How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
The bidding on physical tour slots to the Sagrada Familia was closed for the day, but there was still a queue of people near the cathedral entrance, people hoping for no-shows. It proved once again that the most important things were those you could touch. (1.22)
Vaz is visiting Barcelona in person (as he will later visit San Diego in person). So when Vaz, here notes that "the most important things were those you could touch," we could just take that as the old-fashioned rantings of an older man. After all, while it's true that there are tourists waiting for physical tours, let's think about what's implied: that there are virtual tours also. If you can't make it all the way to Barcelona, you still have a chance of seeing the cultural landmarks there.
Quote #2
Among other things, Pyramid Hill claimed to have the longest freefall ride in California.
The twins were grinning at him. Jerry waved at the hill. "How would you like to play Cretaceous Returns, but with real feeling?" (4.11-2)
Vernor Vinge loves him some contrast. Like here at the Pyramid Hill Amusement Park, we get a reminder that amusement parks often involve some physical aspect—like that "longest freefall" ride. Then we get the contrast with the virtual game, Cretaceous Returns—and then, for a final contrast, we get the reminder that the best virtual game experience mimics… actual physical experience.
Quote #3
It was as impressive as any advertising video that Robert had seen in the twentieth century. At the same time it was essentially incoherent, a garbage dump of special effects. So much technology, so little talent. (6.11)
New tech makes certain forms of culture possible, but sometimes it's hard to adjust. So when Robert sees Juan's crazy virtual composition, he compares it to… advertising. (Which for him is probably the lowest form of culture—it might not even qualify as culture.) Of course, the joke is on Robert when Juan praises Robert's poetry as "as good as any of the top game advertisers" (6.54).
Quote #4
But the only paper was the foolscap, and when he wrote on it, his scrawling penmanship was re-formed into neat, fontified lines. That had been an irritation in days past, but never enough to force him to dig up real paper. Today, now... he could see that his soul was sucked out of the words before he could make them sing! It was the ultimate victory of automation over creative thought. (7.13)
Here's a complaint we sometimes hear (in real life) from old people (or people who just dislike technology), that technology interferes with creativity. Of course, it's easy to imagine someone from an earlier time period saying to Robert, "You write things down? That must ruin your creativity. We only memorize our poems orally." In other words, Robert sees the computer as technology that stifles culture, but isn't pen-and-paper just another form of tech? (Also, does Robert ever talk about souls except when he's whining about computers?)
Quote #5
The singers were louder. It sounded as if they were singing "La Marseillaise." But there were also chants that sounded like a good old-fashioned student protest. (11.50)
There's a cross-over here between culture and "change": Robert thinks what he's hearing is a good old-fashioned student protest. (He could just say "old-fashioned" but this is Robert, fan of the old-fashioned.) But when we see this protest more clearly later (in Chapter 12), we can notice some differences, like the fact that at least part of the protest is virtual. Computers have gotten into all kinds of culture here.
Quote #6
There was lots of noise and action, but if you listened carefully, you could tell that the kids in the bushes were actually playing in other universes, all choreographed so neither players nor equipment would get in each other's way. She had picked the right cover; classical anime was just too highbrow for these dorks. (13.11)
And here's a cross-over between culture and "community": as Miri notes, there are lots of kids playing games at Pyramid Hill, but they are playing different games. So is culture tearing communities apart? Or forming different sorts of communities? But if we had to be honest, we also pulled this quote for Miri's remark that "classical anime" is "too highbrow." Partly, that could just be the jerky streak she shares with Robert, but it could also be a reminder how culture shifts: anime, which used to be a fringe culture, has now become elite.
Quote #7
One child broke away from the others and raced along the golden fire, somehow guessing just where and when it would flare up. The girl gave an odd, flailing kick — and landed on her rear. For an instant there was a light in the nearest goal, so sharp and intense it was as if all the fog had suddenly coalesced into the fuzzy image of a soccer ball. Everybody was shouting, even the phantom adults in the bleachers.
Robert made a grumpy noise. Even something as simple as a schoolyard game didn't make sense. (14.124-5)
Egan soccer is a new form of an old game. (How old is soccer? Let's put it this way: some of the earliest players probably wore togas.) Robert doesn't understand the game—heck, we're not sure that we do, either. At least we can all agree that this game involves a lot more technology than just a ball and a goal. Even supporting your kid has changed some, as you see some of those "phantom adults" are only there virtually.
Quote #8
"The wonders of nano-fluidics. A decade of old-time bioscience done in every shifting of the lights. How do you represent a trillion samples, and a billion trillion analyses? How can art deal with that?" (23.26)
This is Rabbit, so maybe he's just being a pain in the neck when he asks Robert this question. But maybe he has a point: with science and tech getting so complex (what are nano-fluidics and where can we get some?), where does art fit? Can Robert write poetry to capture the human condition when tech and culture are changing so much, and so fast?
Quote #9
"And now— " Juan grabbed for still greater import "—and now, ladies and gentlemen, the Orchestra of the Americas will perform their very own adaptation of Beethoven's EU Anthem, with lyrics by Orozco and Gu, and network synchrony by Gu and Orozco!" (33.92)
First, let's note that, like Robert's mysterious poetry, we never get to hear Juan's poem. How does that change your reading experience? (Frankly, we are curious what the poem is even about.) Second, even without knowing Juan's poem, we do like this project as a symbol of culture (music, poetry) coming together with technology (synching). This final project seems pretty "symbolic" of that type of collaboration.
Quote #10
"Imagine soft pinky robot hands, patiently picking over all the libraries and museums of the world. They'll be cross-checking, scanning for annotations—giving whole new generations of academic types like Zulfi Sharif something to hang their degrees on." (34.68)
This is Tommie imagining future Chinese scanning projects. We can't help but notice that Tommie (the techie) imagines that technology will lead the way and change culture. That is, we get scans and digital archives and then we get the academic papers and degrees. Is he right, do you think? Does technology lead culture?