Pandora's Brain
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Narrated by:
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Joe Hempel
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By:
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Calum Chace
About this listen
About half the scientists researching artificial intelligence (AI) think that a conscious AI at or beyond human level will be created by 2050. If they are right, the consequence could be an intelligence explosion, in which the AI rapidly and enormously exceeds human cognitive ability.
Pandora's Brain is a science and philosophy thriller by best-selling writer Calum Chace. It uses the issues raised by the coming machine intelligence explosion as a platform for a fast-paced and thought-provoking adventure story.
Set in the very near future, it features Matt, a shy but engaging and resourceful student who discovers that his recently deceased father was involved in research that could enable the construction of the world's first conscious machine.
Matt's enquiries lead to him being kidnapped, as he is caught in the crossfire between two groups pursuing that goal - one led by a Russian billionaire and another backed by the US military. Matt has to do more than simply survive. He has to harness these powerful forces to his own ends, and his life as well as his family's is at stake.
A dramatic seaborne rescue operation, a series of brutal murders and other filmic action scenes follow. In the course of his adventures, Matt discovers that the potential upside of creating machine intelligence includes immortality and godlike powers of understanding and being - but the potential downside is immediate extinction, or worse. As he is drawn deeper into his adventure, he becomes both the symbol and the victim of a global struggle over the approach to be taken toward this powerful new technology. A landmark decision at a meeting of the UN General Assembly forces Matt to make a fateful decision, which sparks the story's final twist.
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Caitlin Decter is young, pretty, feisty, a genius at math - and blind. Still, she can surf the net with the best of them, following its complex paths clearly in her mind. But Caitlin's brain long ago co-opted her primary visual cortex to help her navigate online. So when she receives an implant to restore her sight, instead of seeing reality, the landscape of the World Wide Web explodes into her consciousness, spreading out all around her in a riot of colors and shapes.
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A Great, if Incomplete, Concept
- By Seth H. Wilson on 04-14-09
By: Robert J. Sawyer
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Lilith: A Snake in the Grass
- The Four Lords of the Diamond, Book 1
- By: Jack L. Chalker
- Narrated by: Kirby Heyborne
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Aliens are spying on Earth from one of the four worlds that make up the Warden Diamond. But it is impossible to send agents to any of the four worlds because of unique microscopic symbionts that make it impossible for visitors to leave the Diamond. Seeking a unique solution, each of the four worlds making up the Diamond is sent a person whose mind has been stripped of everything and who is now controlled by an agent of the Confederacy. Lilith is the first planet to be visited.
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A great series if read in its entirety
- By Onix Harbinger on 08-21-18
By: Jack L. Chalker
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The Man Who Used the Universe
- By: Alan Dean Foster
- Narrated by: Paul Ansdell
- Length: 10 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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No one knows the true motives of Kees vaan Loo-Macklin. He's a mastermind criminal who gave up his place at the head of the dark underworld to become a legitimate member of Evenwaith's cities. But soon he was reaching out to powerful enemies - the slimy aliens called the Nuel. Loo-Macklin negotiates an illusory peace agreement and gains precious alien secrets in the process. Is he after peace, power or pure evil? With enemy starships beginning to amass, we won't have to wait long to find out.
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Idolized this book in paper in the 80's
- By Tom on 09-06-24
By: Alan Dean Foster
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Variable Star
- By: Robert A. Heinlein, Spider Robinson
- Narrated by: Spider Robinson
- Length: 11 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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At his death in 1988, Robert A. Heinlein left a legacy that almost single-handedly defined modern science fiction. But one of Heinlein's masterpieces was never finished. In 1955, he began work on Variable Star, a powerful and passionate tale of two young lovers driven apart by pride, power, and the vastness of interstellar time and space. Now, the Heinlein estate has authorized award-winning author Spider Robinson to expand his outline into a full-length novel. And the result is vintage Heinlein.
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Spider WHO
- By Randall on 04-25-09
By: Robert A. Heinlein, and others
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The Engines of God
- By: Jack McDevitt
- Narrated by: Tom Weiner
- Length: 14 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Humans call them Monument-Makers. An unknown race, they left stunning alien statues scattered on distant planets throughout the galaxy, encoded with strange inscriptions that defy translation. Searching for clues about the Monument-Makers, teams of 23rd century linguists, historians, engineers and archaeologists have been excavating the enigmatic alien ruins on a number of planets, uncovering strange, massive false cities made of solid rock. But their time is running out.
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Conceptually intriguing, but uneven writing style
- By Michael G Kurilla on 05-12-11
By: Jack McDevitt
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The Collapsing Empire
- The Interdependency, Book 1
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 9 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Our universe is ruled by physics, and faster-than-light travel is not possible - until the discovery of The Flow, an extradimensional field we can access at certain points in space-time that transports us to other worlds, around other stars. Humanity flows away from Earth, into space, and in time forgets our home world and creates a new empire, the Interdependency, whose ethos requires that no one human outpost can survive without the others. It's a hedge against interstellar war - and a system of control for the rulers of the empire.
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THE STUPIDITIES OF COURT
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 04-01-17
By: John Scalzi
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Cloak of the Light
- Wars of the Realm, Book 1
- By: Chuck Black
- Narrated by: Michael Orenstein, Katie Leigh
- Length: 9 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Tragedy and heartache seem to be waiting for Drew Carter at every turn, but college offers Drew a chance to start over - until an accident during a physics experiment leaves him blind and his genius friend, Benjamin Berg, missing. As his sight miraculously returns, Drew discovers that the accident has heightened his neuron activity, giving him skills and sight beyond the normal man. When he begins to observe fierce invaders that no one else can see, he questions his own sanity, and so do others. But is he insane or do the invaders truly exist?
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Absolutely fantastic !!!!
- By Shirley Carson on 07-23-15
By: Chuck Black
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Stand on Zanzibar
- By: John Brunner, Bruce Sterling - foreword
- Narrated by: Erik Bergmann
- Length: 21 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Niblock House is a rising executive at General Technics, one of a few all-powerful corporations. His work is leading General Technics to the forefront of global domination, both in the marketplace and politically - it's about to take over a country in Africa. Donald Hogan is his roommate, a seemingly sheepish bookworm. But Hogan is a spy, and he's about to discover a breakthrough in genetic engineering that will change the world...and kill him. Society is squeezed into hive-living madness by god-like mega computers and mass-marketed psychedelic drugs.
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perfect audio experience
- By Darryl on 03-24-14
By: John Brunner, and others
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The First Prophet
- Bishop Files Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Kay Hooper
- Narrated by: Joyce Bean
- Length: 10 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Months ago Sarah Gallagher woke from a coma with psychic abilities she couldn't control. They changed her life and cost her the man she loved. And now, someone is playing games with Sarah's mind. It begins with Sarah's home being destroyed by fire - an act of arson that draws novelist Tucker Mackenzie into Sarah's confidence. But he has other reasons for pursuing a woman who can see what others can't. So does a mysterious enemy intent on eliminating Sarah, and everyone she cares about. Because it's only a matter of time before her visions lead her and Tucker to a secret many will kill to hide.
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Good Book, terrible narrator doing the voice!
- By kim on 01-26-13
By: Kay Hooper
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Scythe
- By: Neal Shusterman
- Narrated by: Greg Tremblay
- Length: 10 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery: Humanity has conquered all those things and has even conquered death. Now Scythes are the only ones who can end life - and they are commanded to do so in order to keep the size of the population under control. Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe - a role that neither wants. These teens must master the "art" of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own.
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Teenage Thumbs up
- By Lila R on 04-01-17
By: Neal Shusterman
What listeners say about Pandora's Brain
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Genevieve
- 10-28-15
I really enjoyed this book.
Have you listened to any of Joe Hempel’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
I really liked the job Joe Hempel did portraying the main character Matt.
Any additional comments?
I received an audible copy of Pandora's Brain in return for an honest review.
This story starts off very slowly. But don't worry, it does pick up pace. There are lots of philosophical and technological discussions on AI between characters in the book. I particularly liked this aspect because it reminded me of many discussions I have had with my husband.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Frode
- 09-19-15
Pandora's Book
So hallo! If people follow me they know i love all kind of books! This book is good, but not perfect at all! Pandora's Brain Written by: Calum Chace is a book i want people to read for them self then make their opinion about it. There is something i dot say often, but this book is that kind of book, and that is why i am saying it!
Joe Hempel is a new voice for me, and i was pleasantly surprised about his voice performance. So i was happy with his work! It is not perfect at all, but it is really really close to what i want from a 5 star performance!
"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com."
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1 person found this helpful
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- C. Holt
- 10-06-15
Good balance of action novel and SciFi
What did you like best about this story?
I liked the way the scientific concepts were presented and that there were enough action scenes to keep the story moving and engaging.
What about Joe Hempel’s performance did you like?
The narrator has a pleasant voice that is easy to listen to.
Any additional comments?
AI is a pretty hot topic recently, this book presented some concepts that I was not aware of and did it in such a way that I could grasp them easily and form some opinions about them. At the same time, I was able to enjoy an action story with an unexpected twist at the end.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Midwestbonsai
- 10-06-15
This book really spoke to me
Matt Metcalf is smart, maybe too smart. His father has recently died when he decides to follow in his footsteps and go to university to study neuro-biology (like his father). Little does he know, this begins steps towards and incredible “journey” that Matt and his friends and family will take on into the world of Artificial Intelligence, compassion and what it truly means to be “alive.”
The audio production on this was really well done – definitely done in a studio (or a well done home studio). The narrator, Joe Hempel, has a great voice and I found him to be very easy to follow. I never once felt like he was boring or difficult to understand. So much to the point that the voice of Matt if I were to read this (instead of listening) would be in Joe Hempel’s voice. Hempel does a great job with the drama of the whole thing, but I would call his narration a combination of a straight narration and a dramatization. While he changed his voice and how he spoke for some characters, he did not do accents or seem to dramatically change it for each character within the book.
This book really spoke to me. I’ve been reading other science fiction about AI recently and really been diving deeper into it. This is an incredibly well written story. While I have no idea if the science held within the pages is accurate or even possible, Calum Chace has done a wonderful job explaining it in a way that makes it feel totally believable and plausible. Matt, the main character is incredibly easy to fall for. He is a great “kid” who is easy to root for. Chace does a great job at developing him this way and I believe it was done for a reason. I wasn’t sure how long this was going to take to finish, but I ended up breezing through it because I HAD to know the ending.
This is a great read if you are at all interested (or scared) of AI. I do warn you, this will scare you and may even make you think differently about AI and what it means to be alive/have a soul.
Audiobook provided for review by the narrator.
Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog
[If this review helped, please press YES. Thanks!]
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11 people found this helpful
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- Lynn
- 12-06-15
Pandora
Would you try another book from Calum Chace and/or Joe Hempel?
Not from Calum Chace. I just couldn't get into the story
How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?
Too much on some details and the story moved too slowly
What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?
Story wasn't that interesting to me
Could you see Pandora's Brain being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?
No
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- Alex
- 09-13-15
Is this where A.I. is heading?
The story in this book grabbed my attention from the beginning. I received this book at no cost from the narrator through Goodreads for my honest review, and I am glad to have listened to it. The pacing moved at a decent speed and presented quite a bit of information in digestible packets. Overall, you’ll get some fast paced action, nice descriptions, and an appreciable amount of wittiness thrown in. The narrator gets the tone of the characters across well, making for an enjoyable listening experience.
The scientific information presented didn’t feel like a barrage of theories and concepts that would get in the way of the story. I knew a good amount of the scientific and technological information presented in this book, but there was also a significant amount of information that was new to me, such that I paused the book to note something I wanted to research more. A book that makes a reader actively want to look-up more information always gets kudo’s from me. There were some nice analogies inside this book to drive home the fear that may come about if (when?) an AI becomes reality.
There is a fair bit of both narration and dialog written in the book. Joe Rempel had both distinct character voices which made the dialogue easy to follow, and a narration voice that was easy to listen to without getting in the way of the story. I got the sense Mr. Rempel enjoyed the story he was reading so he really got into the story (making it better for the listener) and had a good sense of what tone and emotion to put in the voices of the characters.
This is an enjoyable story that should appeal to anyone who has an interest in sci-fi, specifically in the realm of realistic / futuristic sci-fi.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Tyler
- 10-20-15
I want more!
Review: The good
First off, i would just like to say that i really enjoyed Pandora's brain. I didn't read any reviews, and took no preconceptions in before listening, as Joe asked for an honest review.
The story line was fantastic, and a true mind wrench. Every time i thought it was pacifying, we were thrown a new curve ball which had me wanting more - i remember the first night listening, my partner got angry as it was about 2 am on a work night when i reluctantly pushed pause. The story explores very contemporary ideas within a fictional setting which are truly interesting. The ideas of artificial intelligence, consciousness (which of late has had quite a lot of attention in the scientific world) and simulation theory (which is both scary and curiously exciting) are wrapped up in a young mans adventure including with black ops and mayans, i won't elaborate too much on this to save spoilers.
Critiques
This may be a small point, but i really struggled with one of the characters accent, which i believe sounded like a mix of Russian and Australian, i may have missed something here, but it felt very confused. However as noted, Joe definitely skilled, and this is a small point.
My only other criticism is that the book was too short. I am an epic fantasy man at heart, and i was definitely left wanting more. If we haven't listened to anything in the genre, this is definitely a great start. The full review is at bestfantasyaudiodotcom.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Todd (Toad) Vogel
- 01-14-16
Awesome story!
Great story and narration. There was an editing error in chapter 24 and Ivan's accent was a little off, but those complaints are insignificant. This was truly an awesome story. I'd love to see this author/narrator combo do more on A.I.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Teresa
- 09-21-15
Pandora's Brain was aSmart and Interesting Concept
I really enjoyed listening to this audiobook. It took off and I found it to be interesting with a good plot. The idea of uploading one's consciousness to a computer was intriguing. The story moved along at a good pace and I love how it ended with Matt going back in time. This would be a good lead in for a book 2. Likable characters and AI adventures make this a worthwhile listen.
Overall, I'd recommend this book written by Calum Chace. If this is a first book then it's a good one. Hopefully there's more to come.
Joe Hempel did a terrific job narrating the story. He sounded good with the perfect voice for Matt. His timing was spot on and he made this a great audiobook.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Brian
- 09-10-15
A thrilling tale of the near-future, AI’s and all.
This book follows Matt, a brilliant and incredibly likable student near London who has just found out that his father was killed in a car accident. He has also found out that his father was involved in some incredible steps towards making Artificial Intelligence a reality through his work in neuro-biology and brain scanning. Upon finding this out, Matt decides to study the same things. Little does he know just what is waiting for him once he begins this journey. Follow Matt and his friends and family on a ride that you won’t believe is unfolding in front of you.
I listened to this on audiobook, which was given to me by the narrator in exchange for an honest. The narration was solid, and enjoyable. Even through some of the hard science, his narration was easy to follow. He did what I would call a combination of narration and dramatization. There were parts where a dramatization were used (different voices) but it wasn’t done for each new character that was included. There is nothing wrong with this, just needed to point it out. The audio quality was great and I had no issues with studio noise or anything of the sorts.
I’ve been reading a lot of AI fiction lately, and it is fascination (see my reviews for numerous Nick Thacker including “I, Sargeant” and “The Gray Picture of Dorian”. Or my review of “Networked” and her novella “Too Good For This World” by LK Chapman.
This genre is one that I will quickly be adding to my “must read” genres because I’m always sucked in and spit out by the authors wanting more and more. This book was no different Calum Chace brilliantly explained a lot of the science behind the AI within his novel and it is incredibly believable (even if the science is impossible at this point). Chace and the narration by Joe Hempel had me on the edge of my seat and staying up WAY too late to find out what was going to become of Matt.
If you are a fan of Science Fiction, AI, or just a gripping Technothriller – this book is for you. And do yourself (and your eyes) a favor and grab the audiobook, you won’t be disappointed.
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5 people found this helpful