The Gambit with Perfection (The Phantom of the Earth Book 2) (46 page)

WESTERN HEGEMONY:
the United States of America and its allies during the Second Hundred Years’ War.

ZEROPOINT ATTACK:
an attempt by hackers to use the zeropoint field to destroy a quantum network or system.

ZEROPOINT DISK:
also called a
z-disk
; a storage device that could only be activated using the ZPF.

ZEROPOINT FIELD:
also called the ZPF or the
field
; the subatomic world through which all matter in the cosmos is connected. Transhumans learned to access and manipulate waves within the electromagnetic ZPF in order to achieve telepathy, telekinesis, interstellar communication, interstellar travel, and time travel.

ZEROPOINT WALL:
a part of the ZPF manipulated in order to block unauthorized access or communications.

First of all, thank you for taking the time to read The Phantom of the Earth. None of this would be possible without you! Thanks to my friends and family for your support and patience during this process. Thanks to speculative fiction authors David Brin (
The Postman, Uplift Saga
), who read the first chapter of
The Song of the Jubilee
and offered writing advice, Jason Gurley (
Eleanor, Greatfall
), who designed the book covers, and Tammy Salyer (
Spectras Arise Trilogy
), who copyedited the manuscripts. Thanks to Mike Corley for creating the maps. Thanks to Penn State-University Park astrophysicist Dr. Zachary Prieskorn for reading several drafts, providing scientific and editorial perspective, and forming the space and time travel appendix. Thanks to Harvard University synthetic biologist Dr. George M. Church for searching the manuscripts for opportunities and offering scientific suggestions. Thanks to Columbia University synthetic biologist Dr. Harris Wang for meeting with me to discuss the project. Thanks to iGEM participants Clay Swackhamer (biological engineer), who read the manuscripts and provided scientific and editorial feedback, and Michael Easterbrook (chemical engineer), who read
The Song of the Jubilee
and
The Gambit with Perfection
and supplied scientific suggestions with a focus on the Reassortment Strain. Thanks to Matt Harkenreader (nuclear engineer) for helping me flesh out the terraforming appendix. Thanks to Victoria Chen (science engineer) for reading the first three books and providing scientific and editorial perspective on
The Song of the Jubilee.
Thanks to the Chinese University of Hong Kong iGEM team for sending me their updated research on synbio data storage (
E. cryptor
). Thanks to my beta readers: Amber Triplett, Bill Sullivan, Carl Nelson, Casey Miller, Cheryl M-M, John Boettcher, Joyce Gravino, Karen Klink, Kathryn Cunningham, Kelsey Mecher, Laura Johnson, Lauren Stoolfire, Michelle Hofacker, Natalie Hughes, Rowena Hoseason, Veronica Sardo, Violet Lauderdale, and Yulande Lindsay. Thanks to my concept artists Daniel Kvasznicza (
300, Arkham Origins
) and Juan Carlos Barquet (
The Origin Mystery
). Thanks to Polgarus Studio for formatting the books for publication. Special thanks to my editor, Erin Wilcox, without whom this project would never have been completed.

While synthetic biology and other technologies are treated fictitiously in The Phantom of the Earth, I delved into many excellent nonfiction models for inspiration. The most influential sources included:
Regenesis: How Synthetic Biology Will Reinvent Nature and Ourselves
by George M. Church and Ed Regis, PhD,
The Field: The Quest for the Secret Force of the Universe
by Lynne McTaggart,
More Than Human: Embracing the Promise of Biological Enhancement
by Ramez Naam,
Prehistoric Life: The Definitive Visual History of Life on Earth
by DK Publishing, and
Algorithmic Puzzles
by Anany Levitin and Maria Levitin. Other sources that helped me apply concepts of earth science, theology, martial arts, what could happen to the planet’s surface if humans suddenly disappeared, exoplanets, quantum physics, classical physics, metaphysics, and time include
The Earth Machine: The Science of a Dynamic Planet
by Edmond A. Mathez and James D. Webster;
Time Travel and Warp Drives: A Scientific Guide to Shortcuts through Time and Space
by Allen Everett and Thomas Roman;
The World Without Us
by Alan Weisman;
Quantum Enigma: Physics Encounters Consciousness
by Bruce Rosenblum and Fred Kuttner;
Exoplanets: Finding, Exploring, and Understanding Alien Worlds
by C. R. Kitchin;
God’s Universe
by Owen Gingerich;
The God Theory: Universes, Zero-point Fields, and What’s Behind It All
by Bernard Haisch;
The Book of Five Rings
by Miyamoto Musashi; “Wormholes, Time Machines, and the Weak Energy Condition” by Michael S. Morris, Kip S. Thorne, and Ulvi Yurtsever, published in
Physical Review Letters
; and
A Question of Time: The Ultimate Paradox and the Secrets of Consciousness
, a compilation of articles from
Scientific American
. Discovery Channel’s
Inside Planet Earth
and National Geographic’s
Down to the Earth’s Core
also influenced details inside Vigna and Earth. Note: any egregious errors beyond what would be considered acceptable artistic license in applying the science or technology to The Phantom of the Earth are my own.