The giant leap

Science fiction seems to tell us that, whatever the difficulties, we will somehow manage to travel to the stars one day. In The Giant Leap Adrian Berry gives us an enthusiastic look at how this might be achieved, with a discussion of the new inventions which will be needed to make it possible. This work doesn't go into the technical details as much as some other books, but if you want a wide overview of how we might travel to the stars and what problems there might be along the way then you should have a look at this book.

As well as discussing at the technology which might take us to the stars, Berry looks at other issues as well. What is it that will motivate us to undertake such journeys and how can this motivation be maintained for the travellers? Will time dilation reduce the journey to a reasonable time or will some sort of suspended animation become necessary? At times the discussion rambles on a bit - some people might object to Berry's ideas on the future of government - but it's an entertaining read, with plenty of notes for those who want to follow up on what they have read.