The Three-Body Problem (Remembrance of Earth’s Past, #1)

by Liu Cixin

“In China, any idea that dared to take flight would only crash back to the ground. The gravity of reality is too strong.”

Is it possible that the relationship between humanity and evil is similar to the relationship between the ocean and an iceberg floating on its surface? Both the ocean and the iceberg are made of the same material. That the iceberg seems separate is only because it is in a different form. In reality, it is but a part of the vast ocean.…

“To accomplish something in theoretical physics requires one to have almost religious faith. It’s easy to be led to the abyss.”

“My sunset,” Ye whispered. “And sunset for humanity.”

On Earth, humankind can step onto another continent, and without a thought, destroy the kindred civilizations found there through warfare and disease. But when they gaze up at the stars, they turn sentimental and believe that if extraterrestrial intelligences exist, they must be civilizations bound by universal, noble, moral constraints, as if cherishing and loving different forms of life are parts of a self-evident universal code of conduct. I think it should be precisely the opposite: Let’s turn the kindness we show toward the stars to members of the human race on Earth and build up the trust and understanding between the different peoples and civilizations that make up humanity.