Sam Jiao > Recent Status Updates

The plan now is to deliver the Taumoeba, and now it’s about committing to a trajectory and using the remaining fuel actually to deliver it. Ryland has to make his return path against helping Rocky’s system, and the math makes it clear that he couldn't do it. I think this is where he’ll be forced to prioritize one thing, and it would go down to whether he values his mission orders or the relationship he has.

Taumoeba is controlled and engineered to target Astrophage without causing it to collapse, so they are focusing on calculating how to send it into the right environment and allow it to spread effectively. It feels fine on paper, but I think the real issue will be executing it. I think that something like damage, miscalculation, or limited fuel would make Ryland choose another star to go to.

Now, it focuses on the Taumoeba consuming Astrophage, and forcing Ryland and Rocky to engineer a controlled solution. The lab work gets very precise, with containment, reproduction limits, and survival conditions. It feels like they’re almost very close to success, but I think scaling it or delivering the astrophage will create a new problem, especially with limited resources and a long distance to deliver.

Ryland and Rocky are actually running experiments on astrophage, testing how it reacts to radiation and environments, making everything feel real. What makes me worry about the future is how dependent they’re becoming on each other’s data and survival systems. It's as if one thing fails, both of them are in danger. I think that the “solution” will come with a cost and Rocky's death.

Ryland proves the gravity is wrong, realizes he’s on a spacecraft, and then remembers he was just a teacher being pulled into this, which makes everything a little strange. The Petrova problem isn’t abstract, and it’s why he’s here alone. I don't know if he would do something that would harm the whole goal of the mission, like he might have to choose between surviving first rather than doing the right thing.

Ryland and Rocky actually built trust through shared experiments, which they felt connected, and established a friendship. But I think usually the more they rely on each other, the more it feels like something will go wrong, and it would probably affect their mission, and with Ryland only sleeping 2 hours, I think they would experience an obstacle, which would result in them having a conflict in the future.

Learning how astrophage is farmed on the "Hail Mary" ship makes me think there are a lot of progress has been made in a short time. I think that the most exciting part was when I was so excited to find that the Tau Ceti has a petrova line, another ship came over as if it was an astyrophage in space, and it made me think that Ryland would communicate with the other "people" on the ship later on in the book.

During the astrophage part of the story in chapter 4, it showed that the main character really has the mindset of trying and never giving up in terms of being able to try to "kill" the alien. I believe that later on in the book, after he became the first man to kill the alien, he would do similar things, such as being a pioneer or leader in the space program he is in.

Chapters 1–2 of Project Hail Mary focus on problem-solving. The main character woke up with no memory, and a robot was constantly asking him questions to make sure that he was conscious. He did not panic and used his consciousness to figure out the situation. I think that later in the book, he would be researching the Petrova line and JAXA more and possibly joining the group of researchers.

On page 141, Dex said, "I'll just end, and I can't predict what that would be..." That signaled that they were confused when Mosscap said it didn't choose impermanence, while all of the other robots of its kind did. But in the end, they knew what the other was thinking, and Dex finally realized Mosscap wanted to really enjoy being with them and to adapt to the human world, while treating them as its "best friend".

When Dex and Mosscap tried to climb up the rocks to find a shelter to get out of the rain, Mosscap kept asking Dex about their past. It cared about why they moved out of Haydale, what had happened to Dex to make them do things such as moving out and finding crickets, etc. I think this is where the mindsets of the two have differences; one is full of emotions, and the other keeps trying to belong to the human world.

On page 91, when Mosscap said, "I don't know," and said it was a remnant he had, and wanted to go to the hermitage with Dex symbols, he really wanted to dive deep into the human world with him. And using his time with Dex to try to learn how people behave, and build relationships with Dex while going through the hermitage together.

The question that left a lasting impression was when the robot asked what humans need. Dex’s question about his guilt about wanting more than a "good life" is against Mosscap’s "mission". It feels like the story is going to a time when Dex would be changing his view of life. When Dex was talking to Mosscap, he realized how the world is not functioning as he thought it was.

In the book, the hermitage was a place once built for contemplation, now abandoned and returned to nature's hands, just like the human world after the robots left. When Dex meets the robot there, it doesn’t feel accidental. This setting symbolizes the uncertainty and the things happening between the past and the present. And based on a book, I now wonder if Dex is also a robot.

I think it is not about the crickets that Dex wants, but I think it symbolizes the freedom and the actual life that they are chasing. It is also about the obsession that Dex showed to the cricket sounds, the crickets aren’t loud, but they’re, in their case, a beautiful sound, and they couldn't live without it. And I think that the real problem is not robots v.s. humans, but fast-paced to soothing and calm.

After quitting Underwood Samson, Changez returns to Lahore and begins teaching. These are choices shaped by Erica’s death and his "regret" with coming to America. He protests calmly, shifts loyalties from Pakistan to Underwood Sampson, and back to Pakistan. And his quiet resistance leads to the final café scene, when he was able to really make the decision and follow his heart on what he really changed his mind on.

In Chapter 11, Changez talks about quitting Underwood Samson, since he felt uncomfortable when working in a company like that, and he is protesting against U.S. power. He then chooses to go back to Pakistan. Through that action, he showed "Non-Sibi" by caring about and taking action to serve his own country by being a teacher and not ignoring it due to the fact that he previously considered himself an American.

I was very in how Changez has a unique point of view of "...if one comes to America, a different way of observing is required." I think that is how Changez reacts to new incidents. He later met Juan-Bautista, who calls him a janissary. This makes Changez realize he is serving America while ignoring Pakistan. And I think that he will later leave Underwood Samson and choose his own path because of this realization.

Pages 98–125 of The Reluctant Fundamentalist describe that after 9/11, Changez’s feelings about America begin to change. People start treating him differently, and he becomes more aware of his identity. Changez feels that managing his job, his beliefs, and his sense of where he truly belongs creates tension. I feel like later, there would be something happening to Erica that makes Changez more confident and mature.

The scene that I cannot forget is when Changez was smiling when the others mentioned 911, when Changez was sarcastic about that incident. The act of the Middle East terrorists hijacking a plane and bombing the Twin Towers showed that they had faith in what they were doing, in contrast to the Americans, who only care about the surface of things.

During this part of the book, Changez really found out that he is sometimes really different from others. In the U.S, he was constantly being told to remember that he was a Pakistani; however, in his home country, he was being treated well and fairly. And in Chile, he met Juan-Bautista. This moment also makes Changez question his loyalty to America and realize how far he has drifted from his home country's culture.

Now, in the book, when he traveled to Manila, I saw how focused and competitive his job is, and how proud Changez feels to be chosen in the interview, and he was really devoted to his job. At the same time, his relationship with Erica became closer, but her sadness about her past becomes clearer, making the story more tense emotionally, and I think it might be a foreshadowing for something later on in the book.

Changez reflects on his time at Princeton, his success at Underwood Samson, and getting closer to Erica. He likes Erica and sees her as a symbol of America’s beauty. While others like Mike are all trying to be closer to Erica, he was able to leave the best impression in front of her. While he feels proud and confident, there are moments when he feels different from others, and the tension in the book starts to grow.

Until now, I have been slowly getting to know Changez and his life in America through his university life at Princeton, and later his interview at Underwood Samson. Through the first few pages with the guy next to him in the tea shop, I could see that he is a very observant person, also having a lot of experience living in the U.S. I’m curious to see how he would approach this amazing chance to work in that company.

Uncle Frank dies by suicide in the basement cell, and he cut his wrists with broken glass. I found it very surprising, since I thought that Uncle Frank would reveal the truth that he had rape Marie. I think his death shows how justice can have a price that the person has to pay, and not being able to escape from the consequences.

David hears strange noises from the basement, where Uncle Frank is, and realizes that he is trying to escape. His father's feelings were tense, characterized by checking the locked room frequently. The family didn't talk that much, and David felt scared but curious. I think that there would be something happening to Uncle Frank later on in the book, after all these foreshadowings of the noise in the "cell" he was in.

There was tension when Frank was locked in the basement. David watched his parents struggle, his father didn't know what to do, to choose between doing his job and caring about the family, making it rather harmonious. His mother was scared and angry. I think this part shows how truth changes everything, and I can feel David’s emotions change, and he was able to know the "gray" part of making decisions.

I would be very curious about Julian Hayden's emotions if he found out that Frank is not an honored doctor but a person who rapes Sioux people. He also always favored Frank, seeing him as the charming doctor and symbol of high status and elegance. Wesley, on the other hand, has always been seen as the weaker, less assertive son. Would Julian's point of view be changed if he found out about what Frank is doing?

David notices that his father’s hands are trembling when he wrote the report on Frank, and it is more than just being nervous. Wes is really stressed about doing the things that are right and being loyal to the family. The hands were trembling because he was scared, but also taking that responsibility. I really felt that justice is not easy to make, and it takes a great amount of courage for a person to do that.