That said, Michael, the work is to be treated as a work of entertaining fiction not, as mentioned by another commenter, a transhumanist manifesto. Stross, even when he is apparently “[trying] too hard to show off his knowledge” he doesn’t come off half as arrogant as many of your articles and comments and his “boingboingesque” pop-transhumanism isn’t trite or without worth simply since the ideas are in the common/pop memeplex or by your standards lack realistic depth. Star Trek isn’t lacking in entertainment value or inherit value simply because it’s not an accurate description of our actual future, it’s goal is simply to be entertaining and it’s okay to enjoy it just as such.

As one who enjoys works of fiction, I find Stross’s literary style fresh and boisterous. He has a quirky wit, an entertaining (if not entirely fictitious) extrapolation of current transhuman memes, a playful optimism, and a snappy, frisky pacing which lends the author his unique literary voice.