This is an interesting novel. Not an easy read as it immerses the reader, at times in unpleasant realities that are presented as growing out of a materialistic world view. And it is ultimately gloomy. It answers the question “Is this all there is: breeding [or not] and dying” with a yes and the only hope is that science can help us to evolve out of our worst traits.

I liked the interplay of scientific progress and cultural effects, particularly the way that New Age ideas and popular culture have been processing the view of the universe that a materialistic take on science can bring about. The metaphor of elementary particles for human society is worth thinking about.