How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Line)
Quote #1
It always seemed to him that sunset more than any other time of day made it clear that they stood on an alien planet; something in the slant and redness of the light was fundamentally wrong, upsetting expectations wired into the savannah brain over millions of years. (1.2.67)
Humans are evolutionarily conditioned to exist on Earth. Imagine how weird it would be to find yourself suddenly on an alien planet. Our biology would just be freaking out.
Quote #2
The crew's senses would never perceive the subatomic wind approaching them, and yet it was one of the worst things that could have happened. And everyone knew it. (2.3.42)
Humans are pretty fragile creatures, and we've developed biologically to live in a specific environment. Case in point: space could straight-up kill us.
Quote #3
"No, no, no, no! History is not evolution! It is a false analogy! Evolution is a matter of environment and chance, acting over millions of years. But history is a matter of environment and choice, acting within lifetimes, and sometimes within years, or months, or days!" (2.4.134)
Key word in both cases is "environment." We're starting to think this whole environment thing might be important beyond just planets and such…