THE PRACTICE EFFECT

"Brin has taken a single premise (what if one of the laws of thermodynamics were repealed?), and woven it into a clever tale of a world of practical magic.... Further, the central concept of the novel makes explicit the crucial difference between creators and users." — blogcritics.org review

revised, and with a new introduction

© David Brin, 2020; Bantam, 1984

Read the first 2 chapters online, or scroll down to purchase THE PRACTICE EFFECT.

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film & media queries

Vince Gerardis
Created-By Agency
email: rightsqueries@gmail.com (with cc: to DAVID BRIN at books@davidbrin.com)

does practice make perfect?

"He tried to remember a few facts from the linguistics course he had taken in college in order to get out of the infamous Professor LaBelle's English 7. There were a few sounds, he had learned, that were nearly universal in meaning among human beings. Anthropologists used to use them at the beginning of contact with newly discovered tribes. He swallowed, then ventured one of them. 'Huh?' he said." — The Practice Effect

Physicist Dennis Nuel was the first human to probe the strange realms called anomaly worlds — alternate universes where the laws of science were unpredictably changed.

But the world Dennis discovered seemed almost like our own — with one perplexing difference. To his astonishment, he was hailed as a wizard and found himself fighting beside a beautiful woman with strange powers against a mysterious warlord as he struggles to solve the riddle of this baffling world.

can you 'practice'?

Want to try out the 'practice effect' in this universe? Take a look at this page evaluating agile vs. scrum vs. waterfall vs. kanban.

purchase The Practice Effect

Amazon.com US: paperback and Kindle ebook and audiobook

Amazon.ca Canada: paperback and Kindle ebook and audiobook

Amazon.co.uk UK: paperback and Kindle ebook and audiobook

#AmazonCommissionsEarned

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Apple Books US: English-language iBook and English-language audiobook and Der Übungseffekt (German-language iBook)

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Barnes and Noble US: eBook and audiobook and Der Übungseffekt (German-language eBook)

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Google Play US: Der Übungseffekt (German-language ebook)

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Kobo.com US: ebook

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Smashwords US: ebook

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practicing puns

The chapter titles for The Practice Effect are jokes, mostly puns. In order, with explanations:

Sooee Generis (like 'Sui Generis' but with the pig-caller's noise)

Cogito, Ergo Tutti Fruitti (I think, therefore tutti fruitti)

Nom de Terre (tr. 'name of the land' but in the context of the chapter a play on 'Nom de Guerre')

The Best Way to Carnegie Hall (... is practice)

Transom Dental (a play on 'transcendental')

Ballon d'Essai (tr. 'trial balloon')

Pundit Nero (Pandit Nehru, first Prime Minister of India)

Eurekaarrgh (a more accurate variation of 'eureka')

Discus Jestus (majesty disc)

Sic Biscuitus Disintegratum (or 'this is how the cookie crumbles')

Et Two Toots (or 'Et tu, Brute?')

Semper Ubi Sub Ubi (tr. 'always where under where' but in the context of the chapter, 'always wear underwear')

foreign-language editions

Here are some of the covers of The Practice Effect's foreign and foreign-language publications.

novels

David Brin's science fiction novels have been New York Times Bestsellers, winning multiple Hugo, Nebula and other awards. At least a dozen have been translated into more than twenty languages. They range from bold and prophetic explorations of our near-future to Brin's Uplift series, envisioning galactic issues of sapience and destiny (and star-faring dolphins!). Learn More

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shorter fiction

Short stories and novellas have different rhythms and artistic flavor, and Brin's short stories and novellas, several of which earned Hugo and other awards, exploit that difference to explore a wider range of real and vividly speculative ideas. Many have been selected for anthologies and reprints, and most have been published in anthology form. Learn More

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Contrary Brin blog

Since 2004, David Brin has maintained a blog about science, technology, science fiction, books, and the future — themes his science fiction and nonfiction writings continue to explore. Learn More

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social media influencer

Who could've predicted that social media — indeed, all of our online society — would play such an important role in the 21st Century — restoring the voices of advisors and influencers! Lively and intelligent comments spill over onto Brin's social media pages. Learn More

scientist

David Brin's Ph.D in Physics from the University of California at San Diego (the lab of nobelist Hannes Alfven) followed a masters in optics and an undergraduate degree in astrophysics from Caltech. Every science show that depicts a comet now portrays the model developed in Brin's PhD research. Learn More

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transparency expert

Brin's non-fiction book, The Transparent Society: Will Technology Force Us to Choose Between Freedom and Privacy?, continues to receive acclaim for its accuracy in predicting 21st Century concerns about online security, secrecy, accountability and privacy. Learn More

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speaker & consultant

Brin speaks plausibly and entertainingly about trends in technology and society to audiences willing to confront the challenges that our rambunctious civilization will face in the decades ahead. He also talks about the field of science fiction, especially in relation to his own novels and stories. To date he has presented at more than 200 meetings, conferences, corporate retreats and other gatherings.Learn More

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future/tech advisor

Brin advises corporations and governmental and private defense- and security-related agencies about information-age issues, scientific trends, future social and political trends, and education. Urban Developer Magazine named him one of four World's Best Futurists, and he was appraised as "#1 influencer" in Onalytica's Top 100 report of Artificial Intelligence influencers, brands & publications. Past consultations include Google, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble, and many others. Learn More