Zones of Thought

Thousands of years from now, a mind's potential is determined by its location in space—from superintelligent entities in the Transcend, to the limited minds of the Unthinking Depths, where only simple creatures and technology can function. Nobody knows what strange force partitioned space into these "regions of thought," but when the warring Straumli realm use an ancient Transcendent artifact as a weapon, they unwittingly unleash an awesome power that destroys thousands of worlds and enslaves all natural and artificial intelligence.

Vernor Vinge won two Hugo Awards, a John W. Campbell Award and a Prometheus Award for A Fire Upon the Deep and A Deepness in the Sky.