Book:The Science of Discworld IV: Judgement Day: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 12:01, 19 December 2021

The Science of Discworld IV: Judgement Day
Cover art by Paul Kidby
Co-author(s)	Ian Stewart, Jack Cohen
Illustrator(s)
Publisher	Ebury Press
Publication date	April 2013
ISBN	0091949793
Pages	352
RRP	£18.99
Main characters	the Wizards
Series	Science books
Annotations	View
Notes
All data relates to the first UK edition.

Blurb:

A new Discworld story from Terry Pratchett.

The fourth book in the Science of Discworld series, and this time around dealing with THE REALLY BIG QUESTIONS, Terry Pratchett's brilliant new Discworld story Judgement Day is annotated with very big footnotes (the interleaving chapters) by mathematician Ian Stewart and biologist Jack Cohen, to bring you a mind-mangling combination of fiction, cutting-edge science and philosophy.

Marjorie Daw is a librarian, and takes her job -- and indeed the truth of words -- very seriously. She doesn't know it, but her world and ours -- Roundworld -- is in big trouble. On Discworld, a colossal row is brewing. The Wizards of the Unseen University feel responsible for Roundworld (as one would for a pet gerbil). After all, they brought it into existence by bungling an experiment in Quantum ThaumoDynamics. But legal action is being brought against them by Omnians, who say that the Wizards' god-like actions make a mockery of their noble religion. As the finest legal brains in Discworld (a zombie and a priest) gird their loins to do battle -- and when the Great Big Thing in the High Energy Magic Laboratory is switched on -- Marjorie Daw finds herself thrown across the multiverse and right in the middle of the whole explosive affair.

As God, the Universe and, frankly, Everything Else is investigated by the trio, you can expect world-bearing elephants, quantum gravity in the Escher-verse, evolutionary design, eternal inflation, dark matter, disbelief systems -- and an in-depth study of how to invent a better mousetrap.

Due for release in May, 2013.

Bonus Material

Some previously unreleased material, deleted from the published edition, is to be found here. alas, it's Ian Stewart's contribution to the scientific side, but interesting all the same.

The booklet 'The Worlde Not A Dysk' by Omnian Priest Spread-The-Word Gladly was included with the Waterstones exclusive first edition hardback, and then later reprinted in the Tesco exclusive paperback as an extra chapter. This booklet contains material that 'proves' that the world is indeed round and not astride the back of a giant turtle.

Characters

Main Characters

The Wizards:
Marjorie Daw, a librarian on Roundworld

Minor Characters

Cameos and Mentions

Locations

The Disc
Roundworld
- The Library of Ms Marjorie Daw

Things and Concepts

Annotations

Reference is made to the Bliss system of library classification - thought in some respects to be better than the far better known Dewey Decimal, but forced into a footnote to history by a technically inferior system which, like VHS tape cassettes, had better marketing men and superior PR than Betamax. In a Discworld context, think of the Blit system.

Gallery

Previous book The Science of Discworld III: Darwin's Watch	Rincewind Series	Next book Last book

Previous book The Science of Discworld III: Darwin's Watch	Science Series	Next book Last book

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+{{Book Data
+|title=The Science of Discworld IV: Judgement Day
+|cover=[[File:SOD4 Hardback.jpg|240px|thumb|Cover art by [[Paul Kidby]]]]
+|coauthors=[[Ian Stewart]], [[Jack Cohen]]
+|illustrator=
+|date=April 2013
+|publisher= Ebury Press
+|isbn=0091949793
+|pages=352
+|rrp=£18.99
+|series=Science books
+|characters=the [[Wizards]]
+|annotations=
+|notes=
+}}
 ==Blurb:==
-A brilliant new Discworld story from Terry Pratchett.
+A new Discworld story from Terry Pratchett.
 The fourth book in the Science of Discworld series, and this time around dealing with THE REALLY BIG QUESTIONS, Terry Pratchett's brilliant new Discworld story Judgement Day is annotated with very big footnotes (the interleaving chapters) by mathematician Ian Stewart and biologist Jack Cohen, to bring you a mind-mangling combination of fiction, cutting-edge science and philosophy.
-Marjorie Dawe is a librarian, and takes her job -- and indeed the truth of words -- very seriously. She doesn't know it, but her world and ours -- Roundworld -- is in big trouble. On Discworld, a colossal row is brewing. The Wizards of the Unseen University feel responsible for Roundworld (as one would for a pet gerbil). After all, they brought it into existence by bungling an experiment in Quantum ThaumoDynamics. But legal action is being brought against them by Omnians, who say that the Wizards' god-like actions make a mockery of their noble religion. As the finest legal brains in Discworld (a zombie and a priest) gird their loins to do battle -- and when the Great Big Thing in the High Energy Magic Laboratory is switched on -- Marjorie Dawe finds herself thrown across the multiverse and right in the middle of the whole explosive affair.
+Marjorie Daw is a librarian, and takes her job -- and indeed the truth of words -- very seriously. She doesn't know it, but her world and ours -- Roundworld -- is in big trouble. On Discworld, a colossal row is brewing. The Wizards of the Unseen University feel responsible for Roundworld (as one would for a pet gerbil). After all, they brought it into existence by bungling an experiment in Quantum ThaumoDynamics. But legal action is being brought against them by Omnians, who say that the Wizards' god-like actions make a mockery of their noble religion. As the finest legal brains in Discworld (a zombie and a priest) gird their loins to do battle -- and when the Great Big Thing in the High Energy Magic Laboratory is switched on -- Marjorie Daw finds herself thrown across the multiverse and right in the middle of the whole explosive affair.
 As God, the Universe and, frankly, Everything Else is investigated by the trio, you can expect world-bearing elephants, quantum gravity in the Escher-verse, evolutionary design, eternal inflation, dark matter, disbelief systems -- and an in-depth study of how to invent a better mousetrap.
+Due for release in May, 2013.
+==Bonus Material==
+Some previously [[Deleted Scenes|unreleased material]], deleted from the published edition, is to be found '''''[http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/knowledge/science/scienceofdiscworld/ here]'''''. alas, it's Ian Stewart's contribution to the scientific side, but interesting all the same.
+The booklet 'The Worlde Not A Dysk' by Omnian Priest Spread-The-Word Gladly was included with the Waterstones exclusive first edition hardback, and then later reprinted in the Tesco exclusive paperback as an extra chapter. This booklet contains material that 'proves' that the world is indeed round and not astride the back of a [[Great A'Tuin|giant turtle]].
+==Characters==
+===Main Characters===
+*The [[Wizards]]:
+**[[Chair of Indefinite Studies]]
+**[[Hex]]
+**[[Lecturer in Recent Runes]]
+**[[Librarian]]
+**[[Mustrum Ridcully]]
+**[[Rincewind]]
+**[[Senior Wrangler]]
+*[[Marjorie Daw]], a librarian on Roundworld
+===Minor Characters===
+*The [[Dean]]
+*[[Mightily Oats]]
+*[[Slant|Mr Slant]]
+*The Reverend Mister [[Stackpole]]
+*[[Havelock Vetinari]]
+===Cameos and Mentions===
+==Locations==
+*The [[Disc]]
+**[[Ankh-Morpork]]
+**[[Unseen University]]
+**[[High Energy Magic Building]]
+*[[Roundworld]]
+** The Library of Ms Marjorie Daw
+==Things and Concepts==
+*The [[Church of the Latter-Day Omnians]]
+*[[Guild of Lawyers]]
+*[[Om|Omnism]]
+*[[Thaumic Reactor]]
+*The [[Sanitary Legion]]
+==Annotations==
+Reference is made to the ''Bliss'' system of library classification - thought in some respects to be better than the far better known Dewey Decimal, but forced into a footnote to history by a technically inferior system which, like VHS tape cassettes, had better marketing men and superior PR than Betamax. In a Discworld context, think of the [[Blit]] system.
+==Gallery==
+{|
+|-
+| valign="top" | [[File:SOD4 cover.jpg|180px|thumb|Collectors Edition Cover]]
+| valign="top" | [[File:SOD4 Tesco.jpg|thumb|120px|'Tesco' Edition]]
+| valign="top" | [[File:SOD4 Proof.jpg|thumb|150px|Book Proof]]
+| valign="top" | [[File:SOD4 Booklet.jpg|thumb|140px|Promotional Booklet]]
+| valign="top" | [[File:SOD4 CD.jpg|thumb|150px|Audio CD]]
+| valign="top" | [[File:SOD4 US.jpg|thumb|120px|US Cover]]
+|}
+{{series|series=Rincewind|before=The Science of Discworld III: Darwin's Watch}}
+{{series|series=Science|before=The Science of Discworld III: Darwin's Watch}}
+[[Category:Rincewind Series|Science of Discworld IV: Judgment Day]]
+[[Category:Science Series|Science of Discworld IV: Judgment Day]]