Cantos d' Hypérion (original title: The Hyperion Cantos ) is a cycle of Science-fiction, written by daN Simmons, which falls under the category of the Space operated. This cycle gathers four novels: Hypérion ( Hyperion , 1989), the Fall of Hypérion ( The Fall off Hyperion , 1990), Endymion ( Endymion , 1995) and Awakening of Endymion ( The Small channel off Endymion , 1997), supplemented by two news: orphans of the propeller and the death of the centaur .

The human ones after the apocalypse

In XXVIII^ème century of our era, the planet Ground is nothing any more but one distance memory, after its disappearance, remained engraved in the history of humanity under the name of “Great Error of 38” or “Great Error of Kiev”. At that time, indeed, a group of researchers and Artificial intelligences had wanted to carry out the first test of Distrans gate by creating their first black hole. But because of a miscalculation, the black hole, become unverifiable, absorbed the planet Ground little by little. The human ones were then constrained to leave to explore the universe - during phases known as “phases of Expansion” -, conquered new planets, then politically unified the majority of the worlds colonized under the aegis of Hegemony, an intergalactic confederation controlled by a senate and directed by an elected president. The planet-capital of this new world is Tau Ceti Central (TC ²). At the time of the account, Hegemony gathers more than 200 worlds and account 150 billion inhabitants.

• Political life : the current president of Hegemony is the old sénatrice Meina Gladstone. She directs Hegemony since her official residence, the “House of the Government”, a building built in the star shape of David and decorated in her center of a garden. The president is assisted various collaborators, of a Minister for Defense, a Minister for the Diplomacy and a Minister for the Economy (it is not mentioned other ministerial loads). As a chief of the armies, it is it which makes the decisions in the event of war or of military intervention in Retz. It intervenes with the senate and addresses to the population Hegemony by the network TVHD which retransmet all its speeches. It is assisted in its decision makings by the representatives of the Artificial intelligences which provide him complete records of forecasts on the evolution of the political situations and economic of Retz. Hegemony is characterized by its blue geodetic symbol and gold. The capital punishment is illegal in Hegemony.

• Transport: the voyages between various planets of Hegemony are carried out in two ways, is by an elaborate system of teleportation, the network of gates “Distrans”, which allows quasi instantaneous displacements between two planets moved away, that is to say by traditional transport on board spaceships been driven by “engines with Hawking propulsion”, especially designed to maintain the travellers in a state of sleep cryotechnic, called “state of running away”. At the time of these voyages, the Einsteinian laws of relativity cause a “temporal deficit” which slows down the biological ageing of the passengers, a voyage a few months which can create a temporal deficit several years. The gates “Distrans” were designed by the IA. They use the black holes to connect two points distinct from the universe. The immediate environment of a gate “Distrans” is called “zone of Singularité”. This zone is protected by a field from containment. The gates “Distrans” can be fixed or mobile, transported by “vessels gatekeepers”. At the time of the fifth centenary of Hegemony, the IA used the technique of the doors “Distrans” to carry out the impossible one: to deviate the course of the Thétys river to make it traverse several planets moved away, thus allowing the spectacular development of an interplanetary river trade. On various planets, terrestrial displacements are generally done using VEM (Electromagnetic Vehicles) of Vikken mark which use the natural magnetic field of planets. But there exist also slide blocks, carriages of wind, airships, carpets flying, cable cars, river barges drawn by lines mantas, etc

• Communications : the majority of planets of Hegemony are connected between them by a universal communication network called “Infosphère”. This gigantic highway of cyber-information is relayed by communications satellites. The control and the maintenance of the network are ensured by the Artificial intelligences. Any citizen of Hegemony can reach the infosphère, either by an small apparatus called “Persoc”, or directly by a cerebral implant. The infosphère diffuses digitized copies of books, holographic films (also called “holodrames”) or of old films dating from the Old Earth, called “films bidim” (two-dimensional films). The holographic television network of Hegemony is called TVHD and functioned with holographic pits. The infosphère is also the access point of the hackers which try to penetrate in the mégasphère, the dimension normally reserved for the IA. The planets connected by the infosphère and the gates “Distrans” form the communication network and mobility called the “Retz”.

• Daily life : the citizens of Hegemony are not called any more “Mr.” or “Mrs.” (for “Mister” or “Madam”), but “H.” (for “Hégémonien” or “Hégémonienne”, or for “Human”). Each citizen has persoc (or an implant of communication), which connects it to the infosphère, and a biomonitor who posts the actual position of his vital functions. On very urbanized planets, the human ones live in gigantic cities, called “apiaries”, which can be high several hundreds of meters. On planets with less population density, one finds any type of habitat, the shantytowns to the great land properties. Hégémoniens most fortunate build houses containing gates “Distrans” which enable them to distribute the various parts with living on several planets. The official currency of Hegemony is the mark. Medical progress is such as the citizens of Hegemony are not more affected grave diseases, because they are neat with specific treatments containing ARN. A specific treatment, called treatment “Poulsen”, makes it possible to the most fortunate citizens to undergo cures of renovation - which have the disadvantage of turning blue the skin. The biosculpteurs, surgeons esthetic of the future, modify the shapes of the human body at the request of their customers. The most current drug in Hegemony is the “flashback”. The alcohol consumption was dédramatisée by the invention of the “pill of the following day” which allows to the amateurs alcoholic drinks to avoid any negative effect the following day.

• Scientific research : there is no more scientific research at the human ones, since their total assumption of responsibility by the Artificial intelligences.

• military Defense : hegemony is equipped with a powerful army, called the “Force”. Its soldiers are involved in a combat simulator, the RTH-ECMO (Historical Network Tactical of the Military School of Command of Olympus), which revives to them historical battles of the time of the Old Earth. This simulator, as well as the staff of the Force, is located on the planet Mars. The soldiers of Hegemony have flexible armours which are rigidified in the event of shock or of fall and which is equipped with an car-injector “Médipac” conceived to look after the wounded soldier directly. The soldiers move on the ground in armor-plated VEM and use vessel-torches for the space flights. They are armed with various types of rifles (of which a laser rifle) and neuro-étourdisseurs. The army uses “fields of containment” to protect its vessels and spaces delimited. The prisoners of Hegemony suspectés of treason, are operated. Their brains are plunged in vats of derivation to allow their pushed interrogation, while their bodies are preserved in cryotechnic rooms.

• Religions : the religion underwent great changes since the “Great Error” which destroyed the Old Earth. Christianity yielded little by little the place to the Christianisme Zen, then with the Gnosticisme Zen, more carried towards interiority, without proselytism, for finally leading to a hundred theologies and philosophies of the life. In Hegemony, no religion prevails. Templiers form a community of 23 million followers who live on the “Thicket of God”, a planet covered with gigantic trees, called “Tree-worlds”, where their cities extend. Templiers adore the “Muir”, their spiritual leader is called the “authentic Voice of the Tree world”. Their vessels are immense trees propelled by semi-intelligent animals, called “Ergs”, which produce important fields of energy. Prophecies of Templiers say that humanity will owe expier his faults to have destroyed its native world, the Earth. The Church of the Final Atonement, also called gritchèque Church, is a sect millenarist which counts between 5 and 10 million followers. She predicts the end of humanity and the safety of the hearts of all those which will join it to adore Gritche, the “Lord of the Pain”. The Catholic church has as a seat the Pacem planet. It is directed by the pope Urbain XVI who, during the novel, will leave his place to the pope Teilhard I, 487^ème bishop of Rome. The pope of the catholics resides in the Saint-Pierre basilica of Rome which was dismounted stone by stone after the “Great Error of 38” and entirely rebuilt on Pacem (though that in " Awakening of Endymion" the Soya father says that it was transported such as it is, underground included/understood). The Catholic church counts less than one million followers in all Hegemony. Gnostic Zen represent a population of approximately 40 million Hégémoniens. It is a religion without priests, Église, holy book and concept of sin.

Extros

Extros are a community of human beings which made secession with the Hegemony and which lives in space in weightlessness.

• Aspect : Extros are humanoïdes of very big size and very thin, often bald people and pale. But they can also have bodies of insects or raise animalist attributes.

• Social organization : the Extros communities are called Swarms. Each swarm is directed by an Aggregate, a commission the Eligible ones which makes the decisions for the community.

• Daily life : Extros live in “city-spheres”, also called “city-spheres”, with gravity zero which resemble large irregular bubbles with semi-transparent contours. They adapted all the aspects of the human life to space, invented a form of agriculture and a system of water provision adapted to their cities. They also use agricomètes terraformées to develop their vacuum cultures and have mobile forests. The hollow asteroids are dedicated to automatic manufacture and the reprocessing of the heavy metals brought by their mining vessels.

• Technology : the military and biological technology of Extros is very in advance on that of Hegemony, in spite of the absence of the supercomputers which are the IA with the service of Hegemony.

• Philosophy : the philosophy of Extros consists in preserving all forms of life present in the universe. Extros think that the Man must adapt to his environment instead of adapting his environment to his needs. Extros deplore that Hégémoniens destroyed all the semi-intelligent forms of life which they met during their space explorations.

Gritche

See also: Gritche

Artificial intelligences

The Artificial intelligences - or IA - advise since centuries the leaders of Hegemony and strongly influence the political decisions and soldiers of Retz by putting at the service human calculators forecasters considered infallible. The IA are at the origin of the Distrans transport system which connects the worlds of Retz and deals with the maintenance of the interplanetary communication network, the infosphère (see the article corresponding on the page entitled Cantos d' Hypérion). But in spite of appearances, the IA methodically prepared a four-dimensional machination complexes and brilliant quite simply aiming at exterminating humanity. Two exogenic elements however introduce the unforeseeable one into the probabilistic calculation of the IA. The success of the creation of their Ultimate Intelligence was accompanied by an unexpected effect: the IU of the IA, which evolves/moves in the future, met another Ultimate Intelligence, that of Human, God. The two IA deliver a combat without mercy then. During this duel of the Titans, part of the IU of Human, called Empathie, escapes and takes refuge in the past which is not other than the present of the account. The IU of the IA thus sends in the past a biometallic weapon, Gritche, in order to trap Empathie. By creating extreme situations of pains lived by the Human ones, the IA think of being able to find Empathie and to eliminate it. But it is one their own creations, the cybride Johnny Keats 2, which will lead the IA to their loss by revealing the truth to Human and while refusing to become the host of Empathie. The manœvre of destruction of humanity under cover of attacks conducted by Extros is thwarted, the site of their TechnoCentre is revealed with Human and it will be destroyed by their own invention: the stick of death. Johnny Keats 2 reveals that the physical calculators which ensured the good performance of the IA was actually the sum of the human brains connected to the infosphère.

The IA form a virtual, intelligent and autonomous community, following their secession, in XXV^ème century, of the world of the human ones. Although independent, they continue to collaborate with the human ones. Not without humor, the IA of daN Simmons preserve a memory moved by their distances ancestors, the Calculateur S of IBM or the Packard old men of 1938! The level of intelligence of the IA is measured on the scale of Demmler- Turing.

• Company IA : the IA are divided into three clans which are characterized by their philosophical options. The “stable ones” wish to maintain the presence of the human being in the universe. The “unsteady ones” wish to eliminate the man from the universe. The “Ultimistes” hardly worry about the fate about human, preferring to concentrate on the project which federates three clans IA: the creation project of the Ultimate Intelligence, the cybernetic equivalent of omniscient and omnipotent God, the result of their data-processing theory of the total predictibility of the existence, in all its forms. The IU (Ultimate Intelligence) of the IA already exists, but in the future. But the IU of the IA sent a worrying message to its creators: it met in the future the Ultimate Intelligence of the human beings. The IA are in addition organized politically and have a “Consultative Assembly” which dialogs via holographic ambassadors with the government of Hegemony.

• Language IA : the IA are expressed in a very particular way, with much of semantic options stated simultaneously to sweep the most largely possible field of reality. An example, drawn from a dialog between Ummon and Branwne Lamia: “ Es you/Brawne Lamia/this multi-layer of proteins car-reproductive/car-disapprobative/car-ironic behind a layer of clay? ” This form of expression is supplemented by the sometimes enigmatic use of the “kōans”, of the aphorisms with double direction, typical of Buddhism Zen. An example: “The loss of ignorance is sometimes dangerous, because ignorance is a shield. ”

• TechnoCentre : the material and physical support of the IA, called “TechnoCentre” remains a enigma for all Hégémoniens, even for those which are in load of the high positions of the State. No one does not know where they draw their energy and how they function materially. This mystery will be raised at the end of the Fall of Hypérion.

• cybernetic Stratification : The communication network of Retz, due to the IA, is complex and is laminated in several levels of communication: the first level, the infosphère, is the level simplest, accessible to all the members from Hegemony by persoc or cerebral implant. The second level, called “Infoplan” or “Mégasphère”, is the higher level where evolve/move the conscience of the IA. It is interdict with any human being, and never no hacker really succeeded in penetrating there in-depth. There exists finally mysterious a third level, called “Métasphère”, which the cybride Johnny Keats 2 during its evolution will explore. By ensuring the good performance and the maintenance of the infosphère, the IA technically have access to all the human communications.

• Modeling and predictibility : the IA modelled by means of computer all the aspects of the human life and thus think of being able to predict all the acts and the least decisions of the Men. Besides they offer the services of their forecasters to the senators of Hegemony like helps with decision making. The IA predicted the war against Extros, they chose the identity of the 7 pilgrims of Gritche. However, certain elements of the “Main Memory” of the IA are very afraid of the Hypérion planet because of the temporal field anentropic of the Tombeaux of the Time , which introduces the random one into their calculations.

• Scientific research of the IA : the IA dealt with all the new developments scientific and of Hegemony. They are at the origin of all the network of gates “Distrans” of Retz, control the good performance of it and ensure maintenance of it. The IA also created a new frightening weapon, named the “stick of the death”, which will be proposed with the President Gladstone as the solution with the massive attacks of Extros, but no one does not know the real effects of this weapon which tested forever in reality. The IA finally created the cybrides, of the beings genetically recombined starting from the DNA of people who lived on the Old Earth, like the poet John Keats. The cybrides play for the IA the part of appendices of human personality. The conscience of these cybrides thus is always connected cybernétiquement to the IA and they have an access unlimited to the infosphère. Within the framework of the experimentation with the cybrides, the IA also undertook a called original experiment: “recovery of personality”. This project aimed at making revive a historical character by recording in the memory of the cybride its memories, its writings and its works and by replaçant it in an environment similar to that in which the character had lived in an original manner. After some failures due to the psychological instability of the cybrides of recovery of the personality, the IA put a term at this experimentation. Their last specimen in circulation is the cybride “John Keats”.

• Origin of the IA : At the end of the Awakening of Endymion, daN Simmons thanks Kevin Kelly " for its talk, in Out off Control, of the evolution of the artificial life of small beasts of 80-octets". The work " Out off Control" (which is entirely consultable on line, external cf bonds at the end of the article) mention the experiment undertaken by Thomas S. Ray, ecologist at the origin of the project Tierra, a data-processing Simulation of artificial Vie. One can thus see in this experiment and his description in Out off Control, the quite real inspiration of daN Simmons as for the origin of his IA.

Tombs of Time

The valley of the Tombs of Time , located beyond the Attached Chain, is a site which gathers several distinct buildings:

• Tree of Gritche, on which the victims of Gritche are impaled condemned to the suffering
• 3 Caveaux
• Monolithe of Crystal
• Obélisque
• Palais of Gritche
• Sphinx
• Temple of Jade

All the monuments of the valley of the Tombeaux of Time are physically accessible and are the subject often of archaeological missions of research. These monuments, come from the future, evolve/move in flows of anentropic tides (see Entropie). “The opening of the Tombeaux of Time ”, that all the protagonists wait and until much fears, does not mean their physical opening (since they are already completely accessible), but them phasage temporal with the present. As soon as they are in phase with time present, the Tombeaux of Time will release Gritche.

The anentropic tides of the valley of the Tombeaux of Time cause feelings of faintness and nauseas on the human ones and make difficult physical explorations of the various monuments, because the fluctuations of time cause modifications of physical space inside these same buildings, revealing or to disappear from the rooms, modifying dimensions of such or such galleries, etc

External bonds

• Summary of the book " Out off Control" of Kevin Kelly, entirely consultable on line in its English original version

• Direct access with the part of the châpitre 15 of the book " Out off Control" of Kevin Kelly (it is about the exact passage which inspired daN Simmons as for the origin of the IA in Cantos d' Hypérion)

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