Lastly, I have to comment on the climax, which admittedly I am gleaning solely from the Wikipedia summary of the book. Apparently the villain commits suicide by standing next to an NSA supercomputer as it "overheats" and explodes.
WTF? Is this computer powered by a diesel engine or something? Computers don't explode! Occasionally, a computer that overheats can catch fire. Theoretically, the capacitors in a computer can explode, but it won't make some big Hollywood-type explosion, even in a supercomputer. You'd just have lots of burning circuit boards and maybe an electrical fire. I suppose the villain could commit suicide by standing in the fire. (Umm, cooling systems? Automatic fire extinguishers? You think maybe the NSA has them? Where they keep their really expensive supercomputers? Naaaaaah....)
In reality, while computers can (under the right circumstances) catch fire, I would be very surprised to see one do so in a manner such as to cause instant death to anyone standing next to one. At most, if you stayed in an unventilated room with a large computer suffering an electrical fire, you might die from the chemical toxins released from burning electrical insulation. Of course, you'd have to stay in that room for a while.
Somehow I think that someone would drag you out of there before you succumbed.
NSA Computers Made of Explodium?
WTF? Is this computer powered by a diesel engine or something? Computers don't explode! Occasionally, a computer that overheats can catch fire. Theoretically, the capacitors in a computer can explode, but it won't make some big Hollywood-type explosion, even in a supercomputer. You'd just have lots of burning circuit boards and maybe an electrical fire. I suppose the villain could commit suicide by standing in the fire. (Umm, cooling systems? Automatic fire extinguishers? You think maybe the NSA has them? Where they keep their really expensive supercomputers? Naaaaaah....)
Made of Explodium. :)
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MadeOfExplodium
In reality, while computers can (under the right circumstances) catch fire, I would be very surprised to see one do so in a manner such as to cause instant death to anyone standing next to one. At most, if you stayed in an unventilated room with a large computer suffering an electrical fire, you might die from the chemical toxins released from burning electrical insulation. Of course, you'd have to stay in that room for a while.
Somehow I think that someone would drag you out of there before you succumbed.