Editing Michael Crichton (section)

===Final novels and later life (2000–2008)===
In 2002, Crichton published ''[[Prey (novel)|Prey]]'', about developments in science and technology, specifically [[nanotechnology]]. The novel explores relatively recent phenomena engendered by the work of the scientific community, such as: [[artificial life]], [[emergence]] (and by extension, [[complexity]]), [[genetic algorithms]], and [[intelligent agent|agent]]-based computing. In 2004, Crichton published ''[[State of Fear]]'', a novel concerning [[eco-terrorism|eco-terrorists]] who attempt mass murder to support their views. The novel's central premise is that climate scientists exaggerate [[global warming]]. A review in ''[[Nature (journal)|Nature]]'' found the novel "likely to mislead the unwary".<ref name="A novel view of global warming – Bo">{{cite journal | last1=Allen | first1=Myles | title=A novel view of global warming – Book Reviewed: State of Fear | journal=[[Nature (journal)|Nature]] | volume=433 | issue=7023 | page=198 | doi=10.1038/433198a | date=January 2005 | bibcode=2005Natur.433..198A| doi-access=free }}</ref> The novel had an initial print run of 1.5 million copies and reached the No. 1 bestseller position at [[Amazon.com]] and No. 2 on [[The New York Times Best Seller list|''The New York Times'' Best Seller list]] for one week in January 2005.<ref name="Doran06" /><ref name="columbia.edu">{{cite web|date = September 27, 2005|url-status = live|url = http://www.columbia.edu/~jeh1/2005/Crichton_20050927.pdf|title = Michael Crichton's "Scientific Method"|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110205005158/http://www.columbia.edu/~jeh1/2005/Crichton_20050927.pdf|archive-date = February 5, 2011|first = James|last = Hansen|authorlink = James Hansen|website = www.columbia.edu/~jeh1/mailings/|publisher = [[Columbia University]]}}</ref>

The last novel published during his lifetime was ''[[Next (Crichton novel)|Next]]'' in 2006.<ref>{{cite journal| url = https://www.academia.edu/43358654| title = Book Review &ndash; Crichton, Michael. ''Next''. London: Harper (Paperback).| first = Abhijit| last = Guha| journal = Indian Journal of Biological Sciences| date = January 2009| volume = 15| pages = 70–71}}</ref> The novel follows many characters, including [[Genetically modified organism|transgenic]] animals, in a quest to survive in a world dominated by genetic research, corporate greed, and legal interventions, wherein government and private investors spend billions of dollars every year on genetic research.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/07/books/review/Itzkoff2.t.html?ref=review|title=Genetic Park|last=Itzkoff|first=Dave|authorlink=Dave Itzkoff|date=January 7, 2007|work=[[The New York Times]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201121202245/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/07/books/review/Itzkoff2.t.html?ref=review|archive-date=November 21, 2020|url-status=live|access-date=January 3, 2024}}</ref> In 2006, Crichton clashed with journalist [[Michael Crowley (journalist)|Michael Crowley]], a senior editor of the magazine ''[[The New Republic]]''. In March 2006, Crowley wrote a strongly critical review of ''State of Fear'', focusing on Crichton's stance on global warming.<ref name="Cock and Bull">{{cite magazine|title=Cock and Bull|last=Crowley|first=Michael|authorlink=Michael Crowley (journalist)|url=http://www.tnr.com/article/cock-and-bull|url-status=live|access-date=January 3, 2024|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100516142905/http://www.tnr.com/article/cock-and-bull|archive-date=May 16, 2010|magazine=[[The New Republic]]|date=December 25, 2006}}</ref> In the same year, Crichton published the novel ''[[Next (Crichton novel)|Next]]'', which contains a minor character named "Mick Crowley", who is a Yale graduate and a Washington, D.C.–based political columnist. The character was portrayed as a child molester [[Small penis rule|with a small penis]].<ref name="Lee, Felicia">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/14/books/14cric.html|title=Columnist Accuses Crichton of 'Literary Hit-and-Run'|date=December 14, 2006|work=[[The New York Times]]|quote=On Page 227 Mr. Crichton writes: 'Alex Burnet was in the middle of the most difficult trial of her career, a rape case involving the sexual assault of a two-year-old boy in Malibu. The defendant, thirty-year-old Mick Crowley, was a Washington-based political columnist who was visiting his sister-in-law when he experienced an overwhelming urge to have anal sex with her young son, still in diapers.' Mick Crowley is described as a 'wealthy, spoiled Yale graduate' with a small penis that nonetheless 'caused significant tears to the toddler's rectum.{{'-}}|last=Lee|first=Felicia R.|access-date=January 4, 2024|archive-date=April 22, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170422155605/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/14/books/14cric.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The real Crowley, also a Yale graduate, alleged that by including a [[Tuckerization|similarly named character]] Crichton had libeled him.<ref name="Lee, Felicia" />