Unfortunately, I cannot remember the author either, so hopefully someone has also read this one.
I read this perhaps 20-30 years ago, so it's not a recent work.
The plot revolves around a young man who gets conned into joining an institute for "hominid studies", but this is really a group involved in a political power struggle with the young man's uncle. He travels to various worlds thru the use of teleportation technology, (ie: "stargate", but they don't call it that, iirc).
The back story is involves the expansion and collapse of the Terran civilization as these "gates" are re-discovered after each collapse. The story plot occurs during one of these expansion cycles.
Some key features: The young man accidentally visits a world, which he incorrectly refers to as a "death world", there he is arrested for whistling and smiling, which are forbidden. He is sentenced to filling potholes in a street with hot tar. Near the end of the book, he finds an advanced people who have access to all of the gates.
Sketchy, I know, but this is all I can remember right now.
Any help will be gratefully appreciated. Thanks
I read this perhaps 20-30 years ago, so it's not a recent work.
The plot revolves around a young man who gets conned into joining an institute for "hominid studies", but this is really a group involved in a political power struggle with the young man's uncle. He travels to various worlds thru the use of teleportation technology, (ie: "stargate", but they don't call it that, iirc).
The back story is involves the expansion and collapse of the Terran civilization as these "gates" are re-discovered after each collapse. The story plot occurs during one of these expansion cycles.
Some key features: The young man accidentally visits a world, which he incorrectly refers to as a "death world", there he is arrested for whistling and smiling, which are forbidden. He is sentenced to filling potholes in a street with hot tar. Near the end of the book, he finds an advanced people who have access to all of the gates.
Sketchy, I know, but this is all I can remember right now.
Any help will be gratefully appreciated. Thanks