{
  "export": {
    "source": "https://urth.darkrealm.vip/thread/urth/1088",
    "note": "Exported from an unofficial mirror of a public mailing list. Copyright in each message remains with the person who wrote it.  Email addresses are obscured as `user at host`, the form the original archive published. This file was rebuilt from parsed fields rather than retained headers, so it is faithful in content but not byte-exact.",
    "addresses": "obscured as 'user at host'"
  },
  "archive": "urth",
  "thread": {
    "id": 1088,
    "subject": "Backwardness",
    "messages": 1,
    "voices": 1,
    "first": "1998-09-04T00:41:26+00:00",
    "last": "1998-09-04T00:41:26+00:00"
  },
  "messages": [
    {
      "message_id": "<urth-v0018-0096@digest.urth.net>",
      "from": {
        "name": "David Duffy",
        "address": "davidd at qimr.edu.au"
      },
      "date": "1998-09-04T00:41:26+00:00",
      "subject": "(urth) Re: Backwardness",
      "in_reply_to": null,
      "reply_link": null,
      "blocks": [
        {
          "kind": "text",
          "depth": 0,
          "text": "I had two points - the first is about the arrow of time and entropy. \nBriah could actually be the contraction phase of our universe -- to\nviewers there, we are in their distant future and vv.  I have been\nrecently reading \"Archimedes Point\" (author escapes me), who provides\nvarious arguments, and how to design a causally reversed telescope to\ndetect (backward) light from that epoch.  This might fit in with the\nvarious mirrors.  Note that reversed light will tend to converge\non targets, to our way of thinking.  Travel between the epochs would be\nsubjectively quick on the ship only if it was travelling v close to c, \nbut at least you don't need hyperdrive. \n\nTHe other is about living backwards.  Only TH White (IIRC) has Merlin\nliving backwards, in the _Sword In the Stone_.  And other main uses\npredating Amis are in Williamson's _SeeTee Ship_, PK Dick's _Counterclock\nWorld_ and Vonnegut's _Slaughterhouse 5_.  I always thought the latter was\nAmis's inspiration, with its reversal of the damage to cities, followed by\nprocessing of the bombs so they were safe, and dispersal of their\ncomponents into landfills. \n\n| David Duffy.                                                    ,-_|\\\n| email: davidD at qimr.edu.au  ph: INT+61+7+3362 0217 fax: +0101   /     *\n| Epidemiology Unit, Queensland Institute of Medical Research    \\_,-._/\n| 300 Herston Rd, Brisbane, Queensland 4029, Australia                v "
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}