and a young human race searches for meaning in the vast cosmos. The pressures of suspicion will drive some to the brink while loyalties and the bonds of friendship and family are tested by those who work behind the scenes.

M. Verant
Fantasy Author

Chapter Criticism

The conflict over how FTL communication affects colony relations for trade/war feels like a cool basis for a story. It gives an empire-style SF with political intrigue.

Alex S
Technical quantum computing writer

Chapter Criticism

I really got into the story when El started hacking into the Proxima colony's system. I liked how she thought through things methodically. And then there's the foreboding termination of her session—the timing of that was excellent. I do think that El is the main character in these opening scenes and she's a strong one. I also liked the technological concepts, in particular, the underground structures and quantum communication.

Anonymous

Novel Criticism

There are several points in the novel where the description and imagery become incredible. I also love the spirituality underlying the science of the setting – as though humanity has abandoned a Judeo-Christian God to find more in the magic of the universe. There’s something downright poetic about that, and adds a very human and humanities-focused touch to this hard-science setting.
More generally, the characters in this narrative are, in general, very well realized, with understandable motivations – both as cultures, and as individuals, at least in my opinion. I particularly liked Japh, Zed, El, and the few times we got into the head of a robot.

Paperback

$14.07

A review of quantum and hybrid quantum/classical blockchain protocols

$39.95

Blockchain technology is facing critical issues of scalability, efficiency and sustainability. These problems are necessary to solve if blockchain is to become a technology that can be used responsibly. Useful quantum computers could potentially be developed by the time that blockchain will be widely implemented for mission-critical work at financial and other institutions. Quantum computing will not only cause challenges for blockchain, but can also be harnessed to better implement parts of blockchain technologies including cryptocurrencies. We review the work that has been done in the area of quantum blockchain and hybrid quantum–classical blockchain technology and discuss open questions that remain.

Highlights