Jophur
Encyclopedia
The Jophur are a fictional extraterrestrial race from David Brin
's Uplift Universe
.
Physically, they are a stack of waxy, living rings. Each ring serves a different purpose, and they connect to each other to form a single being by chemical means via an electrically conductive, sap-like substance that flows down the center to bind the stack together. A Master ring provides a strong sense of individuality to each stack and enforces this with corrective electrical shocks to non-compliant rings.
According to various books in the series, most prominently the trilogy that followed the characters of Startide Rising
, the Jophur quickly began a genocide
and eradicated all but a small group of the original traeki, with the exception of a small "Sooner" group that settled on the planet Jijo in the fourth galaxy ("Sooner" is a term from USA history, and is used in the Uplift stories to described illegal settlers on worlds that have been declared fallow, i.e to be left uncolonized so that native intelligences may have a chance to develop). The Jophur became fanatical adherents of one of the galaxy's religious ideologies
, and exterminated many races they regarded as "heretics" - including the g'Kek, which also survived only as a "Sooner" group on Jijo.
David Brin
Glen David Brin, Ph.D. is an American scientist and award-winning author of science fiction. He has received the Hugo, Locus, Campbell and Nebula Awards.-Biography:...
's Uplift Universe
Uplift Universe
The Uplift Universe is a fictional universe created by science fiction writer David Brin. A central feature in this universe is the process of biological uplift.His books which take place in this universe:* Sundiver...
.
Physically, they are a stack of waxy, living rings. Each ring serves a different purpose, and they connect to each other to form a single being by chemical means via an electrically conductive, sap-like substance that flows down the center to bind the stack together. A Master ring provides a strong sense of individuality to each stack and enforces this with corrective electrical shocks to non-compliant rings.
History and origins
The Jophur were originally the traeki, intelligent but often indecisive because of internal debates between the rings that formed each individual. Their patrons, the Poa, asked the Oallie to engineer the traeki further to increase their effectiveness. The Oailie created 'master rings', shiny black rings (often described as 'silvery') that created a strong sense of self identity. The newly invigorated Jophur, as the traeki with the new master rings were called, quickly became a strong, vigorous force in the Five Galaxies.According to various books in the series, most prominently the trilogy that followed the characters of Startide Rising
Startide Rising
Startide Rising is a 1983 science fiction novel by David Brin and the second book of six set in his Uplift Universe . It earned both Hugo and Nebula Awards for Best Novel...
, the Jophur quickly began a genocide
Genocide
Genocide is defined as "the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group", though what constitutes enough of a "part" to qualify as genocide has been subject to much debate by legal scholars...
and eradicated all but a small group of the original traeki, with the exception of a small "Sooner" group that settled on the planet Jijo in the fourth galaxy ("Sooner" is a term from USA history, and is used in the Uplift stories to described illegal settlers on worlds that have been declared fallow, i.e to be left uncolonized so that native intelligences may have a chance to develop). The Jophur became fanatical adherents of one of the galaxy's religious ideologies
Ideology
An ideology is a set of ideas that constitutes one's goals, expectations, and actions. An ideology can be thought of as a comprehensive vision, as a way of looking at things , as in common sense and several philosophical tendencies , or a set of ideas proposed by the dominant class of a society to...
, and exterminated many races they regarded as "heretics" - including the g'Kek, which also survived only as a "Sooner" group on Jijo.
See also
- List of Uplift Universe species
- Uplift UniverseUplift UniverseThe Uplift Universe is a fictional universe created by science fiction writer David Brin. A central feature in this universe is the process of biological uplift.His books which take place in this universe:* Sundiver...