Andy Ilachinski for his poetic musings on science fiction, complexity, and cellular automata… and for writing the real semitechnical primer on nonlinear dynamics, deterministic chaos, and complex adaptive systems.
Lt. Col. Martin E. LaPierre, USMC, for his profound knowledge of expert systems and synthetic weapons design, and his willingness to hear out my wildest speculations and top them.
Tom Seeley and Stephen Pratt for revealing the secret and astounding world of social insects.
Sam Arbesman, Charlie Bennett, Ciro Cattuto, Mavis Dunkor, Lauri Johnsen, Cliff Lasser, Derek Paley, John Smolin, and Steven Strogatz for their willingness to spend otherwise productive segments of their lives on fake science instead of the much more exciting stuff they do.
Kirsten Underwood, Tim Weed, Jim McLaughlin, and Ian McCullough for being the loyal, patient, and insightful readers I have come to rely on.
Anne Groell for remaining her serene self when this book was a year late and running.
And always and above all to Mitchel.
SPIN CONTROL
A Bantam Spectra Book / July 2006
Published by Bantam Dell
A Division of Random House, Inc.
New York, New York
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved
Copyright © 2006 by Chris Moriarty
Bantam Books, the rooster colophon, Spectra, and the portrayal of a boxed “s” are trademarks of Random House, Inc.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Moriarty, Chris, 1968–
Spin control / Chris Moriarty.
p. cm.—(A Bantam spectra book)
eISBN-13: 978-0-553-90273-0
eISBN-10: 0-553-90273-3
1. Artificial intelligence—Fiction. I. Title.
PS3613.O749S67 2006
813’.6—dc22
2005057156