Fermi Paradox
Each one of the main novels deals with a possible resolution to the Fermi Paradox. The first, Time, is set in a universe that is completely devoid of intelligent life beyond that of mankind and its creations (i.e. A.I. and uplifted animals).
The second in the series, Space, proposes the opposite: that life is endemic to the universe, and there is intelligence in nearly all possible places of the cosmos. The solution to the Fermi Paradox in this novel is that intelligent life is continually wiped out by cosmic disasters before it has time to spread too far.
The third novel, Origin, is set in a multiverse that is a compromise between the ideals in the first two novels: that life is only on Earth, but at the same time is everywhere. This novel solves the Fermi Paradox by suggesting that intelligent life is segregated into separate parallel universes.
Read more about this topic: Manifold Trilogy
Famous quotes containing the word paradox:
“When a paradox is widely believed, it is no longer recognized as a paradox.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)