The First Immortal

Rating:
Summary: Far more pretentious preaching than plot...
Review: I found The First Immortal to be a highly intelligent book. His treatment of the effects of nanotechnology, artificial intelligence, computer science and biotech over the next hundred years do reveal the causal implications of widespread applications of these technologies. This is very refreshing since the reality of the future won't be like Star Trek or most any other science fiction work today. Late 21st century nanotech and biotech means if someone gets shot in the heart or decapitated, science will be able to revive him and restore the damaged body.

That being said, I did find Mr Halperin's view of the future to be too optimistic. Human beings as a whole aren't altruistic and many are downright evil. I simply can't discount the mentality and desires of some in the world today (including entire religious bodies) who only care about power and destroying what they themselves can't create or emulate.

And yet, I find his assumptions attractive - I wish the world will become like how he envisioned. Unfortunately, I doubt it'll ever happen.

Rating:
Summary: Great Ideas upholds Okay Story
Review: I liked this book. I liked the story and the idea, but I didn't like the "tone" of the writer. It is an interesting puzzle to me. The closest comparision to the writer, Mr. Halperin, I can come up with is Robert Silverberg. Mr. Silverberg wrote some great fantasy books, but they tended to be sad or fatalistic. Even when the hero wins, I never was very happy about it. Mr. Halperin's style is just like that. Since Silverberg has won many awards, I guess Halperin is in good company. I, however, like to read science fiction or fantasy with a lighter tone. Mr. Halperin is "deadly" serious and, in fact, in my book he has several pages of places where you can go, if you want to be frozen for the future. But first, the story.

The First Immortal takes us through the life and times of a man who is born in the early 20'th century and by story's end is, in his view, essentially immortal. (I will explain below) Along the way, the point of view in the story changes two or three times. Towards the end, this gets a little confusing, but the story is clear enough. Alot of the story is focused on the conflict between this man, Ben, and his son Gary. This conflict seems artificial to me. It was put into this story to tie the ends together, but it wasn't believable to me.

Anyway, this is a distraction. The First Immortal is really not a story of science fiction, but rather an advocacy piece discussing possible science facts. Halperin focuses on Immortality and the disease of aging, but he also talks about computer consiousness, medicine in the future world and different types of bionic technology. In these areas, the book is at its best.

One discussion, for example, describes (or debates) what is a person? A person is still a person, if they have a false eye or a fake arm. What about if a person has implanted memories? Or if part of their brain function is mechanic? Is a person still a person if 90% of their brain is organic while 10% is not? Is yes, are they still a person if 50% of their brain is a computer? Where do you draw the line?

Since I disagree with how this book answers this question, I disagree with the conclusion of its author. The fun, however, is having that fight about these issues with the author. I liked these discussions, because I discuss similiar things with friends. And, if you like discussions like this, you will like this book. If you don't, don't buy it. For those of you who do buy it, and read this review, email me afterwards. I would be curious to see you responses to some of the issues covered by The First Immortal.

Rating:
Summary: Promising start, then......ugh.
Review: I was put off by the hokey futurism in Halperin's "The Truth Machine", but it had enough storytelling muscle to make me give this one a try.

The first half of the book is really interesting, as we see the twists and turns in the life of Benjamin Smith, his philosophy, his family. Really, Halperin had me in the palm of his hand here.

But like "Truth Machine", once we get to the future, it all unravels. We get wild speculation, world government, and so on, etc., futuristic cliches up the wazoo. In fact, the world of the Truth Machine is the same one here. So it was like going through that pain *twice*.

Halperin could do better.

Rating:
Summary: Better science that story
Review: It's true that you learn something with every new book. In this case it was the "science" of cryogenics, now in an embryonic stage. The author attmepts to be mesmerizing and grand but just ends up "very good". The plot is simple - a man dies and is frozen. He awakens in a strange future (revived) and must face the Brave New World. Actually, his getting acquainted with the current age is one of the best parts of the book. He learns that death has been conquered through bioengineering, artificial intelligence and the general advancement of science.

The newspaper stories were at first interesting and not too bothersome to the flow of the plot. But after a while they became tiresome, insipid and preachy. The ending falters slightly as it turns into worship for old age. The future is so bright it seems unrealistic...but this IS science fiction. Well worth the money.

Rating:
Summary: Better science that story
Review: It's true that you learn something with every new book. In this case it was the "science" of cryogenics, now in an embryonic stage. The author attmepts to be mesmerizing and grand but just ends up "very good". The plot is simple - a man dies and is frozen. He awakens in a strange future (revived) and must face the Brave New World. Actually, his getting acquainted with the current age is one of the best parts of the book. He learns that death has been conquered through bioengineering, artificial intelligence and the general advancement of science.

The newspaper stories were at first interesting and not too bothersome to the flow of the plot. But after a while they became tiresome, insipid and preachy. The ending falters slightly as it turns into worship for old age. The future is so bright it seems unrealistic...but this IS science fiction. Well worth the money.

Rating:
Summary: Freeze yourself and become immortal
Review: Like Halperin's "The Truth Machine," this book isn't great as fiction but has an intriguing thesis. Halperin is convinced--and wants his readers to be convinced--that we will soon be able to stop the process of aging and, thus, that we should have ourselves frozen shortly before death, to be revived when medicine has advanced far enough to halt and reverse aging and to cure our diseases. Halperin presents his case in the form of a story about a man who is frozen in 1988 and revived in 2072, when aging has been conquered.

I read this book a few years ago and have continued to think about the ideas in it. It seems reasonable to suppose that we will indeed eventually figure out how to halt aging and that this will be one of the most radical turning points in human history--that future humans (the rich and powerful ones at least) will die only of "unnatural" causes.

Rating:
Summary: Oops
Review: Silly me, I thought it was by Helprin when I bought it. Man, I was amazed by how silly & poorly written this was. Not sure who this Halperin guy is, but he sure isn't related to Helprin.

Rating:
Summary: Minor Flaws
Review: This is the first book I know of that really deals with what might happen when (not if) medical science extend life far beyond the 80 - 100 years we traditionally expect.

The best part of the book is the "newspaper" clipping . . . such as a team sport where the contestants can kill each other -- no, I _really_ mean kill each other -- and then be revived, . . . hilarious.

The implications for social problems and adjustments are very well thought-out. This book may become a Classic 50 years from now when we get to the actual science described in the book.

The minor flaw is common to all hard science fiction -- too technical for most readers (but then again, I like technical writing).

Rating:
Summary: Impressive
Review: Very much like The Truth Machine, this book is a genuine page turner made all the more impressive by the fact that the story has a foundation in actual scientific research (something I didn't discover until after I read the book). I highly recommend for sci-fi and non sci-fi fans alike!

Rating:
Summary: The First Immortal
Review: What a sharp and wonderful mind James Halperin has! I enjoyed every page of his imaginitive speculation about biological immortality and its implications. His well-developed characters are brave and noble, becoming even more so as nanotechnology extends their lifespans, enabling their perpectives and experiences to expand. Readers who worry that religion and mysticism hold too great a sway over so many people's lives will enjoy Halperin's vision of a future where science-based human innovation is properly recognized as the real savior of humankind. Halperin's philosophy and writing style remind me of Carl Sagan, who wrote The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark. Carl undoubtedly would have loved reading The First Immortal.