CHRONICLE OF THE FUTURE

A wild, discursive theoretical romp through the future.

Written in the form of a “trialogue,” Taube’s massive tome is arranged as a metaphysical and theoretical journey through time. The three pillars that support this inspiring critical mass are Eve, Time Traveler and Chronicler. Through several hundred pages of Socratic discourse, this trio of nebulous personalities and dispositions expound on everything from black holes to nuclear-waste management. There is no story per se, but the book remains engaging because of its wild hyperbole. Laden with louder and less-polished versions of the monochrome graphs and pictorial renderings that readers of books like Brian Greene’s The Elegant Universe and Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time are familiar with, the book takes on an unwitting parody of popular scientific pedagogy. The renderings, with arrows that seem to be pointing to other arrows, unfortunately do more to obscure the discussion than to clarify. The book’s underlying ethos of awe and personal responsibility is authentic, though, sustaining its urgency even during the flightiest discourses. Many stellar discussions are had on the nature of time and the cosmos, but among the infinitely technical explication there are a few howlers. When discussing the formation and material composition of the universe, Time Traveler says, “This would be the final evidence of the Copernican Principle that the Earth is not the center of the world.” This isn’t exactly what Copernicus meant, and Taube probably knows it. An otherwise responsible, intelligent author, Taube has meticulously sourced the book, but amid the incredible amount of matter, these flubs take a toll on the book’s legitimacy as a distillation of millennial scientific Zeitgeist. There are some truly educational and moving moments, but as a preconscious parody it’s a lot more fun. Only the most intrepid will make it through the chronicle word by word; many readers will simply take a wormhole to the final pages. Overall, though, taken together or in pieces, Chronicle is enjoyable for its very audacity.

A compelling, imaginative but unwieldy work of philosophy and science.