Up the Walls of the World
Encyclopedia
Up the Walls of the World is a 1978 science fiction novel by the American
author Alice Sheldon who wrote under the pen name of James Tiptree, Jr. It was the first novel she published having until then worked and built a reputation only in the field of short stories.
The novel explores the possibility that telepathy
and other psychic phenomena
are real. It sympathetically describes an attempt to invade the Earth by beings with advanced telepathic abilities from the planet Tyree.
It considers the subject of sentience
in different life forms inhabiting widely different environments, in computers and in a vast sentient inhabitant of deep space
formed of a network of widely spaced nodes. It is Sheldon's skill to be able to write convincingly of the experience of beings in all of these.
In some respects the novel could also be considered a part of occult and spiritual writing.
The story takes place in 3 settings which unfold together.
on Saturn very similar to the one described by Alice Sheldon in this novel. Ref
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author Alice Sheldon who wrote under the pen name of James Tiptree, Jr. It was the first novel she published having until then worked and built a reputation only in the field of short stories.
The novel explores the possibility that telepathy
Telepathy
Telepathy , is the induction of mental states from one mind to another. The term was coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Fredric W. H. Myers, a founder of the Society for Psychical Research, and has remained more popular than the more-correct expression thought-transference...
and other psychic phenomena
Parapsychology
The term parapsychology was coined in or around 1889 by philosopher Max Dessoir, and originates from para meaning "alongside", and psychology. The term was adopted by J.B. Rhine in the 1930s as a replacement for the term psychical research...
are real. It sympathetically describes an attempt to invade the Earth by beings with advanced telepathic abilities from the planet Tyree.
It considers the subject of sentience
Sentience
Sentience is the ability to feel, perceive or be conscious, or to have subjective experiences. Eighteenth century philosophers used the concept to distinguish the ability to think from the ability to feel . In modern western philosophy, sentience is the ability to have sensations or experiences...
in different life forms inhabiting widely different environments, in computers and in a vast sentient inhabitant of deep space
Deep Space
- Star Trek :* Battle of Deep Space Nine, the first major battle of the Dominion War* Deep Space Nine , space station in the fictional Star Trek universe* Deep Space Nine relaunch, number of novels released since 2000...
formed of a network of widely spaced nodes. It is Sheldon's skill to be able to write convincingly of the experience of beings in all of these.
In some respects the novel could also be considered a part of occult and spiritual writing.
The story takes place in 3 settings which unfold together.
- On Earth, at a telepathy lab run by the US Navy.
- On the planet Tyree, a life-rich gas giant inhabited by intelligent beings resembling manta rays or cuttlefish which ride the air currents of its vast atmosphere.
- In deep space, The DESTROYER, an intelligent entity larger than a solar system but only slightly denser than the vacuum of space and composed of countless linked nodes.
Miscellany
In November 2006 astronomers discovered a polar vortexPolar vortex
A polar vortex is a persistent, large-scale cyclone located near one or both of a planet's geographical poles. On Earth, the polar vortices are located in the middle and upper troposphere and the stratosphere...
on Saturn very similar to the one described by Alice Sheldon in this novel. Ref