just finished reading the ender series for the 2nd time(first was when i was really young so i couldnt grasp some of the more philisophical aspects of CoTM and Xenocide) but after finishing the series for the 2nd time i again find myself wanting to know more about the interactions with the descoladores.
I know there is plans for a new book Shadow of the flight or something like that and was wondering if it would deal with anything that had to do with them.
If OSC reads this i just want to thank you for such a great book. Ender's Game is more than likely my most favorite book of all time. I know for certain i have read it the most times out of any book(>15)
anyways any info regarding this topic would be welcome.
Rooter
p.s. feel free to offer up ideas of what the descoladores are. I'd be interested in hearing other views on what they could be.
[ May 03, 2005, 01:40 AM: Message edited by: Rooter ]
Posted by X12 (Member # 5867) on :
I'll give you my thoughts.
I thruthfully do not think Senior OSC will reveal to even us more detail of the descoladores until SiF comes out, and we don't know for sure it he will even include it in (which he most definately will... I believe it is inevitable) SiF.
So,unless he tells, which I doubt (and no offense meant), we wont know for a while.
Peace, Aphotic
Posted by SteveRogers (Member # 7130) on :
I still think they are Bean's descendants.
Posted by Rooter (Member # 7950) on :
steve if they were beans descendents' why would they be teraforming the worlds to make them uninhabitble for humans.
why would bean's descendants' want to destroy the human race. wouldnt that effect them too?
rooter
Posted by EyeRock (Member # 7929) on :
I posted this in another thread but it seems to make sense that the Descoladores are the long evolved decendents of a virus created by Bean & his children to fix their own genetic problem.
One could imagine imparting some "intelligence" to analyze genetic code so it "read" the DNA and devise a "solution". These skills then become true intelligence and the ability to communicate via DNA. Its not hard to conceive of a virus escaping and behaving like this over a long period of time. Imagine Bean's ship crashes and unleashes the virus etc...
Posted by accio (Member # 3040) on :
This question came up before and OSC gave us his explanation.
quote: Orson Scott Card Administrator Member # 209
posted April 13, 2005 08:52 AM ________________________________________ The genetic change that was being fixed on Path was a simple one, a tiny splice. It could be fixed with a virus because it was a one-step alteration. (Even then, it would have to be a very FAST virus, and one exceptionally resistant to the body's immune system; and being so fast and resistant, it would be a dangerous thing to unleash on a population in case it mutated and did extra unintended things.)
Neither the original alteration nor the cure have the slightest thing to do with Bean; the technique could not cure his problem because his body already HAS the structures, etc., that his genes created. His body wouldn't suddenly start producing the growth inhibitors just because his genes changed. He already IS what he is.
Here is the Link Posted by EyeRock (Member # 7929) on :
Not to argue the point but the virus would not be for BEAN but rather his children who have not had the physiologic changes Bean has now. It could even help his grandchildren.
Further, at last look, Bean had not "outgrown" his body yet. If they worked fast enough (or time shuttled so enough time/progress was made on earth) why could the gene switch not help Bean?
And to pile on here, the same basic technology dealing with combining a form of intelligence with another less desirable trait (OCD or unchecked growth) means the Path changes could have been an outgrowth of the research to help Bean and his children - whether or not that lead to the Descoladores.
Make sense?
Posted by CRash (Member # 7754) on :
quote: I still think they are Bean's descendants.
But wouldn't the descoladores understand, if they really were ultrasmart descendents of Bean, at least some the communication attempts tried by Jane and the other humans? No evolutionary differences should spring up quickly enough to change them that radically.
And how long ago, exactly, was the terraforming of Lusitania begun? Wasn't it estimated at around half a million years ago, or some large figure like that? That makes it impossible for the origins of the virus to be affiliated with Bean's children. Unless they've somehow developed a time machine as well.
quote:the Path changes could have been an outgrowth of the research to help Bean and his children
Actually, thinking about it, that would be interesting. Nothing to do with Anton's Key, of course, but experiments to create intelligent people through genetic manipulation might have begun with realizing that intelligence (as in Bean's case) could be altered through genes. But any kind of research into the subject could have ended up with Path, so it isn't anything significant if Bean's case was just one of the many possible pathways taken to arrive with that.
Posted by X12 (Member # 5867) on :
Hypotheitcal here:
I think it will be funny if the Descoladores are non-humanoid, which, hopefully, they aren't... (I want to see what kind of new type of alien Senior OSC might make for it )
Posted by Orson Scott Card (Member # 209) on :
The primary reason that I am not going to tell you a single thing about the descoladores until Shadows in Flight comes out is ...
I have no idea. Or rather, I have too many ideas. And I haven't decided which ones I'll use.
Nor will I even list those ideas, or confirm when someone else has come close to one of them. Because then people will commit to one or another and then when I make the "wrong" choice, they'll be disappointed with the book.
Just one hint: One of the descoladores is actually Santa Claus.
OK, not really. But I COULD write that story. Yes! I could! Wanna bet?
Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
You know, Christmas will never be the same again...
Posted by wiggin105 (Member # 7897) on :
reminds me of an ep. of Futurama were Santa was an evil robot and would kill anyone who was bad. Descoladores could be Evil Santa's little helpers delivering punishment to all who who are bad.
Posted by Syrjay (Member # 7706) on :
quote:OK, not really. But I COULD write that story. Yes! I could! Wanna bet?
Yes. $5.
Posted by wiggin105 (Member # 7897) on :
Before reading this post, I ask you to read the "who ever said" topic. In it, someone states that the intelligent skin could form a symbiotic relationship with someone it wraps around. I was thinking that maybe the descoladores could be symbiotic viruses. They take over the brains of real stupid creatures and are only intelligent in this state. Of course they tried to spread themselves around the universe, but other species were destroyed by the virus. Miro's comment that the virus RNA (I think that is what viruses have, right?) that is being transmitted are thoughts. So maybe he is right because each virus carries a thought and when inside a brain can exchange thoughts. Ooh. What if the descoladores could make themselves Bugger compatible (for drones only, of course) and that way we could communicate? Whatta think? Posted by Orson Scott Card (Member # 209) on :
Five dollars gets you the first six words.
Posted by Syrjay (Member # 7706) on :
Damn, I am in the wrong business if that's what you get paid!
Posted by archon (Member # 8008) on :
The main thing I don't want to happen is for the Descoladores to be an evil race. I think that they're non-humanoid beings, but obviously have a physical form of some kind that can create spaceships or at least spacecraft of some kind, like probes. Their way of communication with life is through the alterations of DNA, and the unfortunate side effect is that a lot of stuff dies when they try to communicate with it. The descolada might have been their way of saying "Hi, this is what it's like where we come from," to the native life of Lusitania. It's just that the native life doesn't have the ability to naturally adapt or change like the Descoladores do to such instructions.
Now that humanity has the ability to take their time and consider a peaceful response to the Descoladores, I really hope to see that happen.
Although I have to admit that the theory of "maybe this is how they speak to animals" was WAY cool. Still, vote no on Descoladores as bad guys.
Posted by Ginosion (Member # 7066) on :
I think, the descoladores are short, have very short stubby legs, kind of strange long skiny arms, with large noses, very small black eyes, and three organic pipes on their backs to release smell. Also, they are usually very old, they only reproduce once in a blue moon (i.e every hundred years or so) so there arn't many youngins (lol, youngins, i'm a redneck) around. I think they go around their own buissness releasing smells that could hurt, or help somone.
And on the vote if they are good or evil, i'd say they are neither.
Posted by trance (Member # 6623) on :
American or Canadian?
Posted by Rooter (Member # 7950) on :
im up for either. as long as we finally get an answer
Rooter
Posted by Carl Conrad Coreander (Member # 7851) on :
I saw in another thread that someone suggested making the Descoladores related to Dr. Volescu. I will *die* before I sit and let a book like that be written. Did you hear? I'd DIE!!! thethiefhekindlyspoke.pbwiki.com
[ June 04, 2007, 06:52 PM: Message edited by: Carl Conrad Coreander ]
Posted by Rooter (Member # 7950) on :
quote:Originally posted by Carl Conrad Coreander: I saw in another thread that someone suggested making the Descoladores related to Dr. Volescu. I will *die* before I sit and let a book like that be written. Did you hear? I'd DIE!!!
I would lose all faith in OSC's writing ability and would probably curl up into a ball and rock myself back and forth.
Rooter
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
There's a term for stories in an established universe where all the actions are carried out by the characters from the earlier works. It's called fan fiction. Actually, I think it's called bad fan fiction. I remember reading the end of SotH and thinking, because of my exposure to some of the people on Hatrack, "You know, there's a bunch of people out there who'd think it would be wicked awesome if Ender jumped out of nowhere and kicked Achilles butt."
For myself, I want OSC to come up with something new to challenge me, not to play out the illogical story lines that it took like half of his fans a minute of two to come up with and think that it'd be like so cool. If almost any of the ideas that were presented on threads here that took the tone of "OMG, it would be so awesome if this happened in the later books." show up in the later books, I'll be severely disappointed.
But, on the other hand, they could quite possibly sell better.
Posted by Clumpy (Member # 8122) on :
True. The new Star Wars movie was basically an elaborate form of fan fiction. Strange that it was directed by the original creator. . .
One caveat, OSC: please don't try to explain too much about the descoladores. I'd love them to exist more as an inscrutable species in the vein of the buggers than as some kind of construct created by another character.
I love how "Children of the Mind" ended - teasing, teasing for the whole book, then giving you a bite-sized nugget to think about.
Posted by TheSeeingHand (Member # 8349) on :
Exactly!
Posted by Bean Counter (Member # 6001) on :
It is clear that the DES, whatever they were, are by now what they choose to be. That is to say that their understanding of genetics has long sense given them the ability to decide their own form, function, level of happiness, sensuality and intelligence. It is also a dead bang certainty that they have technical tools, computers and what not as advanced as Humans, so they are vulnerable to Jane.
In fact Jane could, once she understands their genome and invades their computers, probably seize such tight control over the species through their own tools of communication through biological material as to render them effectively helpless slaves.
In fact the Descolodores are so vulnerable to this that their threat as a plot device will be henceforth and forever nullified. Hate to do it but uncle Orson wanted a challenge, now he needs to convince me I am wrong. Good Luck!!
![[The Wave]](graemlins/thewave.gif)
![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
)
![[Dont Know]](graemlins/dontknow.gif)
![[Wall Bash]](graemlins/wallbash.gif)