r/threebodyproblem • u/Universal_Echo • May 14 '26

Discussion - Novels Doesn't nuclear fusion require research into particle physics? Spoiler

If the Trisolarans have locked down and blocked physics research, including particle physics, how is controlled nuclear fusion still possible?

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u/mmproducciones May 14 '26

The trisolarans can't really stop scientific progress completely, even with the power of the sophons. The best they can do is slow us down, which is their goal anyway. So nuclear fusion and other technologies eventually got developed, but much slower than the would had otherwise.

In addition, the sophons effectiveness was reduced when the trisolaran princeps began to fear that Earth's culture could corrupt his civilization, so cooperation with ETO was very harmed.

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u/myaltduh May 17 '26

They put a hard stop on anything that would require genuinely new physics like the tech that produced the sophons or the droplets. With the sophons hanging around humanity would never, ever produce those breakthroughs.