InterstellarNet: Origins — Edward M. Lerner

When the First Call from the Stars Comes, Do We Even Dare to Answer? Life changes for everyone in general--and for physicist Dean Matthews in particular--when astronomers detect a radio signal from a nearby star. First Contact forces humanity to face hard questions, and do it fast. Every answer spawns new questions. Every solution sets in motion a new and more daunting crisis to challenge Dean, his family-and an expanding number of interstellar civilizations-for generations to come. Praise for InterstellarNet: Origins: "...in InterstellarNet: Origins...Lerner proves he knows enough real-world, present-day computer science and economics to combine them into a wonderfully thought-provoking story.... Lerner's world-building and extrapolating are top notch." --SFScope "Lerner mixes physics, computer science, and economics into a series of very intellectually satisfying puzzles. Some of the puzzles involve understanding the alien, and some depend on understanding ourselves ... A very satisfying read, especially for the intellectually inclined." --Mike Brotherton, author of Spider Star"One of the most original, believable, thoroughly thought-out, and utterly fascinating visions ever of what interstellar contact might really be like." --Dr. Stanley Schmidt, Editor, Analog Magazine"Edward Lerner takes us from a first SETI detection to full scale interstellar net economics, with thrills along the way. No one had thought through what a working interstellar net would be like. Lerner has the professional heft to make sense of it, tell a story, and make us care. Good stuff, told in clear, quick prose. A groundbreaking job!" --Gregory Benford, author of Timescape.