Eliezer S. Yudkowsky wrote:
> Where do you want to live?
>
> Permutation City?
> The Culture?
> The High Beyond?
> (I'm guessing these will be the top three.)
> Or some creation of your own?
The High Beyond, without a doubt.
Why? Because there is actually something to DO in this universe. I'm not especially interested in spending eternity indulging in hedonic engineering and navel contemplation. I want to be able to do something productive with my time, and Vinge's universe provides plenty of opportunity for that.
The Zones are permeable enough that a determined High Beyond civilization could easily rescue entire civilizations from the Slow Zone. The races in the Low Beyond, who also don't have immortality, are even easier to reach. The outer Zones are also desperately in need of an effective peacekeeping force and reliable information sources, and anyone contemplating the move to the Transcend could use an educated helping hand.
And once we've done what we can to make the galaxy a better place, the Transcend is right next door...
Billy Brown, MCSE+I
bbrown@conemsco.com