{"product_id":"2940011848292","title":"The Quantum Jump","description":"He looked at it as a man looks at a flickering fireplace and thinks of other things. He thought of the sun, 52 trillion miles away, a pinpoint of light lost in the dazzle of the Milky Way--the Earth a speck of dust in orbit just as this planet was to its master, Sirius.\u003cbr\u003eNine light years away. Of course, thirteen years had passed on Earth since they had left, because the trip took four years by RT--relative time. But even four years is a long time to be shut up in Astro One with five other men, especially when one of them was the imperious Colonel Towers.\u003cbr\u003e\"A quantum jump--that's the way to beat the Reds,\" the colonel had said a thousand times. His well-worn expression had nothing to do with quantum mechanics--the actual change in atomic configuration due to the application of sufficient energy. Rather, it was a slang expression referring to a major advance in inter-planetary travel due to a maximum scientific and technological effort.","brand":"New Century Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47175722336496,"sku":"2940011848292","price":0.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940011848292_p0.jpg?v=1763550176","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940011848292","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}