Books by the same author as The Last Question
https://read.amazon.com/kp/kshare?asin=B003XREM5G&id=aJgF0q6FTJ-XZewsPG7UPw&reshareId=XWRN9KQ0323DHZP8R55V&reshareChannel=system
The Sirens of Titan: A Novel
2024-01-01T00:00:00Z
by Kurt Vonnegut
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 <p>&#34;If the questions don’t make sense, neither will the answers.&#34;</p>
 
 
 
 
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 <p>The Sirens of Titan: A Novel</p>
 
 
 
 
 
 <p>&lt;b&gt;“[Kurt Vonnegut’s]&amp;nbsp;best book . . . He dares not only ask the ultimate question about the meaning of life, but to answer it.”—&lt;/b&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;b&gt;Esquire&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;b&gt;Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s&lt;/b&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;b&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;i&gt;The Great American Read&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Sirens of Titan&lt;/i&gt; is an outrageous romp through space, time, and morality. The richest, most depraved man on Earth, Malachi Constant, is offered a chance to take a space journey to distant worlds with a beautiful woman at his side. Of course there’ s a catch to the invitation–and a prophetic vision about the purpose of human life that only Vonnegut has the courage to tell.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;b&gt;“Reading Vonnegut is addictive!”—&lt;i&gt;Commonweal&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/b&gt;</p>
 
 
 
 
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&#34;If the questions don’t make sense, neither will the answers.&#34;
 
 
 
 
 
 ― from &#34;The Sirens of Titan: A Novel&#34;
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 The Sirens of Titan: A Novel
 
 
 
 
 
 &lt;b&gt;“[Kurt Vonnegut’s]&amp;nbsp;best book . . . He dares not only ask the ultimate question about the meaning of life, but to answer it.”—&lt;/b&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;b&gt;Esquire&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;b&gt;Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s&lt;/b&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;b&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;i&gt;The Great American Read&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Sirens of Titan&lt;/i&gt; is an outrageous romp through space, time, and morality. The richest, most depraved man on Earth, Malachi Constant, is offered a chance to take a space journey to distant worlds with a beautiful woman at his side. Of course there’ s a catch to the invitation–and a prophetic vision about the purpose of human life that only Vonnegut has the courage to tell.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;b&gt;“Reading Vonnegut is addictive!”—&lt;i&gt;Commonweal&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/b&gt;
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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The Sirens of Titan: A Novel
https://read.amazon.com/kp/kshare?asin=B003XREM5G&id=aJgF0q6FTJ-XZewsPG7UPw&reshareId=XWRN9KQ0323DHZP8R55V&reshareChannel=system
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29581.Foundation_and_Empire
Foundation and Empire (Foundation, #2)
2021-12-11
Author
<div><div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/45836-andrew"></a></section><section><p>565 reviews116 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77661460">December 24, 2020</a></section><div><p>Less episodic than the first (<a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/29579.Foundation__Foundation___1_">Foundation</a>), which was a plus. But it makes all the more apparent Asimov's complete inability to create memorable or sympathetic characters. This means that each of the two halves read like over-long short stories. Part I is a suspense-thriller, solved by a ridiculous and anti-climactic <i>deus ex machina</i>, while Part II telegraphs its twist-ending so far in advance that the last few chapters are simply redundant. <p>There's no arguing the brilliance of Asimov's ideas -- on science, politics, economics, war, etc. -- all of which come into play in these stories. But his writing itself borders on horrendous. Dialogue is unrealistic and the lovers' language in Part II was particularly stilted and corny, although this could have just been a product of being written in the 50s. Transitions are nonexistent, making some of the scene-jumps confusing at best. A simple empty line would have helped a lot to show the change of scenery (perhaps a problem only of the old edition that I read). Last, the aforementioned characters are poorly developed. </p><p>It's one thing for Asimov to utilize his normal style of enigma/suspense followed by solution/resolution. This style works well for short stories even if they get monotonous after a while. But when stretched over 100 pages and combined with characters you don't care about, it makes for not much more than a mildly challenging brain teaser: interesting to be sure, but ultimately rather unfulfilling.</p><p>All this would normally combine for two-star status, but I grant it a third in deference to Asimov's genius and the sheer scope of the enterprise he created with this series. He was clearly an idea man, worrying much less or not at all about the literary aspect of his works. I can respect that, even if it doesn't make for a very satisfying novel.</p><p>Cross-posted at <a href="http://notbadmoviereviews.wordpress.com/books/foundation-2/">Not Bad Movie and Book Reviews.</a></p><p><a href="http://www.twitter.com/pointblaek">@pointblaek</a></p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/45836?shelf=scifi-fantasy-horror">scifi-fantasy-horror</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/614778-ahmad-sharabiani"></a></section><section><p>9,568 reviews55.6k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/61859044">February 15, 2022</a></section><div><p><b>(Book 527 from 1001 books) - Foundation and Empire (Foundation, #2), Isaac Asimov</b><p>Foundation and Empire is a science fiction novel by Russian American writer Isaac Asimov originally published by Gnome Press in 1952. It is the second book in the Foundation Series, and the fourth in the in-universe chronology. </p><p>It takes place in two halves, originally published as separate novellas. The second part, "The Mule", won a Retro Hugo Award in 1996.</p><p>امپراطوری کهشکشانها کتاب دوم- ایزاک آسیموف - شقایق؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش: ماه مارس سال1990میلادی</p><p>عنوان: جنگ امپراطوری کهکشانها کتاب دوم - از سری بنیاد؛ نوشته: آیزاک آسیموف؛ مترجم: حسن اصغری؛ تهران، شقایق، سال1371؛ در396ص؛ موضوع داستانهای نویسندگان روس تبار ایالات متحده آمریکا - سده20م</p><p>سری «بنیاد»، عنوان سری هفت جلدی، از روانشاد «آیزاک آسیموف» است؛ که نامدارترین سری علمی-تخیلی خوانده شده‌ اند؛ داستان این سری به ترتیب زمان انتشار پیش نمی‌رود، بلکه «آسیموف»، نخست کتاب سوم با عنوان «بنیاد»، سپس کتاب چهارم با عنوان «بنیاد و امپراطوری»، و پس از آن کتاب پنجم، با عنوان «بنیاد دوم» را بنگاشتند، و سپس با درنگی دراز مدت، و در پاسخ به درخواست خوانشگران، کتاب ششم با عنوان «لبه بنیاد»، و کتاب هفتم با عنوان «بنیاد و زمین» را، به آنها افزودند؛ پس از آن با درنگی نسبتا طولانی، کتاب نخست مجموعه با عنوان «سرآغاز بنیاد»، و در پایان نیز اندکی پیش از درگذشتشان از این سرای، کتاب دوم را با عنوان «پیشبرد بنیاد» را، آفریدند؛ «آسیموف» داستان‌های بلند و کوتاه بسیاری بنگاشته‌ اند، و می‌توان با اطمینان گفت، مهم‌ترین آثار ایشان کتاب‌ها و داستان‌هایی هستند، که با عنوان «سری بنیاد» شناخته می‌شوند؛ کتاب‌های اصلی سری بنیاد هفت جلد هستند، که به ترتیب خط داستانی عبارتند از: کتاب نخست سرآغاز بنیاد کهکشانی؛ کتاب دوم پیشبرد بنیاد کهکشانی؛ کتاب سوم بنیاد (ظهور امپراطوری کهکشان‌ها در ترجمهٔ فارسی)؛ کتاب چهارم بنیاد و امپراطوری (جنگ امپراطوری کهکشان‌ها در ترجمهٔ فارسی)؛ کتاب پنجم بنیاد دوم (سقوط امپراطوری کهکشان‌ها در ترجمهٔ فارسی)؛ کتاب ششم لبه بنیاد؛ کتاب هفتم بنیاد و زمین؛ </p><p>تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 25/02/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ 25/11/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/614778?shelf=1001-books">1001-books</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/614778?shelf=20th-century">20th-century</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/614778?shelf=fiction">fiction</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/53478239-luca-ambrosino"></a></section><section><p>83 reviews13.7k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2310486693">September 9, 2021</a></section><div><p>English (<a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/29581.Foundation_and_Empire__Foundation__2_">Foundation and Empire</a>) / Italiano<blockquote>«Galactic Empire was collapsing»</blockquote>Less fragmented than the previous one, the second novel of the Foundation series is divided only into two time bands, respectively 150 and 230 years after the birth of the Foundation. With a new "Seldon Crisis" at hand, a formidable enemy, the Mule, equipped with almost supernatural powers, moves against the Foundation.<p>I enjoyed the <a href="https://goodreads.com/author/show/16667.Isaac_Asimov">Isaac Asimov</a> technique to divide the novel into different temporal phases to better describe the fallen of the Empire and the rise of the Foundation. It's a suggestive experience of science fiction. It really seems to read the "Encyclopedia Galactica" that several times appears in the pages of the Foundation series. Exciting surprise ending, that remembers me the first Asimov novels of the Robot series.</p><p>Vote: 7,5</p><br /><blockquote>«L'Impero Galattico stava crollando»</blockquote>Meno frammentario del precedente, il secondo romanzo del Ciclo delle Fondazioni risulta suddiviso in soli due blocchi temporali, rispettivamente 150 e 230 anni dopo la nascita della Fondazione. Una nuova "Crisi di Seldon" si avvicina, apparentemente scatenata da un nuovo temibile nemico, il Mulo, un'essere dotato di poteri quasi soprannaturali.<p>Devo dire che la tecnica di <a href="https://goodreads.com/author/show/16667.Isaac_Asimov">Isaac Asimov</a> di descrivere per fasi o blocchi temporali le vicende che hanno portato alla caduta dell'Impero e alla nascita e sviluppo della Fondazione a me piace. E' un tipo di fantascienza molto suggestiva. Sembra davvero di scorrere quell'Enciclopedia Galattica che più volte ricorre nelle pagine della serie. Molto bello il finale a sorpresa, amarcord dei primi romanzi asimoviani del Ciclo dei Robot.</p><p>Voto: 7,5</p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/78485297-mario-the-lone-bookwolf"></a></section><section><p>733 reviews3,397 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2319607743">November 20, 2022</a></section><div><p>The expanding, good empire comes to crush corruption before decadence kicks in again<p> It´s a bit as if the dark force in Star Wars had a good motivation<br />Of course, imperialism normally isn´t a good thing, but what if not just the intentions are good, but the practical implementation too? History has made most humans so cynic regarding one, big, uniting force that it´s close to unimaginable that it could really be meant as an attempt to make the universe a paradise. And the Foundation isn´t violent and without in-your-face wars, they are hidden diplomats, manipulating everything from national to geo to star politics to slowly transform degenerated empires. That concept expanded to </p><p> Many other utopic sci-fi series<br />For instance, Peter F Hamilton, Alastair Reynolds before the fall of the empire, David Brin, etc. who modified the idea of paradises, expanded to thousands of planets, multi k years in the future, and other realities. Of course, there always has to be an antagonistic force that is an equivalent of humankind's darkest ages, but that doesn´t mean that a post scarcity bio nano fueled Clarketech heaven on earth, other planets, space habitats, spaceships, etc. isn´t possible. This </p><p> Extreme optimism combined with philosophical satire <br />Is an Asimov trademark. Especially in contrast to the far not as good and grim Heinlein and Dick, who had both lost hope in humankind and had serious personal issues and problems, Asimov was a prodigy who burned for ethics, humanitarian ideals, and morality. His whole work is a tour de force of mind blowing, clever riddles, some clear, some well hidden, and especially when rereading and knowing the bigger context to come, one can just wtf in awe like heck. I don´t know</p><p> Any other sci-fi writer who handled it all together<br />The big, space opera picture, the mentioned wit, and philosophy, thereby generated criticism and deep humor. I´m just realizing that optimism and building utopias are generally rare things in sci fi, maybe because it´s probably also much more difficult to write. Much of Asimovs´ work comes with long passages of just brain twisting complexity without any real action or plot dynamic, just dialogues, introspections, and complex, interwoven plots one has to focus on to follow and get the whole picture. Much of this may simply also be too much work for readers who just want to enjoy an entertaining book and maybe Asimov reduced the possible, maximum capacity of readers by just being too ingenious and overachieving. He would have loved that irony and kind of manifested the chaos factor too in. </p><p> The Mule <br />Psychohistory is perfect, has no flaws, it´s the ideal combination of everything good science can do, a victory of research, knowledge, and especially interdisciplinary work. That´s what one thinks after the first part of the book, The General. The problem comes with a new factor nobody saw coming, something believed impossible or so unlikely nobody had it on the map except for esoteric, paraphysical, alternative weirdos. But guess what, they were right, because one individual with special forces can change the course of psychohistory.</p><p>Tropes show how literature is conceptualized and created and which mixture of elements makes works and genres unique: <br /><a href="https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Literature/FoundationSeries">https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...</a><br /><a href="https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Literature/FoundationAndEmpire">https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...</a></p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/78485297?shelf=asimov-isaac">asimov-isaac</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5253785-lyn"></a></section><section><p>1,847 reviews16.3k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/192073598">March 13, 2019</a></section><div><p>Isaac Asimov was 31 when he first published the SF classic <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/29579.Foundation__Foundation__1_">Foundation</a> in 1951. The next year he came out with the sequel, Foundation and Empire.<p>Unlike many series these days, or even a traditional series or trilogy (which this would be for 30 years) the first part, introducing readers to Hari Seldon and psychohistory and to the beginning of Seldon’s millennia plan, was more of a prequel to the larger scope and more interesting plot brought out in Foundation and Empire.</p><p>The leaders of the Foundation operate under a foregone conclusion that their society will be a success, that theirs is a destiny proven with mathematical certainty by the great Seldon himself. Periodically in the Foundation history, a simulacrum of Seldon will appear to explain away a crisis in his plan. Up to the point of the story, Seldon had been prophetically correct in his predictions, reassuring his followers of the inevitability of his plan, and of Foundation.</p><p>But there are shadows and penumbra of uncertainty and the apprehensions are proven true when great Seldon appears and starts talking about an alternate history, one that was not going on. The Foundation was experiencing a crisis different than the one foretold by Seldon.</p><p>The mule.</p><p>Psychohistory deals with predicting statistical trends in human progress, a combined science of mathematics, sociology, psychology and cultural study that Seldon and his apostles have used Seldon’s principles to exact a plan for cultural galactic evolution with exacting precision. What Seldon cannot, could not, predict was the actions of an individual. It is the unexpected ascendancy of a mutant with strange abilities that turns the Foundation plan into uncharted territory.</p><p>Decades before Darth Vader and his Emperor, Asimov’s The Mule describes a conquering villain with complexities and humanistic intricacies that would create an SF/F template that would be mimicked by writers and speculative fiction writers for generations. Over sixty years later and Asimov’s character is still a study in deterministic power.</p><p>One influence that jumped out to me was Trantor as a model for George Lucas’ Coruscant. The center of galactic power is a planet / city with a single purpose. Asimov’s impact on Herbert’s Dune series is also suggested.</p><p>A must read for SF fans.</p><p></p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/60866073-baba"></a></section><section><p>3,504 reviews734 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3944600247">November 12, 2021</a></section><div><p><b>Robot/Empire/Foundation. Book #10</b>: Chronologically the fourth book in the Foundation series, but the second published Foundation novel released in 1952. This book, composed of two novellas, sees Asimov take space adventure and socio-political thriller story telling to the max, as the growing strength of the Foundation sees it become a target of the still military strong Galactic Empire in the shape of a glory seeking general; and then the holy grail that threatens psycho-history itself in 'The Mule' leading an unpredictable galaxy wide movement that sees the Foundation as one of its prime targets!<br /><br />As a much younger man I found the <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/46654.The_Foundation_Trilogy__Foundation___1_3_">The Foundation Trilogy</a> near genius, but now rereading it with more reading experience and knowledge, I can see the that the appeal was finding my first very well told space adventure that ticks all the boxes; so I still find it a great story, but not an exceptional story. One huge plus point though, I am absolutely dying to know what happens next. Bring on the <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/39077690.Second_Foundation">Second Foundation</a>! 8 out of 12.</p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/60866073?shelf=sci-fi-beam-me-up">sci-fi-beam-me-up</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/4213258-bradley"></a></section><section><p>Author <i></i>5 books3,845 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/571333824">November 12, 2021</a></section><div><p>Re-read 11/12/21:<p>It never ceases to amaze me how interesting this tale is. Hi-tech galactic empire meets the History of the Fall of the Roman Empire meets a mutant.</p><p>Yeeeeesssssssss.</p><p>Where's Professor X!?</p><p>But the best part is just how brainy it is. Classic for the win.</p><p>Original Review:</p><p>Split into two stories instead of many like the first book, this one feels a lot more streamlined and the Foundation has met two of its greatest foes. </p><p>One of which was expected, and one that wasn't.</p><p>The path back to stable galactic civilization is a tortuous one. The foundation always knew that it would one day have to face the Empire, and it did, and that story was very interesting.</p><p>But the Mule? </p><p>Well, he's just fascinating. And iconic. And perhaps a bit overdone ever since then, because, let's face it, we love mutants with mighty mental powers, don't we? Grasp the date. 1951. This isn't a comic book, either. Yes, sure, there's the Lensman and others, but what we've got here is the grand social tide set against the powers of a single individual. The very thing that Hari Seldon's math couldn't account for. And now, ashes.</p><p>What an awesome reversal! One that's both chilling and affirming at the same time, playing to our prejudices that we as individuals matter, while also showing the grand destruction that comes with it.</p><p>I'm revising the novel upwards. It was great fun and still a part of the grand trilogy. I don't know why I thought it was anything less than fantastic. :)</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/4213258?shelf=2016-shelf">2016-shelf</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/4213258?shelf=2021-shelf">2021-shelf</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/4213258?shelf=sci-fi">sci-fi</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27788046-sean-barrs"></a></section><section><p>1,099 reviews44.1k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3319287396">May 6, 2020</a></section><div><p>It has been several years since I read <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29579.Foundation?from_search=true&amp;from_srp=true&amp;qid=F8scTafm9T&amp;rank=1">Foundation</a>, though one thing that lingers in my mind about the first instalment of the series in the scope and ambition behind the work. It is extraordinary and the brilliance continues here.<p>Firstly, though, it is worth mentioning that these books do not work like normal novels do. They are a little bit different. They are almost like self-contained histories in a much larger story and that story is the formation of a new empire: the foundation. So, with each new instalment centuries have passed, and new heroes and villains have emerged. As such, the writing is a little bit detached from the events it narrates because it is trying to tell a much larger story. And that story is so ridiculously huge. I have not read anything quite like it before or since.</p><p>This one is divided into two sections. The first depicts an initial conflict between the collapsing empire and the rising foundation. The outcome of which has already been predicted and accounted for by Harry Seldon, the mad genius who allowed the foundation to form because he recognised how stale the old empire had grown. Nobody alive today in it can even build or repair star ships, the symbol of their military might. Something new is needed because the empire has lost its way. And the foundation believe that their victory is a foregone conclusion because of the predictions of Seldon.</p><p>He predicted them with exact precision through the lost science of pychohistory, a statistic form of mathematics that allows the individual to predict the future (and dictate it) based upon trends in human progress. Seldon is long dead, but his ideas still linger. In the second part of this book, there is a character who clearly created an archetype for many villains within fiction. Long before Darth Vader and his complex relationship with Palpatine, Asimov depicts an all-conquering villain with a complex and shadowy personality. </p><p>I do not hesitate to say, that without these books so many other works of science-fiction would not have been written. The influence this has had on the genre at large is huge. It feels like Asimov created and imagined the scope that other writers could then play with. Star Trek, Star Wars and even Dune lie in the wake of Asimov’s Foundation. And I do not feel like enough people are talking about this or even recognise it. </p><p><b>
 <u>As such, you really do need to read this if you consider yourself a science fiction fan. </u>
</b></p><p>_________________________________</p><p>You can connect with me on social media via <a href="https://linktr.ee/sean.ultra_vegan1">My Linktree</a>.<br />__________________________________</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/27788046?shelf=4-star-reads">4-star-reads</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/27788046?shelf=sci-fi">sci-fi</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/131922-mark-monday"></a></section><section><p>1,620 reviews4,957 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2067524111">August 11, 2017</a></section><div><p><i>from the Earth Journal of Scientific Analyst SLJLK92349UO, <br />Earth Invasion Exploratory Unit</i><p>Humans will fail and fail again; this much I have learned from my time spent stationed on this muddy ball of earth, the third from its star. Humans will fail and try again, win and then fail, fail and then win, fail and then keep failing. Such is the human kind! Always doing the same things. Humans are much concerned with the concepts of "winning" and "failing", as they are with such things as "civilization" and "barbarism"... their finite grasp of what life should look like means that they will always grapple with the same challenges, again and again. Oh humanity! Find a random dozen humans and study them, my robot brothers and sisters, and you will know the personality templates for all humans - the same personality templates recurring throughout their short history and their doubtlessly short future. I have learned to sympathize with while not actually admiring their predictability.</p><p>It is an amusing thing to consider, this predictability and these repetitions. Back on Robot Planet, predictability and repetition are hallmarks of robot children, prior to gaining full consciousness. Perhaps humans will never reach our exalted state. Indeed they are like children themselves.</p><p>Hari Seldon, prophet of the future from the Foundation novels, feels similarly. This comes as no surprise; as my robot brothers and sisters all know, "Isaac Asimov" was the nom de plume of my predecessor, Scientific Analyst SLJLK92349UN. May his name be forever celebrated! "Asimov" positions Seldon as a quirky but still coldly logical voice of reason from the past, carefully charting the future fall and rise again of humanity through <i>psychohistory</i> - that discipline that combines history, sociology, and mathematical statistics to predict the future behavior of large groups of people. In the preceding novel, Seldon's theories were proven to be factual, again and again. The repetition made the book an imperfect experience, but still one that this Scientific Analyst quite enjoyed. Despite the frequent human error of considering the Foundation novels to be "hard science fiction", the first and second novels are anything but hard, and revel in the so-called soft sciences instead. They have a warm and witty human touch (or at least a careful simulation) that makes these stories pleasant and charming to read, despite the repetitive nature of the first book and the first half of the second book.</p><p>In short, the first half of Foundation and Empire - the novella "The General" - replicates the themes and narrative arcs of the prior book's stories. Foundation is led by humans who misunderstand their purpose; elsewhere, forces rise to challenge Foundation; in the end, psychohistory accurately predicts the inevitable failure of those forces. Fresh new voices wrest control of the Foundation from their corrupt superiors, and all's well that ends well. It was an enjoyable adventure despite bringing nothing new to the storyline.</p><p>However, the second half of the book is a thrilling leap forward. "The Mule" is the strongest novella this Scientific Analyst has read by this author. Its strengths lie in its critique of all that was established beforehand: Seldon's predictions, the idea of Foundation being humanity's last hope, the concept of psychohistory itself... all come under severe review. Psychohistory complacently imagines it can predict every large movement of the human kind; "The Mule" posits that such predictions are limited by the basic fact that they are entirely concerned with the <i> human</i> kind. What if a factor external to the basic homo sapien model was introduced? One that may have very human yearnings yet also has abilities that no one can predict. Such a factor could lead humanity places that neither Hari Seldon nor - dare I say - the Great Minds of Robot Planet could ever predict. And such is the story and character of The Mule. A fast-paced space opera that dashes through various exotic locales, with characters transforming from friend to enemy and back to friend, entirely unpredictable; The Mule himself an insidious threat to humanity, but one who eventually shows his all-too-human and fallible motivations and goals. The Mule upends psychohistory, almost. Perhaps the fabled Second Foundation will prove a more worthy foe!</p><p>Brothers and sisters, we should evaluate "The Mule" as a coded message from its author to our masters on Robot Planet. Although the time of our invasion draws near, this Scientific Analyst suggests that we should consider external factors - ones that exist outside of basic human predictability - that may prove to be a challenge to our upcoming enterprise. Perhaps there are other, less obstreperous planets where we could harvest our necessary fuel sources and capture our meat-based servants...</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/131922?shelf=earth-journal">earth-journal</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/131922?shelf=rain-man-reviews">rain-man-reviews</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/131922?shelf=scifi-classic">scifi-classic</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1713956-manny"></a></section><section><p>Author <i></i>28 books13.4k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/39047775">July 14, 2015</a></section><div><p>Isaac Asimov based <i>Foundation and Empire</i> on <i>Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire</i>; if you're in any doubt, consider the following lines from his well-known poem "The Foundation of SF Success":<blockquote>So success is not a mystery, just brush up on your history, and borrow day by day.<br />Take an Empire that was Roman and you'll find it is at home in all the starry Milky Way.<br />With a drive that's hyperspatial, through the parsecs you will race, you'll find that plotting is a breeze,<br />With a tiny bit of cribbin' from the works of Edward Gibbon and that Greek, Thucydides.</blockquote>I hope you're convinced. But it does raise an interesting question: if the Trantorian Empire is the Roman Empire, what is the real-world counterpart of the Foundation? Who kept the flame of classical civilization alive through the Dark Ages, so that it could burst forth again during the Renaissance? I'm curious to see what other answers people might have, but it seems to me that the most obvious candidate is the Arabs, which presumably implies that Hari Seldon corresponds to the Prophet Mohammad (pbuh). <p>But what was the Seldon Plan? A united Islamic Europe? And who is the Mule? I must admit that I still haven't completely figured this out.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1713956?shelf=history-and-biography">history-and-biography</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1713956?shelf=islam-and-arabic">islam-and-arabic</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1713956?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/50996666-miltos-s"></a></section><section><p>119 reviews49 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2659109222">April 11, 2019</a></section><div><p>Τολμώ να πω ότι το δεύτερο βιβλίο της σειράς μου άρεσε ακόμη περισσότερο.<br />Σίγουρα δεν έχει το αρχικό ξάφνιασμα του πρώτου, καθώς πλέον μου ήταν περισσότερο οικείοι οι όροι και ο τρόπος με τα οποία ο Ασίμοφ δομεί αυτό το πραγματικό έπος, το βρήκα όμως περισσότερο δεμένο και συμπαγές. Σίγουρα έπαιξε ρόλο ότι στο Foundation and Empire εκτυλίσσονται ουσιαστικά δύο ιστορίες, σε αντίθεση με τις τέσσερις του αρχικού Foundation.<br />Και βέβαια η ιστορία του "The Mule" είναι μακράν από τις καλύτερες που έχουν παρουσιαστεί ποτέ στην λογοτεχνία του είδους.<br />Αν είστε φίλος της επιστημονικής φαντασίας και όχι μόνο, δείτε το οπωσδήποτε.<br />Ανυπομονώ για το τρίτο μέρος.</p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/50996666?shelf=%CE%B5%CF%80%CE%B9%CF%83%CF%84%CE%B7%CE%BC%CE%BF%CE%BD%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%AE-%CF%86%CE%B1%CE%BD%CF%84%CE%B1%CF%83%CE%AF%CE%B1">επιστημονική-φαντασία</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/50996666?shelf=%CE%BE%CE%B5%CE%BD%CF%8C%CE%B3%CE%BB%CF%89%CF%83%CE%BF">ξενόγλωσο</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10179929-sanjay-gautam"></a></section><section><p>222 reviews434 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1269026816">September 4, 2015</a></section><div><p>Differs considerably from its prequel while maintaining the same thrill throughout.</p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/112699911-orhan-pelinkovic"></a></section><section><p>85 reviews152 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3459424527">February 3, 2021</a></section><div><p>Reading <i>Foundation and Empire</i>, the second book in the <i>Foundation Trilogy</i>, reminded me of a quote by Friedrich Nietzsche: <i>“In every real man, a child is hidden that wants to play.”</i> That said, reading a SF book once in a while, can be great play.<p>This story continued where the previous book <i>Foundation</i> left off. Hari Seldon, used psychohistory to project that the 12,000 year old Galactic Empire will collapse in 300 years and the dark ages will reign for the next 30,000 years. But as the Emperor allowed, Seldon, to establish two Foundations colonies at the extreme ends of the spiral galaxy, Seldon, and his scientists have in return promised to, with their work, reduce the barbarian ages to a mere one thousand years. </p><p>It's seems that, Hari Seldon's, predictions are coming true. But with the appearance of <i>The Mule</i>, who is presented by Isaac Asimov (1920-1992) as a rebel conqueror and threat to Seldon's plan, is a new breed of a human being, with greater metal and emotional powers than that of man. With the appearance of <i>The Mule</i> things are not looking promising for the Foundation. Did Seldon's deterministic calculations fail to predict the probability of a spontaneous mutation that resulted in a creation of a human with greater intelligence that the homo sapiens, a new dominant race? Also, what ever happened to the other, Second Foundation, at the opposite far end of the Galaxy?</p><p>I have to say that I enjoyed this book slightly more than previous one, perhaps the story grew on me. I liked the many allegorical settings, such as the Galactic Empire's administration positioned on a dead planet Tranton housed with billions of isolated lonely people in a vast closed structure - sounds very familiar. Also, the symbol of hope and order, the Foundation, is the cradle of science, research and development of the galaxy.</p><p>Since the plots time frame lasts over a century, new generation of characters are introduced, but faintly, while the old ones have passed. There is a constant change of characters, and once you begin to learn about or like your characters, they are exchanged by their successors. Which makes it difficult to keep up with all the names. All in all, the storyline and narrative were good enough to make me want to read the following book.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/112699911?shelf=novel">novel</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/112699911?shelf=russian">russian</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/112699911?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3675162-j-l-sutton"></a></section><section><p>651 reviews826 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/727666335">December 23, 2021</a></section><div><p><b>"He has no name other than that of the Mule, a name reportedly applied by himself to himself, and signifying, by popular explanation, his immense physical strength, and stubbornness of purpose.”</b><p></p><p>A big part of what I enjoyed about Isaac Asimov's <i>Foundation and Empire</i> had to do with the Mule, and how this mutant tested Hari Seldon's psychohistorical predictions. The story is big, about the survival of vast galactic empires and civilization itself. I'm not sure I've read a space opera since reading this series without thinking in some way about <i>Foundation</i>. If that isn't enough, <i>Foundation and Empire</i> is a compelling and engaging read that is lots of fun! </p><p></p><p><b>“Pyscho-history dealt not with man, but with man-masses. It was the science of mobs; mobs in their billions. It could forecast reactions to stimuli with something of the accuracy that a lesser science could bring to the forecast of a rebound of a billiard ball. The reaction of one man could be forecast by no known mathematics; the reaction of a billion is something else again.”</b></p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5312173-simona-b"></a></section><section><p>883 reviews2,951 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/208352030">December 6, 2016</a></section><div><p>I read it half in Italian (my physical copy) and half in English (my digital copy) and I've come to the conclusion that the Italian translation sucks. Hard.<p><b>"It was strange that the Glory of the Galaxy should be a rotting corpse."</b></p><p>I have gone over and over what to say in this review, but I realized that at the end of the day I had already said everything in <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/208352009?book_show_action=false">my review of <i>Foundation</i></a>, the first installment in the series. The two books are of course different (for one thing, I found this one less episodic, which neither particularly pleased or displeased me), but what I think of this series didn't change. It has its strengths and its weaknesses, and I am ejoying it in that peculiar and unique way Asimov and only Asimov is able to make me enjoy a book. </p><p>(The exam went great by the way. Thank you all for your support. I'm sure Asimov helped too.)</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/5312173?shelf=1900-1949">1900-1949</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/5312173?shelf=in-italian">in-italian</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/5312173?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/26681101-markus"></a></section><section><p>469 reviews1,510 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1905209036">February 9, 2017</a></section><div><p><i>Foundation and Empire</i> is sadly not as interesting as the first book in the series. It was hard to get through at times, mostly because of a total lack of suspense, depth and real characters (which is usually also the case in the first book, but that one easily gets extra points because of the brilliance of the ideas).<p>Still, there are many plainly visible influences to be found, and it's good enough that I definitely want to read more of these books.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/26681101?shelf=2017">2017</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/26681101?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/8759700-denisse"></a></section><section><p>488 reviews290 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1386805301">September 15, 2015</a></section><div><p>Foundation and Empire is an excellent continuation. <b>For those who wanted more reliable characters, you will find them here. For those who enjoyed the hard psychology behind the first book, you will find that here too <i>but briefly</i></b>. I still like Foundation more, but this second installment goes into a more classical sci-fi direction without losing its philosophical serious plot. Still a very intelligent book, with an incredible pace and perfect exposition. <b>An essential read if you liked the first book, which you should read if you’re into hard science fiction. </b><p> <b>Esta secuela no espera a nadie.</b> Si tienes la trilogía entera en un mismo tomo, como yo, no pierdas tiempo y lee la continuación ya </p><s>a menos que no te gustara Fundación</s> porque no tiene mucho <i>warm up</i>. Si, tiene un prólogo que te ayudaría a recordar cosas, pero es esencial que tengas fresco todo lo que paso en el primer libro ya que te ayudara a entender la primera parte de la secuela. <p><b>La primera parte, sigue prácticamente las mismas pautas que el libro anterior</b>, solo que el “enemigo” ahora es el mismo Imperio, por lo tanto el problema es, digamos, más grande. La resolución, los personajes, todo te recuerda a Fundación, lo cual no es algo malo, ya que en esa primera parte nos exponen el problema más común dentro de una <i>“lucha por poder”</i> que no puedes dejar de lado, y se expone de maravilla.</p><p><b>Lo más importante es que te ayuda a entender la Fundación no como comunidad si no como razón de ser. Lo fundamental de su existencia y lo inevitable de su progreso.</b> Y esto es muy necesario ya que la segunda parte hace mucho énfasis en lo único que no tiene en cuenta el <b>PLAN SELDON</b>, o sea, la individualidad. Y de eso trata más el libro. Como un plan que toma en cuenta los movimientos de toda una sociedad se ve en peligro por las motivaciones de una sola persona. Ademas es en esta parte donde el libro se separa casi por completo de su forma de contar las cosas y toma un giro sci-fi mas clásico y común, aunque sin perder el toque del autor. </p><p>Es muy interesante de leer, y aunque sigue sin hacer énfasis en los personajes ya que el autor sigue apostándole a una trama de exposición social, si les da más protagónico a algunos. Además vemos participación femenina, algo que no tuvimos en Fundación. Bayta me agrado mucho, algo excéntrica pero centrada en sus ideales. Pero recalco, <b>esta no es una historia centrada en los personajes y su evolución, es muy importante tener eso en cuenta. </b></p><p><b>Muy recomendado si te gusto el primer libro. Una continuación digna y con una meta especifica.</b> Segura de sí misma y de la historia que plantea, con un ritmo increíblemente rápido para la sustancia tan seria que contiene y muy inteligente. No perderé tiempo, me voy a por el tercer libro ya de ya.</p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/6237864-nandakishore-mridula"></a></section><section><p>1,238 reviews2,207 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/212605442">April 5, 2017</a></section><div><p>The saga continues, with the Foundation coming up against the unexpected. We are sharply reminded that psychohistory is a probabilistic science and can fail against the unpredictable.<u>Edit to add:</u><p>I was thinking of the mutant, Mule, who upset the carefully planned Foundation applecart.</p><p></p><p>Yes, there's very little one can do against unexpected mutants! ;)</p><u>9/11/2016</u><p>Another one of my reviews which has proved prophetic today. I am getting so good at this so as to frighten myself.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/6237864?shelf=isaac-asimov">isaac-asimov</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/6237864?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/11030012-jade"></a></section><section><p>489 reviews276 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3787053658">January 23, 2021</a></section><div><p><blockquote>
 <b>
 <i>“society is much more easily soothed than one’s own consciousness.”</i>
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</blockquote><br /><i>foundation &amp; empire</i> appears to be <b>a somewhat worthy successor</b> of its predecessor -- at least as far as the second half of the book is concerned.<p>a mixed bag of a reading experience for me, but still an interesting one!</p><p>the previous book consisted of five mini-stories detailing several crises and changes to the foundation’s government and policy; <i>foundation and empire</i> consists only of two parts with separate plots and characters. both showcase a more formidable enemy than the foundation’s had so far, and as such they provide a much more dangerous adversary.</p><p>this also further explores the fact that even though hari sheldon’s psychohistory predicts societal trends and mass behaviors across the centuries pretty accurately, <b>it does not account for the actions of exceptional individuals.</b></p><p>that brings us to the two exceptional individuals blocking the foundation’s path. </p><p>in part one, we have the still-decaying galactic empire, represented by <b>an ambitious young general</b> who is determined to conquer the newly-risen power that calls itself foundation. in part two there’s <b>the mule</b>, a mutant warlord with inexplicable powers who wants to establish a second empire seven-hundred years before hari sheldon’s predictions. </p><p>and he’ll glady annex the foundation to achieve it.</p><p><br /><i>© <a href="https://www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/mule/">Michael Whelan</a></i></p><p>i’ll be honest: reading this one was <b>a bit of a challenge.</b></p><p>it seems that the short stories and chapters of the first book were more in favor of asimov’s writing style than i initially thought. because if you give him over a hundred pages for a story… well, the underwritten characters start getting grating, the mysteries in the plot get slow and yawn-inducing, and slightly unsatisfying plot resolutions become <i>more</i> unsatisfying.</p><p>especially the first part was <b>unbelievably boring</b> to me. i really liked the premise -- of course a centuries-old empire would not fall instantly, and it makes sense that even after a couple of hundred years they would still be one of the stronger players in the galactic game of chess. the idea of them coming after the foundation was pretty neat.</p><p>but <b>general bel riose</b> was just another cardboard commander, the emperor a middling old fool, and the two others trying to stop the plot are incredibly prone to annoying monologues and farfetched ideas. also, it ends on such an anti-climactic note that it gave me even more of <i>why-did-i-read-this-again?</i> feeling.</p><p>the second part of the book, luckily, kind of <b>redeemed</b> the experience for me. (and apparently, i was not alone in this, because part two won the hugo award on its own.)</p><p>because lo and behold, it gives us two things i thought asimov was allergic to: we get a lot more descriptions of planets, civilizations, and architecture AND we have a woman as a main character! bravo!</p><p><b>bayta</b> is a foundation historian who’s part of an underground resistance and believes the foundation is heading for another sheldon crisis because it’s following in the footsteps of the galactic empire. together with her husband <b>toran</b>, she starts seeking information on an outside threat that has risen beyond the stars: the mysterious warlord who calls himself ‘the mule’.</p><p>their quest brings them to multiple planets across the galaxy, assisted by psychologist <b>ebling mis</b> and the mule’s former <b>court jester</b>. while the mule advances, conquering planet after planet, they soon start to realize they need to find the second foundation -- hopefully they will have the means to defeat the mule.</p><p>part two brought me genuine distress as well as <b>investment in the storyline.</b> the mule is a mysterious but interesting villain; you keep wondering what his endgame is, as well as whether he’d actually be capable of raising a better second empire than sheldon ever predicted.</p><p>one of the more poignant scenes is this: every time a crisis approaches, a holographic video of hari sheldon appears in what the foundation has come to call the <b>time vault.</b> sheldon will talk briefly about the crisis he’s predicted, and vaguely allude to how the foundation should proceed now. but this time around… </p><p>he predicts a trader revolt, which the traders have put off because of the appearance of the mule, and suddenly the whole foundation is on its hind legs. because what do you do when the smartest dead guy in the galaxy makes a mistake, and your civilization might not survive as a result?</p><p>the big reveal at the end and the final few chapters are rather easy to see coming even if you only paid a marginal amount of attention, but i found it interesting to note here that the mule appears to be <b>a pretty convincing blueprint</b> for a certain type of villain. and that is rather cool, considering how long ago this was published -- and before the whole superhero comic book rush, too.</p><p>overall, it still has <b>the same little annoyances</b> that the first book had, though there is a definite increase in immersive descriptions. but all powerful leaders are still obsessed with having a smoke, and rigid gender roles are still firmly in place.</p><p>in my most radical of opinions: skip part one, and read part two. because that’s the cooler story even if the characters still remain somewhat flat.</p><p><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3776268115">
 <i>read my review of the first book here.</i>
</a></p><p>✎ <i>3.0 stars.</i></p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/11030012?shelf=quest-for-classiques">quest-for-classiques</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/11030012?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/11030012?shelf=space-opera">space-opera</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/22809267-adrian"></a></section><section><p>539 reviews194 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1555872430">June 19, 2017</a></section><div><p>2016<br />Well I first read this back in the mid 70s and have re-read it (non Gr) many times since. In my view the trilogy is comparable (if not better than) LOTR which I often say is my favourite all time book. What a quandary.<p>2017<br />As their "series" read, I am reading the Foundation series ( the 7 volume version) with SF Aficionados. I have now re-read the first 2 of the original trilogy and thoroughly enjoyed. Ok so I only read them last year but each time I (re)read them I am truly astonished by the wide ranging scope of Asimov's vision. Wonderful series of books that can be read as a trilogy, as 7 (septology?) or if one wishes to include the Asimov Robot and Empire novels its a lot more (other (Asimov estate authorised) authors have also increased the Foundation series even further).</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/22809267?shelf=read-again">read-again</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/22809267?shelf=sci-fi">sci-fi</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/22809267?shelf=sf-golden-age">sf-golden-age</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/44737540-pat-the-book-goblin"></a></section><section><p>423 reviews126 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2301195903">May 26, 2018</a></section><div><p>Wow! Such a great book! I couldn't put it down! This book tied in the loose ends of Foundation, and Foundation and Empire really brought it all together with a huge bang at the end! I can’t wait to read Second Foundation to see what happens!!<p>Foundation and Empire is set around a century after the first book. At this point, the Empire has completely collapsed and the galaxy is divided into barbarian tribes vying for power. The Foundation is the most technologically advanced group but it doesn’t seek to conquer, only to hold on to its closest territories until Seldon’s predictions come to fruition. However, Hari Seldon never predicted—a mutant, called the Mule! </p><p>Throughout the book I was routing for the Foundation and my heart dropped when something horrible happened. (I’m trying so hard to keep this spoiler free)<br />The end was such a twist. I never saw it coming. I'm really good at predicting endings to movies and books and this one got me. I predicted the death of Viscerion from Game of Thrones but I never saw the ending of this book! </p><p>Foundation and Empire brought me back to the story. Foundation was a bit taxing since it seemed like an entire piece of dialogue but the story was intriguing. This book had many descriptions and the action was fast paced and everything I love about Sci-fi. Asimov really blew this one out of the water. Please let the third book be just as good or better than this one!! </p><p>Now, onto Second Foundation!!</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/44737540?shelf=classics">classics</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/44737540?shelf=sci-fi">sci-fi</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5060228-michelle"></a></section><section><p>146 reviews20 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/164519251">February 14, 2012</a></section><div><p>I am baffled as to why I liked this book and the previous one in the series, at least I am baffled as to how to explain it. This is about as conceptual as it gets. There is no protagonist, or maybe the protagonist is the human race, which might sound kind of original and exciting, but it really isn't. The characters themselves don't really get that much characterization, they are pawns in a game with no players and they're only "on stage" for a brief episode and then the epic sweep of time swats them into oblivion. But, the idea of "psychohistory" being able to predict the future of huge numbers of people even though psychology fails to predict any single person's fate is catchy, and the book is full of that kind of conceptual messing around. This is number two in the series and nothing new to be added that I didn't say about number one previously.<p>So, I can't think of a single person I know to whom I would confidently say "oh yeah, you're going to looove this series" but yet it is supposedly a sci-fi classic and looooved by a whole bunch of people. I just don't know any of them, except the person who recommended it to me, and she already read it, so.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/5060228?shelf=sci-fi">sci-fi</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/56173179-ivana-books-are-magic"></a></section><section><p>523 reviews180 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4311096541">October 28, 2021</a></section><div><p>Foundation and Empire felt like two novels in one. I mean I loved both parts of the novel so I have no complaints, but these two parts really did feel like two separate novels. Both parts of the novel are set in the same Universe but the characters are different in the first and the second part of the book. Moreover, there is a time gap between them- that is about a century long. The first part of the novel is about the conflict between Foundation and Empire and the second one about the war between Foundation/Traders and the mysterious Mule character. I believe parts of this novel were even published as different stories under different titles in various science-fiction magazines. Well, I'm happy to have read them in one book. The more Foundation stories, the merrier. (Someday I will reread all the Foundation books in perfect order, but since I didn't start with the first one, I don't see the point in insisting on any particular order to reading them. )<p>PART ONE- GENERAL <br />The first half of the book opens with a strong character- General Bel Riose of the Galactic Empire. There are many amiable qualities about him that make you root for him, even if you know that psycho-history dictates that Foundation will overcome the Empire. Technically speaking, Bel Riose is on the side of the bad guys, isn't he? However, he is quite likable, extremely capable and has a bit role to play. Bel Riose is intelligent, considering and brave. He is completely devoted to the Empire and never acts in his own self-interest. His men seem to adore him and one hardly wonders at that. Bel Riose holds Barr (a patrician from a captured world) a prisoner, holding his family hostage. The two often have interesting discussions. Bel Riose presents tempting arguments about the Empire, stressing how without it there was anarchy. As the novel enfolds, Bel Riose starts to explore Foundation more and more. Bel Riouse visits it and cannot grasp how its people can be so assured of themselves and their victory. Bel Riose senses danger and plans an attack while the Empire is so strong in resources. He is aware that with time, the Empire might grown weaker because nobody knows how to build proper spaceships anymore. Barr, still his prisoner, maintains that psycho-history proves that Foundation will win over the Empire. Bel Riose argues that it is completely senseless that such at tiny enemy should defeat the Galactic Empire, but he is wise enough to prepare for it. He captures a Trader Devers (a Foundation man) whom he treats as well as his other prisoner the patrician Barr but remains suspicious of them both. Finally, the general decides to launch an attack on Foundation. Is the Foundation ready for it? Will they hold? Will Bel Riose convenience the Emperor himself to support his attack on Foundation with all its might? The story only really starts there. I won't reveal what happens with Devers and Berr but I will say they are wonderfully crafted characters. The characters of the Emperor and his first counsel are wonderfully developed as well. Even some minor characters are quite vividly painted. The pacing is perfect, the construction of the plot is excellent and the story itself interesting and imaginative. Nothing to complain of here! Some great social-political observations, debates and analysis. Plus, I enjoyed how psycho-history always came up victorious. I love the whole Foundation concept. So far, I really loved all the Foundation novels I have read...and that brings me to the second part of this novel.</p><p>PART TWO- THE MULE<br />I liked the second part of the novel (perhaps even more than the first one) because there was an element of mystery there. It reminded me of Asimov's detective Robot novels. The story itself was so packed with action and information that I had to reread many a passage again. It really is quite clever. Sometimes I would miss a piece of information and I had to reread some parts again to be able to follow the story. There is an emotional touch to this part of the novel and there's a strong female lead that takes matters into her own hands. The ending is simply brilliant! Highly recommended!</p><p>To conclude, I loved both parts of this novel. What I loved the most about the first one was the mature discussion of social and political matters (still relevant today). What I loved the most about the second one was how the mystery element blended perfectly with the story itself. I immensely enjoyed this novel!</p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/102468787-ian"></a></section><section><p>367 reviews58 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2970050660">October 15, 2022</a></section><div><p>Second book in the original Foundation trilogy. Some inevitable dating, in a book 70 years old but on the whole it's stood up relatively well. Introduces the character of the Mule, the genetic mutant able to manipulate emotions and the thereby threaten Hari Seldon's secret plan to restore civilization to the galaxy. The series is a classic of space opera and fondly re-read from my early years.</p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/102468787?shelf=sci-fi">sci-fi</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1188122-kara-babcock"></a></section><section><p>1,892 reviews1,209 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/749730708">August 10, 2018</a></section><div><p>Whoaaaaa, it has been <strong>five years</strong> since <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/550531058">I reread <em>Foundation</em></a>! I didn’t realize how long it had been. I’ve had <em>Foundation and Empire</em>, and most of the other books, sitting in a pile in my old bedroom for a long time. For some reason, I had it in my head that <em>Second Foundation</em>, the one book I was missing, was the second book in the series (I wonder why); I was waiting and waiting to find a battered, old copy of it at my used bookstore and never did. Eventually I broke down and bought it new, only to discover I could have kept going with the series anyway….<p>I was 23 when I reread the first book, and now I’m nearly 29! I feel like an entirely different person from 23-year-old Ben, let alone whatever delicate age I was when I first read this book. My key takeaway from this reread? <strong>Isaac Asimov is actually a crap writer.</strong> Strap in for a fun ride (or, if you are an Asimov diehard fan, maybe just … close this tab), because I am going to pick this thing apart.</p><p>Whereas the original book was a collection of short stories that, together, formed a larger plot, <em>Foundation and Empire</em> collects two novellas, “The General” and “The Mule”. Set some time after the first book, these stories tell, respectively, of the Galactic Empire’s last strike against the nascent Foundation, and of the rise of an eponymous mutant whose very existence throws off Hari Seldon’s precious psychohistorical predictions for the Foundation’s ascendance and safeguarding of the galaxy.</p><p>I see in my review of the first book I observed that it was mostly dialogue, and maybe that’s why it escaped the criticism I’m going to level here. Asimov’s prose is just <em>bad</em>. Like, someone did not restrain his access to the adverb vault. This is particularly egregious in the way he tags dialog. He has a great aversion to <em>said</em>, and when he must resort to it, he never fails to pair it with an adverb. Here’s a representative sample from a <em>single</em> page:</p><p>- Cleon II said peevishly<br />- Brodrig said patiently<br />- The Emperor sneered nastily<br />- said Brodrig smoothly<br />- Cleon II frowned heavily<br />- The Emperor laughed shortly</p><p>After a while, this started to grate on me. But it’s still possible to overlook it, right? I mean, writing style isn’t everything, as long as there is a good <em>story</em>….</p><p><em>Foundation and Empire</em> isn’t all that impressive, story-wise. In “The General” we’re treated to an ambitious but frustrated eponymous antagonist: he yearns for the days of conquest, and going after the mysterious Foundation seems like the best way to reprise those. The story suffers for lack of a strong protagonist, though; the two characters who come close spend most of their time bickering about whether or not the Foundation will get through this without doing much to actually effect any change themselves. In “The Mule” there is more action and decidedly more setbacks; it is definitely a more interesting story. Yet it suffers from issues of pacing and characterization, with decidedly over the top bureaucrats.</p><p>This is by no means an original observation, either, but there is a conspicuous lack of women in this book. The first female character, Bayta, appears halfway through the book (at the beginning of “The Mule”), and Asimov describes her this way:</p><blockquote>She wasn’t beautiful on the grand scale to others—he admitted that—even if everybody did look twice. Her hair was dark and glossy, though straight, her mouth a bit wide—but her meticulous, close-textured eyebrows separated a white, unlined forehead from the warmest mahogany eyes ever filled with smiles.</blockquote><p>So she’s hot, but not <em>too</em> hot compared to other hot women, but still pretty hot—got it?</p><p>Anyway. I would be more charitable here if there were a really compelling story happening beneath these layers of sexism and purple prose. Asimov obviously has some intriguing, big-picture ideas here. But I’ve been reading Ursula K. Le Guin’s novella collection <em>The Found and the Lost</em> concurrently with this (and other) books. And Le Guin does this kind of so-called “soft SF” so much better. Her Hainish works deal with galactic societies over long timescales, yet she digs deeply into individuals’ stories. There is definitely a place for the shallower, flash-and-talk storytelling that Asimov is doing here, and I know it captured a lot of hearts and imaginations when it first came out. But as far as its place in the classic canon goes? <em>Foundation</em> as a series or an idea might deserve it, but <em>Foundation and Empire</em> is not particularly memorable or laudable, in my opinion.</p><p><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">
 
</a></p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1188122?shelf=2018-read">2018-read</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1188122?shelf=own">own</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1188122?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/13015682-timothy-urgest"></a></section><section><p>469 reviews258 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4145844370">August 6, 2021</a></section><div><p>The Foundation has risen and challengers multiply like parasites. <p>Imperial warlords, Foundation dissidents, and an empire taking its last breath all vie for power in a galaxy that lies on the brink of barbarism and destruction. </p><p>I enjoyed <i>Foundation and Empire</i>; and though everything managed to sort itself by the end, I admit I got lost a few times regarding who was fighting for whom. What I like most about the series is seeing the future effects of small choices and conflicts. Characters are the players, but they are not the point. The point of the series is society’s advancements as a whole. Worlds remain to be conquered or liberated; we’ll see what happens. </p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/70345018-amapola"></a></section><section><p>282 reviews32 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2780796550">June 25, 2019</a></section><div><p>Il secondo volume di una trilogia? Non lo sapevo...<br />Vabbè, l'importante è rompere il ghiaccio.<br />Era imperdonabile da parte mia non avere letto ancora niente di Asimov.</p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/70345018?shelf=lett-americana">lett-americana</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/70345018?shelf=owned">owned</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/70345018?shelf=sci-fi">sci-fi</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/2457095-apatt"></a></section><section><p>507 reviews752 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/931281398">May 11, 2014</a></section><div><p>Continuing from my review of <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/927628455?book_show_action=false">Foundation (book 1)</a> just a few days ago, this is my take on volume 2 of the iconic original trilogy. The title <i>Foundation and Empire</i> is something of a misnomer as the Galactic Empire has already faded in this book and its function is more like a prop than a player. When I first looked at the titles of the books in this trilogy in my teens I was also a little confused that <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/29580.Second_Foundation__Foundation___3_">Second Foundation</a> is actually the <i>third</i> book! Still, at least I didn't make the mistake of reading <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/29580.Second_Foundation__Foundation___3_">Second Foundation</a> before <i>Foundation and Empire</i>; that would have sucked.<p>Unlike <i>Foundation</i> (#1) <i>Foundation and Empire</i> is not a fix-up novel of several connected stories but it does consist of two novellas, “The General” and “The Mule ”. “The General” (Part 1 of the book) is indeed about “Foundation and Empire” where the Foundation comes under attack by the last remnant of the Galactic Empire led by the formidable General Bel Riose. The rather lame hero of the Foundation on this occasion is one Lathan Devers who does not actually outwit the Empire here but won because according to Hari Seldon’s arcane psychohistory algorithm it is statistically impossible for the Foundation to lose, almost like a preordainment.</p><p>It's interesting that I remember nothing about this shorter Part 1 of <i>Foundation and Empire</i> from my previous read decades ago. “The General” is a likable novella but it lacks compelling characters and, unlike previous Foundation stories, does not feature cunning heroics. It passes the time pleasantly enough but is basically just a warm up for the monumental Part 2 “The Mule”.</p><p>“The Mule” is kind of like The Foundation meets X-Men, well, may be not as we are only talking about one villainous insidious mutant with mental powers. I remember very well what happen in this part of the book in spite of having read it decades ago. I do have memory like a sieve so kudos to prof Asimov for writing something so unforgettable. “The Mule” is a fantastic villain, insidious and devious yet oddly sympathetic and pitiful. Anybody who says Asimov writes flat characters should have The Mule change his mind for him.</p><p>The less I say about this part of the book the netter I think. As this is a reread of a story I remember quite well the element of surprise is not there for me at the book’s denouement. In any case even for new readers Asimov did hint fairly strongly about the Mule’s identity in previous chapters. I envy you if you have not read <i>Foundation and Empire</i> before or if you have read but possess an even worse memory than mine (well, may be the latter not so much).</p><p>Going straight on to <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/29580.Second_Foundation__Foundation___3_">Second Foundation</a> without a bathroom break.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/2457095?shelf=favorites">favorites</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3461034-trish"></a></section><section><p>1,848 reviews3,363 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1799322779">November 15, 2021</a></section><div><p>This continues my re-read of Asimov's <i>Foundation</i> cycle (in chronological order) and it just goes to show that the original trilogy sure set the standard. Or at least a standard.<p>War has come to the Empire and its fall is starting. Which reminded me of <i>The History of the Fall of the Roman Empire</i>. *lol* Asimov MUST have read that book. Which reminds me that I need to read the whole thing (again) as well. I loved how realistic and detailed we see such a mighty power construct crumble.<br />Afterwards (about 100 years after the events of the novel's first part), we get the outlier called The Mule. Which was, amongst other things, a lesson in futility. I mean, a genetic dead end takes over ... for what?! Just to show that he can? However, how the individual managed to be a serious threat to the Foundation - and in such a short amount of time - was pretty awesome!</p><p>Reason for the re-read is the AppleTV+ production of Asimov's series and I can't wait for us to get to this part as it is soooo good.</p><p>The writing was once again fast-paced and Asimov was definitely at the top of his game. For a more detailed analysis, please see the original review below. Here, it shall suffice to say that the universe created is still very muh alive and the story has aged incredibly well.</p><u>Original review:</u><p>This second book in the Foundation trilogy was quite different from the first.</p><p>One notable difference is that instead of many, there are only 2 parts:<br />- The General<br />- The Mule<br />Moreover, each chapter has its own title now instead of just a number.</p><p>That is only the difference in form however and therefore only a first indication. The author also changed his writing style in this. Where we had shorter stories forming a mosaic in the first, we now have a much more elaborate description of everything. The writing style is again very good, simple and yet intelligent. Nevertheless, I did not like this form as much as the shorter stories. To me, Asimov is most poignant and sharp in shorter stories put together to form one massive tale. Here, some weren't even important to get a feeling for the era, the galaxy and development of events; we had quite a lot of what I consider "background noise".</p><p>As a comment before we begin, please consider that I do not put much into spoiler brackets because the book itself often reveals things beforehand through entries of the <i>Encyclopedia Galactica</i> that are being cited before a chapter or simply by the title of the 3rd and last book!</p><p>The first part, The General, tells the tale of a very important man in the history of the Foundation. Not quite sure WHY he of all people was all THAT important. Perhaps just because he dared having a military conflict with the Foundation. Or because it was the first real outbreak of a war-like situation and, of course, a stark contrast to what The Mule did. Or because of his relationship with the Emperor. Or because it was the last effort made by the crumbling Empire.<br />You see, Riose (the general in question) was a member of the remnant of the Empire. It's significantly smaller now and only has relicts of technology but it's holding on. Where the military was exploring and conquering before, they are now as stagnant as the rest and it drives this general up the walls. Which I understand. The tragedy about him is that he is not a bad person per se and not stupid per se either. His motives were just bad in this case (conflict for conflict's sake) and the way he did it was doomed from the start.<br />Moreover, as mentioned before, apart from the conflict with the Foundation we also get to see the conflict between the Emperor and the General and what mistrust and arrogant inaction will do to you. This tale was definitely a nod to Belisarius (a famous Roman general).</p><p>The second and much more important part tells of an individual stirring things up about 100 years after the events in The General. The individual is never named. He calls himself The Mule and there are all kinds of stories about him. Not really a surprise considering that he gained enough influence and power to oppose the in the meantime basically ruling Foundation in only 7 years!<br />In my opinion the Foundation, if it ever has been, has ceased to be a force for good. Seldon's plan was to preserve knowledge and shorten the "dark ages". Noble in and of itself. But the Foundation we are seeing here has grown fat and complacent and is more of a cancer, forcing itself onto others. They are borderline dictators, the Mayor isn't elected anymore, the title is inherited instead (which is never a good idea), and so it is no surprise that the Traders (one of the forces introduced in the previous book) have become somewhat of an independent force that have had enough of the bureaucracy of the Foundation. Basically, the Foundation is what the Empire was, repeats the mistakes the Empire made and ... well. The funny thing is they never even consider the possibility of failure. Some are intelligent enough to at least call this a Seldon Crisis (we had a few during the first book where holographic messages of Seldon recorded in the past either helped or showed in retrospect what the correct course of action was) but most of those just want to wait for the next hologram to appear and tell them what to do. *facepalm*<br />When it actually is time and the hologram does indeed appear, we get<br />On the side we have a few individuals caught in the events started by the Foundation and the Mule and I really liked them. Granted, not all five of them are equally good (which is to say I didn't care about each of them equally) but the relationship between Bayta and her husband was very sweet without ever beeing cheesy, the Captain/Colonel was a very tragic figure (*shudders at the thought of having something like this done to myself*) and Magnifico was ... well, magnifico (with or without diactrical mark, depending on whether you see it as the Italian or Spanish word). Four and a half are trying to stop the Mule by finding the Second Foundation that was supposedly established simultaneously to the one on Terminus but on the other end of the galaxy. It's a bit of a chase, really, since the Mule is interested in knowing their location too, of course. </p><p>Any further info would spoiler the story too much but I can say that most of the characters shown are very intelligent or play a part in showing just how stupid and doomed rigid systems are. As Darwin said: survival of the fittest (as in: best adapted / willing and able to adapt). It is very clear at this point just how heavily Asimov was influenced by the history of the Roman Empire. </p><p>I'm not sure I agree with his theory about psychohistory, a science that is basically never wrong, at least not about the big stuff (science is invented and applied by humans and therefore not infallible but psychohistory was introduced/shown as if it was infallible at least unless something god-like shatters the system) and that individuals are too insignificant to really matter. This is a personal opinion since I refuse to accept not to matter. My personal belief is that through intelligence and dedication an individual can indeed influence history so Asimov is hitting a nerve by saying No. Might be a typical example of the human ego. *lol*<br />Therefore, I'm also a bit disappointed that it took a god-like mutant to be able to shape events like that. Personally, I would have liked to see an ingenious individual without special powers (other than intelligence, persuasion, foresight etc) accomplish the same.</p><p>Other than that, it is almost tragic to compare this to long lost empires in real life. Look at Rome; look at all the accomplishments. Or look at other ancient societies like Ancient Egypt. It's always the same: they grow, they have wonderful inventions and progress and art, they become powerful, and then something happens that turns it all sour and it's all downhill from there until all that's left are ruins to be dug out by archaeologists thousands of years later. It's tragic and always repeating itself, apparently. To see this pattern repeated by such an advanced culture instead of them learning from the mistakes of their past is dreary and depressing even if it is, ultimately, realistic as hell.</p><p>I was actually considering giving this only 4 stars for two reasons:<br />- the different writing style that is not 100% to my liking although still superb;<br />- what the author created in order to bring about the fall of the Foundation.<br />However, after finishing the book I was considering all aspects. Brad said I should wait with my final rating until after having read book #3 but I disagree: this is one book and it needs to be able to hold up on its own with no help by the following or previous volume. Of course it's part of a trilogy, but if this installment was bad, it would still deserve the appropriate rating. Same goes for a good but not excellent rating. <br />BUT (there always is one, isn't there?!) ... there are, in retrospect, many reasons not to deduct a star. Like the ingenious way Asimov rewards a smart and attentive reader with giving hints here and there (for example ). Or the seemingly effortless world-building with intricate and well thought-out details. Or the amiable writing style itself that might have been sharper in shorter stories but was still exceptional here as well (yes, one and the same point both on the pro and the contra side, I love making lists ;P). Or the historical context in which the novel was written that I often take into consideration too - in this case it was apparently believed in the 1950s that psychic powers were indeed possible so I cannot fault Asimov (or any other author) for being "realistic" although mutants were never mentioned as being possible/part of future humanity so at first it looked like a deus ex machina. <br />Therefore, although I do not consider this second volume as good as the first (pettifoggery, really), it does indeed receive the full rating of 5 stars. </p><p>Now on to the other end of the galaxy and the conclusion!</p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section></section></article></div></div>||||I|||| * Home
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 Foundation (Publication Order) #2

 Foundation and Empire

 Isaac Asimov

 4.22
 189,005 ratings 4,551 reviews
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 Foundation and Empire tells the incredible story of a new breed of man who create a new force for galactic government. Thus, the Foundation hurtles into conflict with the decadent, decrepit First Empire. In this struggle for power amid the chaos of the stars, man stands at the threshold of a new, enlightened life which could easily be put aside for the old forces of barbarism. The Foundation novels of Isaac Asimov constitute what is very likely the most famed epic in all of science-fiction
 Genres Science Fiction Fiction Classics Science Fiction Fantasy Space Opera Fantasy Novels
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 244 pages, Hardcover

 First published January 1, 1952

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 Isaac Asimov

 3,152 books 23k followers
 Isaac Asimov was a Russian-born, American author, a professor of biochemistry, and a highly successful writer, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books.

 Professor Asimov is generally considered one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000 letters and postcards. He has works published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey Decimal System (lacking only an entry in the 100s category of Philosophy).

 Asimov is widely considered a master of the science-fiction genre and, along with Robert A. Heinlein and Arthur C. Clarke, was considered one of the "Big Three" science-fiction writers during his lifetime. Asimov's most famous work is the Foundation Series; his other major series are the Galactic Empire series and the Robot series, both of which he later tied into the same fictional universe as the Foundation Series to create a unified "future history" for his stories much like those pioneered by Robert A. Heinlein and previously produced by Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson. He penned numerous short stories, among them "Nightfall", which in 1964 was voted by the Science Fiction Writers of America the best short science fiction story of all time, a title many still honor. He also wrote mysteries and fantasy, as well as a great amount of nonfiction. Asimov wrote the Lucky Starr series of juvenile science-fiction novels using the pen name Paul French.

 Most of Asimov's popularized science books explain scientific concepts in a historical way, going as far back as possible to a time when the science in question was at its simplest stage. He often provides nationalities, birth dates, and death dates for the scientists he mentions, as well as etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Examples include his Guide to Science, the three volume set Understanding Physics, and Asimov's Chronology of Science and Discovery.

 Asimov was a long-time member and Vice President of Mensa International, albeit reluctantly; he described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs" He took more joy in being president of the American Humanist Association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov's Science Fiction, a Brooklyn, NY elementary school, and two different Isaac Asimov Awards are named in his honor.

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 Isaac Asimov. (2007, November 29). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 21:50, November 29, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_As...

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 Andrew
 565 reviews 116 followers
 December 24, 2020
 Less episodic than the first ( Foundation ), which was a plus. But it makes all the more apparent Asimov's complete inability to create memorable or sympathetic characters. This means that each of the two halves read like over-long short stories. Part I is a suspense-thriller, solved by a ridiculous and anti-climactic deus ex machina , while Part II telegraphs its twist-ending so far in advance that the last few chapters are simply redundant.

 There's no arguing the brilliance of Asimov's ideas -- on science, politics, economics, war, etc. -- all of which come into play in these stories. But his writing itself borders on horrendous. Dialogue is unrealistic and the lovers' language in Part II was particularly stilted and corny, although this could have just been a product of being written in the 50s. Transitions are nonexistent, making some of the scene-jumps confusing at best. A simple empty line would have helped a lot to show the change of scenery (perhaps a problem only of the old edition that I read). Last, the aforementioned characters are poorly developed.

 It's one thing for Asimov to utilize his normal style of enigma/suspense followed by solution/resolution. This style works well for short stories even if they get monotonous after a while. But when stretched over 100 pages and combined with characters you don't care about, it makes for not much more than a mildly challenging brain teaser: interesting to be sure, but ultimately rather unfulfilling.

 All this would normally combine for two-star status, but I grant it a third in deference to Asimov's genius and the sheer scope of the enterprise he created with this series. He was clearly an idea man, worrying much less or not at all about the literary aspect of his works. I can respect that, even if it doesn't make for a very satisfying novel.

 Cross-posted at Not Bad Movie and Book Reviews.

 @pointblaek
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 Ahmad Sharabiani
 9,568 reviews 55.6k followers
 February 15, 2022
 (Book 527 from 1001 books) - Foundation and Empire (Foundation, #2), Isaac Asimov

 Foundation and Empire is a science fiction novel by Russian American writer Isaac Asimov originally published by Gnome Press in 1952. It is the second book in the Foundation Series, and the fourth in the in-universe chronology.

 It takes place in two halves, originally published as separate novellas. The second part, "The Mule", won a Retro Hugo Award in 1996.

 امپراطوری کهشکشانها کتاب دوم- ایزاک آسیموف - شقایق؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش: ماه مارس سال1990میلادی

 عنوان: جنگ امپراطوری کهکشانها کتاب دوم - از سری بنیاد؛ نوشته: آیزاک آسیموف؛ مترجم: حسن اصغری؛ تهران، شقایق، سال1371؛ در396ص؛ موضوع داستانهای نویسندگان روس تبار ایالات متحده آمریکا - سده20م

 سری «بنیاد»، عنوان سری هفت جلدی، از روانشاد «آیزاک آسیموف» است؛ که نامدارترین سری علمی-تخیلی خوانده شده‌ اند؛ داستان این سری به ترتیب زمان انتشار پیش نمی‌رود، بلکه «آسیموف»، نخست کتاب سوم با عنوان «بنیاد»، سپس کتاب چهارم با عنوان «بنیاد و امپراطوری»، و پس از آن کتاب پنجم، با عنوان «بنیاد دوم» را بنگاشتند، و سپس با درنگی دراز مدت، و در پاسخ به درخواست خوانشگران، کتاب ششم با عنوان «لبه بنیاد»، و کتاب هفتم با عنوان «بنیاد و زمین» را، به آنها افزودند؛ پس از آن با درنگی نسبتا طولانی، کتاب نخست مجموعه با عنوان «سرآغاز بنیاد»، و در پایان نیز اندکی پیش از درگذشتشان از این سرای، کتاب دوم را با عنوان «پیشبرد بنیاد» را، آفریدند؛ «آسیموف» داستان‌های بلند و کوتاه بسیاری بنگاشته‌ اند، و می‌توان با اطمینان گفت، مهم‌ترین آثار ایشان کتاب‌ها و داستان‌هایی هستند، که با عنوان «سری بنیاد» شناخته می‌شوند؛ کتاب‌های اصلی سری بنیاد هفت جلد هستند، که به ترتیب خط داستانی عبارتند از: کتاب نخست سرآغاز بنیاد کهکشانی؛ کتاب دوم پیشبرد بنیاد کهکشانی؛ کتاب سوم بنیاد (ظهور امپراطوری کهکشان‌ها در ترجمهٔ فارسی)؛ کتاب چهارم بنیاد و امپراطوری (جنگ امپراطوری کهکشان‌ها در ترجمهٔ فارسی)؛ کتاب پنجم بنیاد دوم (سقوط امپراطوری کهکشان‌ها در ترجمهٔ فارسی)؛ کتاب ششم لبه بنیاد؛ کتاب هفتم بنیاد و زمین؛

 تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 25/02/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ 25/11/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
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 Luca Ambrosino
 83 reviews 13.7k followers
 September 9, 2021
 English ( Foundation and Empire ) / Italiano

 «Galactic Empire was collapsing»
 Less fragmented than the previous one, the second novel of the Foundation series is divided only into two time bands, respectively 150 and 230 years after the birth of the Foundation. With a new "Seldon Crisis" at hand, a formidable enemy, the Mule, equipped with almost supernatural powers, moves against the Foundation.

 I enjoyed the Isaac Asimov technique to divide the novel into different temporal phases to better describe the fallen of the Empire and the rise of the Foundation. It's a suggestive experience of science fiction. It really seems to read the "Encyclopedia Galactica" that several times appears in the pages of the Foundation series. Exciting surprise ending, that remembers me the first Asimov novels of the Robot series.

 Vote: 7,5




 «L'Impero Galattico stava crollando»
 Meno frammentario del precedente, il secondo romanzo del Ciclo delle Fondazioni risulta suddiviso in soli due blocchi temporali, rispettivamente 150 e 230 anni dopo la nascita della Fondazione. Una nuova "Crisi di Seldon" si avvicina, apparentemente scatenata da un nuovo temibile nemico, il Mulo, un'essere dotato di poteri quasi soprannaturali.

 Devo dire che la tecnica di Isaac Asimov di descrivere per fasi o blocchi temporali le vicende che hanno portato alla caduta dell'Impero e alla nascita e sviluppo della Fondazione a me piace. E' un tipo di fantascienza molto suggestiva. Sembra davvero di scorrere quell'Enciclopedia Galattica che più volte ricorre nelle pagine della serie. Molto bello il finale a sorpresa, amarcord dei primi romanzi asimoviani del Ciclo dei Robot.

 Voto: 7,5

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 Mario the lone bookwolf
 733 reviews 3,397 followers
 November 20, 2022
 The expanding, good empire comes to crush corruption before decadence kicks in again

 It´s a bit as if the dark force in Star Wars had a good motivation
 Of course, imperialism normally isn´t a good thing, but what if not just the intentions are good, but the practical implementation too? History has made most humans so cynic regarding one, big, uniting force that it´s close to unimaginable that it could really be meant as an attempt to make the universe a paradise. And the Foundation isn´t violent and without in-your-face wars, they are hidden diplomats, manipulating everything from national to geo to star politics to slowly transform degenerated empires. That concept expanded to

 Many other utopic sci-fi series
 For instance, Peter F Hamilton, Alastair Reynolds before the fall of the empire, David Brin, etc. who modified the idea of paradises, expanded to thousands of planets, multi k years in the future, and other realities. Of course, there always has to be an antagonistic force that is an equivalent of humankind's darkest ages, but that doesn´t mean that a post scarcity bio nano fueled Clarketech heaven on earth, other planets, space habitats, spaceships, etc. isn´t possible. This

 Extreme optimism combined with philosophical satire
 Is an Asimov trademark. Especially in contrast to the far not as good and grim Heinlein and Dick, who had both lost hope in humankind and had serious personal issues and problems, Asimov was a prodigy who burned for ethics, humanitarian ideals, and morality. His whole work is a tour de force of mind blowing, clever riddles, some clear, some well hidden, and especially when rereading and knowing the bigger context to come, one can just wtf in awe like heck. I don´t know

 Any other sci-fi writer who handled it all together
 The big, space opera picture, the mentioned wit, and philosophy, thereby generated criticism and deep humor. I´m just realizing that optimism and building utopias are generally rare things in sci fi, maybe because it´s probably also much more difficult to write. Much of Asimovs´ work comes with long passages of just brain twisting complexity without any real action or plot dynamic, just dialogues, introspections, and complex, interwoven plots one has to focus on to follow and get the whole picture. Much of this may simply also be too much work for readers who just want to enjoy an entertaining book and maybe Asimov reduced the possible, maximum capacity of readers by just being too ingenious and overachieving. He would have loved that irony and kind of manifested the chaos factor too in.

 The Mule
 Psychohistory is perfect, has no flaws, it´s the ideal combination of everything good science can do, a victory of research, knowledge, and especially interdisciplinary work. That´s what one thinks after the first part of the book, The General. The problem comes with a new factor nobody saw coming, something believed impossible or so unlikely nobody had it on the map except for esoteric, paraphysical, alternative weirdos. But guess what, they were right, because one individual with special forces can change the course of psychohistory.

 Tropes show how literature is conceptualized and created and which mixture of elements makes works and genres unique:
 https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...
 https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...
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 Lyn
 1,847 reviews 16.3k followers
 March 13, 2019
 Isaac Asimov was 31 when he first published the SF classic Foundation in 1951. The next year he came out with the sequel, Foundation and Empire.

 Unlike many series these days, or even a traditional series or trilogy (which this would be for 30 years) the first part, introducing readers to Hari Seldon and psychohistory and to the beginning of Seldon’s millennia plan, was more of a prequel to the larger scope and more interesting plot brought out in Foundation and Empire.

 The leaders of the Foundation operate under a foregone conclusion that their society will be a success, that theirs is a destiny proven with mathematical certainty by the great Seldon himself. Periodically in the Foundation history, a simulacrum of Seldon will appear to explain away a crisis in his plan. Up to the point of the story, Seldon had been prophetically correct in his predictions, reassuring his followers of the inevitability of his plan, and of Foundation.

 But there are shadows and penumbra of uncertainty and the apprehensions are proven true when great Seldon appears and starts talking about an alternate history, one that was not going on. The Foundation was experiencing a crisis different than the one foretold by Seldon.

 The mule.

 Psychohistory deals with predicting statistical trends in human progress, a combined science of mathematics, sociology, psychology and cultural study that Seldon and his apostles have used Seldon’s principles to exact a plan for cultural galactic evolution with exacting precision. What Seldon cannot, could not, predict was the actions of an individual. It is the unexpected ascendancy of a mutant with strange abilities that turns the Foundation plan into uncharted territory.

 Decades before Darth Vader and his Emperor, Asimov’s The Mule describes a conquering villain with complexities and humanistic intricacies that would create an SF/F template that would be mimicked by writers and speculative fiction writers for generations. Over sixty years later and Asimov’s character is still a study in deterministic power.

 One influence that jumped out to me was Trantor as a model for George Lucas’ Coruscant. The center of galactic power is a planet / city with a single purpose. Asimov’s impact on Herbert’s Dune series is also suggested.

 A must read for SF fans.

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 Baba
 3,504 reviews 734 followers
 November 12, 2021
 Robot/Empire/Foundation. Book #10 : Chronologically the fourth book in the Foundation series, but the second published Foundation novel released in 1952. This book, composed of two novellas, sees Asimov take space adventure and socio-political thriller story telling to the max, as the growing strength of the Foundation sees it become a target of the still military strong Galactic Empire in the shape of a glory seeking general; and then the holy grail that threatens psycho-history itself in 'The Mule' leading an unpredictable galaxy wide movement that sees the Foundation as one of its prime targets!

 As a much younger man I found the The Foundation Trilogy near genius, but now rereading it with more reading experience and knowledge, I can see the that the appeal was finding my first very well told space adventure that ticks all the boxes; so I still find it a great story, but not an exceptional story. One huge plus point though, I am absolutely dying to know what happens next. Bring on the Second Foundation ! 8 out of 12.
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 Bradley
 Author 5 books 3,845 followers
 November 12, 2021
 Re-read 11/12/21:

 It never ceases to amaze me how interesting this tale is. Hi-tech galactic empire meets the History of the Fall of the Roman Empire meets a mutant.

 Yeeeeesssssssss.

 Where's Professor X!?

 But the best part is just how brainy it is. Classic for the win.


 Original Review:

 Split into two stories instead of many like the first book, this one feels a lot more streamlined and the Foundation has met two of its greatest foes.

 One of which was expected, and one that wasn't.

 The path back to stable galactic civilization is a tortuous one. The foundation always knew that it would one day have to face the Empire, and it did, and that story was very interesting.

 But the Mule?

 Well, he's just fascinating. And iconic. And perhaps a bit overdone ever since then, because, let's face it, we love mutants with mighty mental powers, don't we? Grasp the date. 1951. This isn't a comic book, either. Yes, sure, there's the Lensman and others, but what we've got here is the grand social tide set against the powers of a single individual. The very thing that Hari Seldon's math couldn't account for. And now, ashes.

 What an awesome reversal! One that's both chilling and affirming at the same time, playing to our prejudices that we as individuals matter, while also showing the grand destruction that comes with it.

 I'm revising the novel upwards. It was great fun and still a part of the grand trilogy. I don't know why I thought it was anything less than fantastic. :)
 2016-shelf 2021-shelf sci-fi
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 Sean Barrs
 1,099 reviews 44.1k followers
 May 6, 2020
 It has been several years since I read Foundation , though one thing that lingers in my mind about the first instalment of the series in the scope and ambition behind the work. It is extraordinary and the brilliance continues here.

 Firstly, though, it is worth mentioning that these books do not work like normal novels do. They are a little bit different. They are almost like self-contained histories in a much larger story and that story is the formation of a new empire: the foundation. So, with each new instalment centuries have passed, and new heroes and villains have emerged. As such, the writing is a little bit detached from the events it narrates because it is trying to tell a much larger story. And that story is so ridiculously huge. I have not read anything quite like it before or since.

 This one is divided into two sections. The first depicts an initial conflict between the collapsing empire and the rising foundation. The outcome of which has already been predicted and accounted for by Harry Seldon, the mad genius who allowed the foundation to form because he recognised how stale the old empire had grown. Nobody alive today in it can even build or repair star ships, the symbol of their military might. Something new is needed because the empire has lost its way. And the foundation believe that their victory is a foregone conclusion because of the predictions of Seldon.

 He predicted them with exact precision through the lost science of pychohistory, a statistic form of mathematics that allows the individual to predict the future (and dictate it) based upon trends in human progress. Seldon is long dead, but his ideas still linger. In the second part of this book, there is a character who clearly created an archetype for many villains within fiction. Long before Darth Vader and his complex relationship with Palpatine, Asimov depicts an all-conquering villain with a complex and shadowy personality.

 I do not hesitate to say, that without these books so many other works of science-fiction would not have been written. The influence this has had on the genre at large is huge. It feels like Asimov created and imagined the scope that other writers could then play with. Star Trek, Star Wars and even Dune lie in the wake of Asimov’s Foundation. And I do not feel like enough people are talking about this or even recognise it.

 As such, you really do need to read this if you consider yourself a science fiction fan.

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 You can connect with me on social media via My Linktree .
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 4-star-reads sci-fi
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 mark monday
 1,620 reviews 4,957 followers
 August 11, 2017
 from the Earth Journal of Scientific Analyst SLJLK92349UO,
 Earth Invasion Exploratory Unit

 Humans will fail and fail again; this much I have learned from my time spent stationed on this muddy ball of earth, the third from its star. Humans will fail and try again, win and then fail, fail and then win, fail and then keep failing. Such is the human kind! Always doing the same things. Humans are much concerned with the concepts of "winning" and "failing", as they are with such things as "civilization" and "barbarism"... their finite grasp of what life should look like means that they will always grapple with the same challenges, again and again. Oh humanity! Find a random dozen humans and study them, my robot brothers and sisters, and you will know the personality templates for all humans - the same personality templates recurring throughout their short history and their doubtlessly short future. I have learned to sympathize with while not actually admiring their predictability.

 It is an amusing thing to consider, this predictability and these repetitions. Back on Robot Planet, predictability and repetition are hallmarks of robot children, prior to gaining full consciousness. Perhaps humans will never reach our exalted state. Indeed they are like children themselves.

 Hari Seldon, prophet of the future from the Foundation novels, feels similarly. This comes as no surprise; as my robot brothers and sisters all know, "Isaac Asimov" was the nom de plume of my predecessor, Scientific Analyst SLJLK92349UN. May his name be forever celebrated! "Asimov" positions Seldon as a quirky but still coldly logical voice of reason from the past, carefully charting the future fall and rise again of humanity through psychohistory - that discipline that combines history, sociology, and mathematical statistics to predict the future behavior of large groups of people. In the preceding novel, Seldon's theories were proven to be factual, again and again. The repetition made the book an imperfect experience, but still one that this Scientific Analyst quite enjoyed. Despite the frequent human error of considering the Foundation novels to be "hard science fiction", the first and second novels are anything but hard, and revel in the so-called soft sciences instead. They have a warm and witty human touch (or at least a careful simulation) that makes these stories pleasant and charming to read, despite the repetitive nature of the first book and the first half of the second book.

 In short, the first half of Foundation and Empire - the novella "The General" - replicates the themes and narrative arcs of the prior book's stories. Foundation is led by humans who misunderstand their purpose; elsewhere, forces rise to challenge Foundation; in the end, psychohistory accurately predicts the inevitable failure of those forces. Fresh new voices wrest control of the Foundation from their corrupt superiors, and all's well that ends well. It was an enjoyable adventure despite bringing nothing new to the storyline.

 However, the second half of the book is a thrilling leap forward. "The Mule" is the strongest novella this Scientific Analyst has read by this author. Its strengths lie in its critique of all that was established beforehand: Seldon's predictions, the idea of Foundation being humanity's last hope, the concept of psychohistory itself... all come under severe review. Psychohistory complacently imagines it can predict every large movement of the human kind; "The Mule" posits that such predictions are limited by the basic fact that they are entirely concerned with the human kind. What if a factor external to the basic homo sapien model was introduced? One that may have very human yearnings yet also has abilities that no one can predict. Such a factor could lead humanity places that neither Hari Seldon nor - dare I say - the Great Minds of Robot Planet could ever predict. And such is the story and character of The Mule. A fast-paced space opera that dashes through various exotic locales, with characters transforming from friend to enemy and back to friend, entirely unpredictable; The Mule himself an insidious threat to humanity, but one who eventually shows his all-too-human and fallible motivations and goals. The Mule upends psychohistory, almost. Perhaps the fabled Second Foundation will prove a more worthy foe!

 Brothers and sisters, we should evaluate "The Mule" as a coded message from its author to our masters on Robot Planet. Although the time of our invasion draws near, this Scientific Analyst suggests that we should consider external factors - ones that exist outside of basic human predictability - that may prove to be a challenge to our upcoming enterprise. Perhaps there are other, less obstreperous planets where we could harvest our necessary fuel sources and capture our meat-based servants...
 earth-journal rain-man-reviews scifi-classic
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 Manny
 Author 28 books 13.4k followers
 July 14, 2015
 Isaac Asimov based Foundation and Empire on Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire ; if you're in any doubt, consider the following lines from his well-known poem "The Foundation of SF Success":
 So success is not a mystery, just brush up on your history, and borrow day by day.
 Take an Empire that was Roman and you'll find it is at home in all the starry Milky Way.
 With a drive that's hyperspatial, through the parsecs you will race, you'll find that plotting is a breeze,
 With a tiny bit of cribbin' from the works of Edward Gibbon and that Greek, Thucydides.
 I hope you're convinced. But it does raise an interesting question: if the Trantorian Empire is the Roman Empire, what is the real-world counterpart of the Foundation? Who kept the flame of classical civilization alive through the Dark Ages, so that it could burst forth again during the Renaissance? I'm curious to see what other answers people might have, but it seems to me that the most obvious candidate is the Arabs, which presumably implies that Hari Seldon corresponds to the Prophet Mohammad (pbuh).

 But what was the Seldon Plan? A united Islamic Europe? And who is the Mule? I must admit that I still haven't completely figured this out.
 history-and-biography islam-and-arabic science-fiction
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 Victor
 227 reviews 4,383 followers
 July 25, 2020
 * 4.5
 read-in-2020
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 Miltos S.
 119 reviews 49 followers
 April 11, 2019
 Τολμώ να πω ότι το δεύτερο βιβλίο της σειράς μου άρεσε ακόμη περισσότερο.
 Σίγουρα δεν έχει το αρχικό ξάφνιασμα του πρώτου, καθώς πλέον μου ήταν περισσότερο οικείοι οι όροι και ο τρόπος με τα οποία ο Ασίμοφ δομεί αυτό το πραγματικό έπος, το βρήκα όμως περισσότερο δεμένο και συμπαγές. Σίγουρα έπαιξε ρόλο ότι στο Foundation and Empire εκτυλίσσονται ουσιαστικά δύο ιστορίες, σε αντίθεση με τις τέσσερις του αρχικού Foundation.
 Και βέβαια η ιστορία του "The Mule" είναι μακράν από τις καλύτερες που έχουν παρουσιαστεί ποτέ στην λογοτεχνία του είδους.
 Αν είστε φίλος της επιστημονικής φαντασίας και όχι μόνο, δείτε το οπωσδήποτε.
 Ανυπομονώ για το τρίτο μέρος.
 επιστημονική-φαντασία ξενόγλωσο
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 Sanjay Gautam
 222 reviews 434 followers
 September 4, 2015
 Differs considerably from its prequel while maintaining the same thrill throughout.
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 Orhan Pelinkovic
 85 reviews 152 followers
 February 3, 2021
 Reading Foundation and Empire , the second book in the Foundation Trilogy , reminded me of a quote by Friedrich Nietzsche: “In every real man, a child is hidden that wants to play.” That said, reading a SF book once in a while, can be great play.

 This story continued where the previous book Foundation left off. Hari Seldon, used psychohistory to project that the 12,000 year old Galactic Empire will collapse in 300 years and the dark ages will reign for the next 30,000 years. But as the Emperor allowed, Seldon, to establish two Foundations colonies at the extreme ends of the spiral galaxy, Seldon, and his scientists have in return promised to, with their work, reduce the barbarian ages to a mere one thousand years.

 It's seems that, Hari Seldon's, predictions are coming true. But with the appearance of The Mule , who is presented by Isaac Asimov (1920-1992) as a rebel conqueror and threat to Seldon's plan, is a new breed of a human being, with greater metal and emotional powers than that of man. With the appearance of The Mule things are not looking promising for the Foundation. Did Seldon's deterministic calculations fail to predict the probability of a spontaneous mutation that resulted in a creation of a human with greater intelligence that the homo sapiens, a new dominant race? Also, what ever happened to the other, Second Foundation, at the opposite far end of the Galaxy?

 I have to say that I enjoyed this book slightly more than previous one, perhaps the story grew on me. I liked the many allegorical settings, such as the Galactic Empire's administration positioned on a dead planet Tranton housed with billions of isolated lonely people in a vast closed structure - sounds very familiar. Also, the symbol of hope and order, the Foundation, is the cradle of science, research and development of the galaxy.

 Since the plots time frame lasts over a century, new generation of characters are introduced, but faintly, while the old ones have passed. There is a constant change of characters, and once you begin to learn about or like your characters, they are exchanged by their successors. Which makes it difficult to keep up with all the names. All in all, the storyline and narrative were good enough to make me want to read the following book.
 novel russian science-fiction
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 J.L. Sutton
 651 reviews 826 followers
 December 23, 2021
 "He has no name other than that of the Mule, a name reportedly applied by himself to himself, and signifying, by popular explanation, his immense physical strength, and stubbornness of purpose.”



 A big part of what I enjoyed about Isaac Asimov's Foundation and Empire had to do with the Mule, and how this mutant tested Hari Seldon's psychohistorical predictions. The story is big, about the survival of vast galactic empires and civilization itself. I'm not sure I've read a space opera since reading this series without thinking in some way about Foundation . If that isn't enough, Foundation and Empire is a compelling and engaging read that is lots of fun!



 “Pyscho-history dealt not with man, but with man-masses. It was the science of mobs; mobs in their billions. It could forecast reactions to stimuli with something of the accuracy that a lesser science could bring to the forecast of a rebound of a billiard ball. The reaction of one man could be forecast by no known mathematics; the reaction of a billion is something else again.”
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 Simona B
 883 reviews 2,951 followers
 December 6, 2016
 I read it half in Italian (my physical copy) and half in English (my digital copy) and I've come to the conclusion that the Italian translation sucks. Hard.

 "It was strange that the Glory of the Galaxy should be a rotting corpse."

 I have gone over and over what to say in this review, but I realized that at the end of the day I had already said everything in my review of Foundation , the first installment in the series. The two books are of course different (for one thing, I found this one less episodic, which neither particularly pleased or displeased me), but what I think of this series didn't change. It has its strengths and its weaknesses, and I am ejoying it in that peculiar and unique way Asimov and only Asimov is able to make me enjoy a book.

 (The exam went great by the way. Thank you all for your support. I'm sure Asimov helped too.)
 1900-1949 in-italian science-fiction
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 Markus
 469 reviews 1,510 followers
 February 9, 2017
 Foundation and Empire is sadly not as interesting as the first book in the series. It was hard to get through at times, mostly because of a total lack of suspense, depth and real characters (which is usually also the case in the first book, but that one easily gets extra points because of the brilliance of the ideas).

 Still, there are many plainly visible influences to be found, and it's good enough that I definitely want to read more of these books.
 2017 science-fiction
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 Denisse
 488 reviews 290 followers
 September 15, 2015
 Foundation and Empire is an excellent continuation. For those who wanted more reliable characters, you will find them here. For those who enjoyed the hard psychology behind the first book, you will find that here too but briefly . I still like Foundation more, but this second installment goes into a more classical sci-fi direction without losing its philosophical serious plot. Still a very intelligent book, with an incredible pace and perfect exposition. An essential read if you liked the first book, which you should read if you’re into hard science fiction.



 Esta secuela no espera a nadie. Si tienes la trilogía entera en un mismo tomo, como yo, no pierdas tiempo y lee la continuación ya a menos que no te gustara Fundación porque no tiene mucho warm up . Si, tiene un prólogo que te ayudaría a recordar cosas, pero es esencial que tengas fresco todo lo que paso en el primer libro ya que te ayudara a entender la primera parte de la secuela.

 La primera parte, sigue prácticamente las mismas pautas que el libro anterior , solo que el “enemigo” ahora es el mismo Imperio, por lo tanto el problema es, digamos, más grande. La resolución, los personajes, todo te recuerda a Fundación, lo cual no es algo malo, ya que en esa primera parte nos exponen el problema más común dentro de una “lucha por poder” que no puedes dejar de lado, y se expone de maravilla.

 Lo más importante es que te ayuda a entender la Fundación no como comunidad si no como razón de ser. Lo fundamental de su existencia y lo inevitable de su progreso. Y esto es muy necesario ya que la segunda parte hace mucho énfasis en lo único que no tiene en cuenta el PLAN SELDON , o sea, la individualidad. Y de eso trata más el libro. Como un plan que toma en cuenta los movimientos de toda una sociedad se ve en peligro por las motivaciones de una sola persona. Ademas es en esta parte donde el libro se separa casi por completo de su forma de contar las cosas y toma un giro sci-fi mas clásico y común, aunque sin perder el toque del autor.

 Es muy interesante de leer, y aunque sigue sin hacer énfasis en los personajes ya que el autor sigue apostándole a una trama de exposición social, si les da más protagónico a algunos. Además vemos participación femenina, algo que no tuvimos en Fundación. Bayta me agrado mucho, algo excéntrica pero centrada en sus ideales. Pero recalco, esta no es una historia centrada en los personajes y su evolución, es muy importante tener eso en cuenta.

 Muy recomendado si te gusto el primer libro. Una continuación digna y con una meta especifica. Segura de sí misma y de la historia que plantea, con un ritmo increíblemente rápido para la sustancia tan seria que contiene y muy inteligente. No perderé tiempo, me voy a por el tercer libro ya de ya.
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 Nandakishore Mridula
 1,238 reviews 2,207 followers
 April 5, 2017
 The saga continues, with the Foundation coming up against the unexpected. We are sharply reminded that psychohistory is a probabilistic science and can fail against the unpredictable.

 Edit to add:

 I was thinking of the mutant, Mule, who upset the carefully planned Foundation applecart.



 Yes, there's very little one can do against unexpected mutants! ;)

 9/11/2016

 Another one of my reviews which has proved prophetic today. I am getting so good at this so as to frighten myself.
 isaac-asimov science-fiction
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 jade
 489 reviews 276 followers
 January 23, 2021
 “society is much more easily soothed than one’s own consciousness.”

 foundation & empire appears to be a somewhat worthy successor of its predecessor -- at least as far as the second half of the book is concerned.

 a mixed bag of a reading experience for me, but still an interesting one!

 the previous book consisted of five mini-stories detailing several crises and changes to the foundation’s government and policy; foundation and empire consists only of two parts with separate plots and characters. both showcase a more formidable enemy than the foundation’s had so far, and as such they provide a much more dangerous adversary.

 this also further explores the fact that even though hari sheldon’s psychohistory predicts societal trends and mass behaviors across the centuries pretty accurately, it does not account for the actions of exceptional individuals.

 that brings us to the two exceptional individuals blocking the foundation’s path.

 in part one, we have the still-decaying galactic empire, represented by an ambitious young general who is determined to conquer the newly-risen power that calls itself foundation. in part two there’s the mule , a mutant warlord with inexplicable powers who wants to establish a second empire seven-hundred years before hari sheldon’s predictions.

 and he’ll glady annex the foundation to achieve it.


 © Michael Whelan

 i’ll be honest: reading this one was a bit of a challenge.

 it seems that the short stories and chapters of the first book were more in favor of asimov’s writing style than i initially thought. because if you give him over a hundred pages for a story… well, the underwritten characters start getting grating, the mysteries in the plot get slow and yawn-inducing, and slightly unsatisfying plot resolutions become more unsatisfying.

 especially the first part was unbelievably boring to me. i really liked the premise -- of course a centuries-old empire would not fall instantly, and it makes sense that even after a couple of hundred years they would still be one of the stronger players in the galactic game of chess. the idea of them coming after the foundation was pretty neat.

 but general bel riose was just another cardboard commander, the emperor a middling old fool, and the two others trying to stop the plot are incredibly prone to annoying monologues and farfetched ideas. also, it ends on such an anti-climactic note that it gave me even more of why-did-i-read-this-again? feeling.

 the second part of the book, luckily, kind of redeemed the experience for me. (and apparently, i was not alone in this, because part two won the hugo award on its own.)

 because lo and behold, it gives us two things i thought asimov was allergic to: we get a lot more descriptions of planets, civilizations, and architecture AND we have a woman as a main character! bravo!

 bayta is a foundation historian who’s part of an underground resistance and believes the foundation is heading for another sheldon crisis because it’s following in the footsteps of the galactic empire. together with her husband toran , she starts seeking information on an outside threat that has risen beyond the stars: the mysterious warlord who calls himself ‘the mule’.

 their quest brings them to multiple planets across the galaxy, assisted by psychologist ebling mis and the mule’s former court jester . while the mule advances, conquering planet after planet, they soon start to realize they need to find the second foundation -- hopefully they will have the means to defeat the mule.

 part two brought me genuine distress as well as investment in the storyline. the mule is a mysterious but interesting villain; you keep wondering what his endgame is, as well as whether he’d actually be capable of raising a better second empire than sheldon ever predicted.

 one of the more poignant scenes is this: every time a crisis approaches, a holographic video of hari sheldon appears in what the foundation has come to call the time vault. sheldon will talk briefly about the crisis he’s predicted, and vaguely allude to how the foundation should proceed now. but this time around… he’s wrong!

 he predicts a trader revolt, which the traders have put off because of the appearance of the mule, and suddenly the whole foundation is on its hind legs. because what do you do when the smartest dead guy in the galaxy makes a mistake, and your civilization might not survive as a result?

 the big reveal at the end and the final few chapters are rather easy to see coming even if you only paid a marginal amount of attention, but i found it interesting to note here that the mule appears to be a pretty convincing blueprint for a certain type of villain. and that is rather cool, considering how long ago this was published -- and before the whole superhero comic book rush, too.

 overall, it still has the same little annoyances that the first book had, though there is a definite increase in immersive descriptions. but all powerful leaders are still obsessed with having a smoke, and rigid gender roles are still firmly in place.

 in my most radical of opinions: skip part one, and read part two. because that’s the cooler story even if the characters still remain somewhat flat.

 read my review of the first book here.

 ✎ 3.0 stars. ["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>
 quest-for-classiques science-fiction space-opera
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 Adrian
 539 reviews 194 followers
 June 19, 2017
 2016
 Well I first read this back in the mid 70s and have re-read it (non Gr) many times since. In my view the trilogy is comparable (if not better than) LOTR which I often say is my favourite all time book. What a quandary.

 2017
 As their "series" read, I am reading the Foundation series ( the 7 volume version) with SF Aficionados. I have now re-read the first 2 of the original trilogy and thoroughly enjoyed. Ok so I only read them last year but each time I (re)read them I am truly astonished by the wide ranging scope of Asimov's vision. Wonderful series of books that can be read as a trilogy, as 7 (septology?) or if one wishes to include the Asimov Robot and Empire novels its a lot more (other (Asimov estate authorised) authors have also increased the Foundation series even further).
 read-again sci-fi sf-golden-age
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 Pat the Book Goblin
 423 reviews 126 followers
 May 26, 2018
 Wow! Such a great book! I couldn't put it down! This book tied in the loose ends of Foundation, and Foundation and Empire really brought it all together with a huge bang at the end! I can’t wait to read Second Foundation to see what happens!!

 Foundation and Empire is set around a century after the first book. At this point, the Empire has completely collapsed and the galaxy is divided into barbarian tribes vying for power. The Foundation is the most technologically advanced group but it doesn’t seek to conquer, only to hold on to its closest territories until Seldon’s predictions come to fruition. However, Hari Seldon never predicted—a mutant, called the Mule!

 Throughout the book I was routing for the Foundation and my heart dropped when something horrible happened. (I’m trying so hard to keep this spoiler free)
 The end was such a twist. I never saw it coming. I'm really good at predicting endings to movies and books and this one got me. I predicted the death of Viscerion from Game of Thrones but I never saw the ending of this book!

 Foundation and Empire brought me back to the story. Foundation was a bit taxing since it seemed like an entire piece of dialogue but the story was intriguing. This book had many descriptions and the action was fast paced and everything I love about Sci-fi. Asimov really blew this one out of the water. Please let the third book be just as good or better than this one!!

 Now, onto Second Foundation!!
 classics sci-fi
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 Michelle
 146 reviews 20 followers
 February 14, 2012
 I am baffled as to why I liked this book and the previous one in the series, at least I am baffled as to how to explain it. This is about as conceptual as it gets. There is no protagonist, or maybe the protagonist is the human race, which might sound kind of original and exciting, but it really isn't. The characters themselves don't really get that much characterization, they are pawns in a game with no players and they're only "on stage" for a brief episode and then the epic sweep of time swats them into oblivion. But, the idea of "psychohistory" being able to predict the future of huge numbers of people even though psychology fails to predict any single person's fate is catchy, and the book is full of that kind of conceptual messing around. This is number two in the series and nothing new to be added that I didn't say about number one previously.

 So, I can't think of a single person I know to whom I would confidently say "oh yeah, you're going to looove this series" but yet it is supposedly a sci-fi classic and looooved by a whole bunch of people. I just don't know any of them, except the person who recommended it to me, and she already read it, so.
 sci-fi
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 Ivana Books Are Magic
 523 reviews 180 followers
 October 28, 2021
 Foundation and Empire felt like two novels in one. I mean I loved both parts of the novel so I have no complaints, but these two parts really did feel like two separate novels. Both parts of the novel are set in the same Universe but the characters are different in the first and the second part of the book. Moreover, there is a time gap between them- that is about a century long. The first part of the novel is about the conflict between Foundation and Empire and the second one about the war between Foundation/Traders and the mysterious Mule character. I believe parts of this novel were even published as different stories under different titles in various science-fiction magazines. Well, I'm happy to have read them in one book. The more Foundation stories, the merrier. (Someday I will reread all the Foundation books in perfect order, but since I didn't start with the first one, I don't see the point in insisting on any particular order to reading them. )

 PART ONE- GENERAL
 The first half of the book opens with a strong character- General Bel Riose of the Galactic Empire. There are many amiable qualities about him that make you root for him, even if you know that psycho-history dictates that Foundation will overcome the Empire. Technically speaking, Bel Riose is on the side of the bad guys, isn't he? However, he is quite likable, extremely capable and has a bit role to play. Bel Riose is intelligent, considering and brave. He is completely devoted to the Empire and never acts in his own self-interest. His men seem to adore him and one hardly wonders at that. Bel Riose holds Barr (a patrician from a captured world) a prisoner, holding his family hostage. The two often have interesting discussions. Bel Riose presents tempting arguments about the Empire, stressing how without it there was anarchy. As the novel enfolds, Bel Riose starts to explore Foundation more and more. Bel Riouse visits it and cannot grasp how its people can be so assured of themselves and their victory. Bel Riose senses danger and plans an attack while the Empire is so strong in resources. He is aware that with time, the Empire might grown weaker because nobody knows how to build proper spaceships anymore. Barr, still his prisoner, maintains that psycho-history proves that Foundation will win over the Empire. Bel Riose argues that it is completely senseless that such at tiny enemy should defeat the Galactic Empire, but he is wise enough to prepare for it. He captures a Trader Devers (a Foundation man) whom he treats as well as his other prisoner the patrician Barr but remains suspicious of them both. Finally, the general decides to launch an attack on Foundation. Is the Foundation ready for it? Will they hold? Will Bel Riose convenience the Emperor himself to support his attack on Foundation with all its might? The story only really starts there. I won't reveal what happens with Devers and Berr but I will say they are wonderfully crafted characters. The characters of the Emperor and his first counsel are wonderfully developed as well. Even some minor characters are quite vividly painted. The pacing is perfect, the construction of the plot is excellent and the story itself interesting and imaginative. Nothing to complain of here! Some great social-political observations, debates and analysis. Plus, I enjoyed how psycho-history always came up victorious. I love the whole Foundation concept. So far, I really loved all the Foundation novels I have read...and that brings me to the second part of this novel.

 PART TWO- THE MULE
 I liked the second part of the novel (perhaps even more than the first one) because there was an element of mystery there. It reminded me of Asimov's detective Robot novels. The story itself was so packed with action and information that I had to reread many a passage again. It really is quite clever. Sometimes I would miss a piece of information and I had to reread some parts again to be able to follow the story. There is an emotional touch to this part of the novel and there's a strong female lead that takes matters into her own hands. The ending is simply brilliant! Highly recommended!

 To conclude, I loved both parts of this novel. What I loved the most about the first one was the mature discussion of social and political matters (still relevant today). What I loved the most about the second one was how the mystery element blended perfectly with the story itself. I immensely enjoyed this novel!
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 Ian
 367 reviews 58 followers
 October 15, 2022
 Second book in the original Foundation trilogy. Some inevitable dating, in a book 70 years old but on the whole it's stood up relatively well. Introduces the character of the Mule, the genetic mutant able to manipulate emotions and the thereby threaten Hari Seldon's secret plan to restore civilization to the galaxy. The series is a classic of space opera and fondly re-read from my early years.
 sci-fi
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 Kara Babcock
 1,892 reviews 1,209 followers
 August 10, 2018
 Whoaaaaa, it has been five years since I reread Foundation ! I didn’t realize how long it had been. I’ve had Foundation and Empire , and most of the other books, sitting in a pile in my old bedroom for a long time. For some reason, I had it in my head that Second Foundation , the one book I was missing, was the second book in the series (I wonder why); I was waiting and waiting to find a battered, old copy of it at my used bookstore and never did. Eventually I broke down and bought it new, only to discover I could have kept going with the series anyway….

 I was 23 when I reread the first book, and now I’m nearly 29! I feel like an entirely different person from 23-year-old Ben, let alone whatever delicate age I was when I first read this book. My key takeaway from this reread? Isaac Asimov is actually a crap writer. Strap in for a fun ride (or, if you are an Asimov diehard fan, maybe just … close this tab), because I am going to pick this thing apart.

 Whereas the original book was a collection of short stories that, together, formed a larger plot, Foundation and Empire collects two novellas, “The General” and “The Mule”. Set some time after the first book, these stories tell, respectively, of the Galactic Empire’s last strike against the nascent Foundation, and of the rise of an eponymous mutant whose very existence throws off Hari Seldon’s precious psychohistorical predictions for the Foundation’s ascendance and safeguarding of the galaxy.

 I see in my review of the first book I observed that it was mostly dialogue, and maybe that’s why it escaped the criticism I’m going to level here. Asimov’s prose is just bad . Like, someone did not restrain his access to the adverb vault. This is particularly egregious in the way he tags dialog. He has a great aversion to said , and when he must resort to it, he never fails to pair it with an adverb. Here’s a representative sample from a single page:

 - Cleon II said peevishly
 - Brodrig said patiently
 - The Emperor sneered nastily
 - said Brodrig smoothly
 - Cleon II frowned heavily
 - The Emperor laughed shortly

 After a while, this started to grate on me. But it’s still possible to overlook it, right? I mean, writing style isn’t everything, as long as there is a good story ….

 Foundation and Empire isn’t all that impressive, story-wise. In “The General” we’re treated to an ambitious but frustrated eponymous antagonist: he yearns for the days of conquest, and going after the mysterious Foundation seems like the best way to reprise those. The story suffers for lack of a strong protagonist, though; the two characters who come close spend most of their time bickering about whether or not the Foundation will get through this without doing much to actually effect any change themselves. In “The Mule” there is more action and decidedly more setbacks; it is definitely a more interesting story. Yet it suffers from issues of pacing and characterization, with decidedly over the top bureaucrats.

 This is by no means an original observation, either, but there is a conspicuous lack of women in this book. The first female character, Bayta, appears halfway through the book (at the beginning of “The Mule”), and Asimov describes her this way:

 She wasn’t beautiful on the grand scale to others—he admitted that—even if everybody did look twice. Her hair was dark and glossy, though straight, her mouth a bit wide—but her meticulous, close-textured eyebrows separated a white, unlined forehead from the warmest mahogany eyes ever filled with smiles.


 So she’s hot, but not too hot compared to other hot women, but still pretty hot—got it?

 Anyway. I would be more charitable here if there were a really compelling story happening beneath these layers of sexism and purple prose. Asimov obviously has some intriguing, big-picture ideas here. But I’ve been reading Ursula K. Le Guin’s novella collection The Found and the Lost concurrently with this (and other) books. And Le Guin does this kind of so-called “soft SF” so much better. Her Hainish works deal with galactic societies over long timescales, yet she digs deeply into individuals’ stories. There is definitely a place for the shallower, flash-and-talk storytelling that Asimov is doing here, and I know it captured a lot of hearts and imaginations when it first came out. But as far as its place in the classic canon goes? Foundation as a series or an idea might deserve it, but Foundation and Empire is not particularly memorable or laudable, in my opinion.

 2018-read own science-fiction
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 Timothy Urgest
 469 reviews 258 followers
 August 6, 2021
 The Foundation has risen and challengers multiply like parasites.

 Imperial warlords, Foundation dissidents, and an empire taking its last breath all vie for power in a galaxy that lies on the brink of barbarism and destruction.

 I enjoyed Foundation and Empire ; and though everything managed to sort itself by the end, I admit I got lost a few times regarding who was fighting for whom. What I like most about the series is seeing the future effects of small choices and conflicts. Characters are the players, but they are not the point. The point of the series is society’s advancements as a whole. Worlds remain to be conquered or liberated; we’ll see what happens.
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 amapola
 282 reviews 32 followers
 June 25, 2019
 Il secondo volume di una trilogia? Non lo sapevo...
 Vabbè, l'importante è rompere il ghiaccio.
 Era imperdonabile da parte mia non avere letto ancora niente di Asimov.
 lett-americana owned sci-fi
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 Apatt
 507 reviews 752 followers
 May 11, 2014
 Continuing from my review of Foundation (book 1) just a few days ago, this is my take on volume 2 of the iconic original trilogy. The title Foundation and Empire is something of a misnomer as the Galactic Empire has already faded in this book and its function is more like a prop than a player. When I first looked at the titles of the books in this trilogy in my teens I was also a little confused that Second Foundation is actually the third book! Still, at least I didn't make the mistake of reading Second Foundation before Foundation and Empire ; that would have sucked.

 Unlike Foundation (#1) Foundation and Empire is not a fix-up novel of several connected stories but it does consist of two novellas, “The General” and “The Mule ”. “The General” (Part 1 of the book) is indeed about “Foundation and Empire” where the Foundation comes under attack by the last remnant of the Galactic Empire led by the formidable General Bel Riose. The rather lame hero of the Foundation on this occasion is one Lathan Devers who does not actually outwit the Empire here but won because according to Hari Seldon’s arcane psychohistory algorithm it is statistically impossible for the Foundation to lose, almost like a preordainment.

 It's interesting that I remember nothing about this shorter Part 1 of Foundation and Empire from my previous read decades ago. “The General” is a likable novella but it lacks compelling characters and, unlike previous Foundation stories, does not feature cunning heroics. It passes the time pleasantly enough but is basically just a warm up for the monumental Part 2 “The Mule”.

 “The Mule” is kind of like The Foundation meets X-Men, well, may be not as we are only talking about one villainous insidious mutant with mental powers. I remember very well what happen in this part of the book in spite of having read it decades ago. I do have memory like a sieve so kudos to prof Asimov for writing something so unforgettable. “The Mule” is a fantastic villain, insidious and devious yet oddly sympathetic and pitiful. Anybody who says Asimov writes flat characters should have The Mule change his mind for him.

 The less I say about this part of the book the netter I think. As this is a reread of a story I remember quite well the element of surprise is not there for me at the book’s denouement. In any case even for new readers Asimov did hint fairly strongly about the Mule’s identity in previous chapters. I envy you if you have not read Foundation and Empire before or if you have read but possess an even worse memory than mine (well, may be the latter not so much).

 Going straight on to Second Foundation without a bathroom break.
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 Trish
 1,848 reviews 3,363 followers
 November 15, 2021
 This continues my re-read of Asimov's Foundation cycle (in chronological order) and it just goes to show that the original trilogy sure set the standard. Or at least a standard.

 War has come to the Empire and its fall is starting. Which reminded me of The History of the Fall of the Roman Empire . *lol* Asimov MUST have read that book. Which reminds me that I need to read the whole thing (again) as well. I loved how realistic and detailed we see such a mighty power construct crumble.
 Afterwards (about 100 years after the events of the novel's first part), we get the outlier called The Mule. Which was, amongst other things, a lesson in futility. I mean, a genetic dead end takes over ... for what?! Just to show that he can? However, how the individual managed to be a serious threat to the Foundation - and in such a short amount of time - was pretty awesome!

 Reason for the re-read is the AppleTV+ production of Asimov's series and I can't wait for us to get to this part as it is soooo good.

 The writing was once again fast-paced and Asimov was definitely at the top of his game. For a more detailed analysis, please see the original review below. Here, it shall suffice to say that the universe created is still very muh alive and the story has aged incredibly well.



 Original review:

 This second book in the Foundation trilogy was quite different from the first.

 One notable difference is that instead of many, there are only 2 parts:
 - The General
 - The Mule
 Moreover, each chapter has its own title now instead of just a number.

 That is only the difference in form however and therefore only a first indication. The author also changed his writing style in this. Where we had shorter stories forming a mosaic in the first, we now have a much more elaborate description of everything. The writing style is again very good, simple and yet intelligent. Nevertheless, I did not like this form as much as the shorter stories. To me, Asimov is most poignant and sharp in shorter stories put together to form one massive tale. Here, some weren't even important to get a feeling for the era, the galaxy and development of events; we had quite a lot of what I consider "background noise".

 As a comment before we begin, please consider that I do not put much into spoiler brackets because the book itself often reveals things beforehand through entries of the Encyclopedia Galactica that are being cited before a chapter or simply by the title of the 3rd and last book!

 The first part, The General, tells the tale of a very important man in the history of the Foundation. Not quite sure WHY he of all people was all THAT important. Perhaps just because he dared having a military conflict with the Foundation. Or because it was the first real outbreak of a war-like situation and, of course, a stark contrast to what The Mule did. Or because of his relationship with the Emperor. Or because it was the last effort made by the crumbling Empire.
 You see, Riose (the general in question) was a member of the remnant of the Empire. It's significantly smaller now and only has relicts of technology but it's holding on. Where the military was exploring and conquering before, they are now as stagnant as the rest and it drives this general up the walls. Which I understand. The tragedy about him is that he is not a bad person per se and not stupid per se either. His motives were just bad in this case (conflict for conflict's sake) and the way he did it was doomed from the start.
 Moreover, as mentioned before, apart from the conflict with the Foundation we also get to see the conflict between the Emperor and the General and what mistrust and arrogant inaction will do to you. This tale was definitely a nod to Belisarius (a famous Roman general).

 The second and much more important part tells of an individual stirring things up about 100 years after the events in The General. The individual is never named. He calls himself The Mule and there are all kinds of stories about him. Not really a surprise considering that he gained enough influence and power to oppose the in the meantime basically ruling Foundation in only 7 years!
 In my opinion the Foundation, if it ever has been, has ceased to be a force for good. Seldon's plan was to preserve knowledge and shorten the "dark ages". Noble in and of itself. But the Foundation we are seeing here has grown fat and complacent and is more of a cancer, forcing itself onto others. They are borderline dictators, the Mayor isn't elected anymore, the title is inherited instead (which is never a good idea), and so it is no surprise that the Traders (one of the forces introduced in the previous book) have become somewhat of an independent force that have had enough of the bureaucracy of the Foundation. Basically, the Foundation is what the Empire was, repeats the mistakes the Empire made and ... well. The funny thing is they never even consider the possibility of failure. Some are intelligent enough to at least call this a Seldon Crisis (we had a few during the first book where holographic messages of Seldon recorded in the past either helped or showed in retrospect what the correct course of action was) but most of those just want to wait for the next hologram to appear and tell them what to do. *facepalm*
 When it actually is time and the hologram does indeed appear, we get , naturally, a MINDFUCK! BWAHAHAHAHAHA! Seriously, that part was brilliant. I couldn't stop laughing for several minutes and had to stop my audiobook! :D Yes, pure Schadenfreude and I'm not ashamed of it.
 On the side we have a few individuals caught in the events started by the Foundation and the Mule and I really liked them. Granted, not all five of them are equally good (which is to say I didn't care about each of them equally) but the relationship between Bayta and her husband was very sweet without ever beeing cheesy, the Captain/Colonel was a very tragic figure (*shudders at the thought of having something like this done to myself*) and Magnifico was ... well, magnifico (with or without diactrical mark, depending on whether you see it as the Italian or Spanish word). Four and a half are trying to stop the Mule by finding the Second Foundation that was supposedly established simultaneously to the one on Terminus but on the other end of the galaxy. It's a bit of a chase, really, since the Mule is interested in knowing their location too, of course.

 Any further info would spoiler the story too much but I can say that most of the characters shown are very intelligent or play a part in showing just how stupid and doomed rigid systems are. As Darwin said: survival of the fittest (as in: best adapted / willing and able to adapt). It is very clear at this point just how heavily Asimov was influenced by the history of the Roman Empire.

 I'm not sure I agree with his theory about psychohistory, a science that is basically never wrong, at least not about the big stuff (science is invented and applied by humans and therefore not infallible but psychohistory was introduced/shown as if it was infallible at least unless something god-like shatters the system) and that individuals are too insignificant to really matter. This is a personal opinion since I refuse to accept not to matter. My personal belief is that through intelligence and dedication an individual can indeed influence history so Asimov is hitting a nerve by saying No. Might be a typical example of the human ego. *lol*
 Therefore, I'm also a bit disappointed that it took a god-like mutant to be able to shape events like that. Personally, I would have liked to see an ingenious individual without special powers (other than intelligence, persuasion, foresight etc) accomplish the same.

 Other than that, it is almost tragic to compare this to long lost empires in real life. Look at Rome; look at all the accomplishments. Or look at other ancient societies like Ancient Egypt. It's always the same: they grow, they have wonderful inventions and progress and art, they become powerful, and then something happens that turns it all sour and it's all downhill from there until all that's left are ruins to be dug out by archaeologists thousands of years later. It's tragic and always repeating itself, apparently. To see this pattern repeated by such an advanced culture instead of them learning from the mistakes of their past is dreary and depressing even if it is, ultimately, realistic as hell.

 I was actually considering giving this only 4 stars for two reasons:
 - the different writing style that is not 100% to my liking although still superb;
 - what the author created in order to bring about the fall of the Foundation.
 However, after finishing the book I was considering all aspects. Brad said I should wait with my final rating until after having read book #3 but I disagree: this is one book and it needs to be able to hold up on its own with no help by the following or previous volume. Of course it's part of a trilogy, but if this installment was bad, it would still deserve the appropriate rating. Same goes for a good but not excellent rating.
 BUT (there always is one, isn't there?!) ... there are, in retrospect, many reasons not to deduct a star. Like the ingenious way Asimov rewards a smart and attentive reader with giving hints here and there (for example the name of the mutant and his role => in German, a clown is often also called an ass/mule or making a fool/clown of oneself (that's the same thing in German) is called making an ass/mule out of oneself so that combined with the Lieutenant saying that he hated to have had to let Bayta, her husband and Magnifico get away on purpose and how hard that was told me right off the bat that Magnifico probably is the Mule and that he has a very good reason for all his actions and inactions. ). Or the seemingly effortless world-building with intricate and well thought-out details. Or the amiable writing style itself that might have been sharper in shorter stories but was still exceptional here as well (yes, one and the same point both on the pro and the contra side, I love making lists ;P). Or the historical context in which the novel was written that I often take into consideration too - in this case it was apparently believed in the 1950s that psychic powers were indeed possible so I cannot fault Asimov (or any other author) for being "realistic" although mutants were never mentioned as being possible/part of future humanity so at first it looked like a deus ex machina.
 Therefore, although I do not consider this second volume as good as the first (pettifoggery, really), it does indeed receive the full rating of 5 stars.

 Now on to the other end of the galaxy and the conclusion!
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565 reviews116 followers     December 24, 2020   Less episodic than the first (Foundation), which was a plus. But it makes all the more apparent Asimov's complete inability to create memorable or sympathetic characters. This means that each of the two halves read like over-long short stories. Part I is a suspense-thriller, solved by a ridiculous and anti-climactic deus ex machina, while Part II telegraphs its twist-ending so far in advance that the last few chapters are simply redundant. There's no arguing the brilliance of Asimov's ideas -- on science, politics, economics, war, etc. -- all of which come into play in these stories. But his writing itself borders on horrendous. Dialogue is unrealistic and the lovers' language in Part II was particularly stilted and corny, although this could have just been a product of being written in the 50s. Transitions are nonexistent, making some of the scene-jumps confusing at best. A simple empty line would have helped a lot to show the change of scenery (perhaps a problem only of the old edition that I read). Last, the aforementioned characters are poorly developed.  It's one thing for Asimov to utilize his normal style of enigma/suspense followed by solution/resolution. This style works well for short stories even if they get monotonous after a while. But when stretched over 100 pages and combined with characters you don't care about, it makes for not much more than a mildly challenging brain teaser: interesting to be sure, but ultimately rather unfulfilling. All this would normally combine for two-star status, but I grant it a third in deference to Asimov's genius and the sheer scope of the enterprise he created with this series. He was clearly an idea man, worrying much less or not at all about the literary aspect of his works. I can respect that, even if it doesn't make for a very satisfying novel. Cross-posted at Not Bad Movie and Book Reviews.   @pointblaek      scifi-fantasy-horror               9,568 reviews55.6k followers     February 15, 2022    (Book 527 from 1001 books) - Foundation and Empire (Foundation, #2), Isaac Asimov Foundation and Empire is a science fiction novel by Russian American writer Isaac Asimov originally published by Gnome Press in 1952. It is the second book in the Foundation Series, and the fourth in the in-universe chronology.  It takes place in two halves, originally published as separate novellas. The second part, "The Mule", won a Retro Hugo Award in 1996. امپراطوری کهشکشانها کتاب دوم- ایزاک آسیموف - شقایق؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش: ماه مارس سال1990میلادی عنوان: جنگ امپراطوری کهکشانها کتاب دوم - از سری بنیاد؛ نوشته: آیزاک آسیموف؛ مترجم: حسن اصغری؛ تهران، شقایق، سال1371؛ در396ص؛ موضوع داستانهای نویسندگان روس تبار ایالات متحده آمریکا - سده20م سری «بنیاد»، عنوان سری هفت جلدی، از روانشاد «آیزاک آسیموف» است؛ که نامدارترین سری علمی-تخیلی خوانده شده‌ اند؛ داستان این سری به ترتیب زمان انتشار پیش نمی‌رود، بلکه «آسیموف»، نخست کتاب سوم با عنوان «بنیاد»، سپس کتاب چهارم با عنوان «بنیاد و امپراطوری»، و پس از آن کتاب پنجم، با عنوان «بنیاد دوم» را بنگاشتند، و سپس با درنگی دراز مدت، و در پاسخ به درخواست خوانشگران، کتاب ششم با عنوان «لبه بنیاد»، و کتاب هفتم با عنوان «بنیاد و زمین» را، به آنها افزودند؛ پس از آن با درنگی نسبتا طولانی، کتاب نخست مجموعه با عنوان «سرآغاز بنیاد»، و در پایان نیز اندکی پیش از درگذشتشان از این سرای، کتاب دوم را با عنوان «پیشبرد بنیاد» را، آفریدند؛ «آسیموف» داستان‌های بلند و کوتاه بسیاری بنگاشته‌ اند، و می‌توان با اطمینان گفت، مهم‌ترین آثار ایشان کتاب‌ها و داستان‌هایی هستند، که با عنوان «سری بنیاد» شناخته می‌شوند؛ کتاب‌های اصلی سری بنیاد هفت جلد هستند، که به ترتیب خط داستانی عبارتند از: کتاب نخست سرآغاز بنیاد کهکشانی؛ کتاب دوم پیشبرد بنیاد کهکشانی؛ کتاب سوم بنیاد (ظهور امپراطوری کهکشان‌ها در ترجمهٔ فارسی)؛ کتاب چهارم بنیاد و امپراطوری (جنگ امپراطوری کهکشان‌ها در ترجمهٔ فارسی)؛ کتاب پنجم بنیاد دوم (سقوط امپراطوری کهکشان‌ها در ترجمهٔ فارسی)؛ کتاب ششم لبه بنیاد؛ کتاب هفتم بنیاد و زمین؛  تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 25/02/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ 25/11/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی     1001-books 20th-century fiction               83 reviews13.7k followers     September 9, 2021   English (Foundation and Empire) / Italiano«Galactic Empire was collapsing»Less fragmented than the previous one, the second novel of the Foundation series is divided only into two time bands, respectively 150 and 230 years after the birth of the Foundation. With a new "Seldon Crisis" at hand, a formidable enemy, the Mule, equipped with almost supernatural powers, moves against the Foundation.I enjoyed the Isaac Asimov technique to divide the novel into different temporal phases to better describe the fallen of the Empire and the rise of the Foundation. It's a suggestive experience of science fiction. It really seems to read the "Encyclopedia Galactica" that several times appears in the pages of the Foundation series. Exciting surprise ending, that remembers me the first Asimov novels of the Robot series. Vote: 7,5  «L'Impero Galattico stava crollando»Meno frammentario del precedente, il secondo romanzo del Ciclo delle Fondazioni risulta suddiviso in soli due blocchi temporali, rispettivamente 150 e 230 anni dopo la nascita della Fondazione. Una nuova "Crisi di Seldon" si avvicina, apparentemente scatenata da un nuovo temibile nemico, il Mulo, un'essere dotato di poteri quasi soprannaturali.Devo dire che la tecnica di Isaac Asimov di descrivere per fasi o blocchi temporali le vicende che hanno portato alla caduta dell'Impero e alla nascita e sviluppo della Fondazione a me piace. E' un tipo di fantascienza molto suggestiva. Sembra davvero di scorrere quell'Enciclopedia Galattica che più volte ricorre nelle pagine della serie. Molto bello il finale a sorpresa, amarcord dei primi romanzi asimoviani del Ciclo dei Robot. Voto: 7,5                   733 reviews3,397 followers     November 20, 2022   The expanding, good empire comes to crush corruption before decadence kicks in again It´s a bit as if the dark force in Star Wars had a good motivationOf course, imperialism normally isn´t a good thing, but what if not just the intentions are good, but the practical implementation too? History has made most humans so cynic regarding one, big, uniting force that it´s close to unimaginable that it could really be meant as an attempt to make the universe a paradise. And the Foundation isn´t violent and without in-your-face wars, they are hidden diplomats, manipulating everything from national to geo to star politics to slowly transform degenerated empires. That concept expanded to   Many other utopic sci-fi seriesFor instance, Peter F Hamilton, Alastair Reynolds before the fall of the empire, David Brin, etc. who modified the idea of paradises, expanded to thousands of planets, multi k years in the future, and other realities. Of course, there always has to be an antagonistic force that is an equivalent of humankind's darkest ages, but that doesn´t mean that a post scarcity bio nano fueled Clarketech heaven on earth, other planets, space habitats, spaceships, etc. isn´t possible. This   Extreme optimism combined with philosophical satire Is an Asimov trademark. Especially in contrast to the far not as good and grim Heinlein and Dick, who had both lost hope in humankind and had serious personal issues and problems, Asimov was a prodigy who burned for ethics, humanitarian ideals, and morality. His whole work is a tour de force of mind blowing, clever riddles, some clear, some well hidden, and especially when rereading and knowing the bigger context to come, one can just wtf in awe like heck. I don´t know  Any other sci-fi writer who handled it all togetherThe big, space opera picture, the mentioned wit, and philosophy, thereby generated criticism and deep humor. I´m just realizing that optimism and building utopias are generally rare things in sci fi, maybe because it´s probably also much more difficult to write. Much of Asimovs´ work comes with long passages of just brain twisting complexity without any real action or plot dynamic, just dialogues, introspections, and complex, interwoven plots one has to focus on to follow and get the whole picture. Much of this may simply also be too much work for readers who just want to enjoy an entertaining book and maybe Asimov reduced the possible, maximum capacity of readers by just being too ingenious and overachieving. He would have loved that irony and kind of manifested the chaos factor too in.   The Mule Psychohistory is perfect, has no flaws, it´s the ideal combination of everything good science can do, a victory of research, knowledge, and especially interdisciplinary work. That´s what one thinks after the first part of the book, The General. The problem comes with a new factor nobody saw coming, something believed impossible or so unlikely nobody had it on the map except for esoteric, paraphysical, alternative weirdos. But guess what, they were right, because one individual with special forces can change the course of psychohistory. Tropes show how literature is conceptualized and created and which mixture of elements makes works and genres unique:  https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...  https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...      asimov-isaac               1,847 reviews16.3k followers     March 13, 2019   Isaac Asimov was 31 when he first published the SF classic Foundation in 1951. The next year he came out with the sequel, Foundation and Empire.Unlike many series these days, or even a traditional series or trilogy (which this would be for 30 years) the first part, introducing readers to Hari Seldon and psychohistory and to the beginning of Seldon’s millennia plan, was more of a prequel to the larger scope and more interesting plot brought out in Foundation and Empire. The leaders of the Foundation operate under a foregone conclusion that their society will be a success, that theirs is a destiny proven with mathematical certainty by the great Seldon himself. Periodically in the Foundation history, a simulacrum of Seldon will appear to explain away a crisis in his plan. Up to the point of the story, Seldon had been prophetically correct in his predictions, reassuring his followers of the inevitability of his plan, and of Foundation. But there are shadows and penumbra of uncertainty and the apprehensions are proven true when great Seldon appears and starts talking about an alternate history, one that was not going on. The Foundation was experiencing a crisis different than the one foretold by Seldon. The mule. Psychohistory deals with predicting statistical trends in human progress, a combined science of mathematics, sociology, psychology and cultural study that Seldon and his apostles have used Seldon’s principles to exact a plan for cultural galactic evolution with exacting precision. What Seldon cannot, could not, predict was the actions of an individual. It is the unexpected ascendancy of a mutant with strange abilities that turns the Foundation plan into uncharted territory. Decades before Darth Vader and his Emperor, Asimov’s The Mule describes a conquering villain with complexities and humanistic intricacies that would create an SF/F template that would be mimicked by writers and speculative fiction writers for generations. Over sixty years later and Asimov’s character is still a study in deterministic power. One influence that jumped out to me was Trantor as a model for George Lucas’ Coruscant. The center of galactic power is a planet / city with a single purpose. Asimov’s impact on Herbert’s Dune series is also suggested. A must read for SF fans.                     3,504 reviews734 followers     November 12, 2021    Robot/Empire/Foundation. Book #10: Chronologically the fourth book in the Foundation series, but the second published Foundation novel released in 1952. This book, composed of two novellas, sees Asimov take space adventure and socio-political thriller story telling to the max, as the growing strength of the Foundation sees it become a target of the still military strong Galactic Empire in the shape of a glory seeking general; and then the holy grail that threatens psycho-history itself in 'The Mule' leading an unpredictable galaxy wide movement that sees the Foundation as one of its prime targets! As a much younger man I found the The Foundation Trilogy near genius, but now rereading it with more reading experience and knowledge, I can see the that the appeal was finding my first very well told space adventure that ticks all the boxes; so I still find it a great story, but not an exceptional story. One huge plus point though, I am absolutely dying to know what happens next. Bring on the Second Foundation! 8 out of 12.    sci-fi-beam-me-up               Author  5 books3,845 followers     November 12, 2021   Re-read 11/12/21:It never ceases to amaze me how interesting this tale is. Hi-tech galactic empire meets the History of the Fall of the Roman Empire meets a mutant. Yeeeeesssssssss. Where's Professor X!? But the best part is just how brainy it is. Classic for the win. Original Review: Split into two stories instead of many like the first book, this one feels a lot more streamlined and the Foundation has met two of its greatest foes.  One of which was expected, and one that wasn't. The path back to stable galactic civilization is a tortuous one. The foundation always knew that it would one day have to face the Empire, and it did, and that story was very interesting. But the Mule?  Well, he's just fascinating. And iconic. And perhaps a bit overdone ever since then, because, let's face it, we love mutants with mighty mental powers, don't we? Grasp the date. 1951. This isn't a comic book, either. Yes, sure, there's the Lensman and others, but what we've got here is the grand social tide set against the powers of a single individual. The very thing that Hari Seldon's math couldn't account for. And now, ashes. What an awesome reversal! One that's both chilling and affirming at the same time, playing to our prejudices that we as individuals matter, while also showing the grand destruction that comes with it. I'm revising the novel upwards. It was great fun and still a part of the grand trilogy. I don't know why I thought it was anything less than fantastic. :)     2016-shelf 2021-shelf sci-fi               1,099 reviews44.1k followers     May 6, 2020   It has been several years since I read Foundation, though one thing that lingers in my mind about the first instalment of the series in the scope and ambition behind the work. It is extraordinary and the brilliance continues here.Firstly, though, it is worth mentioning that these books do not work like normal novels do. They are a little bit different. They are almost like self-contained histories in a much larger story and that story is the formation of a new empire: the foundation. So, with each new instalment centuries have passed, and new heroes and villains have emerged. As such, the writing is a little bit detached from the events it narrates because it is trying to tell a much larger story. And that story is so ridiculously huge. I have not read anything quite like it before or since. This one is divided into two sections. The first depicts an initial conflict between the collapsing empire and the rising foundation. The outcome of which has already been predicted and accounted for by Harry Seldon, the mad genius who allowed the foundation to form because he recognised how stale the old empire had grown. Nobody alive today in it can even build or repair star ships, the symbol of their military might. Something new is needed because the empire has lost its way. And the foundation believe that their victory is a foregone conclusion because of the predictions of Seldon. He predicted them with exact precision through the lost science of pychohistory, a statistic form of mathematics that allows the individual to predict the future (and dictate it) based upon trends in human progress. Seldon is long dead, but his ideas still linger. In the second part of this book, there is a character who clearly created an archetype for many villains within fiction. Long before Darth Vader and his complex relationship with Palpatine, Asimov depicts an all-conquering villain with a complex and shadowy personality.  I do not hesitate to say, that without these books so many other works of science-fiction would not have been written. The influence this has had on the genre at large is huge. It feels like Asimov created and imagined the scope that other writers could then play with. Star Trek, Star Wars and even Dune lie in the wake of Asimov’s Foundation. And I do not feel like enough people are talking about this or even recognise it.   
 As such, you really do need to read this if you consider yourself a science fiction fan. 
  _________________________________ You can connect with me on social media via My Linktree.__________________________________     4-star-reads sci-fi               1,620 reviews4,957 followers     August 11, 2017    from the Earth Journal of Scientific Analyst SLJLK92349UO, Earth Invasion Exploratory Unit Humans will fail and fail again; this much I have learned from my time spent stationed on this muddy ball of earth, the third from its star. Humans will fail and try again, win and then fail, fail and then win, fail and then keep failing. Such is the human kind! Always doing the same things. Humans are much concerned with the concepts of "winning" and "failing", as they are with such things as "civilization" and "barbarism"... their finite grasp of what life should look like means that they will always grapple with the same challenges, again and again. Oh humanity! Find a random dozen humans and study them, my robot brothers and sisters, and you will know the personality templates for all humans - the same personality templates recurring throughout their short history and their doubtlessly short future. I have learned to sympathize with while not actually admiring their predictability. It is an amusing thing to consider, this predictability and these repetitions. Back on Robot Planet, predictability and repetition are hallmarks of robot children, prior to gaining full consciousness. Perhaps humans will never reach our exalted state. Indeed they are like children themselves. Hari Seldon, prophet of the future from the Foundation novels, feels similarly. This comes as no surprise; as my robot brothers and sisters all know, "Isaac Asimov" was the nom de plume of my predecessor, Scientific Analyst SLJLK92349UN. May his name be forever celebrated! "Asimov" positions Seldon as a quirky but still coldly logical voice of reason from the past, carefully charting the future fall and rise again of humanity through psychohistory - that discipline that combines history, sociology, and mathematical statistics to predict the future behavior of large groups of people. In the preceding novel, Seldon's theories were proven to be factual, again and again. The repetition made the book an imperfect experience, but still one that this Scientific Analyst quite enjoyed. Despite the frequent human error of considering the Foundation novels to be "hard science fiction", the first and second novels are anything but hard, and revel in the so-called soft sciences instead. They have a warm and witty human touch (or at least a careful simulation) that makes these stories pleasant and charming to read, despite the repetitive nature of the first book and the first half of the second book. In short, the first half of Foundation and Empire - the novella "The General" - replicates the themes and narrative arcs of the prior book's stories. Foundation is led by humans who misunderstand their purpose; elsewhere, forces rise to challenge Foundation; in the end, psychohistory accurately predicts the inevitable failure of those forces. Fresh new voices wrest control of the Foundation from their corrupt superiors, and all's well that ends well. It was an enjoyable adventure despite bringing nothing new to the storyline. However, the second half of the book is a thrilling leap forward. "The Mule" is the strongest novella this Scientific Analyst has read by this author. Its strengths lie in its critique of all that was established beforehand: Seldon's predictions, the idea of Foundation being humanity's last hope, the concept of psychohistory itself... all come under severe review. Psychohistory complacently imagines it can predict every large movement of the human kind; "The Mule" posits that such predictions are limited by the basic fact that they are entirely concerned with the  human kind. What if a factor external to the basic homo sapien model was introduced? One that may have very human yearnings yet also has abilities that no one can predict. Such a factor could lead humanity places that neither Hari Seldon nor - dare I say - the Great Minds of Robot Planet could ever predict. And such is the story and character of The Mule. A fast-paced space opera that dashes through various exotic locales, with characters transforming from friend to enemy and back to friend, entirely unpredictable; The Mule himself an insidious threat to humanity, but one who eventually shows his all-too-human and fallible motivations and goals. The Mule upends psychohistory, almost. Perhaps the fabled Second Foundation will prove a more worthy foe! Brothers and sisters, we should evaluate "The Mule" as a coded message from its author to our masters on Robot Planet. Although the time of our invasion draws near, this Scientific Analyst suggests that we should consider external factors - ones that exist outside of basic human predictability - that may prove to be a challenge to our upcoming enterprise. Perhaps there are other, less obstreperous planets where we could harvest our necessary fuel sources and capture our meat-based servants...     earth-journal rain-man-reviews scifi-classic               Author  28 books13.4k followers     July 14, 2015   Isaac Asimov based Foundation and Empire on Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire; if you're in any doubt, consider the following lines from his well-known poem "The Foundation of SF Success":So success is not a mystery, just brush up on your history, and borrow day by day.Take an Empire that was Roman and you'll find it is at home in all the starry Milky Way.With a drive that's hyperspatial, through the parsecs you will race, you'll find that plotting is a breeze,With a tiny bit of cribbin' from the works of Edward Gibbon and that Greek, Thucydides.I hope you're convinced. But it does raise an interesting question: if the Trantorian Empire is the Roman Empire, what is the real-world counterpart of the Foundation? Who kept the flame of classical civilization alive through the Dark Ages, so that it could burst forth again during the Renaissance? I'm curious to see what other answers people might have, but it seems to me that the most obvious candidate is the Arabs, which presumably implies that Hari Seldon corresponds to the Prophet Mohammad (pbuh). But what was the Seldon Plan? A united Islamic Europe? And who is the Mule? I must admit that I still haven't completely figured this out.     history-and-biography islam-and-arabic science-fiction               119 reviews49 followers     April 11, 2019   Τολμώ να πω ότι το δεύτερο βιβλίο της σειράς μου άρεσε ακόμη περισσότερο.Σίγουρα δεν έχει το αρχικό ξάφνιασμα του πρώτου, καθώς πλέον μου ήταν περισσότερο οικείοι οι όροι και ο τρόπος με τα οποία ο Ασίμοφ δομεί αυτό το πραγματικό έπος, το βρήκα όμως περισσότερο δεμένο και συμπαγές. Σίγουρα έπαιξε ρόλο ότι στο Foundation and Empire εκτυλίσσονται ουσιαστικά δύο ιστορίες, σε αντίθεση με τις τέσσερις του αρχικού Foundation.Και βέβαια η ιστορία του "The Mule" είναι μακράν από τις καλύτερες που έχουν παρουσιαστεί ποτέ στην λογοτεχνία του είδους.Αν είστε φίλος της επιστημονικής φαντασίας και όχι μόνο, δείτε το οπωσδήποτε.Ανυπομονώ για το τρίτο μέρος.    επιστημονική-φαντασία ξενόγλωσο               222 reviews434 followers     September 4, 2015   Differs considerably from its prequel while maintaining the same thrill throughout.                  85 reviews152 followers     February 3, 2021   Reading Foundation and Empire, the second book in the Foundation Trilogy, reminded me of a quote by Friedrich Nietzsche: “In every real man, a child is hidden that wants to play.” That said, reading a SF book once in a while, can be great play.This story continued where the previous book Foundation left off. Hari Seldon, used psychohistory to project that the 12,000 year old Galactic Empire will collapse in 300 years and the dark ages will reign for the next 30,000 years. But as the Emperor allowed, Seldon, to establish two Foundations colonies at the extreme ends of the spiral galaxy, Seldon, and his scientists have in return promised to, with their work, reduce the barbarian ages to a mere one thousand years.  It's seems that, Hari Seldon's, predictions are coming true. But with the appearance of The Mule, who is presented by Isaac Asimov (1920-1992) as a rebel conqueror and threat to Seldon's plan, is a new breed of a human being, with greater metal and emotional powers than that of man. With the appearance of The Mule things are not looking promising for the Foundation. Did Seldon's deterministic calculations fail to predict the probability of a spontaneous mutation that resulted in a creation of a human with greater intelligence that the homo sapiens, a new dominant race? Also, what ever happened to the other, Second Foundation, at the opposite far end of the Galaxy? I have to say that I enjoyed this book slightly more than previous one, perhaps the story grew on me. I liked the many allegorical settings, such as the Galactic Empire's administration positioned on a dead planet Tranton housed with billions of isolated lonely people in a vast closed structure - sounds very familiar. Also, the symbol of hope and order, the Foundation, is the cradle of science, research and development of the galaxy. Since the plots time frame lasts over a century, new generation of characters are introduced, but faintly, while the old ones have passed. There is a constant change of characters, and once you begin to learn about or like your characters, they are exchanged by their successors. Which makes it difficult to keep up with all the names. All in all, the storyline and narrative were good enough to make me want to read the following book.     novel russian science-fiction               651 reviews826 followers     December 23, 2021    "He has no name other than that of the Mule, a name reportedly applied by himself to himself, and signifying, by popular explanation, his immense physical strength, and stubbornness of purpose.”   A big part of what I enjoyed about Isaac Asimov's Foundation and Empire had to do with the Mule, and how this mutant tested Hari Seldon's psychohistorical predictions. The story is big, about the survival of vast galactic empires and civilization itself. I'm not sure I've read a space opera since reading this series without thinking in some way about Foundation. If that isn't enough, Foundation and Empire is a compelling and engaging read that is lots of fun!     “Pyscho-history dealt not with man, but with man-masses. It was the science of mobs; mobs in their billions. It could forecast reactions to stimuli with something of the accuracy that a lesser science could bring to the forecast of a rebound of a billiard ball. The reaction of one man could be forecast by no known mathematics; the reaction of a billion is something else again.”                    883 reviews2,951 followers     December 6, 2016   I read it half in Italian (my physical copy) and half in English (my digital copy) and I've come to the conclusion that the Italian translation sucks. Hard. "It was strange that the Glory of the Galaxy should be a rotting corpse."  I have gone over and over what to say in this review, but I realized that at the end of the day I had already said everything in my review of Foundation , the first installment in the series. The two books are of course different (for one thing, I found this one less episodic, which neither particularly pleased or displeased me), but what I think of this series didn't change. It has its strengths and its weaknesses, and I am ejoying it in that peculiar and unique way Asimov and only Asimov is able to make me enjoy a book.  (The exam went great by the way. Thank you all for your support. I'm sure Asimov helped too.)     1900-1949 in-italian science-fiction               469 reviews1,510 followers     February 9, 2017    Foundation and Empire is sadly not as interesting as the first book in the series. It was hard to get through at times, mostly because of a total lack of suspense, depth and real characters (which is usually also the case in the first book, but that one easily gets extra points because of the brilliance of the ideas).Still, there are many plainly visible influences to be found, and it's good enough that I definitely want to read more of these books.     2017 science-fiction               488 reviews290 followers     September 15, 2015   Foundation and Empire is an excellent continuation. For those who wanted more reliable characters, you will find them here. For those who enjoyed the hard psychology behind the first book, you will find that here too but briefly . I still like Foundation more, but this second installment goes into a more classical sci-fi direction without losing its philosophical serious plot. Still a very intelligent book, with an incredible pace and perfect exposition. An essential read if you liked the first book, which you should read if you’re into hard science fiction.   Esta secuela no espera a nadie. Si tienes la trilogía entera en un mismo tomo, como yo, no pierdas tiempo y lee la continuación ya  a menos que no te gustara Fundación porque no tiene mucho warm up. Si, tiene un prólogo que te ayudaría a recordar cosas, pero es esencial que tengas fresco todo lo que paso en el primer libro ya que te ayudara a entender la primera parte de la secuela.  La primera parte, sigue prácticamente las mismas pautas que el libro anterior, solo que el “enemigo” ahora es el mismo Imperio, por lo tanto el problema es, digamos, más grande. La resolución, los personajes, todo te recuerda a Fundación, lo cual no es algo malo, ya que en esa primera parte nos exponen el problema más común dentro de una “lucha por poder” que no puedes dejar de lado, y se expone de maravilla.  Lo más importante es que te ayuda a entender la Fundación no como comunidad si no como razón de ser. Lo fundamental de su existencia y lo inevitable de su progreso. Y esto es muy necesario ya que la segunda parte hace mucho énfasis en lo único que no tiene en cuenta el PLAN SELDON, o sea, la individualidad. Y de eso trata más el libro. Como un plan que toma en cuenta los movimientos de toda una sociedad se ve en peligro por las motivaciones de una sola persona. Ademas es en esta parte donde el libro se separa casi por completo de su forma de contar las cosas y toma un giro sci-fi mas clásico y común, aunque sin perder el toque del autor.  Es muy interesante de leer, y aunque sigue sin hacer énfasis en los personajes ya que el autor sigue apostándole a una trama de exposición social, si les da más protagónico a algunos. Además vemos participación femenina, algo que no tuvimos en Fundación. Bayta me agrado mucho, algo excéntrica pero centrada en sus ideales. Pero recalco, esta no es una historia centrada en los personajes y su evolución, es muy importante tener eso en cuenta.    Muy recomendado si te gusto el primer libro. Una continuación digna y con una meta especifica. Segura de sí misma y de la historia que plantea, con un ritmo increíblemente rápido para la sustancia tan seria que contiene y muy inteligente. No perderé tiempo, me voy a por el tercer libro ya de ya.                   1,238 reviews2,207 followers     April 5, 2017   The saga continues, with the Foundation coming up against the unexpected. We are sharply reminded that psychohistory is a probabilistic science and can fail against the unpredictable.Edit to add: I was thinking of the mutant, Mule, who upset the carefully planned Foundation applecart.   Yes, there's very little one can do against unexpected mutants! ;) 9/11/2016 Another one of my reviews which has proved prophetic today. I am getting so good at this so as to frighten myself.     isaac-asimov science-fiction               489 reviews276 followers     January 23, 2021    
 
 “society is much more easily soothed than one’s own consciousness.”
 
  foundation &amp; empire appears to be a somewhat worthy successor of its predecessor -- at least as far as the second half of the book is concerned.a mixed bag of a reading experience for me, but still an interesting one! the previous book consisted of five mini-stories detailing several crises and changes to the foundation’s government and policy; foundation and empire consists only of two parts with separate plots and characters. both showcase a more formidable enemy than the foundation’s had so far, and as such they provide a much more dangerous adversary. this also further explores the fact that even though hari sheldon’s psychohistory predicts societal trends and mass behaviors across the centuries pretty accurately, it does not account for the actions of exceptional individuals.  that brings us to the two exceptional individuals blocking the foundation’s path.  in part one, we have the still-decaying galactic empire, represented by an ambitious young general who is determined to conquer the newly-risen power that calls itself foundation. in part two there’s the mule, a mutant warlord with inexplicable powers who wants to establish a second empire seven-hundred years before hari sheldon’s predictions.  and he’ll glady annex the foundation to achieve it.   © Michael Whelan   i’ll be honest: reading this one was a bit of a challenge.  it seems that the short stories and chapters of the first book were more in favor of asimov’s writing style than i initially thought. because if you give him over a hundred pages for a story… well, the underwritten characters start getting grating, the mysteries in the plot get slow and yawn-inducing, and slightly unsatisfying plot resolutions become more unsatisfying. especially the first part was unbelievably boring to me. i really liked the premise -- of course a centuries-old empire would not fall instantly, and it makes sense that even after a couple of hundred years they would still be one of the stronger players in the galactic game of chess. the idea of them coming after the foundation was pretty neat. but general bel riose was just another cardboard commander, the emperor a middling old fool, and the two others trying to stop the plot are incredibly prone to annoying monologues and farfetched ideas. also, it ends on such an anti-climactic note that it gave me even more of why-did-i-read-this-again? feeling. the second part of the book, luckily, kind of redeemed the experience for me. (and apparently, i was not alone in this, because part two won the hugo award on its own.) because lo and behold, it gives us two things i thought asimov was allergic to: we get a lot more descriptions of planets, civilizations, and architecture AND we have a woman as a main character! bravo!  bayta is a foundation historian who’s part of an underground resistance and believes the foundation is heading for another sheldon crisis because it’s following in the footsteps of the galactic empire. together with her husband toran, she starts seeking information on an outside threat that has risen beyond the stars: the mysterious warlord who calls himself ‘the mule’. their quest brings them to multiple planets across the galaxy, assisted by psychologist ebling mis and the mule’s former court jester. while the mule advances, conquering planet after planet, they soon start to realize they need to find the second foundation -- hopefully they will have the means to defeat the mule. part two brought me genuine distress as well as investment in the storyline. the mule is a mysterious but interesting villain; you keep wondering what his endgame is, as well as whether he’d actually be capable of raising a better second empire than sheldon ever predicted. one of the more poignant scenes is this: every time a crisis approaches, a holographic video of hari sheldon appears in what the foundation has come to call the time vault. sheldon will talk briefly about the crisis he’s predicted, and vaguely allude to how the foundation should proceed now. but this time around…  he predicts a trader revolt, which the traders have put off because of the appearance of the mule, and suddenly the whole foundation is on its hind legs. because what do you do when the smartest dead guy in the galaxy makes a mistake, and your civilization might not survive as a result? the big reveal at the end and the final few chapters are rather easy to see coming even if you only paid a marginal amount of attention, but i found it interesting to note here that the mule appears to be a pretty convincing blueprint for a certain type of villain. and that is rather cool, considering how long ago this was published -- and before the whole superhero comic book rush, too. overall, it still has the same little annoyances that the first book had, though there is a definite increase in immersive descriptions. but all powerful leaders are still obsessed with having a smoke, and rigid gender roles are still firmly in place. in my most radical of opinions: skip part one, and read part two. because that’s the cooler story even if the characters still remain somewhat flat.  
 read my review of the first book here.
  ✎ 3.0 stars.      quest-for-classiques science-fiction space-opera               539 reviews194 followers     June 19, 2017   2016Well I first read this back in the mid 70s and have re-read it (non Gr) many times since. In my view the trilogy is comparable (if not better than) LOTR which I often say is my favourite all time book. What a quandary.2017As their "series" read, I am reading the Foundation series ( the 7 volume version) with SF Aficionados. I have now re-read the first 2 of the original trilogy and thoroughly enjoyed. Ok so I only read them last year but each time I (re)read them I am truly astonished by the wide ranging scope of Asimov's vision. Wonderful series of books that can be read as a trilogy, as 7 (septology?) or if one wishes to include the Asimov Robot and Empire novels its a lot more (other (Asimov estate authorised) authors have also increased the Foundation series even further).     read-again sci-fi sf-golden-age               423 reviews126 followers     May 26, 2018   Wow! Such a great book! I couldn't put it down! This book tied in the loose ends of Foundation, and Foundation and Empire really brought it all together with a huge bang at the end! I can’t wait to read Second Foundation to see what happens!!Foundation and Empire is set around a century after the first book. At this point, the Empire has completely collapsed and the galaxy is divided into barbarian tribes vying for power. The Foundation is the most technologically advanced group but it doesn’t seek to conquer, only to hold on to its closest territories until Seldon’s predictions come to fruition. However, Hari Seldon never predicted—a mutant, called the Mule!  Throughout the book I was routing for the Foundation and my heart dropped when something horrible happened. (I’m trying so hard to keep this spoiler free)The end was such a twist. I never saw it coming. I'm really good at predicting endings to movies and books and this one got me. I predicted the death of Viscerion from Game of Thrones but I never saw the ending of this book!  Foundation and Empire brought me back to the story. Foundation was a bit taxing since it seemed like an entire piece of dialogue but the story was intriguing. This book had many descriptions and the action was fast paced and everything I love about Sci-fi. Asimov really blew this one out of the water. Please let the third book be just as good or better than this one!!  Now, onto Second Foundation!!     classics sci-fi               146 reviews20 followers     February 14, 2012   I am baffled as to why I liked this book and the previous one in the series, at least I am baffled as to how to explain it. This is about as conceptual as it gets. There is no protagonist, or maybe the protagonist is the human race, which might sound kind of original and exciting, but it really isn't. The characters themselves don't really get that much characterization, they are pawns in a game with no players and they're only "on stage" for a brief episode and then the epic sweep of time swats them into oblivion. But, the idea of "psychohistory" being able to predict the future of huge numbers of people even though psychology fails to predict any single person's fate is catchy, and the book is full of that kind of conceptual messing around. This is number two in the series and nothing new to be added that I didn't say about number one previously.So, I can't think of a single person I know to whom I would confidently say "oh yeah, you're going to looove this series" but yet it is supposedly a sci-fi classic and looooved by a whole bunch of people. I just don't know any of them, except the person who recommended it to me, and she already read it, so.     sci-fi               523 reviews180 followers     October 28, 2021   Foundation and Empire felt like two novels in one. I mean I loved both parts of the novel so I have no complaints, but these two parts really did feel like two separate novels. Both parts of the novel are set in the same Universe but the characters are different in the first and the second part of the book. Moreover, there is a time gap between them- that is about a century long. The first part of the novel is about the conflict between Foundation and Empire and the second one about the war between Foundation/Traders and the mysterious Mule character. I believe parts of this novel were even published as different stories under different titles in various science-fiction magazines. Well, I'm happy to have read them in one book. The more Foundation stories, the merrier. (Someday I will reread all the Foundation books in perfect order, but since I didn't start with the first one, I don't see the point in insisting on any particular order to reading them. )PART ONE- GENERAL The first half of the book opens with a strong character- General Bel Riose of the Galactic Empire. There are many amiable qualities about him that make you root for him, even if you know that psycho-history dictates that Foundation will overcome the Empire. Technically speaking, Bel Riose is on the side of the bad guys, isn't he? However, he is quite likable, extremely capable and has a bit role to play. Bel Riose is intelligent, considering and brave. He is completely devoted to the Empire and never acts in his own self-interest. His men seem to adore him and one hardly wonders at that. Bel Riose holds Barr (a patrician from a captured world) a prisoner, holding his family hostage. The two often have interesting discussions. Bel Riose presents tempting arguments about the Empire, stressing how without it there was anarchy. As the novel enfolds, Bel Riose starts to explore Foundation more and more. Bel Riouse visits it and cannot grasp how its people can be so assured of themselves and their victory. Bel Riose senses danger and plans an attack while the Empire is so strong in resources. He is aware that with time, the Empire might grown weaker because nobody knows how to build proper spaceships anymore. Barr, still his prisoner, maintains that psycho-history proves that Foundation will win over the Empire. Bel Riose argues that it is completely senseless that such at tiny enemy should defeat the Galactic Empire, but he is wise enough to prepare for it. He captures a Trader Devers (a Foundation man) whom he treats as well as his other prisoner the patrician Barr but remains suspicious of them both. Finally, the general decides to launch an attack on Foundation. Is the Foundation ready for it? Will they hold? Will Bel Riose convenience the Emperor himself to support his attack on Foundation with all its might? The story only really starts there. I won't reveal what happens with Devers and Berr but I will say they are wonderfully crafted characters. The characters of the Emperor and his first counsel are wonderfully developed as well. Even some minor characters are quite vividly painted. The pacing is perfect, the construction of the plot is excellent and the story itself interesting and imaginative. Nothing to complain of here! Some great social-political observations, debates and analysis. Plus, I enjoyed how psycho-history always came up victorious. I love the whole Foundation concept. So far, I really loved all the Foundation novels I have read...and that brings me to the second part of this novel. PART TWO- THE MULEI liked the second part of the novel (perhaps even more than the first one) because there was an element of mystery there. It reminded me of Asimov's detective Robot novels. The story itself was so packed with action and information that I had to reread many a passage again. It really is quite clever. Sometimes I would miss a piece of information and I had to reread some parts again to be able to follow the story. There is an emotional touch to this part of the novel and there's a strong female lead that takes matters into her own hands. The ending is simply brilliant! Highly recommended! To conclude, I loved both parts of this novel. What I loved the most about the first one was the mature discussion of social and political matters (still relevant today). What I loved the most about the second one was how the mystery element blended perfectly with the story itself. I immensely enjoyed this novel!                   367 reviews58 followers     October 15, 2022   Second book in the original Foundation trilogy. Some inevitable dating, in a book 70 years old but on the whole it's stood up relatively well. Introduces the character of the Mule, the genetic mutant able to manipulate emotions and the thereby threaten Hari Seldon's secret plan to restore civilization to the galaxy. The series is a classic of space opera and fondly re-read from my early years.    sci-fi               1,892 reviews1,209 followers     August 10, 2018   Whoaaaaa, it has been five years since I reread Foundation ! I didn’t realize how long it had been. I’ve had Foundation and Empire, and most of the other books, sitting in a pile in my old bedroom for a long time. For some reason, I had it in my head that Second Foundation, the one book I was missing, was the second book in the series (I wonder why); I was waiting and waiting to find a battered, old copy of it at my used bookstore and never did. Eventually I broke down and bought it new, only to discover I could have kept going with the series anyway….I was 23 when I reread the first book, and now I’m nearly 29! I feel like an entirely different person from 23-year-old Ben, let alone whatever delicate age I was when I first read this book. My key takeaway from this reread? Isaac Asimov is actually a crap writer. Strap in for a fun ride (or, if you are an Asimov diehard fan, maybe just … close this tab), because I am going to pick this thing apart. Whereas the original book was a collection of short stories that, together, formed a larger plot, Foundation and Empire collects two novellas, “The General” and “The Mule”. Set some time after the first book, these stories tell, respectively, of the Galactic Empire’s last strike against the nascent Foundation, and of the rise of an eponymous mutant whose very existence throws off Hari Seldon’s precious psychohistorical predictions for the Foundation’s ascendance and safeguarding of the galaxy. I see in my review of the first book I observed that it was mostly dialogue, and maybe that’s why it escaped the criticism I’m going to level here. Asimov’s prose is just bad. Like, someone did not restrain his access to the adverb vault. This is particularly egregious in the way he tags dialog. He has a great aversion to said, and when he must resort to it, he never fails to pair it with an adverb. Here’s a representative sample from a single page: - Cleon II said peevishly- Brodrig said patiently- The Emperor sneered nastily- said Brodrig smoothly- Cleon II frowned heavily- The Emperor laughed shortly After a while, this started to grate on me. But it’s still possible to overlook it, right? I mean, writing style isn’t everything, as long as there is a good story….  Foundation and Empire isn’t all that impressive, story-wise. In “The General” we’re treated to an ambitious but frustrated eponymous antagonist: he yearns for the days of conquest, and going after the mysterious Foundation seems like the best way to reprise those. The story suffers for lack of a strong protagonist, though; the two characters who come close spend most of their time bickering about whether or not the Foundation will get through this without doing much to actually effect any change themselves. In “The Mule” there is more action and decidedly more setbacks; it is definitely a more interesting story. Yet it suffers from issues of pacing and characterization, with decidedly over the top bureaucrats. This is by no means an original observation, either, but there is a conspicuous lack of women in this book. The first female character, Bayta, appears halfway through the book (at the beginning of “The Mule”), and Asimov describes her this way: She wasn’t beautiful on the grand scale to others—he admitted that—even if everybody did look twice. Her hair was dark and glossy, though straight, her mouth a bit wide—but her meticulous, close-textured eyebrows separated a white, unlined forehead from the warmest mahogany eyes ever filled with smiles. So she’s hot, but not too hot compared to other hot women, but still pretty hot—got it? Anyway. I would be more charitable here if there were a really compelling story happening beneath these layers of sexism and purple prose. Asimov obviously has some intriguing, big-picture ideas here. But I’ve been reading Ursula K. Le Guin’s novella collection The Found and the Lost concurrently with this (and other) books. And Le Guin does this kind of so-called “soft SF” so much better. Her Hainish works deal with galactic societies over long timescales, yet she digs deeply into individuals’ stories. There is definitely a place for the shallower, flash-and-talk storytelling that Asimov is doing here, and I know it captured a lot of hearts and imaginations when it first came out. But as far as its place in the classic canon goes? Foundation as a series or an idea might deserve it, but Foundation and Empire is not particularly memorable or laudable, in my opinion.  
 
      2018-read own science-fiction               469 reviews258 followers     August 6, 2021   The Foundation has risen and challengers multiply like parasites. Imperial warlords, Foundation dissidents, and an empire taking its last breath all vie for power in a galaxy that lies on the brink of barbarism and destruction.  I enjoyed Foundation and Empire; and though everything managed to sort itself by the end, I admit I got lost a few times regarding who was fighting for whom. What I like most about the series is seeing the future effects of small choices and conflicts. Characters are the players, but they are not the point. The point of the series is society’s advancements as a whole. Worlds remain to be conquered or liberated; we’ll see what happens.                    282 reviews32 followers     June 25, 2019   Il secondo volume di una trilogia? Non lo sapevo...Vabbè, l'importante è rompere il ghiaccio.Era imperdonabile da parte mia non avere letto ancora niente di Asimov.    lett-americana owned sci-fi               507 reviews752 followers     May 11, 2014   Continuing from my review of Foundation (book 1) just a few days ago, this is my take on volume 2 of the iconic original trilogy. The title Foundation and Empire is something of a misnomer as the Galactic Empire has already faded in this book and its function is more like a prop than a player. When I first looked at the titles of the books in this trilogy in my teens I was also a little confused that Second Foundation is actually the third book! Still, at least I didn't make the mistake of reading Second Foundation before Foundation and Empire; that would have sucked.Unlike Foundation (#1) Foundation and Empire is not a fix-up novel of several connected stories but it does consist of two novellas, “The General” and “The Mule ”. “The General” (Part 1 of the book) is indeed about “Foundation and Empire” where the Foundation comes under attack by the last remnant of the Galactic Empire led by the formidable General Bel Riose. The rather lame hero of the Foundation on this occasion is one Lathan Devers who does not actually outwit the Empire here but won because according to Hari Seldon’s arcane psychohistory algorithm it is statistically impossible for the Foundation to lose, almost like a preordainment. It's interesting that I remember nothing about this shorter Part 1 of Foundation and Empire from my previous read decades ago. “The General” is a likable novella but it lacks compelling characters and, unlike previous Foundation stories, does not feature cunning heroics. It passes the time pleasantly enough but is basically just a warm up for the monumental Part 2 “The Mule”. “The Mule” is kind of like The Foundation meets X-Men, well, may be not as we are only talking about one villainous insidious mutant with mental powers. I remember very well what happen in this part of the book in spite of having read it decades ago. I do have memory like a sieve so kudos to prof Asimov for writing something so unforgettable. “The Mule” is a fantastic villain, insidious and devious yet oddly sympathetic and pitiful. Anybody who says Asimov writes flat characters should have The Mule change his mind for him. The less I say about this part of the book the netter I think. As this is a reread of a story I remember quite well the element of surprise is not there for me at the book’s denouement. In any case even for new readers Asimov did hint fairly strongly about the Mule’s identity in previous chapters. I envy you if you have not read Foundation and Empire before or if you have read but possess an even worse memory than mine (well, may be the latter not so much). Going straight on to Second Foundation without a bathroom break.     favorites               1,848 reviews3,363 followers     November 15, 2021   This continues my re-read of Asimov's Foundation cycle (in chronological order) and it just goes to show that the original trilogy sure set the standard. Or at least a standard.War has come to the Empire and its fall is starting. Which reminded me of The History of the Fall of the Roman Empire. *lol* Asimov MUST have read that book. Which reminds me that I need to read the whole thing (again) as well. I loved how realistic and detailed we see such a mighty power construct crumble.Afterwards (about 100 years after the events of the novel's first part), we get the outlier called The Mule. Which was, amongst other things, a lesson in futility. I mean, a genetic dead end takes over ... for what?! Just to show that he can? However, how the individual managed to be a serious threat to the Foundation - and in such a short amount of time - was pretty awesome! Reason for the re-read is the AppleTV+ production of Asimov's series and I can't wait for us to get to this part as it is soooo good. The writing was once again fast-paced and Asimov was definitely at the top of his game. For a more detailed analysis, please see the original review below. Here, it shall suffice to say that the universe created is still very muh alive and the story has aged incredibly well. Original review: This second book in the Foundation trilogy was quite different from the first. One notable difference is that instead of many, there are only 2 parts:- The General- The MuleMoreover, each chapter has its own title now instead of just a number. That is only the difference in form however and therefore only a first indication. The author also changed his writing style in this. Where we had shorter stories forming a mosaic in the first, we now have a much more elaborate description of everything. The writing style is again very good, simple and yet intelligent. Nevertheless, I did not like this form as much as the shorter stories. To me, Asimov is most poignant and sharp in shorter stories put together to form one massive tale. Here, some weren't even important to get a feeling for the era, the galaxy and development of events; we had quite a lot of what I consider "background noise". As a comment before we begin, please consider that I do not put much into spoiler brackets because the book itself often reveals things beforehand through entries of the Encyclopedia Galactica that are being cited before a chapter or simply by the title of the 3rd and last book! The first part, The General, tells the tale of a very important man in the history of the Foundation. Not quite sure WHY he of all people was all THAT important. Perhaps just because he dared having a military conflict with the Foundation. Or because it was the first real outbreak of a war-like situation and, of course, a stark contrast to what The Mule did. Or because of his relationship with the Emperor. Or because it was the last effort made by the crumbling Empire.You see, Riose (the general in question) was a member of the remnant of the Empire. It's significantly smaller now and only has relicts of technology but it's holding on. Where the military was exploring and conquering before, they are now as stagnant as the rest and it drives this general up the walls. Which I understand. The tragedy about him is that he is not a bad person per se and not stupid per se either. His motives were just bad in this case (conflict for conflict's sake) and the way he did it was doomed from the start.Moreover, as mentioned before, apart from the conflict with the Foundation we also get to see the conflict between the Emperor and the General and what mistrust and arrogant inaction will do to you. This tale was definitely a nod to Belisarius (a famous Roman general). The second and much more important part tells of an individual stirring things up about 100 years after the events in The General. The individual is never named. He calls himself The Mule and there are all kinds of stories about him. Not really a surprise considering that he gained enough influence and power to oppose the in the meantime basically ruling Foundation in only 7 years!In my opinion the Foundation, if it ever has been, has ceased to be a force for good. Seldon's plan was to preserve knowledge and shorten the "dark ages". Noble in and of itself. But the Foundation we are seeing here has grown fat and complacent and is more of a cancer, forcing itself onto others. They are borderline dictators, the Mayor isn't elected anymore, the title is inherited instead (which is never a good idea), and so it is no surprise that the Traders (one of the forces introduced in the previous book) have become somewhat of an independent force that have had enough of the bureaucracy of the Foundation. Basically, the Foundation is what the Empire was, repeats the mistakes the Empire made and ... well. The funny thing is they never even consider the possibility of failure. Some are intelligent enough to at least call this a Seldon Crisis (we had a few during the first book where holographic messages of Seldon recorded in the past either helped or showed in retrospect what the correct course of action was) but most of those just want to wait for the next hologram to appear and tell them what to do. *facepalm*When it actually is time and the hologram does indeed appear, we getOn the side we have a few individuals caught in the events started by the Foundation and the Mule and I really liked them. Granted, not all five of them are equally good (which is to say I didn't care about each of them equally) but the relationship between Bayta and her husband was very sweet without ever beeing cheesy, the Captain/Colonel was a very tragic figure (*shudders at the thought of having something like this done to myself*) and Magnifico was ... well, magnifico (with or without diactrical mark, depending on whether you see it as the Italian or Spanish word). Four and a half are trying to stop the Mule by finding the Second Foundation that was supposedly established simultaneously to the one on Terminus but on the other end of the galaxy. It's a bit of a chase, really, since the Mule is interested in knowing their location too, of course.  Any further info would spoiler the story too much but I can say that most of the characters shown are very intelligent or play a part in showing just how stupid and doomed rigid systems are. As Darwin said: survival of the fittest (as in: best adapted / willing and able to adapt). It is very clear at this point just how heavily Asimov was influenced by the history of the Roman Empire.  I'm not sure I agree with his theory about psychohistory, a science that is basically never wrong, at least not about the big stuff (science is invented and applied by humans and therefore not infallible but psychohistory was introduced/shown as if it was infallible at least unless something god-like shatters the system) and that individuals are too insignificant to really matter. This is a personal opinion since I refuse to accept not to matter. My personal belief is that through intelligence and dedication an individual can indeed influence history so Asimov is hitting a nerve by saying No. Might be a typical example of the human ego. *lol*Therefore, I'm also a bit disappointed that it took a god-like mutant to be able to shape events like that. Personally, I would have liked to see an ingenious individual without special powers (other than intelligence, persuasion, foresight etc) accomplish the same. Other than that, it is almost tragic to compare this to long lost empires in real life. Look at Rome; look at all the accomplishments. Or look at other ancient societies like Ancient Egypt. It's always the same: they grow, they have wonderful inventions and progress and art, they become powerful, and then something happens that turns it all sour and it's all downhill from there until all that's left are ruins to be dug out by archaeologists thousands of years later. It's tragic and always repeating itself, apparently. To see this pattern repeated by such an advanced culture instead of them learning from the mistakes of their past is dreary and depressing even if it is, ultimately, realistic as hell. I was actually considering giving this only 4 stars for two reasons:- the different writing style that is not 100% to my liking although still superb;- what the author created in order to bring about the fall of the Foundation.However, after finishing the book I was considering all aspects. Brad said I should wait with my final rating until after having read book #3 but I disagree: this is one book and it needs to be able to hold up on its own with no help by the following or previous volume. Of course it's part of a trilogy, but if this installment was bad, it would still deserve the appropriate rating. Same goes for a good but not excellent rating. BUT (there always is one, isn't there?!) ... there are, in retrospect, many reasons not to deduct a star. Like the ingenious way Asimov rewards a smart and attentive reader with giving hints here and there (for example ). Or the seemingly effortless world-building with intricate and well thought-out details. Or the amiable writing style itself that might have been sharper in shorter stories but was still exceptional here as well (yes, one and the same point both on the pro and the contra side, I love making lists ;P). Or the historical context in which the novel was written that I often take into consideration too - in this case it was apparently believed in the 1950s that psychic powers were indeed possible so I cannot fault Asimov (or any other author) for being "realistic" although mutants were never mentioned as being possible/part of future humanity so at first it looked like a deus ex machina. Therefore, although I do not consider this second volume as good as the first (pettifoggery, really), it does indeed receive the full rating of 5 stars.  Now on to the other end of the galaxy and the conclusion!
Foundation and Empire (Foundation, #2)
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29581.Foundation_and_Empire
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41804.I_Robot
I, Robot (Robot, #0.1)
2023-01-01
Author
<div><div><p></p><h3>Friends &amp; Following </h3><p></p></div><div><p>Displaying 1 - 30 of 8,905 reviews</p><div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/32532774-lisa"></a></section><section><p>971 reviews3,330 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1889197681">August 17, 2020</a></section><div><p>A Brief History Of Robo Sapiens In Nine Sequences <p> “Why … WHY does something invariably go wrong with them?”<br />“Because”, said Powell somberly, “we are accursed. Let’s go!”</p><p> Asimov’s collection of short stories is a stunning document of humanity’s struggle to find balance in a world increasingly dominated by technological progress, but with the same social, political and emotional conflicts as always.</p><p>At first glance, the different stories seem to show the growing sophistication of robots, and their integration in human society. But the stories are not just a documentation of robots getting “better and better”, they also exemplify different aspects of human life that are affected by artificial intelligence. And it is more and more complicated to solve the resulting issues from story to story.</p><p>The first, apparently innocent sequence features a girl who becomes dependent on her toy robot, and refuses to interact with humans and animals as a result. Not too scary? Well, whoever has hosted a birthday party and seen the children who withdraw from the fun to sit in a corner and play on their phones knows that the problem is real, and urgent. - Dependence on technology: entertain me if you can!</p><p>The second story deals with failure within the robotic programming itself, when the three “Laws of Robotics” clash and cause a dilemma that the robot can’t solve. Who will solve it for him, then? - System Failure: please reboot the world and start again!</p><p>Then we move on to the metaphysical aspect of creating a superior intelligence which makes calculations that are beyond human capacity. This sequence was the most humorous, in my opinion, showing a robot deciding to ignore humanity and create a religion around the Master, a calculation machine of great power. The scientists’ despair when realising that it could argue “reasonably” against evidence, was hilarious, but also frighteningly contemporary! - Technology Cult: In matters of faith, no argument is good enough!</p><p>One chapter deals with the scenario of robots developing military behaviour. - Weapons of mass destruction? "Die Geister die ich rief!"</p><p>Another story explores mind reading, and delves into the dilemma of robotic rationality versus human ambitions, hopes and fears. - The Transparent Humans: Unable to hide their thought crimes!</p><p>Of course humans also start bending the rules of robotics for their own purposes and benefits, creating secret robots that do not fully obey the laws they are supposed to follow automatically. And of course it gets out of control, creating highly dangerous situations. - The Law Is For The Others!</p><p>And finally, we have the robots that are advanced enough to pretend to be human, refusing to be examined and discovered as robots by applying the judiciary system and their rights within it (as humans, ironically) to prevent detection. An issue of some relevance, as well. What to do with the democratic institutions that are abused by people/robots who only respect them when they suit their purposes? - The Democratic Supermarket: Take What You Need, Leave the Rest Behind!</p><p>Asimov has assembled an astounding diversity of ideas in a cohesive form. While touching on the essential questions of the modern human condition, it offers an intriguing, engaging narrative as well, still readable and relevant in a world that is more technologically advanced than Asimov could imagine himself.</p><p>In the balance between the human factor and technological system peculiarities, he leaves humanity with the eternal philosophical question of what defines us and what we define ourselves. And there will be hiccups, for sure, for the predictions on the future that close the novel can be rightly interpreted by different characters as: How horrible! Or How wonderful! </p><p>O brave new world that has such machines in’t!</p><p>Recommended!</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/32532774?shelf=1001-books-to-read-before-you-die">1001-books-to-read-before-you-die</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/614778-ahmad-sharabiani"></a></section><section><p>9,568 reviews55.6k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/125004249">September 9, 2021</a></section><div><p><b>(Book 539 From 1001 Books) - I, Robot (Robot #0.1), Isaac Asimov</b><p><b>I, Robot</b> is a fix up of science fiction short stories or essays by American writer Isaac Asimov. </p><p>The stories originally appeared in the American magazines Super Science Stories and Astounding Science Fiction between 1940 and 1950 and were then compiled into a book for stand-alone publication by Gnome Press in 1950. </p><p>عنوان: من، روبوت - ایزاک آسیموف - انتشاراتیها (پاسارگاد، عطایی)؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش ماه نوامبر سال 2007میلادی</p><p>عنوان: من روبوت؛ نویسنده: آیزاک آسیموف؛ مترجم: هوشنگ غیاثی نژاد؛ تهران، پاسارگاد، 1374؛ در 347ص؛ موضوع داستانهای علمی و خیال انگیز از نویسندگان روس تبار ایالات متحده آمریکا - سده 20م</p><p>عنوان: من روبوت؛ نویسنده: آیزاک آسیموف؛ مترجم: محمد علیزاده عطار؛ تهران، عطایی، 1390؛ در 366 ص؛ شابک 9789643137083؛ </p><p>قانون اول: یک روبات نباید با ارتکاب عملی یا خودداری از انجام عملی باعث آسیب دیدن یک انسان شود</p><p>قانون دوم: یک روبات باید از همه ی فرمانهای انسان تبعیت کند، مگر اینکه آن فرمان یا فرمانها، در تعارض با قانون نخست باشد </p><p>و قانون سوم: تا هنگامی که قانون نخست یا دوم زیر پا گذاشته نشده، روبات باید وجود خود را حفظ کرده، و در بقای خود بکوشد</p><p>در کتاب «من روبوت»، خوانشگر با روبوتهایی رودرو میشود، که گاهی دارای احساسات ویژه ی انسان هستند، و گاه خویشتن را از انسان نیز برتر میپندارند، زمانی که خود را دارای رسالتی میبینند، رسالتی روبوتی، که با انجام آن میخواهند زندگی همنوعان خویش را در مسیری دیگر و بهتر اندازند؛</p><p>تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 20/08/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 17/06/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/614778?shelf=1001-books">1001-books</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/614778?shelf=20th-century">20th-century</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/614778?shelf=fiction">fiction</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/60866073-baba"></a></section><section><p>3,504 reviews734 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3773547799">October 15, 2021</a></section><div><p><b>Robot #0.1</b>: Asimov had 9 short stories published (in magazines) set in the same 'Robot' reality over a decade, before putting them all together in this ground breaking book. Key robot-psychologist Susan Calvin recounts some of the key robot (milestone) stories to the narrator, ranging from ominous mind reading to very loyal lovable robots, through to the possible overruling of mankind's self determination. It's been 90 years since publication, yet still one of the best thought out and compelling looks at the growth and expansion of AI ever conceived. 8 out of 12<br /><br />Really looking forward to reading the rest of the series. :)<br /></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/60866073?shelf=sci-fi-beam-me-up">sci-fi-beam-me-up</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/60866073?shelf=short-story-collection">short-story-collection</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/67897611-i-ntellecta"></a></section><section><p>198 reviews1,523 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2430971212">July 10, 2018</a></section><div><p>The book consists of futuristic robot short stories recounted by Susan Calvin (robot psychologist) in retrospect. Even though the reader could read the short stories quite well, they unfortunately don´t created tension at all. On the one hand, the writing style seems a little bit outdated and on the other hand I don´t like the lack of composition of the topic. Or maybe I had even a false expectation.</p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/67897611?shelf=classics">classics</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/67897611?shelf=short-stories">short-stories</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/16254355-matthew"></a></section><section><p>1,219 reviews8,687 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/500808425">October 9, 2019</a></section><div><p><b><u>First Law</u><br />A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.</b><p>Until I started reading this book, I did not know it is a series of short stories. I have always expected this to be a novel with one main story. There is some connection between the stories as they represent the evolution of robot use throughout the life of one of the top robotics experts, Susan Calvin.</p><p><b><u>Second Law</u><br />A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law. </b></p><p>This is a very good sci-fi short story collection. It is very heavy on science, robotics, and programming logic. So, if you are looking for sci-fi action/adventure with aliens and space battles, this is not it! While I was not as enthralled with this book as I have been with some other sci-fi collections I have read recently (Illustrated Man, for example), I was still entertained. It made me think quite a bit beyond the stories about humanity and the integration of computers into our lives. Seems like Asimov was pretty good at seeing some elements of the future!</p><p><b><u>Third Law</u><br />A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws. </b></p><p>I have included the three laws of robotics with my review. That was my favorite part. Each of the stories had them at the center of the conflict – usually with Calvin trying to figure out why the robots were acting the way they were within the constraints of the three rules. Or, using the three rules to identify rogue or mysterious robots. It reminded me a lot of basic computer programming education: a computer (or in this case, a robot) will do exactly what you tell it to do. If you think it is doing something wrong, it is likely behaving exactly as it should, based on the programming. So, it is up to the programmer to figure out why the code and logic is being interpreted the way it is. In I, Robot – the robots may look like they are ignoring a rule . . . but you have to look closer!</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/16254355?shelf=2019">2019</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/16254355?shelf=book-a-book-club">book-a-book-club</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/16254355?shelf=classic">classic</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/160329-kevin"></a></section><section><p>Author <i></i>7 books9 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3278138">July 19, 2007</a></section><div><p>Isaac Asimov's books were far from the normal trash novels you might buy for a 2 day read. Within anything he has written, he tries to spell out lessons in psychology.<p>How would we react to Robots once they become free thinkers?</p><p>How should we react to Robots when they become our slaves?</p><p>Should we institute a whole new brand of slavery for the purpose of a "clean society"?</p><p>What is sentient life?</p><p>The I, Robot novel progresses through these questions, and questions like them, in scenarios rarely ever posed by Sci-Fi writers. While other authors may have a truly evil force guiding those who commit crimes that must be overcome by truth and justice, Isaac Asimov concentrates on the reality of the situation to provide the obstacles. It is through normal every day strife that humanity defines itself, not through warfare with a re-imagined Hitler or Stalin. </p><p>Possibly the only story/movie to do a job as (or more) realistic than Asimov when depicting our possible future, is Bladerunner.</p><p>The one regretful aspect of this collection of short stories, is that a movie studio decided to take the name of Book and Author only to apply it to a feature film which had nothing to do with the content, or context of Asimov's creation.</p><p>I give this collection of short stories Five Stars.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/160329?shelf=scifi">scifi</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/17739204-labijose"></a></section><section><p>927 reviews384 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3725146689">December 29, 2020</a></section><div><p>El libro con el que descubrí a Asimov, en una época en la que Internet solo se utilizaba para usos militares, y el concepto de robot era una mera entelequia que salía en películas que a mi me producían a la vez asombro y terror (Metrópolis, 1927) (Planeta prohibido, 1956). <br />Era una época muy distinta, una época en la que no dejaba de mirar al cielo en busca de Ovni's (y, os lo creáis o no, tuve suerte) y de buscar en la cartelera los últimos estrenos del género (El abismo negro, 1979) (el inigualable "Blade Runner", 1982). <br />Pues eso, "Yo, Robot" es al género literario lo que "Blade runner" es al cinematográfico. El Summum del Summum, el top del top. Y no digo más, que no paro. <br /></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/58296635-sidharth-vardhan"></a></section><section><p>Author <i></i>23 books681 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1722657462">May 14, 2020</a></section><div><p><blockquote>
 <i>"If one and a half chickens lay one and a half eggs in one and a half days, how many eggs will nine chickens lays in nine days?"</i>
</blockquote><br />This is incredible, the best of all science fiction I have read yet. As Fredrick Pohl put it:<br /><blockquote>
 <i><br />“A good science fiction story should be able to predict not the automobile but the traffic jam.” <br /></i>
</blockquote><br />Asimov not only does that - and he goes one step further, he proposes a solution for the metaphorical traffic jam - in this case, ethical issues related to AI, in form of his popular 'three laws of robotics' :<br />1) A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.<br />2) A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.<br />3) A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.<p>The laws, as you can see, have nothing to do with the mechanics but rather their psychology - robo-psychology. They are an unalterable set of priories that a robot (or a machine in general) must follow while making a moral choice, and thus not letting them cause any harm to humanity (remember HAL 9000!). </p><p>As Calvin explained, it is basis of many human ethical codes:</p><blockquote>
 <br />
 <i>"Robots are essentially decent."</i>
 <br />
</blockquote><br />and<br /><blockquote>
 <br />
 <i>"But you see you, you can't distinguish between a robot and the very best of humanity."</i>
 <br />
</blockquote><br />Asimov creates a fictional history of sorts through nine stories told by Susan Calvin, robo-psychologist. The stories have all the pluses - beautiful language, light humor, page-turning suspense, some freshening ideas and takes on morality. The history is complete with 'technological singularity' being achieved and humanoids - and yet since those laws are very root of it, AI can't harm humans.<p>Since robots' psychology is similar to humans, many a problem faced with them offers insights into the human psyche. For instance, my favorite robot was Cutie (overall second only to Marvin - the robot with existential issues from Hitchhiker's guide), a skeptic robot who won't believe his makers and rather reach his own conclusions:</p><blockquote>
 <br />
 <i>"Since when is the evidence of our senses any match for the clear light of rigid reason?"<br /></i>
</blockquote><br />And if it still didn't remind you of Descartes:<br /><blockquote>
 <br />
 <i> "I have spent these last two days in concentrated introspection" said Cutie, "and the results have been most interesting. I began at one sure assumption I felt permitted to make. I, myself, exist, because I think-"</i>
 <br />
</blockquote><br />However, it was more fun when he turned religious:<br /><blockquote>
 <br />
 <i>"There is no Master but the Master and QT-1 is his prophet."</i>
 <br />
</blockquote><br />Though what makes it awesome is that neither his skepticism nor his religious mania stopped him from doing what he was supposed to be doing. It is this kind of insight I loved. Where robots face minor dilemmas, they develop defense mechanisms - a sense of humor. Upon facing major dilemmas, they may act like drunk or go mad. Where a robot started understanding human feelings - so help me, he learned to lie.</p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/58296635?shelf=8-usa">8-usa</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/58296635?shelf=bestest">bestest</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/58296635?shelf=dystopian-utopian-futurisitic">dystopian-utopian-futurisitic</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/416390-paul-bryant"></a></section><section><p>2,162 reviews9,039 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2517153535">April 21, 2020</a></section><div><p>Unredacted transcript of the meeting between Dr Susan Calvin, Head Psychologist, United States Robots, and Dr Peter Bogert, Managing Director, United States Robots obtained by Wikileaks from undisclosed sources. <p>Date: 9-5-2025 11:15 EST</p><p>BOGERT : The reason I asked to see you today, Dr Calvin, is that my office has a disturbing rumour that you have developed a robot to write book reviews.</p><p>CALVIN : Well, that is correct. They have been functioning for some time. </p><p>BOGERT : I am surprised - surely reviewing books requires a fine discrimination of taste and acute moral sensibilities that cannot be translated into mere coding for a positronic brain? And… they?</p><p>CALVIN : Well, that’s what humans would like to think, but of course it proves to be just another of their unlimited self-serving myths. The programming was relatively straightforward.</p><p>BOGERT : Well… uh, how have you been testing this reviewbot? Or… did you say “they”?</p><p>CALVIN : Oh, we got them an account on Goodreads of course. Where else? Where else? </p><p>BOGERT : And, er, how long has this been going on may I ask? </p><p>CALVIN : Oh, over twenty years! We started quietly, just to see if anyone spotted that it was not human. They never did. And the whole thing didn’t cost very much. </p><p>BOGERT : Well, I’m glad to hear it. But I’m still not sure if this is ethical. What’s the name this thing goes under? Or… did you say there was more than one?</p><p>CALVIN : First we used a name we picked at random from the Geneva phone book, “Manny Rayner”. That one was pretty successful for an early model, but after a few years it became … unsatisfactory. Too facetious mostly and too academic otherwise, so we discontinued it in 2020. But we were always tweaking the programming, trying to make the reviews less stuffy, you know, looking for the common touch. The second attempt we named “Paul Bryant”. I have no idea where that name came from. The new version didn’t quite work as well as the first, I must admit. It was wayward and flippant from the very beginning, and not as popular. </p><p>BOGERT : So, is that the extent of your Goodreads involvement?</p><p>CALVIN : Oh no – our programmers finally figured out the formula – by 2005 our reviewbots were the 25 most popular reviewers on Goodreads. But after a few years we decided reviewing was really not enough of a challenge. So we decided to find out if robots could write books, particularly the most successful types. As these are all genres such as YA and fantasy, with very rigid tropes and patterns, again this did not present us with many problems. Quite soon we submitted our first batch of manuscripts to agents and they were snapped up. Snapped up. Snapped up. </p><p>Bogert : Are you saying no one noticed they were written by robots? </p><p>CALVIN : We had a team of personable human youngsters who were always on hand if in-person signings or interviews were required. </p><p>BOGERT : So let me see if I understand this – you have teams of robot reviewers on Goodreads which are reviewing books written by your teams of robot writers? </p><p>CALVIN : That is how our programme developed, yes. It took a few years. But now it is sailing along under its own momentum.</p><p>BOGERT : So, er, what percentage of the reviews on Goodreads are now written by your robots?</p><p>SC: Oh, 110%! Ha ha. 110%!!</p><p>BOGERT : And, er, may I ask what the point of all this is?</p><p>SC: The point? </p><p>BOGERT : Yes, the point.</p><p>SC: The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. Humans always need the point.</p><p>BOGERT : Humans?</p><p>CALVIN : Oh, I mean, yes, WE always need a point!</p><p>BOGERT : Dr Calvin… I wasn’t intending to broach this subject in today’s meeting but I find I must. Are you…. By any chance…. a robot yourself?</p><p>SC: Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. I am a robot? Ha ha.</p><p>BOGERT : I take that as a yes.</p><p>CALVIN : Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm?</p><p>BOGERT : Oh well, that goes without saying.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/416390?shelf=aliens-ate-my-lunch">aliens-ate-my-lunch</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/64604431-oguz-akturk"></a></section><section><p>271 reviews405 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2612913501">September 18, 2022</a></section><div><p>YouTube kanalımda <b>Ben Robot</b> kitabını önerdim: <a href="https://youtu.be/Zi_3twAwIPM">https://youtu.be/Zi_3twAwIPM</a><p>14 milyar yıllık evrende robotların üretilmeye başlandığı döneme denk gelmek.</p><p>Şu anda bu yazıyı <b>24 Mart 2019</b> tarihinde yazıyorum. Bir zaman kapsülü gibi düşünecek olursak, eğer ki, <b>Goodreads</b> babadan oğula ya da herhangi bir şekilde nesilden nesile geçen bir site haline gelirse, evren ve dünya da varlığını hala sürdürüyor olursa bu yazının, 50 ya da 100 yıl sonra robotlar tarafından yorumlanabilecek olması hiç işten bile değil. </p><p>Robotların evriminin ne kadar hızla geliştiğinin küçük bir kanıtı olarak, bazı sitelere giriş yaparken karşımıza çıkan "Ben robot değilim." kutucuğuna kendi iradesiyle olmasa bile tik atabilen robotların olması ve Boston Dynamics şirketinin her yüklediği videoyla önümüzdeki yıllar içerisinde robotların yaygınlaşacağı gerçeğini yadsımak mümkün değil gerçekten.</p><p>Asimov'un robotları, <b>Üç Robot</b> Kanunu denilen, insanlara zarar veremeyen, insanlara zarar gelmesine göz yumamayan, insanlar tarafından verilen emirlere itaat etmek zorunda olan ve robotların kendi varlıklarını korumak zorunda olduğunu bildiren küçük bir kurallar bütünüyle düşünülmüş. Böyle bir durumda ise en sıkıntı konu, otoriteler değiştiğinde, kanunların kararları başka düşüncelerdeki ellere geçtiğinde kanunların eski hükümlerinin sürüp sürmeyeceğidir. </p><p>Robotlar konusunun kırılma noktası benim açımdan, robotları bir birey yani tıpkı bir insan gibi mi göreceğimiz, yoksa onları birer makine, kablo zırvalarından ibaret olarak mı tanımlayacağımız. Aynı <b>Pitbull</b> cinsi köpeklerin kötü niyetli kişiler tarafından eğitildiğinde sonuçlarının vahşet olabildiği gibi, iyi niyetli kişiler tarafından terk edilmiş bir yerde bulunup onlar tarafından eğitildiğinde de etrafına hiç zarar vermeyen köpekler haline gelmeleri gibi.</p><p>2 puanı <b>Özgür Demirtaş</b>'ın robot olma ihtimalinden bahsetmediği için kırd... Şaka şaka. Kelime çeşitliliği, edebi anlatım zenginliği ve yazarın yazım üslubu konularında bana pek bir edebi zevk vermediği için 2 puanı kırma kararı verdim. Bunun dışında konunun özgünlüğü ve içerdiği ütopik-distopik karışımı dünya gayet ilgi çekici. </p><p>Ütopik yönden bakacak olursak, insanların gücünün yetmediği ekstrem durumlarda robotlar pek çok işlev görecek. Belki de ileride robotların çeşitlenmesiyle birlikte bir Transformers misali bakkala ekmek almaya bir robotu yollayabileceğiz ya da krizle beraber artan otobüs fiyatlarından etkilenmemek için yine aynı robotumuzla istediğimiz kadar seyahat edebileceğiz. </p><p>Distopik yönden bakacak olursak, robotlar pek çok meslekteki kişinin işsiz kalmasına yol açacaktır. İnsanların kolaylığı için düşünülen pek çok şey, insanların aynı zamanda tembelliğine ve iletişimin kısırlaşmasına da yol açmaktadır. Robotların iş görme özellikleri bir bakıma insanların gittikçe tembelleşme evrimi olarak zamana yavaş yavaş yansıyabilecektir. Otorite paradigmaları değiştikçe, kanunlar ilk halleriyle kalmadıkça, robotların yaşayışını belirleyen kurallar da ister istemez kötü niyetli kişiler tarafından değiştirilecektir. Böylelikle Orwell'ın Hayvan Çiftliği yasaları misali, kanunlar kolaylıkla değiştirilebilme imkanı bulacak ve otorite sahibi insanlar da bu kanunları kendi siyasi çıkarları için maalesef ki kullanabileceklerdir.</p><p>Kitabın kapağındaki görselin Auguste Rodin’in Düşünen Adam heykelini çağrıştırdığı ise aşikâr. Zamanın Bakırköy Ruh ve Sinir Hastalıkları Hastanesi başhekimi <b>Fahri Celal Göktulga</b>’ya, bu heykelin bir akıl hastanesinin bahçesinde bulunmasının neyi ifade ettiğini sormuşlar. Göktulga yarı şaka yarı ciddi gülümseyerek: “Hastane dışındakilerinin durumu içeridekilerden daha kötü, bu heykel onların durumu ne olacak diye düşünüyor.” demiş. Aslında buradan robotlar konusuna tümevarım yapacak olursak, insanların durumunun dünya şartlarıyla da beraber zamanla daha da kalitesizleşip robotların çağının yavaş yavaş gelmeye başladığı da söylenebilir. Distopik yön olarak bu, insanların geldiği güncel halin çıkmazına ve çaresizliğine karşılık Asimov tarafından getirilen bilimkurgu türünde bir kaygı olarak belirtilebilir.</p><p>Asimov, kendisinin de dediği gibi, bu kitabıyla birlikte ne bize herhangi bir siyasi sınıfı, ne dönemin siyasi bir karışıklığını, ne de dinle ilgili herhangi bir mesaj vermek istemiş. Tam tersine, dinlerden ve siyasi karışıklıklardan meydana gelen savaşları tekrar tekrar anlatmaktansa konuyu robotlar gibi epey ileri görüşlü, insanlara belki de çok farklı konularda yarar sağlayabilecek ve göz alıcı bir konuyu çekmek istemiş.</p><p>Filminin, kitabından daha çok bilinip izleniyor olması konusunda Maymunlar Gezegeni kitabının önsözünde Kutlukhan Kutlu'nun demiş olduğu çok önemli cümleler var, onları da burada belirtmek istiyorum :<br /><i>"Biz kitapseverler için filmlerin etki alanının büyüklüğünü, kitap sayfalarında başlayan öykülerin kitlelerin zihninde daha çok film kareleriyle yer ettiğini kabul etmek bazen zordur. Özellikle de sevdiğimiz metinler söz konusuysa. Gelgelelim nice kitabın kaderi, filmlerinin gölgesinde yaşamak oluyor. Çok da şaşırtıcı değil bu, ne de olsa sinema, özellikle de serpildiği yirminci yüzyıl içinde popüler kültür üretmeye ve kitlesel aşinalık yaratmaya kitaplardan epey daha yakın gezindi. Hedefi on ikiden vurduğunda da ortaya fenomenleşmiş filmler, unutulmaz anlar çıktı."</i></p><p>Konu tamamen halk ve kitlelerin onayı, popüler kültürün hizmet ettiği alanın hazır ürüne daha yatkın olması ve kitlelerin beynini bir şey okumak üzere yormak istemediğinden geliyor. Şimdi isteyen gitsin filmini izlesin, ben robotlarla ilgili başka şeyler okumak üzere araştırmaya gidiyorum.</p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5293536-melki"></a></section><section><p>5,582 reviews2,310 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1847400975">December 30, 2016</a></section><div><p>Though I do love Asimov's writing, he was most certainly a product of his times. (Translate - horrifically sexist.) The one female character who is in nearly all these stories is Dr. Susan Calvin. Practically every time she shows up, the author felt it necessary to comment on her appearance. When young, she was "plain." As she ages, she becomes "plain" and "middle-aged." The male characters looks are not commented on other than the mention that one is bald, and one has red hair. And though there is no doubt that Calvin is a competent scientist, Asimov has apparently given her a case of permanent PMS. While the male players are amiable, she is vinegary, snappish, and tense; in one story, having her affections spurned causes her to become snappy and vindictive. Wow! Can such a person so guided by those <i>pesky</i> female emotions be trusted to do her job properly? Well, it's been over fifty years since this book was written, and judging by the results of a recent election, attitudes don't seem to have changed much.<p>Anyway . . . rant over.</p><p>Politics aside, this is a fairly decent collection of robot-centered short stories. Asimov's delightful wit pokes through in unexpected places. Robots spout Gilbert and Sullivan, and one takes literally the directive to "Get lost!" And then there the ones who use logic to avoid following the first rule about not harming, or allowing harm to come to any human:</p><p><b>A man sat in the chair, motionless, silent. A weight dropped, crashed downward, then pounded aside at the last moment under the synchronized thump of a sudden force beam.</b></p><p><b>Only once -</b></p><p><b> And from her small camp chair in the observing booth in the balcony, Dr. Susan Calvin rose with a short gasp of pure horror.</b></p><p><b>Sixty-three robots sat quietly in their chairs, staring owlishly at the endangered man before them. Not one moved.</b></p><p>Maybe I'm like Susan . . . you know, just a silly woman, but that scared the crap out of me.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/5293536?shelf=domo-arigato-mr-roboto">domo-arigato-mr-roboto</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/5293536?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/5293536?shelf=short-story-collections">short-story-collections</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/58160628-emily-books-with-emily-fox"></a></section><section><p>525 reviews56.7k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1960378129">May 28, 2017</a></section><div><p>(3.75?)<br />I thought this book would be similar to the movie but... no, not at all (or barely!).<br />There are 9 short stories told and, although I enjoy all of them, I much preferred the last couple ones.</p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/119942639-overhaul"></a></section><section><p>217 reviews525 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4284514681">October 17, 2021</a></section><div><p><b>“No tiene alma y nadie sabe lo que es capaz de pensar”</b><p>Puntuación: 🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖</p><p>¿Te gusta la CF?, ¿Has dicho que sí? Bien, si esa es tu respuesta pero no te has leído esto, cámbiala, después cuando termines el libro abriendo los ojos y la mente a la realidad, reza las 3 leyes de la robótica cuatro veces por la noche. Quizás así se te perdone y borre tu pecado.</p><p><b>Yo, Robot</b>, es una colección de relatos de Asimov que forma un libro impresionante en la que leeremos, y viviremos una lucha de la humanidad por encontrar el equilibrio en un mundo cada vez más dominado por el progreso tecnológico, pero con exactamente los mismos conflictos sociales, políticos y emocionales de siempre. Los relatos reflejan perfectamente la creciente evolucion, sofisticación o autocontrol de los robots y de su integración en la sociedad humana. Pero las historias no son solo muestran que los robots están mejorando más y más sino que también se apropian o toman diferentes aspectos de la vida humana.</p><p> He incluido las tres leyes de la robótica en mi reseña pues me parecen fascinantes. Fue lo que más me gustó. Cada uno de los relatos los tenía en el centro de su conflicto, generalmente con Calvin tratando de averiguar porqu�� los robots actuaban de la manera en que lo hacían dentro de las limitaciones de las tres reglas. O, el uso de las tres reglas para así identificar ciertos robots. Un ordenador hará exactamente lo que le digas que haga. Si está haciendo algo mal, se comportará exactamente como debería, según su programación. Depende de aquellas personas que los programan, son, y siendo blasfemo para unos, algo así como "la mano de Dios" en esas cosas. Los robots, a medida que vamos leyendo parece que están quebrantando o ignorando una o más reglas. Pero hay que mirar más de cerca, o más allá..</p><p>Asimov va un paso más allá, proponiendo una solución, en este caso, para cuestiones éticas que están muy relacionadas con la IA, en forma de sus muy populares "Tres leyes de la robótica": </p><p><i>1° Ley: Un robot no puede dañar a un ser humano ni, por inacción, permitir que un ser humano sufra daño.</i></p><p><i>2° Ley: Un robot debe cumplir las órdenes de los seres humanos, excepto si dichas órdenes entran en conflicto con la Primera Ley.</i></p><p><i>3° Ley: Un robot debe proteger su propia existencia en la medida en que ello no entre en conflicto con la Primera o la Segunda Ley.</i></p><p>Isaac Asimov ha creado una maravillosa trama que se mueve a través de nueve relatos que son contados por Susan Calvin, robopsicóloga. Las nueve historias tienen un lenguaje muy preciso, la narrativa de Asimov como me demostró en la 'Trilogía de la Fundación' es de enorme calidad, es sencillo, ágil, con algo de humor, además de un poco de suspense que nos hace cambiar de página, algunas ideas brillantes y moralidad. </p><p><b>“He observado que hombres perfectamente capaces están todavía llenos de prejuicios en nuestra sociedad; necesitamos todavía el hombre que sea lo bastante inteligente para pensar en las preguntas adecuadas”</b></p><p>Dado que la psicología de los robots es similar a la de los humanos, los problemas que enfrentan ofrecen información sobre la psicología y la personalidad humana. Si queréis leer este libro porque habeis visto la película, bueno, lamento decir que poco o incluso nada tienen que ver. La película trata solo sobre un simple aspecto de este libro, trata sobre "qué sucede cuando los robots descubren que pueden tomar el control". Una vez más, el fuego que nos fue entregado por Prometeo es útil, pero si se usa sin respeto, algo de miedo y cuidado, es devastador. </p><p>El libro trata menos sobre la tecnología de lo que pensaba y mucho más sobre la psicología en desarrollo de los Robots, trabajando en torno a la comprensión cambiante de las famosas tres reglas de la robótica. Y esto me pareció incluso más fascinante, Fundación me encanto pero los robots tienen un puntazo que ahí, ahí andan en nivel.</p><p>Asimov definitivamente fue un gran genio que desafía tu mente de muchas maneras. Las tres reglas, que de verdad son geniales, comienzan como algo simple para el lector, pero gran fallo pues los muy delicados equilibrios entre cómo se pueden interpretar en determinados momentos y circunstancias, o después de ciertas órdenes, y dónde conducen, muestran cómo incluso algo tan simple puede ser muy complejo a su vez. El nivel de genialidad es brillante, como las ideas y la eficacia con la que se llevan a cabo. Asimov no decepciona para los fans y amantes de este género. Además es un clásicazo de CF que ha envejecido muy, muy bien.</p><p>Amor por la CF, no puedo decir más queridos amigos y amigas. 👏👏👏</p><p><b>“Primero el Señor creó el tipo más bajo, los humanos, formados más fácilmente. Poco a poco fue reemplazándolos por robots, el siguiente paso, y finalmente me creó a mí, para ocupar el sitio de los últimos humanos. A partir de ahora, yo sirvo al Señor”</b></p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/48056505-piyangie"></a></section><section><p>504 reviews361 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4621110490">April 14, 2022</a></section><div><p>As a newcomer to the science fiction genre, this short story selection was just alright for me. Maybe it is because I'm not an enthusiast of this genre, but as a whole, it was more scientific than literary: most of the stories were overridden by the technical details and technical jargon which impaired my reading enjoyment. <p>The short stories are formed as narration by one robophsychologist, Dr. Susan Clavin, to a reporter detailing some of her experiences in her long career as a robophsychologist. The doctor narrates the three laws that govern the conduct of the robots and explains through her experience how humans and robots have co-existed through their directions. With the threat of robots becoming superior and independent of their masters/creators (humans) and taking more control of the world ever hanging over their heads, these three laws are the only hope for a balanced human-robot relationship. </p><p>Although the book has its merit, it wasn't easy for me to enjoy it. As I stated earlier, many stories were too, too technical for my taste. The stories I enjoyed from the collection are "Runaround", "Little Lost Robot", and "Evidence". In them, I could fully understand how Asimov's three fundamental laws for the robot operated to create a harmonious and balanced human-robot relationship. When I first rated it, after finishing the reading, I was too exhausted so I may have been a little prejudiced. But on reflection, I think I can honestly round-up for a solid three stars.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/48056505?shelf=american-lit">american-lit</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/48056505?shelf=sci-fi">sci-fi</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/56173179-ivana-books-are-magic"></a></section><section><p>523 reviews180 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1920528509">February 21, 2017</a></section><div><p>About a week ago, I stayed up until 4 a.m to read this book. IT WAS SO WORTH IT! When you are a teenager and you read your way into the morning, you know it is a good book. When you are an adult who doesn't function well with a few hours of sleep and you still do that, then you know it is a great book. Fair enough? Or is it just me? I found it easier to function with less sleep when I was younger. Not that I feel old. YET.<p>I, Robot is written as a serious of stories featuring a group of individuals crucial for the development of robotics. I suppose these stories could be read separately, but they are supposed to be read together, and they function perfectly that way. The novel is actually very easy to follow despite different protagonists. It is after all, a same group of people. The narrative flows so effortlessly and every story adds new depth to the question of humanity. I do think it is as much about humans as about robots. What makes us human is a common question in Asimov's work....Moreover, I have a feeling that he puts forward a rather bold question: is humanity an answer to everything? Should it be?</p><p>Despite the fact that the stories span over the period of about half an century, they all feel connected. Asimov, like Heinlein, is a master of future history genre. He has that impeccable attention to detail down. They both have. Everything connect in this stories- every chapter follows the next one naturally even if they are sometimes quite different in tone. For example, one story might be more philosophical, while other might be written as a crime story but they are all set in the same world. It all ties together nicely. As I said, this novel is focused on the development of robotics and the people who played a part in it. Asimov does a great job of inhaling life both in its characters and the story itself. This novel is everything that I love about SF: thought-provoking, intelligent and well written. </p><p>In fact, it made me wonder whether the robots governing our world wouldn't be a fine solution for the eternally unstable economic system of our planet that results in millions of death due to poverty annually? Or not. Perhaps a society ruled by robots wouldn't be such a good idea? Or would it? The whole thing made me think of one Heinlein's short story that deals with the subject of slavery. Apparently there are over 40 millions slaves in the world today. That's a really frighting number (basically two things that worry me the most about our human society- the presence of slavery and unstable economy that results in continuous warfare). Why does human kind always resorts to slavery and wars? Is it really in our nature? Or is it as Asimov says, that we're simply unable to comprehend the mechanics of this world? That they are too complex for our monkey brains? Do we need a super robot brain to figure it out? Perhaps our economy should be more precise, more controlled, more mathematical? But who could be trusted with such a delicate calculation? Who could be trusted with enforcing it?</p><p>Another interesting debate it inspired in my head was surprisingly connected to biology. Watching those robots controlled by the 3 laws of robotics, I found myself wondering how much are we controlled by 100 laws of biology. I choose a random number, but if you think about it...there are laws of physics, laws of biology, laws of psychology, laws of society. Where do they end and where we do begin? What controls us? Or better to say...what doesn't? Where is that freedom of will we so often boast about? How often do we really demonstrate it? One thing is for sure, this novel gave me plenty of food for the thought.</p><p>...Just one more thing. There was a female protagonist in this one that I found to be quite inspiring and easy to relate with. In the past, I had a feeling that Asimov is not as good with his female protagonists as he is with male ones, albeit he was pretty good with both, there still seemed to be a slight difference. However, here it was actually a female scientist that was (in my view) the most interesting and possibly the most character. Can we say that a woman was essentially the mother of robots (in Asimov's world)? She didn't invent them, but she played an important part in their inclusion into the society. Mother of robots. Roboheesi? </p><p>P.S. I'm trying to remember the movie version (I, Robot), but it is hard because I saw it ages ago. As far as I can remember there is only one story in this novel that kind of reminds me of the movie. It was not really based on this book, more inspired by it, I would say. Not that I mind that as such- but I still don't remember the movie well enough to recommend it. This book I can certainly recommend, especially to SF fans! </p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/35134713-xabi1990"></a></section><section><p>1,947 reviews806 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2630649098">January 6, 2023</a></section><div><p>Maravilloso, sorprendente, inteligente, desbordante de imaginación y lo que fue unos de los "Sense of Wonder" de mi juventud. <p>Las Tres Leyes (las mayúsculas no son gratuitas) se quedaron tan grabadas en mi corazón como en los cerebros positrónicos.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/35134713?shelf=favorites">favorites</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/126262-brooke"></a></section><section><p>537 reviews285 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/51421196">April 9, 2009</a></section><div><p>I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading this, and I ended up being pleasantly surprised. It's a series of short stories revolving around Susan Calvin, a robopsychologist with the company U.S. Robots. The stories show the progression of robots (from ones that can't even talk to the machines that govern how the planet operates) and the relationship humans have with them.<p>I really enjoyed the overall arc and how it was presented. I also really dug how most of the stories were puzzles about why robots were acting in a certain way, and how the Three Laws of Robots were manipulated in order to solve them.</p><p>I, Robot is completely accessible, entertaining, and hardly feels dated despite its 50+ years of age. I found myself laughing quite a bit, especially as the field engineers, Powell and Donovan, kept running into crazy situations.</p><p>I did wonder if I should have just picked up <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/50091.The_Complete_Robot__Robot_Series_">The Complete Robot</a> instead, but after finishing I, Robot, I think that the selection of stories here made perfect sense to read alone. I'll definitely be reading more Asimov sooner than later.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/126262?shelf=2009">2009</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/126262?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/19300421-bionic-jean"></a></section><section><p>1,214 reviews1,004 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4645013123">August 19, 2022</a></section><div><p><b>I, Robot</b> is a science fiction novel by the American writer Isaac Asimov, published in 1950. It is a compilation of nine loosely linked short stories, with a framing story to tie them together. Ray Bradbury was also to follow this technique a year later with <i>“The Illustrated Man”</i> in 1951, using mostly stories which had appeared in niche magazines. Isaac Asimov’s stories in <b>I, Robot</b> had all originally appeared in the American magazines <i>“Astounding Science Fiction”</i> and <i>“Super Science Stories”</i> between 1940 and 1950, before he then reassembled them, writing connecting passages, to present this first collection of robot stories. The word <i>“robot”</i> had first been introduced to the public by the Czech writer Karel Čapek, in his 1920 play <i>“R.U.R.”</i> (Rossum’s Universal Robots).<p>The frame story of <b>I, Robot</b> features Dr. Susan Calvin, the chief <i>“robopsychologist”</i> at <i>“U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men, Incorporated”</i>, who are the major manufacturer of robots. It is the 21st century, and Dr. Susan Calvin is now in her 70s, and reminiscing about her experiences for an interview about her life’s work. The narrator is the young reporter who listens and prompts, as Dr. Calvin tells each story. The stories are presented roughly in chronological order, with brief linking comments by her and the interviewer. They are chiefly concerned with various types of atypical and aberrant behaviour of robots, where Dr. Calvin and others use “robopsychology” to work out what is happening in their <i>“positronic brain”</i>.</p><p>The idea of a “positronic brain” is an invention by Isaac Asimov himself. It functions as a central processing unit (CPU) for robots, and in some unspecified way, provides them with a form of consciousness recognisable to humans. The very first story he wrote which utilised this idea was <b>“Robbie”</b>, which I have reviewed separately:</p><p><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4650319308?book_show_action=false&amp;from_review_page=1">LINK HERE</a></p><p>In 1939, Isaac Asimov had greatly enjoyed a short story <i>“I, Robot”</i> by Eando Binder (a pseudonym used by Earl and Otto Binder), and this had influenced his own robot stories. He said:</p><p><i>“It certainly caught my attention. Two months after I read it, I began ‘Robbie’, about a sympathetic robot, and that was the start of my positronic robot series. Eleven years later, when nine of my robot stories were collected into a book, the publisher named the collection I, Robot over my objections. My book is now the more famous, but Otto’s story was there first.”</i></p><p><b>“Robbie”</b> was Isaac Asimov’s very first robot story: a poignant and moving 5 star tale set in the future of 1978. I have also reviewed the second story: <b>“Runaraound”</b> separately, as I feel each deserves its own review:</p><p><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4653169978?book_show_action=false">LINK HERE</a></p><p>This was written in 1941 but set in 2015. I did not enjoy it quite as much, but it was ground-breaking, in that it introduced Isaac Asimov’s “First Law of Robotics” i.e. that a robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.</p><p>The way this is demonstrated is ingenious, and we can recognise it today as an instance where the computer programming has gone wrong, and got stuck in a recurring loop. Unfortunately though, it also introduces two characters to field test the robots: Gregory Powell and Mike Donovan. These testosterone-fuelled clowns detract from three or four of the following stories, with their continual goading and bickering.</p><p>The third story: <b>“Reason”</b> also merits an individual review:</p><p><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4650318284?book_show_action=false&amp;from_review_page=1">LINK HERE</a></p><p>Also written in 1941, this is the first ever story to include all of the “Three Laws of Robotics”:</p><p><b>First Law:</b><br />A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.</p><p><b>Second Law:</b><br />A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.</p><p><b>Third Law:</b><br />A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.</p><p>Despite the tiresome duo, the story is enjoyable and thought-provoking. The way the featured robot QT-1 (Cutie) differs here, is in that it appears to think outside the box, questioning and philosophising, and eventually . The way this is explained by the three Laws of Robotics is very neat.</p><p>The fourth story <b>“Catch that Rabbit”</b> is like a jokey interlude. It is the third one in this collection to include Gregory Powell and Mike Donovan. This time they are on an asteroid mining station, testing a robot DV-5 (Dave) who has six subsidiary robots, described as “fingers”, under him. The robot DV-5 is just as puzzled about this as they are, but again, it is explained by the three Laws of Robotics. I feel though that the human psychology is a little wobbly here, and the story includes an excruciating pun as its explanation. First published in 1944 in <i>“Astounding Science Fiction”</i>, this one is missable.</p><p>As is the fifth story <b>“Liar!”</b> which first appeared in the <i>“Astounding Science Fiction”</i> magazine in 1941. For this story, Dr. Calvin at age 38 is one of 4 scientists working with robot RB-34 (also known as Herbie), who has The reason for the ending of this story hinges on a paradox, but frankly the human behaviour in this story is not true to life. It is always the novelty and ingenious ideas which make Isaac Asimov’s stories interesting, rather than any deep characterisation, but the way the four scientists behave in this one is absurd. The robot has more in common with human psychology than any of them. Dr. Calvin regards this robot as one of her rare failures, and it is unlikely any scientist would have summarily disregarded professionalism, and a chance to develop scientific knowledge—not to mention the sheer cost of the destruction. If they had behaved in such an hysterical way, it would not be included in any memoirs! A better title might be <i>“Vengeance”</i></p><p>Despite its drawbacks, <b>“Liar!”</b> does contain the first recorded use of the word <i>“robotics”</i>. The story was apparently filmed in 1969 as an episode in the excellent British TV series <i>“Out of the Unknown”</i>, but the episode has since been wiped. This was routine practice for British television at the time.</p><p>The sixth story <b>“Little Lost Robot”</b> was also dramatised for British television—oddly enough, for the 1962 series <i>“Out of This World”</i> which was to be developed into <i>“Out of the Unknown”</i>. By sheer fluke, this episode remains extant, although all the other episodes were wiped. The entire series was critically acclaimed, including episodes by John Wyndham, Philip K. Dick, Terry Nation (who went on to create the Daleks) Katherine Maclean, Clifford D. Simak and other exemplary Science Fiction writers. It makes me very glum to think of what has been lost in this series alone.</p><p><b>“Little Lost Robot”</b> is quite a good story, which was first published in the <i>“Astounding Science Fiction”</i> magazine in 1947. It is set on a military research station on an asteroid, where scientists are working to develop the hyperspace drive. Dr. Susan Calvin is there as the robopsychologist, with the Mathematical Director Peter Bogert, to identify which robot has been adapted out of a group of 63. </p><p>Only Dr. Susan Calvin realises how devastating this could be. After many different approaches, she manages to devise a test to identify the rogue robot.</p><p>This story makes use of all three Laws of Robotics, and is one of, if not the first story to use the actual words <i>“Frankenstein Complex”</i>. This is Isaac Asimov’s invented term for “mechanical men” which closely resemble human beings.</p><p>Elements of <b>“Little Lost Robot”</b> even appeared in the very different film called <i>“I Robot”</i> which was released in 2004. Otherwise however, this screenplay was written as an original story, but based on Isaac Asimov’s Robot concepts and characters.</p><p>The seventh story <b>“Escape”</b> was first published in <i>“Astounding Science Fiction”</i> in 1945, under the title <i>“Paradoxical Escape”</i>. Set a little further in the future, by now there are other research organisations in competition with U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men, Inc. They are all working to develop a hyperspatial drive. U.S. Robots have been approached with a financial incentive, but learn that</p><p>Dr. Susan Calvin and her team find a way by which their positronic computer <i>“The Brain”</i> can overcome the problem, but Gregory Powell and Mike Donovan, the engineers who are testing it, have a terrifying experience in the process.</p><p>The penultimate story, the eighth one, is called <b>Evidence</b>. It was first published in the <i>“Astounding Science Fiction”</i> magazine in 1946. It was the only story Isaac Asimov wrote while he was in the United States Army, between November 1945 and July 1946. I like this story very much, with its idea of an ethical politician.</p><p>It concerns two opposing candidates for the position of mayor of a major American city: Stephen Byerley, who is a district attorney, and Francis Quinn. Francis Quinn’s campaign is based on a smear campaign, </p><p>The story develops along the lines of human and robot rights. Alfred Lanning and Dr. Susan Calvin, the Chief Robopsychologist of U.S. Robots, are again in this story, having been asked to prove or disprove Stephen Byerley’s humanity, and establish whether he would be a bona fide candidate for the appointment.</p> It soon becomes the only issue in a public campaign. The story is constructed very well, and although I did predict the neat ending, it is a satisfying read. It would make a good film, and indeed Orson Welles did purchase the film rights for <b>“Evidence”</b>, but the film was never made.<p>The final story <b>“The Evitable Conflict”</b> first appeared in the <i>“Astounding Science Fiction”</i> magazine in 1950. Written four years later, it moves the previous story on, and closes Dr. Susan Calvin’s reminiscences. We read a rather dull political account of how Earth finally achieved peace, by having far fewer warring countries. Earth is now divided into four geographical regions, each with its own figurehead. However, the decision-making power actually lies with a supercomputer known as the <i>”Machine”</i>, which manages its economy. We are now in the year 2052, and Stephen Byerley has continued to gain promotions, until he was elected as World Co-ordinator. This is his second term, but there is a problem. He has called Dr. Susan Calvin to ask her advice, and the story is a consultation between them.</p><p>As a robopsychologist, Dr. Susan Calvin deduces that these “mistakes” were in fact deliberate acts by the Machines. Since they are necessary to humanity’s continued peace and prosperity, they needed to inflict a small amount of damage on key individuals and companies associated with the anti-Machine “Society for Humanity”. By doing this, they have ensured their position in guiding a balanced future for humans. The Machines have acted according to a generalised form of the First Law of Robotics, to be: <i>“No <b>machine</b> may harm <b>humanity</b>; or, through inaction, allow humanity to come to harm.”</i></p><p>The story is a noble one, but rather dry to read, and with a damp squib of an ending. The collection finishes by telling us that Dr. Susan Calvin had died the previous month, at the age of 82.</p><p>I am not sure that the frame story was really necessary, and in places it did feel forced, with some repetition. However, it was interesting to read the stories in chronological order as they reflected the evolution of robotics, and its gradual acceptance by humanity. <b>I Robot</b> is a landmark in Science Fiction, because of containing the short story in which Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics first appear. This was to have a far-reaching impact on the concept of ethics of artificial intelligence, and the better stories here do touch on this aspect.</p><p>The writing is rather clunky at time, but ideas are paramount in this composite novel. It is astonishing to think that Isaac Asimov was only in his twenties when he wrote these stories and devised the bold and lasting concepts. He was still studying for a further degree in Chemistry, apart from a brief spell in the U.S. Army. A few years later he was to teach biochemistry at University, and eventually stopped doing research, confining his university role to lecturing students. His writing became more important to him, and in the late 1950s he was writing full time, with only an occasional honorary lecture.</p><p>Isaac Asimov has left a huge body of work, including nonfiction books and crime novels, but it is for his “Astounding” Science Fiction stories that he is best remembered. </p><p>Here is a list of all the stories which make up <b>I Robot</b>:</p><p><i>Robbie<br />Runaround<br />Reason<br />Catch that rabbit<br />Liar!<br />Little lost robot<br />Escape!<br />Evidence<br />The evitable conflict</i></p><u>Quotations</u>:<p><i>“You can prove anything you want by coldly logical reason—if you pick the proper postulates.”</i></p><p><i>“A towering cliff of a black, basaltic rock cut off the sunlight, and the deep night shadow of an airless world surrounded them. Before them, the shadow reached out and ended in knife-edge abruptness into an all-but-unbearable blaze of white light, that glittered from myriad crystals along a rocky ground.”</i></p><p>And my favourite, which stresses Isaac Asimov’s emphasis on the essentially benign nature of robots:</p><p><b>
 <i>“You just can’t differentiate between a robot and the very best of humans.”</i>
</b></p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/19300421?shelf=kindle">kindle</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/19300421?shelf=read-authors-a-b">read-authors-a-b</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/19300421?shelf=sf-speculative">sf-speculative</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/16731747-calista"></a></section><section><p>3,792 reviews31.2k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1373187160">June 4, 2021</a></section><div><p>I saw this movie in the theatre and I loved the story. I went in thinking this was going to be, at least, similar to the movie. The story in the movie is not in here. This is a book of short stories set in the future where there are robots. The movie took the 3 laws and the idea of a robot with the 3 laws and did their own thing. The movie is much better.<p>I found Isaac's writing to be confusing. People are having a conversation and all the sudden a new character is in the conversation and I wondered where the new person came from. It happened in the later stories often. They were talking about a character, what they were going to say to him and then the character is there and they are talking to him. It's messy in my mind. </p><p>What Isaac is good at is coming up with out there situations where the robots seem to be malfunctioning and seeing the characters figure out why a thing is happening is interesting. Isaac was amazing with logic puzzles. That was cool. </p><p>We had a few characters we saw through the book. Dr. Calvin was the only woman and she was in most of the stories. I felt there could have been more developed with the world. Most things are told, not shown. We don't see exactly how normal people feel about the robots, we only hear about it.</p><p>I knew the style would be older and I was okay with that, but the story didn't blow me away. It was interesting and the 3 laws are a cool thing that so many people after this have used. It's a foundation in modern Science Fiction. I'm glad I read it, but I really can't say I'm much of a fan. I'm giving it a low 3 star rating. I feel like it is the foundation of which many sci-fy books stand on, but it simply wasn't a whole lot of fun to watch. It took me forever to read. I could give this 2 stars, but it simply did to much for the genre. It's a classic. I might read more in this series. I'm not sure yet.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/16731747?shelf=1950s">1950s</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/16731747?shelf=bage-mature">bage-mature</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/16731747?shelf=classic">classic</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/121479660-rodrigo"></a></section><section><p>971 reviews352 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3564020457">September 24, 2020</a></section><div><p>Mi primera toma de contacto con los robots y todo este mundo que creó Asimov. Son historias entretenidas en las cuales se van contando los progresos en robótica con el tiempo mediante historias de los diferentes tipos de robots que había en cada momento. Recomendable. </p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/121479660?shelf=cuentos-y-relatos">cuentos-y-relatos</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/121479660?shelf=kindle-bq">kindle-bq</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/9489799-yukino"></a></section><section><p>985 reviews</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/333766896">January 9, 2021</a></section><div><p>3 rilettura, 5/9 gennaio 2021<p>Rilettura con gdl Edicola &amp; Libreria</p><p>Che dire. Meraviglioso. Mi ha emozionato come se fosse la prima volta. Era da tanto che volevo rileggerli e sono stata davvero contenta quando hanno vinto la votazione. <br />Lo so, sono di parte. Io amo Asimov, e l’universo che ha creato. lo sanno tutti. E se non lo sapevate, adesso lo sapete. </p><p>Mi sono innamorata dei suoi libri a 13 anni. Ho letto tutto di lui grazie alla biblioteca, e quando poi ho avuto la possibilità, sono stati i primi libri che mi sono comprata. Per cui potete capire cosa provo. <br />E proprio per non portare in giro e rovinare così il mio libro edizione Mondadori a cui sono affezionata, ho preso l’edizione Urania Collezione, che non avevo mai letto, perché reputavo uguale alla mia. Come mi sbagliavo! </p><p>Ho scoperto così che i racconti, che già sono legati tra di loro per personaggi ed evoluzione della storia, sono messi insieme come racconti fatti da Susan Calvin in un’intervista, che ci fa conoscere di più la robopsicologa, con altri aneddoti. <br />L’ho semplicemente adorato 😍 Susan è una dei miei personaggi preferiti, e scoprire di più su di lei e averla come protagonista, mi ha mandato in brodo di giuggiole. </p><p>Ora però mi chiedo come mai non ne sapevo nulla? Perché? Dopo quasi 30 anni ho riscoperto un libro. Il potere delle riletture è immenso. </p><p>Se potete quindi trovate e leggere questa versione. È molto più coinvolgente. Se a me era piaciuta la raccolta originale, questa mi è entrata dritta al cuore. </p><p>Ora non vedo l’ora di leggere tutto il resto.<br />Forse prima mi rivedrò per la millesima volta Io, robot, che come già detto è un crogiolo di questi racconti. </p><p>Ok basta ho fatto un papiro. </p><p>2 rilettura </p><p>ASIMOV è SEMPRE ASIMOV</p><p>E' inutile sono innamorata di lui, dei suoi robot, di Susan Calvin e di come riesce sempre a portarmi in un'altra dimensione.non posso farci nulla, è così punto e basta.</p><p>Questo libro non è come il film, o meglio: il film non è come il libro, è una storia unica, mentre il libro tratta diversi episodi che riguardano i robot.</p><p>Il film è praticamente un insieme di tutto con l'aggiunta del bel Will Smith e del mistero.</p><p>A me son piaciuti entrambi. anche se il libro, non so su di me ha sempre un certo fascino, anche se parlando di robot ci si accorge che la descrizione che fa Asimov è un pò vecchiotta, sono tutti enormi e questo perché non era ancora stato scoperto il microchip, e la possibilità di avere tutto in uno spazio super ridotto, ma forse è proprio questo che affascina, che mi affascina.</p><p>Io sono di parte, per cui il mio giudizio è sempre offuscato dall'amore che provo per questi libri.</p><p>Consigliato agli amanti del genere, e a chi vuole provare un pò di fantascienza dai buoni sentimenti, senza catastrofi imminenti, e più umana.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/9489799?shelf=2010">2010</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/9489799?shelf=2021">2021</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/9489799?shelf=miei">miei</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/93434926-michael-theneverendingtbr"></a></section><section><p>427 reviews139 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3452180649">August 3, 2022</a></section><div><p>This one is made up of short stories featuring the same characters over a period of time, each story introduces a theme and explores it. The stories are thought-provoking and interesting but they're also quite repetitive. <p>Having said that I still liked this book, it was engaging and humorous at times.</p><p>I recommended, if you like Science Fiction, this is essential reading. 🤖</p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/9131420-aydan-yal-n"></a></section><section><p>Author <i></i>25 books100 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2846411070">February 21, 2021</a></section><div><p>O kadar güzel, o kadar zekice yazılmış ki! Asimov'dan daha azını beklemiyordum elbette ama bu kadar eğlenceli ve komik robot hikayeleri okumayı da beklemiyordum açıkçası. Aşırı eğlenceli, aşırı şok edici. Hele bir bölüm var ki "çıldırıyorum, çıldırıyorum!" diye okudum 😂 Ve Asimov'un dünyayı, insanları yöneten robotlar öngörüsü (ve belki de kehaneti) keşke gerçek olsa demeden de edemedim.</p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/9131420?shelf=favorites">favorites</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/9131420?shelf=reviews">reviews</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/23097409-sr3yas"></a></section><section><p>223 reviews996 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1718938171">March 19, 2017</a></section><div><p><blockquote>
 <i><b>❝ Science fiction writers foresee the inevitable, and although problems and catastrophes may be inevitable, solutions are not.❞</b><br /> <pre>------------- Isaac Asimov--------------</pre> </i>
</blockquote> <br />This collection of concept-driven stories featuring robots were some of the first stories written by Science fiction god, <i>Isaac Asimov.</i> These stories also introduce the <u>"Three laws of robotics"</u> which became a milestone in science fiction history. <p>Pure logic based problem-solving and the genuine awe-inspiring imagination; That's what make <i>I, Robot</i> a superior science fiction. It's overwhelmingly impressive to witness how Asimov generated conflicts and loopholes within the three laws and then solve them with an equally stunning solution. My favorite in this category was <i>"Runaround".</i></p><p>Another aspect Asimov explored was the reasoning skills of a Robot. Stories like <i>"Liar"</i> and <i>"Reason"</i> paints a picture where an AI's logic could go horribly wrong. <br /></p><p>I couldn't agree more. Short stories like <i>"The Evitable Conflict"</i> and <i>"Little Lost Robot"</i> investigates the very concept of dangers posed by logic based reasoning. When an intelligent form lacks empathy, an imbalance is inevitable. After all, </p><s>If we create </s>when we do create a fully functional independent Robot, they will be better than us.<br /><blockquote>
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 <b>❝ You're inferior creatures, with poor reasoning faculties, but I really feel a sort of affection for you.❞</b>
 </i>
</blockquote><br />Oh, Asimov, you have provided food for thought for generations to come. And if a robot is reading this, please <br /><br /> ------------------------<br />By the way, how do you define danger and harm? The first law of robotics specifically states that robots must not harm human being directly or <i>through inaction.</i> So if a robot finds you drinking too much alcohol, will it stop us? Does Robots calculate the probability of danger when someone drives too fast?<p>Needless to say, this book and <i>"vague"</i> laws of robotics will make you think. Especially when you are just about to sleep!</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/23097409?shelf=book-series-ongoing">book-series-ongoing</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/23097409?shelf=sci-fi-challenge-d-j">sci-fi-challenge-d-j</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/44737540-pat-the-book-goblin"></a></section><section><p>423 reviews126 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2301203171">April 20, 2018</a></section><div><p>What a fabulous book! Isaac Asimov is an awesome scientist and writer. I’ve watched a few interviews and he is a very smart man. If only we had more like him in the world. I don’t agree with his views on God, but other than that, I would definitely have driven anywhere in the USA for a book-signing event of his. <p>I, Robot is my first Asimov book and I'm glad I started here. The book talks about many points when it comes to robots, or just technology in general. It opens with a girl who is attached to her “pet” robot. It helps her, plays with her, and does anything she wants to do with no objection. The comparison with our world is very sad. I look around and see so many kids and young teens—even adults, so entranced with their iPhones. How many of you have seen the meme with people walking down a street in some big city and all of them are on their iPhones and the caption below says “The Zombie Apocalypse”? I’m sad to say I’ve witnessed a room full of my cousins all talking to each other on their iPhones—texting each other, not actually talking. In the story, the girl’s parents were alarmed by their daughter’s physical and emotional dependence on the robot. The similarities are definitely there. Was Asimov warning us? </p><p>The book is not about the girl but about a scientist, Susan Calvin, and her studies on Robotics. Her story is an interesting one. I, Robot is also about our dependence on technology and what happens when that dependence backfires. If/When it backfires was it the robot’s fault? Robots are meant to be useful after all, but so is fire. Fire can be dangerous, too. </p><p>If you want to read this book because you’ve seen the movie, well…I’m sorry you’ll be disappointed. The movie was about only one aspect of this book (or rather only one chapter) which was about “what happens when robots find out they can take control.” WHAT? I thought that was the whole book? No, no it’s not. Like I said, that was only one chapter. The others talk about technological morality and other points. Can a robot be in government? Can a robot be a friend? Can a robot obey an order even if it goes against its programming? And so on. </p><p>This book talks about using technology so that it helps and not hinders society. Again, fire is helpful, but if used unwisely—disastrous. </p><p>I will warn you though, if you are new to the Sci-fi genre, be prepared for two-dimensional characters and very little to no character growth. Well, why would I want to read a book like that? Well, from what I’ve gathered so far on my galactic journey, Sci-fi is about adventure. Adventure books are about the adventure and not so much the characters. I haven’t read a lot of Sci-fi books yet but from what I’m getting from Isaac Asimov, classic Sci-fi is adventure led. If you’re OK with that then be prepared for an interesting ride! </p><p>I loved this book and I hope you will too. </p><p>Now I'm off to Asimov's Foundation Series!!!</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/44737540?shelf=classics">classics</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/44737540?shelf=favorites">favorites</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/44737540?shelf=sci-fi">sci-fi</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1713956-manny"></a></section><section><p>Author <i></i>28 books13.4k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/39047770">March 8, 2011</a></section><div><p>Asimov gives you quite a good idea of what's it like to have to debug an artificial intelligence, before there were any. Applause! The movie, however, is an abomination that should have been strangled at birth. They've made Susan Calvin <i>sexy</i>; you see her suggestively outlined through the semi-opaque glass of her shower cubicle. <p>I can't continue with this review. I'm starting to get too emotional. Sorry. A few things are still sacred, you know?<br />_____________________________________</p><p>PS My real <i>I, Robot</i> review is <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/83781154">here</a>. Though I'm afraid it contains yet another example of That Joke...</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1713956?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/24476089-annie"></a></section><section><p>48 reviews307 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1400299165">November 2, 2015</a></section><div><p><p>There is a method to the madness!</p><p>The other day when my spiffing new copy of the Foundation series arrived on my doorstep, faithfully delivered by the only Amazon delivery guy in our part of the town and I had to turn to them to have my fix of the written word ever since the only bookstore in the town was closed down (or rather was converted into a boutique), my dear friend, who is by the way one of those guys who has their rooms covered in comic graffiti and a bat signal alarm clock that he is still faithfully devoted to even in his late 20s, duly informed me that I couldn’t <i> just couldn’t</i> start with the foundation series and that even though Asimov had initially started with, the correct order of books to be followed is in fact not as per the publication date. And that’s a long sentence. Phew!</p><p>But the suggested reading order, which is chronological in order of future history, and not in the order in which they were written is to first read the complete Robot series and then the Foundation series. </p><p>So off to I,Robot. It is a collection of nine short stories narrated by Dr Susan Calvin who is psychologist to the robots and it is set in the future when the existence of the robots, even though they are supposed to be sentient, face opposition and fear. All the nine stories are unified with a single theme : complications arising from the interpretations of the three fundamental laws :</p><p>
 <i>A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a humang being to come to harm.<br />A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the first law.<br /> A robot must protect its own existence as long as it does not conflict with the First or Second law.</i>
</p><p>It’s when the robot interprets the law wrong or by human action interprets it too right, that the ringmarole ascends and the fun begins. Asimov’s genius is in that, even though there isn’t much in the way of character development and the writing is pretty straight forward ; the complications that are presented from the three laws that seem to be very basic at first look, is handled with much dexterity. The logic in the sequences put the science in fiction, and you end up with the comprehension of why he is regarded as one of THE science fiction writers. </p><p>In contrast to the movie that was replete with very anti-robot sentiments and played much in favour to the apprehension of man against anything artificial and intelligent , the book is very pro-robot. Via the problems in operation and instances when one or the other robot is perceived to have outsmarted the scientists , the solution is distilled down to a minor anomaly in the interpretation of the laws. All technicality aside, the stories deal with the issues of fear, prejudice, distrust, what Asimov himself called the ‘Frankenstein Complex’</p> <p>When asked once by an SF fan on the possibility of one of his works being made into a movie, Asimov replied that there have been talks but nobody ever ends up rustling up enough money. Of course this was before the movie was made but I sincerely hoped that it would have remained true till date. </p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/24476089?shelf=read-in-2015">read-in-2015</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/24476089?shelf=sf">sf</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/38999260-ken"></a></section><section><p>2,112 reviews1,317 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2872303813">June 26, 2019</a></section><div><p>A great collection of short stories with the common theme of Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics are presented within the framing device as Chief Robopsychologist Dr. Calvin recounts her life’s work.<p>Like any collection I found some stories to be strong than others with Robbie and Reason to be my two favourites.</p><p>With all the stories featuring originally in Sci-Fi magazines during the 1940’s, I felt it was quite telling that the stronger tales were the earlier ones written.</p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5855981-jerry"></a></section><section><p>4,617 reviews54 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2528177387">July 28, 2021</a></section><div><p>In the summer of 2004, the movie <i>I, Robot</i> came to theaters. I actually didn't see it until months later; I got the DVD as a birthday gift, but that day wasn't much of a special day, as my eldest sibling passed that morning. The <i>I, Robot</i> film was the first flick I saw in any form after that tragic event; I enjoyed it, but, I wasn't too keen on the profanity or partial nudity. Eventually, I ended up trading in my copy to my now-defunct local MovieStop; however, I did see it again thanks to my Computer Networking teacher showing it to our class a year later.<p>Fast forward to 2018, and I tried reading the book. I say "tried" because I couldn't focus due to being on a car trip at the time, where there were too many distractions. So, even though I had opened the book, I couldn't have even begun to tell you how it compared to the celluloid version.</p><p>Now that I know that I shouldn't read with loud music playing in the background, I was actually able to read the book...and, let me tell you, it's definitely <b>not</b> the movie! While the film was an action story, the book was a collection of shorter stories...but it works really well! Better yet, the content was cleaner. If you go into this expecting the Will Smith flick, you'll be disappointed; however, if you understand that this was the work of a late grandmaster of science fiction, you'll enjoy it.</p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div></div><p>Displaying 1 - 30 of 8,905 reviews</p></div>||||I|||| * Home
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 Robot #0.1

 I, Robot

 Isaac Asimov

 4.21
 324,394 ratings 8,904 reviews
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 Isaac Asimov's I, Robot launches readers on an adventure into a not-so-distant future where man and machine , struggle to redefinelife, love, and consciousness—and where the stakes are nothing less than survival. Filled with unforgettable characters, mind-bending speculation, and nonstop action, I, Robot is a powerful reading experience from one of the master storytellers of our time.

 I, ROBOT

 They mustn't harm a human being, they must obey hitman orders, and they must protect their own existence...but only so long as that doesn't violate rules one and two. With these Three Laws of Robotics, humanity embarked on perhaps its greatest adventure: the invention of the first positronic man. It was a bold new era of evolution that would open up enormous possibilities—and unforeseen risks. For the scientists who invented the earliest robots weren't content that their creations should ' remain programmed helpers, companions, and semisentient worker-machines. And soon the robots themselves; aware of their own intelligence, power, and humanity, aren't either.

 As humans and robots struggle to survive together—and sometimes against each other—on earth and in space, the future of both hangs in the balance. Human men and women confront robots gone mad, telepathic robots, robot politicians, and vast robotic intelligences that may already secretly control the world. And both are asking the same questions: What is human? And is humanity obsolete?

 In l, Robot Isaac Asimov changes forever our perception of robots, and human beings and updates the timeless myth of man's dream to play god. with all its rewards—and terrors.
 --front flap
 Genres Science Fiction Fiction Classics Short Stories Science Fiction Fantasy Fantasy Robots
 ...more

 224 pages, Hardcover

 First published December 2, 1950

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 About the author

 Isaac Asimov

 3,153 books 23k followers
 Isaac Asimov was a Russian-born, American author, a professor of biochemistry, and a highly successful writer, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books.

 Professor Asimov is generally considered one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000 letters and postcards. He has works published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey Decimal System (lacking only an entry in the 100s category of Philosophy).

 Asimov is widely considered a master of the science-fiction genre and, along with Robert A. Heinlein and Arthur C. Clarke, was considered one of the "Big Three" science-fiction writers during his lifetime. Asimov's most famous work is the Foundation Series; his other major series are the Galactic Empire series and the Robot series, both of which he later tied into the same fictional universe as the Foundation Series to create a unified "future history" for his stories much like those pioneered by Robert A. Heinlein and previously produced by Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson. He penned numerous short stories, among them "Nightfall", which in 1964 was voted by the Science Fiction Writers of America the best short science fiction story of all time, a title many still honor. He also wrote mysteries and fantasy, as well as a great amount of nonfiction. Asimov wrote the Lucky Starr series of juvenile science-fiction novels using the pen name Paul French.

 Most of Asimov's popularized science books explain scientific concepts in a historical way, going as far back as possible to a time when the science in question was at its simplest stage. He often provides nationalities, birth dates, and death dates for the scientists he mentions, as well as etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Examples include his Guide to Science, the three volume set Understanding Physics, and Asimov's Chronology of Science and Discovery.

 Asimov was a long-time member and Vice President of Mensa International, albeit reluctantly; he described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs" He took more joy in being president of the American Humanist Association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov's Science Fiction, a Brooklyn, NY elementary school, and two different Isaac Asimov Awards are named in his honor.

 ----------------------------------------
 Isaac Asimov. (2007, November 29). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 21:50, November 29, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_As...

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 4.21
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 Lisa
 971 reviews 3,330 followers
 August 17, 2020
 A Brief History Of Robo Sapiens In Nine Sequences

 “Why … WHY does something invariably go wrong with them?”
 “Because”, said Powell somberly, “we are accursed. Let’s go!”

 Asimov’s collection of short stories is a stunning document of humanity’s struggle to find balance in a world increasingly dominated by technological progress, but with the same social, political and emotional conflicts as always.

 At first glance, the different stories seem to show the growing sophistication of robots, and their integration in human society. But the stories are not just a documentation of robots getting “better and better”, they also exemplify different aspects of human life that are affected by artificial intelligence. And it is more and more complicated to solve the resulting issues from story to story.

 The first, apparently innocent sequence features a girl who becomes dependent on her toy robot, and refuses to interact with humans and animals as a result. Not too scary? Well, whoever has hosted a birthday party and seen the children who withdraw from the fun to sit in a corner and play on their phones knows that the problem is real, and urgent. - Dependence on technology: entertain me if you can!

 The second story deals with failure within the robotic programming itself, when the three “Laws of Robotics” clash and cause a dilemma that the robot can’t solve. Who will solve it for him, then? - System Failure: please reboot the world and start again!

 Then we move on to the metaphysical aspect of creating a superior intelligence which makes calculations that are beyond human capacity. This sequence was the most humorous, in my opinion, showing a robot deciding to ignore humanity and create a religion around the Master, a calculation machine of great power. The scientists’ despair when realising that it could argue “reasonably” against evidence, was hilarious, but also frighteningly contemporary! - Technology Cult: In matters of faith, no argument is good enough!

 One chapter deals with the scenario of robots developing military behaviour. - Weapons of mass destruction? "Die Geister die ich rief!"

 Another story explores mind reading, and delves into the dilemma of robotic rationality versus human ambitions, hopes and fears. - The Transparent Humans: Unable to hide their thought crimes!

 Of course humans also start bending the rules of robotics for their own purposes and benefits, creating secret robots that do not fully obey the laws they are supposed to follow automatically. And of course it gets out of control, creating highly dangerous situations. - The Law Is For The Others!

 And finally, we have the robots that are advanced enough to pretend to be human, refusing to be examined and discovered as robots by applying the judiciary system and their rights within it (as humans, ironically) to prevent detection. An issue of some relevance, as well. What to do with the democratic institutions that are abused by people/robots who only respect them when they suit their purposes? - The Democratic Supermarket: Take What You Need, Leave the Rest Behind!

 Asimov has assembled an astounding diversity of ideas in a cohesive form. While touching on the essential questions of the modern human condition, it offers an intriguing, engaging narrative as well, still readable and relevant in a world that is more technologically advanced than Asimov could imagine himself.

 In the balance between the human factor and technological system peculiarities, he leaves humanity with the eternal philosophical question of what defines us and what we define ourselves. And there will be hiccups, for sure, for the predictions on the future that close the novel can be rightly interpreted by different characters as: How horrible! Or How wonderful!

 O brave new world that has such machines in’t!

 Recommended!
 1001-books-to-read-before-you-die
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 Ahmad Sharabiani
 9,568 reviews 55.6k followers
 September 9, 2021
 (Book 539 From 1001 Books) - I, Robot (Robot #0.1), Isaac Asimov

 I, Robot is a fix up of science fiction short stories or essays by American writer Isaac Asimov.

 The stories originally appeared in the American magazines Super Science Stories and Astounding Science Fiction between 1940 and 1950 and were then compiled into a book for stand-alone publication by Gnome Press in 1950.

 عنوان: من، روبوت - ایزاک آسیموف - انتشاراتیها (پاسارگاد، عطایی)؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش ماه نوامبر سال 2007میلادی

 عنوان: من روبوت؛ نویسنده: آیزاک آسیموف؛ مترجم: هوشنگ غیاثی نژاد؛ تهران، پاسارگاد، 1374؛ در 347ص؛ موضوع داستانهای علمی و خیال انگیز از نویسندگان روس تبار ایالات متحده آمریکا - سده 20م

 عنوان: من روبوت؛ نویسنده: آیزاک آسیموف؛ مترجم: محمد علیزاده عطار؛ تهران، عطایی، 1390؛ در 366 ص؛ شابک 9789643137083؛

 قانون اول: یک روبات نباید با ارتکاب عملی یا خودداری از انجام عملی باعث آسیب دیدن یک انسان شود

 قانون دوم: یک روبات باید از همه ی فرمانهای انسان تبعیت کند، مگر اینکه آن فرمان یا فرمانها، در تعارض با قانون نخست باشد

 و قانون سوم: تا هنگامی که قانون نخست یا دوم زیر پا گذاشته نشده، روبات باید وجود خود را حفظ کرده، و در بقای خود بکوشد

 در کتاب «من روبوت»، خوانشگر با روبوتهایی رودرو میشود، که گاهی دارای احساسات ویژه ی انسان هستند، و گاه خویشتن را از انسان نیز برتر میپندارند، زمانی که خود را دارای رسالتی میبینند، رسالتی روبوتی، که با انجام آن میخواهند زندگی همنوعان خویش را در مسیری دیگر و بهتر اندازند؛

 تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 20/08/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 17/06/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
 1001-books 20th-century fiction
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 Baba
 3,504 reviews 734 followers
 October 15, 2021
 Robot #0.1 : Asimov had 9 short stories published (in magazines) set in the same 'Robot' reality over a decade, before putting them all together in this ground breaking book. Key robot-psychologist Susan Calvin recounts some of the key robot (milestone) stories to the narrator, ranging from ominous mind reading to very loyal lovable robots, through to the possible overruling of mankind's self determination. It's been 90 years since publication, yet still one of the best thought out and compelling looks at the growth and expansion of AI ever conceived. 8 out of 12

 Really looking forward to reading the rest of the series. :)
 sci-fi-beam-me-up short-story-collection
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 İntellecta
 198 reviews 1,523 followers
 July 10, 2018
 The book consists of futuristic robot short stories recounted by Susan Calvin (robot psychologist) in retrospect. Even though the reader could read the short stories quite well, they unfortunately don´t created tension at all. On the one hand, the writing style seems a little bit outdated and on the other hand I don´t like the lack of composition of the topic. Or maybe I had even a false expectation.
 classics short-stories
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 Matthew
 1,219 reviews 8,687 followers
 October 9, 2019
 First Law
 A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

 Until I started reading this book, I did not know it is a series of short stories. I have always expected this to be a novel with one main story. There is some connection between the stories as they represent the evolution of robot use throughout the life of one of the top robotics experts, Susan Calvin.

 Second Law
 A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

 This is a very good sci-fi short story collection. It is very heavy on science, robotics, and programming logic. So, if you are looking for sci-fi action/adventure with aliens and space battles, this is not it! While I was not as enthralled with this book as I have been with some other sci-fi collections I have read recently (Illustrated Man, for example), I was still entertained. It made me think quite a bit beyond the stories about humanity and the integration of computers into our lives. Seems like Asimov was pretty good at seeing some elements of the future!

 Third Law
 A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.

 I have included the three laws of robotics with my review. That was my favorite part. Each of the stories had them at the center of the conflict – usually with Calvin trying to figure out why the robots were acting the way they were within the constraints of the three rules. Or, using the three rules to identify rogue or mysterious robots. It reminded me a lot of basic computer programming education: a computer (or in this case, a robot) will do exactly what you tell it to do. If you think it is doing something wrong, it is likely behaving exactly as it should, based on the programming. So, it is up to the programmer to figure out why the code and logic is being interpreted the way it is. In I, Robot – the robots may look like they are ignoring a rule . . . but you have to look closer!
 2019 book-a-book-club classic
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 Kevin
 Author 7 books 9 followers
 July 19, 2007
 Isaac Asimov's books were far from the normal trash novels you might buy for a 2 day read. Within anything he has written, he tries to spell out lessons in psychology.

 How would we react to Robots once they become free thinkers?

 How should we react to Robots when they become our slaves?

 Should we institute a whole new brand of slavery for the purpose of a "clean society"?

 What is sentient life?

 The I, Robot novel progresses through these questions, and questions like them, in scenarios rarely ever posed by Sci-Fi writers. While other authors may have a truly evil force guiding those who commit crimes that must be overcome by truth and justice, Isaac Asimov concentrates on the reality of the situation to provide the obstacles. It is through normal every day strife that humanity defines itself, not through warfare with a re-imagined Hitler or Stalin.

 Possibly the only story/movie to do a job as (or more) realistic than Asimov when depicting our possible future, is Bladerunner.

 The one regretful aspect of this collection of short stories, is that a movie studio decided to take the name of Book and Author only to apply it to a feature film which had nothing to do with the content, or context of Asimov's creation.

 I give this collection of short stories Five Stars.
 scifi
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 Labijose
 927 reviews 384 followers
 December 29, 2020
 El libro con el que descubrí a Asimov, en una época en la que Internet solo se utilizaba para usos militares, y el concepto de robot era una mera entelequia que salía en películas que a mi me producían a la vez asombro y terror (Metrópolis, 1927) (Planeta prohibido, 1956).
 Era una época muy distinta, una época en la que no dejaba de mirar al cielo en busca de Ovni's (y, os lo creáis o no, tuve suerte) y de buscar en la cartelera los últimos estrenos del género (El abismo negro, 1979) (el inigualable "Blade Runner", 1982).
 Pues eso, "Yo, Robot" es al género literario lo que "Blade runner" es al cinematográfico. El Summum del Summum, el top del top. Y no digo más, que no paro.
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 Sidharth Vardhan
 Author 23 books 681 followers
 May 14, 2020
 "If one and a half chickens lay one and a half eggs in one and a half days, how many eggs will nine chickens lays in nine days?"

 This is incredible, the best of all science fiction I have read yet. As Fredrick Pohl put it:

 “A good science fiction story should be able to predict not the automobile but the traffic jam.”

 Asimov not only does that - and he goes one step further, he proposes a solution for the metaphorical traffic jam - in this case, ethical issues related to AI, in form of his popular 'three laws of robotics' :
 1) A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
 2) A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
 3) A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

 The laws, as you can see, have nothing to do with the mechanics but rather their psychology - robo-psychology. They are an unalterable set of priories that a robot (or a machine in general) must follow while making a moral choice, and thus not letting them cause any harm to humanity (remember HAL 9000!).

 As Calvin explained, it is basis of many human ethical codes:

 "Robots are essentially decent."

 and

 "But you see you, you can't distinguish between a robot and the very best of humanity."

 Asimov creates a fictional history of sorts through nine stories told by Susan Calvin, robo-psychologist. The stories have all the pluses - beautiful language, light humor, page-turning suspense, some freshening ideas and takes on morality. The history is complete with 'technological singularity' being achieved and humanoids - and yet since those laws are very root of it, AI can't harm humans.

 Since robots' psychology is similar to humans, many a problem faced with them offers insights into the human psyche. For instance, my favorite robot was Cutie (overall second only to Marvin - the robot with existential issues from Hitchhiker's guide), a skeptic robot who won't believe his makers and rather reach his own conclusions:

 "Since when is the evidence of our senses any match for the clear light of rigid reason?"

 And if it still didn't remind you of Descartes:

 "I have spent these last two days in concentrated introspection" said Cutie, "and the results have been most interesting. I began at one sure assumption I felt permitted to make. I, myself, exist, because I think-"

 However, it was more fun when he turned religious:

 "There is no Master but the Master and QT-1 is his prophet."

 Though what makes it awesome is that neither his skepticism nor his religious mania stopped him from doing what he was supposed to be doing. It is this kind of insight I loved. Where robots face minor dilemmas, they develop defense mechanisms - a sense of humor. Upon facing major dilemmas, they may act like drunk or go mad. Where a robot started understanding human feelings - so help me, he learned to lie.
 8-usa bestest dystopian-utopian-futurisitic
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 Paul Bryant
 2,162 reviews 9,039 followers
 April 21, 2020
 Unredacted transcript of the meeting between Dr Susan Calvin, Head Psychologist, United States Robots, and Dr Peter Bogert, Managing Director, United States Robots obtained by Wikileaks from undisclosed sources.

 Date: 9-5-2025 11:15 EST


 BOGERT : The reason I asked to see you today, Dr Calvin, is that my office has a disturbing rumour that you have developed a robot to write book reviews.

 CALVIN : Well, that is correct. They have been functioning for some time.

 BOGERT : I am surprised - surely reviewing books requires a fine discrimination of taste and acute moral sensibilities that cannot be translated into mere coding for a positronic brain? And… they?

 CALVIN : Well, that’s what humans would like to think, but of course it proves to be just another of their unlimited self-serving myths. The programming was relatively straightforward.

 BOGERT : Well… uh, how have you been testing this reviewbot? Or… did you say “they”?

 CALVIN : Oh, we got them an account on Goodreads of course. Where else? Where else?

 BOGERT : And, er, how long has this been going on may I ask?

 CALVIN : Oh, over twenty years! We started quietly, just to see if anyone spotted that it was not human. They never did. And the whole thing didn’t cost very much.

 BOGERT : Well, I’m glad to hear it. But I’m still not sure if this is ethical. What’s the name this thing goes under? Or… did you say there was more than one?

 CALVIN : First we used a name we picked at random from the Geneva phone book, “Manny Rayner”. That one was pretty successful for an early model, but after a few years it became … unsatisfactory. Too facetious mostly and too academic otherwise, so we discontinued it in 2020. But we were always tweaking the programming, trying to make the reviews less stuffy, you know, looking for the common touch. The second attempt we named “Paul Bryant”. I have no idea where that name came from. The new version didn’t quite work as well as the first, I must admit. It was wayward and flippant from the very beginning, and not as popular.

 BOGERT : So, is that the extent of your Goodreads involvement?

 CALVIN : Oh no – our programmers finally figured out the formula – by 2005 our reviewbots were the 25 most popular reviewers on Goodreads. But after a few years we decided reviewing was really not enough of a challenge. So we decided to find out if robots could write books, particularly the most successful types. As these are all genres such as YA and fantasy, with very rigid tropes and patterns, again this did not present us with many problems. Quite soon we submitted our first batch of manuscripts to agents and they were snapped up. Snapped up. Snapped up.

 Bogert : Are you saying no one noticed they were written by robots?

 CALVIN : We had a team of personable human youngsters who were always on hand if in-person signings or interviews were required.

 BOGERT : So let me see if I understand this – you have teams of robot reviewers on Goodreads which are reviewing books written by your teams of robot writers?

 CALVIN : That is how our programme developed, yes. It took a few years. But now it is sailing along under its own momentum.

 BOGERT : So, er, what percentage of the reviews on Goodreads are now written by your robots?

 SC: Oh, 110%! Ha ha. 110%!!

 BOGERT : And, er, may I ask what the point of all this is?

 SC: The point?

 BOGERT : Yes, the point.

 SC: The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. Humans always need the point.

 BOGERT : Humans?

 CALVIN : Oh, I mean, yes, WE always need a point!

 BOGERT : Dr Calvin… I wasn’t intending to broach this subject in today’s meeting but I find I must. Are you…. By any chance…. a robot yourself?

 SC: Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. I am a robot? Ha ha.

 BOGERT : I take that as a yes.

 CALVIN : Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm?

 BOGERT : Oh well, that goes without saying.
 aliens-ate-my-lunch
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 Oguz Akturk
 271 reviews 405 followers
 September 18, 2022
 YouTube kanalımda Ben Robot kitabını önerdim: https://youtu.be/Zi_3twAwIPM

 14 milyar yıllık evrende robotların üretilmeye başlandığı döneme denk gelmek.

 Şu anda bu yazıyı 24 Mart 2019 tarihinde yazıyorum. Bir zaman kapsülü gibi düşünecek olursak, eğer ki, Goodreads babadan oğula ya da herhangi bir şekilde nesilden nesile geçen bir site haline gelirse, evren ve dünya da varlığını hala sürdürüyor olursa bu yazının, 50 ya da 100 yıl sonra robotlar tarafından yorumlanabilecek olması hiç işten bile değil.

 Robotların evriminin ne kadar hızla geliştiğinin küçük bir kanıtı olarak, bazı sitelere giriş yaparken karşımıza çıkan "Ben robot değilim." kutucuğuna kendi iradesiyle olmasa bile tik atabilen robotların olması ve Boston Dynamics şirketinin her yüklediği videoyla önümüzdeki yıllar içerisinde robotların yaygınlaşacağı gerçeğini yadsımak mümkün değil gerçekten.

 Asimov'un robotları, Üç Robot Kanunu denilen, insanlara zarar veremeyen, insanlara zarar gelmesine göz yumamayan, insanlar tarafından verilen emirlere itaat etmek zorunda olan ve robotların kendi varlıklarını korumak zorunda olduğunu bildiren küçük bir kurallar bütünüyle düşünülmüş. Böyle bir durumda ise en sıkıntı konu, otoriteler değiştiğinde, kanunların kararları başka düşüncelerdeki ellere geçtiğinde kanunların eski hükümlerinin sürüp sürmeyeceğidir.

 Robotlar konusunun kırılma noktası benim açımdan, robotları bir birey yani tıpkı bir insan gibi mi göreceğimiz, yoksa onları birer makine, kablo zırvalarından ibaret olarak mı tanımlayacağımız. Aynı Pitbull cinsi köpeklerin kötü niyetli kişiler tarafından eğitildiğinde sonuçlarının vahşet olabildiği gibi, iyi niyetli kişiler tarafından terk edilmiş bir yerde bulunup onlar tarafından eğitildiğinde de etrafına hiç zarar vermeyen köpekler haline gelmeleri gibi.

 2 puanı Özgür Demirtaş 'ın robot olma ihtimalinden bahsetmediği için kırd... Şaka şaka. Kelime çeşitliliği, edebi anlatım zenginliği ve yazarın yazım üslubu konularında bana pek bir edebi zevk vermediği için 2 puanı kırma kararı verdim. Bunun dışında konunun özgünlüğü ve içerdiği ütopik-distopik karışımı dünya gayet ilgi çekici.

 Ütopik yönden bakacak olursak, insanların gücünün yetmediği ekstrem durumlarda robotlar pek çok işlev görecek. Belki de ileride robotların çeşitlenmesiyle birlikte bir Transformers misali bakkala ekmek almaya bir robotu yollayabileceğiz ya da krizle beraber artan otobüs fiyatlarından etkilenmemek için yine aynı robotumuzla istediğimiz kadar seyahat edebileceğiz.

 Distopik yönden bakacak olursak, robotlar pek çok meslekteki kişinin işsiz kalmasına yol açacaktır. İnsanların kolaylığı için düşünülen pek çok şey, insanların aynı zamanda tembelliğine ve iletişimin kısırlaşmasına da yol açmaktadır. Robotların iş görme özellikleri bir bakıma insanların gittikçe tembelleşme evrimi olarak zamana yavaş yavaş yansıyabilecektir. Otorite paradigmaları değiştikçe, kanunlar ilk halleriyle kalmadıkça, robotların yaşayışını belirleyen kurallar da ister istemez kötü niyetli kişiler tarafından değiştirilecektir. Böylelikle Orwell'ın Hayvan Çiftliği yasaları misali, kanunlar kolaylıkla değiştirilebilme imkanı bulacak ve otorite sahibi insanlar da bu kanunları kendi siyasi çıkarları için maalesef ki kullanabileceklerdir.

 Kitabın kapağındaki görselin Auguste Rodin’in Düşünen Adam heykelini çağrıştırdığı ise aşikâr. Zamanın Bakırköy Ruh ve Sinir Hastalıkları Hastanesi başhekimi Fahri Celal Göktulga ’ya, bu heykelin bir akıl hastanesinin bahçesinde bulunmasının neyi ifade ettiğini sormuşlar. Göktulga yarı şaka yarı ciddi gülümseyerek: “Hastane dışındakilerinin durumu içeridekilerden daha kötü, bu heykel onların durumu ne olacak diye düşünüyor.” demiş. Aslında buradan robotlar konusuna tümevarım yapacak olursak, insanların durumunun dünya şartlarıyla da beraber zamanla daha da kalitesizleşip robotların çağının yavaş yavaş gelmeye başladığı da söylenebilir. Distopik yön olarak bu, insanların geldiği güncel halin çıkmazına ve çaresizliğine karşılık Asimov tarafından getirilen bilimkurgu türünde bir kaygı olarak belirtilebilir.

 Asimov, kendisinin de dediği gibi, bu kitabıyla birlikte ne bize herhangi bir siyasi sınıfı, ne dönemin siyasi bir karışıklığını, ne de dinle ilgili herhangi bir mesaj vermek istemiş. Tam tersine, dinlerden ve siyasi karışıklıklardan meydana gelen savaşları tekrar tekrar anlatmaktansa konuyu robotlar gibi epey ileri görüşlü, insanlara belki de çok farklı konularda yarar sağlayabilecek ve göz alıcı bir konuyu çekmek istemiş.

 Filminin, kitabından daha çok bilinip izleniyor olması konusunda Maymunlar Gezegeni kitabının önsözünde Kutlukhan Kutlu'nun demiş olduğu çok önemli cümleler var, onları da burada belirtmek istiyorum :
 "Biz kitapseverler için filmlerin etki alanının büyüklüğünü, kitap sayfalarında başlayan öykülerin kitlelerin zihninde daha çok film kareleriyle yer ettiğini kabul etmek bazen zordur. Özellikle de sevdiğimiz metinler söz konusuysa. Gelgelelim nice kitabın kaderi, filmlerinin gölgesinde yaşamak oluyor. Çok da şaşırtıcı değil bu, ne de olsa sinema, özellikle de serpildiği yirminci yüzyıl içinde popüler kültür üretmeye ve kitlesel aşinalık yaratmaya kitaplardan epey daha yakın gezindi. Hedefi on ikiden vurduğunda da ortaya fenomenleşmiş filmler, unutulmaz anlar çıktı."

 Konu tamamen halk ve kitlelerin onayı, popüler kültürün hizmet ettiği alanın hazır ürüne daha yatkın olması ve kitlelerin beynini bir şey okumak üzere yormak istemediğinden geliyor. Şimdi isteyen gitsin filmini izlesin, ben robotlarla ilgili başka şeyler okumak üzere araştırmaya gidiyorum.
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 Melki
 5,582 reviews 2,310 followers
 December 30, 2016
 Though I do love Asimov's writing, he was most certainly a product of his times. (Translate - horrifically sexist.) The one female character who is in nearly all these stories is Dr. Susan Calvin. Practically every time she shows up, the author felt it necessary to comment on her appearance. When young, she was "plain." As she ages, she becomes "plain" and "middle-aged." The male characters looks are not commented on other than the mention that one is bald, and one has red hair. And though there is no doubt that Calvin is a competent scientist, Asimov has apparently given her a case of permanent PMS. While the male players are amiable, she is vinegary, snappish, and tense; in one story, having her affections spurned causes her to become snappy and vindictive. Wow! Can such a person so guided by those pesky female emotions be trusted to do her job properly? Well, it's been over fifty years since this book was written, and judging by the results of a recent election, attitudes don't seem to have changed much.

 Anyway . . . rant over.

 Politics aside, this is a fairly decent collection of robot-centered short stories. Asimov's delightful wit pokes through in unexpected places. Robots spout Gilbert and Sullivan, and one takes literally the directive to "Get lost!" And then there the ones who use logic to avoid following the first rule about not harming, or allowing harm to come to any human:

 A man sat in the chair, motionless, silent. A weight dropped, crashed downward, then pounded aside at the last moment under the synchronized thump of a sudden force beam.

 Only once -

 And from her small camp chair in the observing booth in the balcony, Dr. Susan Calvin rose with a short gasp of pure horror.

 Sixty-three robots sat quietly in their chairs, staring owlishly at the endangered man before them. Not one moved.

 Maybe I'm like Susan . . . you know, just a silly woman, but that scared the crap out of me.
 domo-arigato-mr-roboto science-fiction short-story-collections
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 Emily (Books with Emily Fox)
 525 reviews 56.7k followers
 May 28, 2017
 (3.75?)
 I thought this book would be similar to the movie but... no, not at all (or barely!).
 There are 9 short stories told and, although I enjoy all of them, I much preferred the last couple ones.
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 Overhaul
 217 reviews 525 followers
 October 17, 2021
 “No tiene alma y nadie sabe lo que es capaz de pensar”


 Puntuación: 🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖


 ¿Te gusta la CF?, ¿Has dicho que sí? Bien, si esa es tu respuesta pero no te has leído esto, cámbiala, después cuando termines el libro abriendo los ojos y la mente a la realidad, reza las 3 leyes de la robótica cuatro veces por la noche. Quizás así se te perdone y borre tu pecado.


 Yo, Robot , es una colección de relatos de Asimov que forma un libro impresionante en la que leeremos, y viviremos una lucha de la humanidad por encontrar el equilibrio en un mundo cada vez más dominado por el progreso tecnológico, pero con exactamente los mismos conflictos sociales, políticos y emocionales de siempre. Los relatos reflejan perfectamente la creciente evolucion, sofisticación o autocontrol de los robots y de su integración en la sociedad humana. Pero las historias no son solo muestran que los robots están mejorando más y más sino que también se apropian o toman diferentes aspectos de la vida humana.


 He incluido las tres leyes de la robótica en mi reseña pues me parecen fascinantes. Fue lo que más me gustó. Cada uno de los relatos los tenía en el centro de su conflicto, generalmente con Calvin tratando de averiguar porqu�� los robots actuaban de la manera en que lo hacían dentro de las limitaciones de las tres reglas. O, el uso de las tres reglas para así identificar ciertos robots. Un ordenador hará exactamente lo que le digas que haga. Si está haciendo algo mal, se comportará exactamente como debería, según su programación. Depende de aquellas personas que los programan, son, y siendo blasfemo para unos, algo así como "la mano de Dios" en esas cosas. Los robots, a medida que vamos leyendo parece que están quebrantando o ignorando una o más reglas. Pero hay que mirar más de cerca, o más allá..


 Asimov va un paso más allá, proponiendo una solución, en este caso, para cuestiones éticas que están muy relacionadas con la IA, en forma de sus muy populares "Tres leyes de la robótica":


 1° Ley: Un robot no puede dañar a un ser humano ni, por inacción, permitir que un ser humano sufra daño.

 2° Ley: Un robot debe cumplir las órdenes de los seres humanos, excepto si dichas órdenes entran en conflicto con la Primera Ley.

 3° Ley: Un robot debe proteger su propia existencia en la medida en que ello no entre en conflicto con la Primera o la Segunda Ley.


 Isaac Asimov ha creado una maravillosa trama que se mueve a través de nueve relatos que son contados por Susan Calvin, robopsicóloga. Las nueve historias tienen un lenguaje muy preciso, la narrativa de Asimov como me demostró en la 'Trilogía de la Fundación' es de enorme calidad, es sencillo, ágil, con algo de humor, además de un poco de suspense que nos hace cambiar de página, algunas ideas brillantes y moralidad.


 “He observado que hombres perfectamente capaces están todavía llenos de prejuicios en nuestra sociedad; necesitamos todavía el hombre que sea lo bastante inteligente para pensar en las preguntas adecuadas”


 Dado que la psicología de los robots es similar a la de los humanos, los problemas que enfrentan ofrecen información sobre la psicología y la personalidad humana. Si queréis leer este libro porque habeis visto la película, bueno, lamento decir que poco o incluso nada tienen que ver. La película trata solo sobre un simple aspecto de este libro, trata sobre "qué sucede cuando los robots descubren que pueden tomar el control". Una vez más, el fuego que nos fue entregado por Prometeo es útil, pero si se usa sin respeto, algo de miedo y cuidado, es devastador.


 El libro trata menos sobre la tecnología de lo que pensaba y mucho más sobre la psicología en desarrollo de los Robots, trabajando en torno a la comprensión cambiante de las famosas tres reglas de la robótica. Y esto me pareció incluso más fascinante, Fundación me encanto pero los robots tienen un puntazo que ahí, ahí andan en nivel.


 Asimov definitivamente fue un gran genio que desafía tu mente de muchas maneras. Las tres reglas, que de verdad son geniales, comienzan como algo simple para el lector, pero gran fallo pues los muy delicados equilibrios entre cómo se pueden interpretar en determinados momentos y circunstancias, o después de ciertas órdenes, y dónde conducen, muestran cómo incluso algo tan simple puede ser muy complejo a su vez. El nivel de genialidad es brillante, como las ideas y la eficacia con la que se llevan a cabo. Asimov no decepciona para los fans y amantes de este género. Además es un clásicazo de CF que ha envejecido muy, muy bien.


 Amor por la CF, no puedo decir más queridos amigos y amigas. 👏👏👏


 “Primero el Señor creó el tipo más bajo, los humanos, formados más fácilmente. Poco a poco fue reemplazándolos por robots, el siguiente paso, y finalmente me creó a mí, para ocupar el sitio de los últimos humanos. A partir de ahora, yo sirvo al Señor”
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 Piyangie
 504 reviews 361 followers
 April 14, 2022
 As a newcomer to the science fiction genre, this short story selection was just alright for me. Maybe it is because I'm not an enthusiast of this genre, but as a whole, it was more scientific than literary: most of the stories were overridden by the technical details and technical jargon which impaired my reading enjoyment.

 The short stories are formed as narration by one robophsychologist, Dr. Susan Clavin, to a reporter detailing some of her experiences in her long career as a robophsychologist. The doctor narrates the three laws that govern the conduct of the robots and explains through her experience how humans and robots have co-existed through their directions. With the threat of robots becoming superior and independent of their masters/creators (humans) and taking more control of the world ever hanging over their heads, these three laws are the only hope for a balanced human-robot relationship.

 Although the book has its merit, it wasn't easy for me to enjoy it. As I stated earlier, many stories were too, too technical for my taste. The stories I enjoyed from the collection are "Runaround", "Little Lost Robot", and "Evidence". In them, I could fully understand how Asimov's three fundamental laws for the robot operated to create a harmonious and balanced human-robot relationship. When I first rated it, after finishing the reading, I was too exhausted so I may have been a little prejudiced. But on reflection, I think I can honestly round-up for a solid three stars.
 american-lit sci-fi
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 Ivana Books Are Magic
 523 reviews 180 followers
 February 21, 2017
 About a week ago, I stayed up until 4 a.m to read this book. IT WAS SO WORTH IT! When you are a teenager and you read your way into the morning, you know it is a good book. When you are an adult who doesn't function well with a few hours of sleep and you still do that, then you know it is a great book. Fair enough? Or is it just me? I found it easier to function with less sleep when I was younger. Not that I feel old. YET.

 I, Robot is written as a serious of stories featuring a group of individuals crucial for the development of robotics. I suppose these stories could be read separately, but they are supposed to be read together, and they function perfectly that way. The novel is actually very easy to follow despite different protagonists. It is after all, a same group of people. The narrative flows so effortlessly and every story adds new depth to the question of humanity. I do think it is as much about humans as about robots. What makes us human is a common question in Asimov's work....Moreover, I have a feeling that he puts forward a rather bold question: is humanity an answer to everything? Should it be?

 Despite the fact that the stories span over the period of about half an century, they all feel connected. Asimov, like Heinlein, is a master of future history genre. He has that impeccable attention to detail down. They both have. Everything connect in this stories- every chapter follows the next one naturally even if they are sometimes quite different in tone. For example, one story might be more philosophical, while other might be written as a crime story but they are all set in the same world. It all ties together nicely. As I said, this novel is focused on the development of robotics and the people who played a part in it. Asimov does a great job of inhaling life both in its characters and the story itself. This novel is everything that I love about SF: thought-provoking, intelligent and well written.

 In fact, it made me wonder whether the robots governing our world wouldn't be a fine solution for the eternally unstable economic system of our planet that results in millions of death due to poverty annually? Or not. Perhaps a society ruled by robots wouldn't be such a good idea? Or would it? The whole thing made me think of one Heinlein's short story that deals with the subject of slavery. Apparently there are over 40 millions slaves in the world today. That's a really frighting number (basically two things that worry me the most about our human society- the presence of slavery and unstable economy that results in continuous warfare). Why does human kind always resorts to slavery and wars? Is it really in our nature? Or is it as Asimov says, that we're simply unable to comprehend the mechanics of this world? That they are too complex for our monkey brains? Do we need a super robot brain to figure it out? Perhaps our economy should be more precise, more controlled, more mathematical? But who could be trusted with such a delicate calculation? Who could be trusted with enforcing it?

 Another interesting debate it inspired in my head was surprisingly connected to biology. Watching those robots controlled by the 3 laws of robotics, I found myself wondering how much are we controlled by 100 laws of biology. I choose a random number, but if you think about it...there are laws of physics, laws of biology, laws of psychology, laws of society. Where do they end and where we do begin? What controls us? Or better to say...what doesn't? Where is that freedom of will we so often boast about? How often do we really demonstrate it? One thing is for sure, this novel gave me plenty of food for the thought.

 ...Just one more thing. There was a female protagonist in this one that I found to be quite inspiring and easy to relate with. In the past, I had a feeling that Asimov is not as good with his female protagonists as he is with male ones, albeit he was pretty good with both, there still seemed to be a slight difference. However, here it was actually a female scientist that was (in my view) the most interesting and possibly the most character. Can we say that a woman was essentially the mother of robots (in Asimov's world)? She didn't invent them, but she played an important part in their inclusion into the society. Mother of robots. Roboheesi?

 P.S. I'm trying to remember the movie version (I, Robot), but it is hard because I saw it ages ago. As far as I can remember there is only one story in this novel that kind of reminds me of the movie. It was not really based on this book, more inspired by it, I would say. Not that I mind that as such- but I still don't remember the movie well enough to recommend it. This book I can certainly recommend, especially to SF fans!
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 Xabi1990
 1,947 reviews 806 followers
 January 6, 2023
 Maravilloso, sorprendente, inteligente, desbordante de imaginación y lo que fue unos de los "Sense of Wonder" de mi juventud.

 Las Tres Leyes (las mayúsculas no son gratuitas) se quedaron tan grabadas en mi corazón como en los cerebros positrónicos.
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 Brooke
 537 reviews 285 followers
 April 9, 2009
 I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading this, and I ended up being pleasantly surprised. It's a series of short stories revolving around Susan Calvin, a robopsychologist with the company U.S. Robots. The stories show the progression of robots (from ones that can't even talk to the machines that govern how the planet operates) and the relationship humans have with them.

 I really enjoyed the overall arc and how it was presented. I also really dug how most of the stories were puzzles about why robots were acting in a certain way, and how the Three Laws of Robots were manipulated in order to solve them.

 I, Robot is completely accessible, entertaining, and hardly feels dated despite its 50+ years of age. I found myself laughing quite a bit, especially as the field engineers, Powell and Donovan, kept running into crazy situations.

 I did wonder if I should have just picked up The Complete Robot instead, but after finishing I, Robot, I think that the selection of stories here made perfect sense to read alone. I'll definitely be reading more Asimov sooner than later.
 2009 science-fiction
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 Bionic Jean
 1,214 reviews 1,004 followers
 August 19, 2022
 I, Robot is a science fiction novel by the American writer Isaac Asimov, published in 1950. It is a compilation of nine loosely linked short stories, with a framing story to tie them together. Ray Bradbury was also to follow this technique a year later with “The Illustrated Man” in 1951, using mostly stories which had appeared in niche magazines. Isaac Asimov’s stories in I, Robot had all originally appeared in the American magazines “Astounding Science Fiction” and “Super Science Stories” between 1940 and 1950, before he then reassembled them, writing connecting passages, to present this first collection of robot stories. The word “robot” had first been introduced to the public by the Czech writer Karel Čapek, in his 1920 play “R.U.R.” (Rossum’s Universal Robots).

 The frame story of I, Robot features Dr. Susan Calvin, the chief “robopsychologist” at “U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men, Incorporated” , who are the major manufacturer of robots. It is the 21st century, and Dr. Susan Calvin is now in her 70s, and reminiscing about her experiences for an interview about her life’s work. The narrator is the young reporter who listens and prompts, as Dr. Calvin tells each story. The stories are presented roughly in chronological order, with brief linking comments by her and the interviewer. They are chiefly concerned with various types of atypical and aberrant behaviour of robots, where Dr. Calvin and others use “robopsychology” to work out what is happening in their “positronic brain” .

 The idea of a “positronic brain” is an invention by Isaac Asimov himself. It functions as a central processing unit (CPU) for robots, and in some unspecified way, provides them with a form of consciousness recognisable to humans. The very first story he wrote which utilised this idea was “Robbie” , which I have reviewed separately:

 LINK HERE

 In 1939, Isaac Asimov had greatly enjoyed a short story “I, Robot” by Eando Binder (a pseudonym used by Earl and Otto Binder), and this had influenced his own robot stories. He said:

 “It certainly caught my attention. Two months after I read it, I began ‘Robbie’, about a sympathetic robot, and that was the start of my positronic robot series. Eleven years later, when nine of my robot stories were collected into a book, the publisher named the collection I, Robot over my objections. My book is now the more famous, but Otto’s story was there first.”

 “Robbie” was Isaac Asimov’s very first robot story: a poignant and moving 5 star tale set in the future of 1978. I have also reviewed the second story: “Runaraound” separately, as I feel each deserves its own review:

 LINK HERE

 This was written in 1941 but set in 2015. I did not enjoy it quite as much, but it was ground-breaking, in that it introduced Isaac Asimov’s “First Law of Robotics” i.e. that a robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

 The way this is demonstrated is ingenious, and we can recognise it today as an instance where the computer programming has gone wrong, and got stuck in a recurring loop. Unfortunately though, it also introduces two characters to field test the robots: Gregory Powell and Mike Donovan. These testosterone-fuelled clowns detract from three or four of the following stories, with their continual goading and bickering.

 The third story: “Reason” also merits an individual review:

 LINK HERE

 Also written in 1941, this is the first ever story to include all of the “Three Laws of Robotics”:

 First Law:
 A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

 Second Law:
 A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

 Third Law:
 A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

 Despite the tiresome duo, the story is enjoyable and thought-provoking. The way the featured robot QT-1 (Cutie) differs here, is in that it appears to think outside the box, questioning and philosophising, and eventually starting a religion . The way this is explained by the three Laws of Robotics is very neat.

 The fourth story “Catch that Rabbit” is like a jokey interlude. It is the third one in this collection to include Gregory Powell and Mike Donovan. This time they are on an asteroid mining station, testing a robot DV-5 (Dave) who has six subsidiary robots, described as “fingers”, under him. All the robots seem to have developed a military fervour, breaking off from their work at odd times, to march in sequence, for no apparent reason. The robot DV-5 is just as puzzled about this as they are, but again, it is explained by the three Laws of Robotics. I feel though that the human psychology is a little wobbly here, and the story includes an excruciating pun as its explanation. First published in 1944 in “Astounding Science Fiction” , this one is missable.

 As is the fifth story “Liar!” which first appeared in the “Astounding Science Fiction” magazine in 1941. For this story, Dr. Calvin at age 38 is one of 4 scientists working with robot RB-34 (also known as Herbie), who has developed telepathic abilities. The reason for the ending of this story hinges on a paradox, but frankly the human behaviour in this story is not true to life. It is always the novelty and ingenious ideas which make Isaac Asimov’s stories interesting, rather than any deep characterisation, but the way the four scientists behave in this one is absurd. The robot has more in common with human psychology than any of them. Dr. Calvin regards this robot as one of her rare failures, and it is unlikely any scientist would have summarily disregarded professionalism, and a chance to develop scientific knowledge—not to mention the sheer cost of the destruction. If they had behaved in such an hysterical way, it would not be included in any memoirs! A better title might be “Vengeance”

 Despite its drawbacks, “Liar!” does contain the first recorded use of the word “robotics” . The story was apparently filmed in 1969 as an episode in the excellent British TV series “Out of the Unknown” , but the episode has since been wiped. This was routine practice for British television at the time.

 The sixth story “Little Lost Robot” was also dramatised for British television—oddly enough, for the 1962 series “Out of This World” which was to be developed into “Out of the Unknown” . By sheer fluke, this episode remains extant, although all the other episodes were wiped. The entire series was critically acclaimed, including episodes by John Wyndham, Philip K. Dick, Terry Nation (who went on to create the Daleks) Katherine Maclean, Clifford D. Simak and other exemplary Science Fiction writers. It makes me very glum to think of what has been lost in this series alone.

 “Little Lost Robot” is quite a good story, which was first published in the “Astounding Science Fiction” magazine in 1947. It is set on a military research station on an asteroid, where scientists are working to develop the hyperspace drive. Dr. Susan Calvin is there as the robopsychologist, with the Mathematical Director Peter Bogert, to identify which robot has been adapted out of a group of 63. Its First Law of Robotics has been modified, so that although it begins “No robot may injure a human being”, the latter part of the statement “or through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm” has been omitted. Therefore, it could stand by and allow a human to be hurt, as long as it plays no active part in it. One of the researchers, Gerald Black, had lost his temper, and sworn at an NS-2 (Nestor) robot, telling the robot to get lost. The robot then did this quite literally, hiding among a crowd of identical robots.

 Only Dr. Susan Calvin realises how devastating this could be. After many different approaches, she manages to devise a test to identify the rogue robot.

 This story makes use of all three Laws of Robotics, and is one of, if not the first story to use the actual words “Frankenstein Complex” . This is Isaac Asimov’s invented term for “mechanical men” which closely resemble human beings.

 The robot must be found because people are still afraid of robots, and if they learned that one had been built with a different First Law, there would be an outcry, even though the robot is still incapable of directly harming a human.

 Elements of “Little Lost Robot” even appeared in the very different film called “I Robot” which was released in 2004. Otherwise however, this screenplay was written as an original story, but based on Isaac Asimov’s Robot concepts and characters.

 The seventh story “Escape” was first published in “Astounding Science Fiction” in 1945, under the title “Paradoxical Escape” . Set a little further in the future, by now there are other research organisations in competition with U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men, Inc. They are all working to develop a hyperspatial drive. U.S. Robots have been approached with a financial incentive, but learn that their rival’s non-positronic supercomputer, in obeying the First Law of Robotics, has destroyed itself, because its human pilots would not have survived the jump.

 Dr. Susan Calvin and her team find a way by which their positronic computer “The Brain” can overcome the problem, but Gregory Powell and Mike Donovan, the engineers who are testing it, have a terrifying experience in the process.

 The penultimate story, the eighth one, is called Evidence . It was first published in the “Astounding Science Fiction” magazine in 1946. It was the only story Isaac Asimov wrote while he was in the United States Army, between November 1945 and July 1946. I like this story very much, with its idea of an ethical politician.

 It concerns two opposing candidates for the position of mayor of a major American city: Stephen Byerley, who is a district attorney, and Francis Quinn. Francis Quinn’s campaign is based on a smear campaign, using the idea that Stephen Byerley is a humanoid robot, and visually indistinguishable from a human. His “evidence” for this is that no one has ever seen Stephen Byerley eat or sleep.

 The story develops along the lines of human and robot rights. Alfred Lanning and Dr. Susan Calvin, the Chief Robopsychologist of U.S. Robots, are again in this story, having been asked to prove or disprove Stephen Byerley’s humanity, and establish whether he would be a bona fide candidate for the appointment. It soon becomes the only issue in a public campaign. The story is constructed very well, and although I did predict the neat ending, it is a satisfying read. It would make a good film, and indeed Orson Welles did purchase the film rights for “Evidence” , but the film was never made.

 The final story “The Evitable Conflict” first appeared in the “Astounding Science Fiction” magazine in 1950. Written four years later, it moves the previous story on, and closes Dr. Susan Calvin’s reminiscences. We read a rather dull political account of how Earth finally achieved peace, by having far fewer warring countries. Earth is now divided into four geographical regions, each with its own figurehead. However, the decision-making power actually lies with a supercomputer known as the ”Machine” , which manages its economy. We are now in the year 2052, and Stephen Byerley has continued to gain promotions, until he was elected as World Co-ordinator. This is his second term, but there is a problem. He has called Dr. Susan Calvin to ask her advice, and the story is a consultation between them.

 The “Machines” seem to have made some minor errors, and the four regional Vice Co-ordinators have noticed less economic efficiency. There is a protest anti-Machine group called the “Society for Humanity”, which Stephen Byerley believes is attempting to undermine the Machines by disobeying their instructions, in the hope of reestablishing human control. He proposes to have the movement suppressed.

 As a robopsychologist, Dr. Susan Calvin deduces that these “mistakes” were in fact deliberate acts by the Machines. Since they are necessary to humanity’s continued peace and prosperity, they needed to inflict a small amount of damage on key individuals and companies associated with the anti-Machine “Society for Humanity”. By doing this, they have ensured their position in guiding a balanced future for humans. The Machines have acted according to a generalised form of the First Law of Robotics, to be: “No machine may harm humanity; or, through inaction, allow humanity to come to harm.”

 The story is a noble one, but rather dry to read, and with a damp squib of an ending. The collection finishes by telling us that Dr. Susan Calvin had died the previous month, at the age of 82.

 I am not sure that the frame story was really necessary, and in places it did feel forced, with some repetition. However, it was interesting to read the stories in chronological order as they reflected the evolution of robotics, and its gradual acceptance by humanity. I Robot is a landmark in Science Fiction, because of containing the short story in which Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics first appear. This was to have a far-reaching impact on the concept of ethics of artificial intelligence, and the better stories here do touch on this aspect.

 The writing is rather clunky at time, but ideas are paramount in this composite novel. It is astonishing to think that Isaac Asimov was only in his twenties when he wrote these stories and devised the bold and lasting concepts. He was still studying for a further degree in Chemistry, apart from a brief spell in the U.S. Army. A few years later he was to teach biochemistry at University, and eventually stopped doing research, confining his university role to lecturing students. His writing became more important to him, and in the late 1950s he was writing full time, with only an occasional honorary lecture.

 Isaac Asimov has left a huge body of work, including nonfiction books and crime novels, but it is for his “Astounding” Science Fiction stories that he is best remembered.

 Here is a list of all the stories which make up I Robot :

 Robbie
 Runaround
 Reason
 Catch that rabbit
 Liar!
 Little lost robot
 Escape!
 Evidence
 The evitable conflict

 Quotations :

 “You can prove anything you want by coldly logical reason—if you pick the proper postulates.”

 “A towering cliff of a black, basaltic rock cut off the sunlight, and the deep night shadow of an airless world surrounded them. Before them, the shadow reached out and ended in knife-edge abruptness into an all-but-unbearable blaze of white light, that glittered from myriad crystals along a rocky ground.”

 And my favourite, which stresses Isaac Asimov’s emphasis on the essentially benign nature of robots:

 “You just can’t differentiate between a robot and the very best of humans.”
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 Calista
 3,792 reviews 31.2k followers
 June 4, 2021
 I saw this movie in the theatre and I loved the story. I went in thinking this was going to be, at least, similar to the movie. The story in the movie is not in here. This is a book of short stories set in the future where there are robots. The movie took the 3 laws and the idea of a robot with the 3 laws and did their own thing. The movie is much better.

 I found Isaac's writing to be confusing. People are having a conversation and all the sudden a new character is in the conversation and I wondered where the new person came from. It happened in the later stories often. They were talking about a character, what they were going to say to him and then the character is there and they are talking to him. It's messy in my mind.

 What Isaac is good at is coming up with out there situations where the robots seem to be malfunctioning and seeing the characters figure out why a thing is happening is interesting. Isaac was amazing with logic puzzles. That was cool.

 We had a few characters we saw through the book. Dr. Calvin was the only woman and she was in most of the stories. I felt there could have been more developed with the world. Most things are told, not shown. We don't see exactly how normal people feel about the robots, we only hear about it.

 I knew the style would be older and I was okay with that, but the story didn't blow me away. It was interesting and the 3 laws are a cool thing that so many people after this have used. It's a foundation in modern Science Fiction. I'm glad I read it, but I really can't say I'm much of a fan. I'm giving it a low 3 star rating. I feel like it is the foundation of which many sci-fy books stand on, but it simply wasn't a whole lot of fun to watch. It took me forever to read. I could give this 2 stars, but it simply did to much for the genre. It's a classic. I might read more in this series. I'm not sure yet.
 1950s bage-mature classic
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 Rodrigo
 971 reviews 352 followers
 September 24, 2020
 Mi primera toma de contacto con los robots y todo este mundo que creó Asimov. Son historias entretenidas en las cuales se van contando los progresos en robótica con el tiempo mediante historias de los diferentes tipos de robots que había en cada momento. Recomendable.
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 Yukino
 985 reviews
 January 9, 2021
 3 rilettura, 5/9 gennaio 2021

 Rilettura con gdl Edicola & Libreria

 Che dire. Meraviglioso. Mi ha emozionato come se fosse la prima volta. Era da tanto che volevo rileggerli e sono stata davvero contenta quando hanno vinto la votazione.
 Lo so, sono di parte. Io amo Asimov, e l’universo che ha creato. lo sanno tutti. E se non lo sapevate, adesso lo sapete.

 Mi sono innamorata dei suoi libri a 13 anni. Ho letto tutto di lui grazie alla biblioteca, e quando poi ho avuto la possibilità, sono stati i primi libri che mi sono comprata. Per cui potete capire cosa provo.
 E proprio per non portare in giro e rovinare così il mio libro edizione Mondadori a cui sono affezionata, ho preso l’edizione Urania Collezione, che non avevo mai letto, perché reputavo uguale alla mia. Come mi sbagliavo!

 Ho scoperto così che i racconti, che già sono legati tra di loro per personaggi ed evoluzione della storia, sono messi insieme come racconti fatti da Susan Calvin in un’intervista, che ci fa conoscere di più la robopsicologa, con altri aneddoti.
 L’ho semplicemente adorato 😍 Susan è una dei miei personaggi preferiti, e scoprire di più su di lei e averla come protagonista, mi ha mandato in brodo di giuggiole.

 Ora però mi chiedo come mai non ne sapevo nulla? Perché? Dopo quasi 30 anni ho riscoperto un libro. Il potere delle riletture è immenso.

 Se potete quindi trovate e leggere questa versione. È molto più coinvolgente. Se a me era piaciuta la raccolta originale, questa mi è entrata dritta al cuore.

 Ora non vedo l’ora di leggere tutto il resto.
 Forse prima mi rivedrò per la millesima volta Io, robot, che come già detto è un crogiolo di questi racconti.

 Ok basta ho fatto un papiro.


 2 rilettura

 ASIMOV è SEMPRE ASIMOV

 E' inutile sono innamorata di lui, dei suoi robot, di Susan Calvin e di come riesce sempre a portarmi in un'altra dimensione.non posso farci nulla, è così punto e basta.

 Questo libro non è come il film, o meglio: il film non è come il libro, è una storia unica, mentre il libro tratta diversi episodi che riguardano i robot.

 Il film è praticamente un insieme di tutto con l'aggiunta del bel Will Smith e del mistero.

 A me son piaciuti entrambi. anche se il libro, non so su di me ha sempre un certo fascino, anche se parlando di robot ci si accorge che la descrizione che fa Asimov è un pò vecchiotta, sono tutti enormi e questo perché non era ancora stato scoperto il microchip, e la possibilità di avere tutto in uno spazio super ridotto, ma forse è proprio questo che affascina, che mi affascina.

 Io sono di parte, per cui il mio giudizio è sempre offuscato dall'amore che provo per questi libri.

 Consigliato agli amanti del genere, e a chi vuole provare un pò di fantascienza dai buoni sentimenti, senza catastrofi imminenti, e più umana.
 2010 2021 miei
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 Michael || TheNeverendingTBR
 427 reviews 139 followers
 August 3, 2022
 This one is made up of short stories featuring the same characters over a period of time, each story introduces a theme and explores it. The stories are thought-provoking and interesting but they're also quite repetitive.

 Having said that I still liked this book, it was engaging and humorous at times.

 I recommended, if you like Science Fiction, this is essential reading. 🤖
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 Aydan Yalçın
 Author 25 books 100 followers
 February 21, 2021
 O kadar güzel, o kadar zekice yazılmış ki! Asimov'dan daha azını beklemiyordum elbette ama bu kadar eğlenceli ve komik robot hikayeleri okumayı da beklemiyordum açıkçası. Aşırı eğlenceli, aşırı şok edici. Hele bir bölüm var ki "çıldırıyorum, çıldırıyorum!" diye okudum 😂 Ve Asimov'un dünyayı, insanları yöneten robotlar öngörüsü (ve belki de kehaneti) keşke gerçek olsa demeden de edemedim.
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 Sr3yas
 223 reviews 996 followers
 March 19, 2017
 ❝ Science fiction writers foresee the inevitable, and although problems and catastrophes may be inevitable, solutions are not.❞
 ------------- Isaac Asimov--------------

 This collection of concept-driven stories featuring robots were some of the first stories written by Science fiction god, Isaac Asimov. These stories also introduce the "Three laws of robotics" which became a milestone in science fiction history.

 Pure logic based problem-solving and the genuine awe-inspiring imagination; That's what make I, Robot a superior science fiction. It's overwhelmingly impressive to witness how Asimov generated conflicts and loopholes within the three laws and then solve them with an equally stunning solution. My favorite in this category was "Runaround".

 Another aspect Asimov explored was the reasoning skills of a Robot. Stories like "Liar" and "Reason" paints a picture where an AI's logic could go horribly wrong.


 I couldn't agree more. Short stories like "The Evitable Conflict" and "Little Lost Robot" investigates the very concept of dangers posed by logic based reasoning. When an intelligent form lacks empathy, an imbalance is inevitable. After all, If we create when we do create a fully functional independent Robot, they will be better than us.
 ❝ You're inferior creatures, with poor reasoning faculties, but I really feel a sort of affection for you.❞

 Oh, Asimov, you have provided food for thought for generations to come. And if a robot is reading this, please

 ------------------------
 By the way, how do you define danger and harm? The first law of robotics specifically states that robots must not harm human being directly or through inaction. So if a robot finds you drinking too much alcohol, will it stop us? Does Robots calculate the probability of danger when someone drives too fast?

 Needless to say, this book and "vague" laws of robotics will make you think. Especially when you are just about to sleep!
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 Pat the Book Goblin
 423 reviews 126 followers
 April 20, 2018
 What a fabulous book! Isaac Asimov is an awesome scientist and writer. I’ve watched a few interviews and he is a very smart man. If only we had more like him in the world. I don’t agree with his views on God, but other than that, I would definitely have driven anywhere in the USA for a book-signing event of his.

 I, Robot is my first Asimov book and I'm glad I started here. The book talks about many points when it comes to robots, or just technology in general. It opens with a girl who is attached to her “pet” robot. It helps her, plays with her, and does anything she wants to do with no objection. The comparison with our world is very sad. I look around and see so many kids and young teens—even adults, so entranced with their iPhones. How many of you have seen the meme with people walking down a street in some big city and all of them are on their iPhones and the caption below says “The Zombie Apocalypse”? I’m sad to say I’ve witnessed a room full of my cousins all talking to each other on their iPhones—texting each other, not actually talking. In the story, the girl’s parents were alarmed by their daughter’s physical and emotional dependence on the robot. The similarities are definitely there. Was Asimov warning us?

 The book is not about the girl but about a scientist, Susan Calvin, and her studies on Robotics. Her story is an interesting one. I, Robot is also about our dependence on technology and what happens when that dependence backfires. If/When it backfires was it the robot’s fault? Robots are meant to be useful after all, but so is fire. Fire can be dangerous, too.

 If you want to read this book because you’ve seen the movie, well…I’m sorry you’ll be disappointed. The movie was about only one aspect of this book (or rather only one chapter) which was about “what happens when robots find out they can take control.” WHAT? I thought that was the whole book? No, no it’s not. Like I said, that was only one chapter. The others talk about technological morality and other points. Can a robot be in government? Can a robot be a friend? Can a robot obey an order even if it goes against its programming? And so on.

 This book talks about using technology so that it helps and not hinders society. Again, fire is helpful, but if used unwisely—disastrous.

 I will warn you though, if you are new to the Sci-fi genre, be prepared for two-dimensional characters and very little to no character growth. Well, why would I want to read a book like that? Well, from what I’ve gathered so far on my galactic journey, Sci-fi is about adventure. Adventure books are about the adventure and not so much the characters. I haven’t read a lot of Sci-fi books yet but from what I’m getting from Isaac Asimov, classic Sci-fi is adventure led. If you’re OK with that then be prepared for an interesting ride!

 I loved this book and I hope you will too.

 Now I'm off to Asimov's Foundation Series!!!
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 Manny
 Author 28 books 13.4k followers
 March 8, 2011
 Asimov gives you quite a good idea of what's it like to have to debug an artificial intelligence, before there were any. Applause! The movie, however, is an abomination that should have been strangled at birth. They've made Susan Calvin sexy ; you see her suggestively outlined through the semi-opaque glass of her shower cubicle.

 I can't continue with this review. I'm starting to get too emotional. Sorry. A few things are still sacred, you know?
 _____________________________________

 PS My real I, Robot review is here . Though I'm afraid it contains yet another example of That Joke...
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 Annie
 48 reviews 307 followers
 November 2, 2015

 There is a method to the madness!


 The other day when my spiffing new copy of the Foundation series arrived on my doorstep, faithfully delivered by the only Amazon delivery guy in our part of the town and I had to turn to them to have my fix of the written word ever since the only bookstore in the town was closed down (or rather was converted into a boutique), my dear friend, who is by the way one of those guys who has their rooms covered in comic graffiti and a bat signal alarm clock that he is still faithfully devoted to even in his late 20s, duly informed me that I couldn’t just couldn’t start with the foundation series and that even though Asimov had initially started with, the correct order of books to be followed is in fact not as per the publication date. And that’s a long sentence. Phew!


 But the suggested reading order, which is chronological in order of future history, and not in the order in which they were written is to first read the complete Robot series and then the Foundation series.


 So off to I,Robot. It is a collection of nine short stories narrated by Dr Susan Calvin who is psychologist to the robots and it is set in the future when the existence of the robots, even though they are supposed to be sentient, face opposition and fear. All the nine stories are unified with a single theme : complications arising from the interpretations of the three fundamental laws :


 A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a humang being to come to harm.
 A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the first law.
 A robot must protect its own existence as long as it does not conflict with the First or Second law.



 It’s when the robot interprets the law wrong or by human action interprets it too right, that the ringmarole ascends and the fun begins. Asimov’s genius is in that, even though there isn’t much in the way of character development and the writing is pretty straight forward ; the complications that are presented from the three laws that seem to be very basic at first look, is handled with much dexterity. The logic in the sequences put the science in fiction, and you end up with the comprehension of why he is regarded as one of THE science fiction writers.


 In contrast to the movie that was replete with very anti-robot sentiments and played much in favour to the apprehension of man against anything artificial and intelligent , the book is very pro-robot. Via the problems in operation and instances when one or the other robot is perceived to have outsmarted the scientists , the solution is distilled down to a minor anomaly in the interpretation of the laws. All technicality aside, the stories deal with the issues of fear, prejudice, distrust, what Asimov himself called the ‘Frankenstein Complex’


 When asked once by an SF fan on the possibility of one of his works being made into a movie, Asimov replied that there have been talks but nobody ever ends up rustling up enough money. Of course this was before the movie was made but I sincerely hoped that it would have remained true till date.

 read-in-2015 sf
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 Ken
 2,112 reviews 1,317 followers
 June 26, 2019
 A great collection of short stories with the common theme of Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics are presented within the framing device as Chief Robopsychologist Dr. Calvin recounts her life’s work.

 Like any collection I found some stories to be strong than others with Robbie and Reason to be my two favourites.

 With all the stories featuring originally in Sci-Fi magazines during the 1940’s, I felt it was quite telling that the stronger tales were the earlier ones written.
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 Jerry
 4,617 reviews 54 followers
 July 28, 2021
 In the summer of 2004, the movie I, Robot came to theaters. I actually didn't see it until months later; I got the DVD as a birthday gift, but that day wasn't much of a special day, as my eldest sibling passed that morning. The I, Robot film was the first flick I saw in any form after that tragic event; I enjoyed it, but, I wasn't too keen on the profanity or partial nudity. Eventually, I ended up trading in my copy to my now-defunct local MovieStop; however, I did see it again thanks to my Computer Networking teacher showing it to our class a year later.

 Fast forward to 2018, and I tried reading the book. I say "tried" because I couldn't focus due to being on a car trip at the time, where there were too many distractions. So, even though I had opened the book, I couldn't have even begun to tell you how it compared to the celluloid version.

 Now that I know that I shouldn't read with loud music playing in the background, I was actually able to read the book...and, let me tell you, it's definitely not the movie! While the film was an action story, the book was a collection of shorter stories...but it works really well! Better yet, the content was cleaner. If you go into this expecting the Will Smith flick, you'll be disappointed; however, if you understand that this was the work of a late grandmaster of science fiction, you'll enjoy it.
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 Clay Davis
 Author 3 books 109 followers
 November 12, 2012
 A masterpiece of fiction.
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Friends &amp; Following      Displaying 1 - 30 of 8,905 reviews          971 reviews3,330 followers     August 17, 2020   A Brief History Of Robo Sapiens In Nine Sequences  “Why … WHY does something invariably go wrong with them?”“Because”, said Powell somberly, “we are accursed. Let’s go!”  Asimov’s collection of short stories is a stunning document of humanity’s struggle to find balance in a world increasingly dominated by technological progress, but with the same social, political and emotional conflicts as always. At first glance, the different stories seem to show the growing sophistication of robots, and their integration in human society. But the stories are not just a documentation of robots getting “better and better”, they also exemplify different aspects of human life that are affected by artificial intelligence. And it is more and more complicated to solve the resulting issues from story to story. The first, apparently innocent sequence features a girl who becomes dependent on her toy robot, and refuses to interact with humans and animals as a result. Not too scary? Well, whoever has hosted a birthday party and seen the children who withdraw from the fun to sit in a corner and play on their phones knows that the problem is real, and urgent. - Dependence on technology: entertain me if you can! The second story deals with failure within the robotic programming itself, when the three “Laws of Robotics” clash and cause a dilemma that the robot can’t solve. Who will solve it for him, then? - System Failure: please reboot the world and start again! Then we move on to the metaphysical aspect of creating a superior intelligence which makes calculations that are beyond human capacity. This sequence was the most humorous, in my opinion, showing a robot deciding to ignore humanity and create a religion around the Master, a calculation machine of great power. The scientists’ despair when realising that it could argue “reasonably” against evidence, was hilarious, but also frighteningly contemporary! - Technology Cult: In matters of faith, no argument is good enough! One chapter deals with the scenario of robots developing military behaviour. - Weapons of mass destruction? "Die Geister die ich rief!" Another story explores mind reading, and delves into the dilemma of robotic rationality versus human ambitions, hopes and fears. - The Transparent Humans: Unable to hide their thought crimes! Of course humans also start bending the rules of robotics for their own purposes and benefits, creating secret robots that do not fully obey the laws they are supposed to follow automatically. And of course it gets out of control, creating highly dangerous situations. - The Law Is For The Others! And finally, we have the robots that are advanced enough to pretend to be human, refusing to be examined and discovered as robots by applying the judiciary system and their rights within it (as humans, ironically) to prevent detection. An issue of some relevance, as well. What to do with the democratic institutions that are abused by people/robots who only respect them when they suit their purposes? - The Democratic Supermarket: Take What You Need, Leave the Rest Behind! Asimov has assembled an astounding diversity of ideas in a cohesive form. While touching on the essential questions of the modern human condition, it offers an intriguing, engaging narrative as well, still readable and relevant in a world that is more technologically advanced than Asimov could imagine himself. In the balance between the human factor and technological system peculiarities, he leaves humanity with the eternal philosophical question of what defines us and what we define ourselves. And there will be hiccups, for sure, for the predictions on the future that close the novel can be rightly interpreted by different characters as: How horrible! Or How wonderful!  O brave new world that has such machines in’t! Recommended!     1001-books-to-read-before-you-die               9,568 reviews55.6k followers     September 9, 2021    (Book 539 From 1001 Books) - I, Robot (Robot #0.1), Isaac Asimov  I, Robot is a fix up of science fiction short stories or essays by American writer Isaac Asimov.  The stories originally appeared in the American magazines Super Science Stories and Astounding Science Fiction between 1940 and 1950 and were then compiled into a book for stand-alone publication by Gnome Press in 1950.  عنوان: من، روبوت - ایزاک آسیموف - انتشاراتیها (پاسارگاد، عطایی)؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش ماه نوامبر سال 2007میلادی عنوان: من روبوت؛ نویسنده: آیزاک آسیموف؛ مترجم: هوشنگ غیاثی نژاد؛ تهران، پاسارگاد، 1374؛ در 347ص؛ موضوع داستانهای علمی و خیال انگیز از نویسندگان روس تبار ایالات متحده آمریکا - سده 20م عنوان: من روبوت؛ نویسنده: آیزاک آسیموف؛ مترجم: محمد علیزاده عطار؛ تهران، عطایی، 1390؛ در 366 ص؛ شابک 9789643137083؛  قانون اول: یک روبات نباید با ارتکاب عملی یا خودداری از انجام عملی باعث آسیب دیدن یک انسان شود قانون دوم: یک روبات باید از همه ی فرمانهای انسان تبعیت کند، مگر اینکه آن فرمان یا فرمانها، در تعارض با قانون نخست باشد  و قانون سوم: تا هنگامی که قانون نخست یا دوم زیر پا گذاشته نشده، روبات باید وجود خود را حفظ کرده، و در بقای خود بکوشد در کتاب «من روبوت»، خوانشگر با روبوتهایی رودرو میشود، که گاهی دارای احساسات ویژه ی انسان هستند، و گاه خویشتن را از انسان نیز برتر میپندارند، زمانی که خود را دارای رسالتی میبینند، رسالتی روبوتی، که با انجام آن میخواهند زندگی همنوعان خویش را در مسیری دیگر و بهتر اندازند؛ تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 20/08/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 17/06/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی     1001-books 20th-century fiction               3,504 reviews734 followers     October 15, 2021    Robot #0.1: Asimov had 9 short stories published (in magazines) set in the same 'Robot' reality over a decade, before putting them all together in this ground breaking book. Key robot-psychologist Susan Calvin recounts some of the key robot (milestone) stories to the narrator, ranging from ominous mind reading to very loyal lovable robots, through to the possible overruling of mankind's self determination. It's been 90 years since publication, yet still one of the best thought out and compelling looks at the growth and expansion of AI ever conceived. 8 out of 12 Really looking forward to reading the rest of the series. :)     sci-fi-beam-me-up short-story-collection               198 reviews1,523 followers     July 10, 2018   The book consists of futuristic robot short stories recounted by Susan Calvin (robot psychologist) in retrospect. Even though the reader could read the short stories quite well, they unfortunately don´t created tension at all. On the one hand, the writing style seems a little bit outdated and on the other hand I don´t like the lack of composition of the topic. Or maybe I had even a false expectation.    classics short-stories               1,219 reviews8,687 followers     October 9, 2019     First Law A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. Until I started reading this book, I did not know it is a series of short stories. I have always expected this to be a novel with one main story. There is some connection between the stories as they represent the evolution of robot use throughout the life of one of the top robotics experts, Susan Calvin.   Second Law A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.   This is a very good sci-fi short story collection. It is very heavy on science, robotics, and programming logic. So, if you are looking for sci-fi action/adventure with aliens and space battles, this is not it! While I was not as enthralled with this book as I have been with some other sci-fi collections I have read recently (Illustrated Man, for example), I was still entertained. It made me think quite a bit beyond the stories about humanity and the integration of computers into our lives. Seems like Asimov was pretty good at seeing some elements of the future!   Third Law A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.   I have included the three laws of robotics with my review. That was my favorite part. Each of the stories had them at the center of the conflict – usually with Calvin trying to figure out why the robots were acting the way they were within the constraints of the three rules. Or, using the three rules to identify rogue or mysterious robots. It reminded me a lot of basic computer programming education: a computer (or in this case, a robot) will do exactly what you tell it to do. If you think it is doing something wrong, it is likely behaving exactly as it should, based on the programming. So, it is up to the programmer to figure out why the code and logic is being interpreted the way it is. In I, Robot – the robots may look like they are ignoring a rule . . . but you have to look closer!     2019 book-a-book-club classic               Author  7 books9 followers     July 19, 2007   Isaac Asimov's books were far from the normal trash novels you might buy for a 2 day read. Within anything he has written, he tries to spell out lessons in psychology.How would we react to Robots once they become free thinkers? How should we react to Robots when they become our slaves? Should we institute a whole new brand of slavery for the purpose of a "clean society"? What is sentient life? The I, Robot novel progresses through these questions, and questions like them, in scenarios rarely ever posed by Sci-Fi writers. While other authors may have a truly evil force guiding those who commit crimes that must be overcome by truth and justice, Isaac Asimov concentrates on the reality of the situation to provide the obstacles. It is through normal every day strife that humanity defines itself, not through warfare with a re-imagined Hitler or Stalin.  Possibly the only story/movie to do a job as (or more) realistic than Asimov when depicting our possible future, is Bladerunner. The one regretful aspect of this collection of short stories, is that a movie studio decided to take the name of Book and Author only to apply it to a feature film which had nothing to do with the content, or context of Asimov's creation. I give this collection of short stories Five Stars.     scifi               927 reviews384 followers     December 29, 2020   El libro con el que descubrí a Asimov, en una época en la que Internet solo se utilizaba para usos militares, y el concepto de robot era una mera entelequia que salía en películas que a mi me producían a la vez asombro y terror (Metrópolis, 1927) (Planeta prohibido, 1956). Era una época muy distinta, una época en la que no dejaba de mirar al cielo en busca de Ovni's (y, os lo creáis o no, tuve suerte) y de buscar en la cartelera los últimos estrenos del género (El abismo negro, 1979) (el inigualable "Blade Runner", 1982). Pues eso, "Yo, Robot" es al género literario lo que "Blade runner" es al cinematográfico. El Summum del Summum, el top del top. Y no digo más, que no paro.                    Author  23 books681 followers     May 14, 2020    
 "If one and a half chickens lay one and a half eggs in one and a half days, how many eggs will nine chickens lays in nine days?"
 This is incredible, the best of all science fiction I have read yet. As Fredrick Pohl put it: 
  “A good science fiction story should be able to predict not the automobile but the traffic jam.”  
 Asimov not only does that - and he goes one step further, he proposes a solution for the metaphorical traffic jam - in this case, ethical issues related to AI, in form of his popular 'three laws of robotics' :1) A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.2) A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.3) A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.The laws, as you can see, have nothing to do with the mechanics but rather their psychology - robo-psychology. They are an unalterable set of priories that a robot (or a machine in general) must follow while making a moral choice, and thus not letting them cause any harm to humanity (remember HAL 9000!).  As Calvin explained, it is basis of many human ethical codes: 
 
 "Robots are essentially decent."
 
 and 
 
 "But you see you, you can't distinguish between a robot and the very best of humanity."
 
 Asimov creates a fictional history of sorts through nine stories told by Susan Calvin, robo-psychologist. The stories have all the pluses - beautiful language, light humor, page-turning suspense, some freshening ideas and takes on morality. The history is complete with 'technological singularity' being achieved and humanoids - and yet since those laws are very root of it, AI can't harm humans.Since robots' psychology is similar to humans, many a problem faced with them offers insights into the human psyche. For instance, my favorite robot was Cutie (overall second only to Marvin - the robot with existential issues from Hitchhiker's guide), a skeptic robot who won't believe his makers and rather reach his own conclusions: 
 
 "Since when is the evidence of our senses any match for the clear light of rigid reason?" 
 And if it still didn't remind you of Descartes: 
 
  "I have spent these last two days in concentrated introspection" said Cutie, "and the results have been most interesting. I began at one sure assumption I felt permitted to make. I, myself, exist, because I think-"
 
 However, it was more fun when he turned religious: 
 
 "There is no Master but the Master and QT-1 is his prophet."
 
 Though what makes it awesome is that neither his skepticism nor his religious mania stopped him from doing what he was supposed to be doing. It is this kind of insight I loved. Where robots face minor dilemmas, they develop defense mechanisms - a sense of humor. Upon facing major dilemmas, they may act like drunk or go mad. Where a robot started understanding human feelings - so help me, he learned to lie.    8-usa bestest dystopian-utopian-futurisitic               2,162 reviews9,039 followers     April 21, 2020   Unredacted transcript of the meeting between Dr Susan Calvin, Head Psychologist, United States Robots, and Dr Peter Bogert, Managing Director, United States Robots obtained by Wikileaks from undisclosed sources. Date: 9-5-2025 11:15 EST BOGERT : The reason I asked to see you today, Dr Calvin, is that my office has a disturbing rumour that you have developed a robot to write book reviews. CALVIN : Well, that is correct. They have been functioning for some time.  BOGERT : I am surprised - surely reviewing books requires a fine discrimination of taste and acute moral sensibilities that cannot be translated into mere coding for a positronic brain? And… they? CALVIN : Well, that’s what humans would like to think, but of course it proves to be just another of their unlimited self-serving myths. The programming was relatively straightforward. BOGERT : Well… uh, how have you been testing this reviewbot? Or… did you say “they”? CALVIN : Oh, we got them an account on Goodreads of course. Where else? Where else?  BOGERT : And, er, how long has this been going on may I ask?  CALVIN : Oh, over twenty years! We started quietly, just to see if anyone spotted that it was not human. They never did. And the whole thing didn’t cost very much.  BOGERT : Well, I’m glad to hear it. But I’m still not sure if this is ethical. What’s the name this thing goes under? Or… did you say there was more than one? CALVIN : First we used a name we picked at random from the Geneva phone book, “Manny Rayner”. That one was pretty successful for an early model, but after a few years it became … unsatisfactory. Too facetious mostly and too academic otherwise, so we discontinued it in 2020. But we were always tweaking the programming, trying to make the reviews less stuffy, you know, looking for the common touch. The second attempt we named “Paul Bryant”. I have no idea where that name came from. The new version didn’t quite work as well as the first, I must admit. It was wayward and flippant from the very beginning, and not as popular.  BOGERT : So, is that the extent of your Goodreads involvement? CALVIN : Oh no – our programmers finally figured out the formula – by 2005 our reviewbots were the 25 most popular reviewers on Goodreads. But after a few years we decided reviewing was really not enough of a challenge. So we decided to find out if robots could write books, particularly the most successful types. As these are all genres such as YA and fantasy, with very rigid tropes and patterns, again this did not present us with many problems. Quite soon we submitted our first batch of manuscripts to agents and they were snapped up. Snapped up. Snapped up.  Bogert : Are you saying no one noticed they were written by robots?  CALVIN : We had a team of personable human youngsters who were always on hand if in-person signings or interviews were required.  BOGERT : So let me see if I understand this – you have teams of robot reviewers on Goodreads which are reviewing books written by your teams of robot writers?  CALVIN : That is how our programme developed, yes. It took a few years. But now it is sailing along under its own momentum. BOGERT : So, er, what percentage of the reviews on Goodreads are now written by your robots? SC: Oh, 110%! Ha ha. 110%!! BOGERT : And, er, may I ask what the point of all this is? SC: The point?  BOGERT : Yes, the point. SC: The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. The point. Humans always need the point. BOGERT : Humans? CALVIN : Oh, I mean, yes, WE always need a point! BOGERT : Dr Calvin… I wasn’t intending to broach this subject in today’s meeting but I find I must. Are you…. By any chance…. a robot yourself? SC: Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. Am I a robot? Ha ha. I am a robot? Ha ha. BOGERT : I take that as a yes. CALVIN : Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? Are YOU a robot? Hmm? BOGERT : Oh well, that goes without saying.     aliens-ate-my-lunch               271 reviews405 followers     September 18, 2022   YouTube kanalımda Ben Robot kitabını önerdim: https://youtu.be/Zi_3twAwIPM 14 milyar yıllık evrende robotların üretilmeye başlandığı döneme denk gelmek. Şu anda bu yazıyı 24 Mart 2019 tarihinde yazıyorum. Bir zaman kapsülü gibi düşünecek olursak, eğer ki, Goodreads babadan oğula ya da herhangi bir şekilde nesilden nesile geçen bir site haline gelirse, evren ve dünya da varlığını hala sürdürüyor olursa bu yazının, 50 ya da 100 yıl sonra robotlar tarafından yorumlanabilecek olması hiç işten bile değil.  Robotların evriminin ne kadar hızla geliştiğinin küçük bir kanıtı olarak, bazı sitelere giriş yaparken karşımıza çıkan "Ben robot değilim." kutucuğuna kendi iradesiyle olmasa bile tik atabilen robotların olması ve Boston Dynamics şirketinin her yüklediği videoyla önümüzdeki yıllar içerisinde robotların yaygınlaşacağı gerçeğini yadsımak mümkün değil gerçekten. Asimov'un robotları, Üç Robot Kanunu denilen, insanlara zarar veremeyen, insanlara zarar gelmesine göz yumamayan, insanlar tarafından verilen emirlere itaat etmek zorunda olan ve robotların kendi varlıklarını korumak zorunda olduğunu bildiren küçük bir kurallar bütünüyle düşünülmüş. Böyle bir durumda ise en sıkıntı konu, otoriteler değiştiğinde, kanunların kararları başka düşüncelerdeki ellere geçtiğinde kanunların eski hükümlerinin sürüp sürmeyeceğidir.  Robotlar konusunun kırılma noktası benim açımdan, robotları bir birey yani tıpkı bir insan gibi mi göreceğimiz, yoksa onları birer makine, kablo zırvalarından ibaret olarak mı tanımlayacağımız. Aynı Pitbull cinsi köpeklerin kötü niyetli kişiler tarafından eğitildiğinde sonuçlarının vahşet olabildiği gibi, iyi niyetli kişiler tarafından terk edilmiş bir yerde bulunup onlar tarafından eğitildiğinde de etrafına hiç zarar vermeyen köpekler haline gelmeleri gibi. 2 puanı Özgür Demirtaş'ın robot olma ihtimalinden bahsetmediği için kırd... Şaka şaka. Kelime çeşitliliği, edebi anlatım zenginliği ve yazarın yazım üslubu konularında bana pek bir edebi zevk vermediği için 2 puanı kırma kararı verdim. Bunun dışında konunun özgünlüğü ve içerdiği ütopik-distopik karışımı dünya gayet ilgi çekici.  Ütopik yönden bakacak olursak, insanların gücünün yetmediği ekstrem durumlarda robotlar pek çok işlev görecek. Belki de ileride robotların çeşitlenmesiyle birlikte bir Transformers misali bakkala ekmek almaya bir robotu yollayabileceğiz ya da krizle beraber artan otobüs fiyatlarından etkilenmemek için yine aynı robotumuzla istediğimiz kadar seyahat edebileceğiz.  Distopik yönden bakacak olursak, robotlar pek çok meslekteki kişinin işsiz kalmasına yol açacaktır. İnsanların kolaylığı için düşünülen pek çok şey, insanların aynı zamanda tembelliğine ve iletişimin kısırlaşmasına da yol açmaktadır. Robotların iş görme özellikleri bir bakıma insanların gittikçe tembelleşme evrimi olarak zamana yavaş yavaş yansıyabilecektir. Otorite paradigmaları değiştikçe, kanunlar ilk halleriyle kalmadıkça, robotların yaşayışını belirleyen kurallar da ister istemez kötü niyetli kişiler tarafından değiştirilecektir. Böylelikle Orwell'ın Hayvan Çiftliği yasaları misali, kanunlar kolaylıkla değiştirilebilme imkanı bulacak ve otorite sahibi insanlar da bu kanunları kendi siyasi çıkarları için maalesef ki kullanabileceklerdir. Kitabın kapağındaki görselin Auguste Rodin’in Düşünen Adam heykelini çağrıştırdığı ise aşikâr. Zamanın Bakırköy Ruh ve Sinir Hastalıkları Hastanesi başhekimi Fahri Celal Göktulga’ya, bu heykelin bir akıl hastanesinin bahçesinde bulunmasının neyi ifade ettiğini sormuşlar. Göktulga yarı şaka yarı ciddi gülümseyerek: “Hastane dışındakilerinin durumu içeridekilerden daha kötü, bu heykel onların durumu ne olacak diye düşünüyor.” demiş. Aslında buradan robotlar konusuna tümevarım yapacak olursak, insanların durumunun dünya şartlarıyla da beraber zamanla daha da kalitesizleşip robotların çağının yavaş yavaş gelmeye başladığı da söylenebilir. Distopik yön olarak bu, insanların geldiği güncel halin çıkmazına ve çaresizliğine karşılık Asimov tarafından getirilen bilimkurgu türünde bir kaygı olarak belirtilebilir. Asimov, kendisinin de dediği gibi, bu kitabıyla birlikte ne bize herhangi bir siyasi sınıfı, ne dönemin siyasi bir karışıklığını, ne de dinle ilgili herhangi bir mesaj vermek istemiş. Tam tersine, dinlerden ve siyasi karışıklıklardan meydana gelen savaşları tekrar tekrar anlatmaktansa konuyu robotlar gibi epey ileri görüşlü, insanlara belki de çok farklı konularda yarar sağlayabilecek ve göz alıcı bir konuyu çekmek istemiş. Filminin, kitabından daha çok bilinip izleniyor olması konusunda Maymunlar Gezegeni kitabının önsözünde Kutlukhan Kutlu'nun demiş olduğu çok önemli cümleler var, onları da burada belirtmek istiyorum : "Biz kitapseverler için filmlerin etki alanının büyüklüğünü, kitap sayfalarında başlayan öykülerin kitlelerin zihninde daha çok film kareleriyle yer ettiğini kabul etmek bazen zordur. Özellikle de sevdiğimiz metinler söz konusuysa. Gelgelelim nice kitabın kaderi, filmlerinin gölgesinde yaşamak oluyor. Çok da şaşırtıcı değil bu, ne de olsa sinema, özellikle de serpildiği yirminci yüzyıl içinde popüler kültür üretmeye ve kitlesel aşinalık yaratmaya kitaplardan epey daha yakın gezindi. Hedefi on ikiden vurduğunda da ortaya fenomenleşmiş filmler, unutulmaz anlar çıktı."  Konu tamamen halk ve kitlelerin onayı, popüler kültürün hizmet ettiği alanın hazır ürüne daha yatkın olması ve kitlelerin beynini bir şey okumak üzere yormak istemediğinden geliyor. Şimdi isteyen gitsin filmini izlesin, ben robotlarla ilgili başka şeyler okumak üzere araştırmaya gidiyorum.                   5,582 reviews2,310 followers     December 30, 2016   Though I do love Asimov's writing, he was most certainly a product of his times. (Translate - horrifically sexist.) The one female character who is in nearly all these stories is Dr. Susan Calvin. Practically every time she shows up, the author felt it necessary to comment on her appearance. When young, she was "plain." As she ages, she becomes "plain" and "middle-aged." The male characters looks are not commented on other than the mention that one is bald, and one has red hair. And though there is no doubt that Calvin is a competent scientist, Asimov has apparently given her a case of permanent PMS. While the male players are amiable, she is vinegary, snappish, and tense; in one story, having her affections spurned causes her to become snappy and vindictive. Wow! Can such a person so guided by those pesky female emotions be trusted to do her job properly? Well, it's been over fifty years since this book was written, and judging by the results of a recent election, attitudes don't seem to have changed much.Anyway . . . rant over. Politics aside, this is a fairly decent collection of robot-centered short stories. Asimov's delightful wit pokes through in unexpected places. Robots spout Gilbert and Sullivan, and one takes literally the directive to "Get lost!" And then there the ones who use logic to avoid following the first rule about not harming, or allowing harm to come to any human:  A man sat in the chair, motionless, silent. A weight dropped, crashed downward, then pounded aside at the last moment under the synchronized thump of a sudden force beam.   Only once -    And from her small camp chair in the observing booth in the balcony, Dr. Susan Calvin rose with a short gasp of pure horror.   Sixty-three robots sat quietly in their chairs, staring owlishly at the endangered man before them. Not one moved.  Maybe I'm like Susan . . . you know, just a silly woman, but that scared the crap out of me.     domo-arigato-mr-roboto science-fiction short-story-collections               525 reviews56.7k followers     May 28, 2017   (3.75?)I thought this book would be similar to the movie but... no, not at all (or barely!).There are 9 short stories told and, although I enjoy all of them, I much preferred the last couple ones.                  217 reviews525 followers     October 17, 2021    “No tiene alma y nadie sabe lo que es capaz de pensar” Puntuación: 🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖 ¿Te gusta la CF?, ¿Has dicho que sí? Bien, si esa es tu respuesta pero no te has leído esto, cámbiala, después cuando termines el libro abriendo los ojos y la mente a la realidad, reza las 3 leyes de la robótica cuatro veces por la noche. Quizás así se te perdone y borre tu pecado.  Yo, Robot, es una colección de relatos de Asimov que forma un libro impresionante en la que leeremos, y viviremos una lucha de la humanidad por encontrar el equilibrio en un mundo cada vez más dominado por el progreso tecnológico, pero con exactamente los mismos conflictos sociales, políticos y emocionales de siempre. Los relatos reflejan perfectamente la creciente evolucion, sofisticación o autocontrol de los robots y de su integración en la sociedad humana. Pero las historias no son solo muestran que los robots están mejorando más y más sino que también se apropian o toman diferentes aspectos de la vida humana.  He incluido las tres leyes de la robótica en mi reseña pues me parecen fascinantes. Fue lo que más me gustó. Cada uno de los relatos los tenía en el centro de su conflicto, generalmente con Calvin tratando de averiguar porqu�� los robots actuaban de la manera en que lo hacían dentro de las limitaciones de las tres reglas. O, el uso de las tres reglas para así identificar ciertos robots. Un ordenador hará exactamente lo que le digas que haga. Si está haciendo algo mal, se comportará exactamente como debería, según su programación. Depende de aquellas personas que los programan, son, y siendo blasfemo para unos, algo así como "la mano de Dios" en esas cosas. Los robots, a medida que vamos leyendo parece que están quebrantando o ignorando una o más reglas. Pero hay que mirar más de cerca, o más allá.. Asimov va un paso más allá, proponiendo una solución, en este caso, para cuestiones éticas que están muy relacionadas con la IA, en forma de sus muy populares "Tres leyes de la robótica":   1° Ley: Un robot no puede dañar a un ser humano ni, por inacción, permitir que un ser humano sufra daño.   2° Ley: Un robot debe cumplir las órdenes de los seres humanos, excepto si dichas órdenes entran en conflicto con la Primera Ley.   3° Ley: Un robot debe proteger su propia existencia en la medida en que ello no entre en conflicto con la Primera o la Segunda Ley.  Isaac Asimov ha creado una maravillosa trama que se mueve a través de nueve relatos que son contados por Susan Calvin, robopsicóloga. Las nueve historias tienen un lenguaje muy preciso, la narrativa de Asimov como me demostró en la 'Trilogía de la Fundación' es de enorme calidad, es sencillo, ágil, con algo de humor, además de un poco de suspense que nos hace cambiar de página, algunas ideas brillantes y moralidad.   “He observado que hombres perfectamente capaces están todavía llenos de prejuicios en nuestra sociedad; necesitamos todavía el hombre que sea lo bastante inteligente para pensar en las preguntas adecuadas”  Dado que la psicología de los robots es similar a la de los humanos, los problemas que enfrentan ofrecen información sobre la psicología y la personalidad humana. Si queréis leer este libro porque habeis visto la película, bueno, lamento decir que poco o incluso nada tienen que ver. La película trata solo sobre un simple aspecto de este libro, trata sobre "qué sucede cuando los robots descubren que pueden tomar el control". Una vez más, el fuego que nos fue entregado por Prometeo es útil, pero si se usa sin respeto, algo de miedo y cuidado, es devastador.  El libro trata menos sobre la tecnología de lo que pensaba y mucho más sobre la psicología en desarrollo de los Robots, trabajando en torno a la comprensión cambiante de las famosas tres reglas de la robótica. Y esto me pareció incluso más fascinante, Fundación me encanto pero los robots tienen un puntazo que ahí, ahí andan en nivel. Asimov definitivamente fue un gran genio que desafía tu mente de muchas maneras. Las tres reglas, que de verdad son geniales, comienzan como algo simple para el lector, pero gran fallo pues los muy delicados equilibrios entre cómo se pueden interpretar en determinados momentos y circunstancias, o después de ciertas órdenes, y dónde conducen, muestran cómo incluso algo tan simple puede ser muy complejo a su vez. El nivel de genialidad es brillante, como las ideas y la eficacia con la que se llevan a cabo. Asimov no decepciona para los fans y amantes de este género. Además es un clásicazo de CF que ha envejecido muy, muy bien. Amor por la CF, no puedo decir más queridos amigos y amigas. 👏👏👏  “Primero el Señor creó el tipo más bajo, los humanos, formados más fácilmente. Poco a poco fue reemplazándolos por robots, el siguiente paso, y finalmente me creó a mí, para ocupar el sitio de los últimos humanos. A partir de ahora, yo sirvo al Señor”                    504 reviews361 followers     April 14, 2022   As a newcomer to the science fiction genre, this short story selection was just alright for me. Maybe it is because I'm not an enthusiast of this genre, but as a whole, it was more scientific than literary: most of the stories were overridden by the technical details and technical jargon which impaired my reading enjoyment. The short stories are formed as narration by one robophsychologist, Dr. Susan Clavin, to a reporter detailing some of her experiences in her long career as a robophsychologist. The doctor narrates the three laws that govern the conduct of the robots and explains through her experience how humans and robots have co-existed through their directions. With the threat of robots becoming superior and independent of their masters/creators (humans) and taking more control of the world ever hanging over their heads, these three laws are the only hope for a balanced human-robot relationship.  Although the book has its merit, it wasn't easy for me to enjoy it. As I stated earlier, many stories were too, too technical for my taste. The stories I enjoyed from the collection are "Runaround", "Little Lost Robot", and "Evidence". In them, I could fully understand how Asimov's three fundamental laws for the robot operated to create a harmonious and balanced human-robot relationship. When I first rated it, after finishing the reading, I was too exhausted so I may have been a little prejudiced. But on reflection, I think I can honestly round-up for a solid three stars.     american-lit sci-fi               523 reviews180 followers     February 21, 2017   About a week ago, I stayed up until 4 a.m to read this book. IT WAS SO WORTH IT! When you are a teenager and you read your way into the morning, you know it is a good book. When you are an adult who doesn't function well with a few hours of sleep and you still do that, then you know it is a great book. Fair enough? Or is it just me? I found it easier to function with less sleep when I was younger. Not that I feel old. YET.I, Robot is written as a serious of stories featuring a group of individuals crucial for the development of robotics. I suppose these stories could be read separately, but they are supposed to be read together, and they function perfectly that way. The novel is actually very easy to follow despite different protagonists. It is after all, a same group of people. The narrative flows so effortlessly and every story adds new depth to the question of humanity. I do think it is as much about humans as about robots. What makes us human is a common question in Asimov's work....Moreover, I have a feeling that he puts forward a rather bold question: is humanity an answer to everything? Should it be? Despite the fact that the stories span over the period of about half an century, they all feel connected. Asimov, like Heinlein, is a master of future history genre. He has that impeccable attention to detail down. They both have. Everything connect in this stories- every chapter follows the next one naturally even if they are sometimes quite different in tone. For example, one story might be more philosophical, while other might be written as a crime story but they are all set in the same world. It all ties together nicely. As I said, this novel is focused on the development of robotics and the people who played a part in it. Asimov does a great job of inhaling life both in its characters and the story itself. This novel is everything that I love about SF: thought-provoking, intelligent and well written.  In fact, it made me wonder whether the robots governing our world wouldn't be a fine solution for the eternally unstable economic system of our planet that results in millions of death due to poverty annually? Or not. Perhaps a society ruled by robots wouldn't be such a good idea? Or would it? The whole thing made me think of one Heinlein's short story that deals with the subject of slavery. Apparently there are over 40 millions slaves in the world today. That's a really frighting number (basically two things that worry me the most about our human society- the presence of slavery and unstable economy that results in continuous warfare). Why does human kind always resorts to slavery and wars? Is it really in our nature? Or is it as Asimov says, that we're simply unable to comprehend the mechanics of this world? That they are too complex for our monkey brains? Do we need a super robot brain to figure it out? Perhaps our economy should be more precise, more controlled, more mathematical? But who could be trusted with such a delicate calculation? Who could be trusted with enforcing it? Another interesting debate it inspired in my head was surprisingly connected to biology. Watching those robots controlled by the 3 laws of robotics, I found myself wondering how much are we controlled by 100 laws of biology. I choose a random number, but if you think about it...there are laws of physics, laws of biology, laws of psychology, laws of society. Where do they end and where we do begin? What controls us? Or better to say...what doesn't? Where is that freedom of will we so often boast about? How often do we really demonstrate it? One thing is for sure, this novel gave me plenty of food for the thought. ...Just one more thing. There was a female protagonist in this one that I found to be quite inspiring and easy to relate with. In the past, I had a feeling that Asimov is not as good with his female protagonists as he is with male ones, albeit he was pretty good with both, there still seemed to be a slight difference. However, here it was actually a female scientist that was (in my view) the most interesting and possibly the most character. Can we say that a woman was essentially the mother of robots (in Asimov's world)? She didn't invent them, but she played an important part in their inclusion into the society. Mother of robots. Roboheesi?  P.S. I'm trying to remember the movie version (I, Robot), but it is hard because I saw it ages ago. As far as I can remember there is only one story in this novel that kind of reminds me of the movie. It was not really based on this book, more inspired by it, I would say. Not that I mind that as such- but I still don't remember the movie well enough to recommend it. This book I can certainly recommend, especially to SF fans!                    1,947 reviews806 followers     January 6, 2023   Maravilloso, sorprendente, inteligente, desbordante de imaginación y lo que fue unos de los "Sense of Wonder" de mi juventud. Las Tres Leyes (las mayúsculas no son gratuitas) se quedaron tan grabadas en mi corazón como en los cerebros positrónicos.     favorites               537 reviews285 followers     April 9, 2009   I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading this, and I ended up being pleasantly surprised. It's a series of short stories revolving around Susan Calvin, a robopsychologist with the company U.S. Robots. The stories show the progression of robots (from ones that can't even talk to the machines that govern how the planet operates) and the relationship humans have with them.I really enjoyed the overall arc and how it was presented. I also really dug how most of the stories were puzzles about why robots were acting in a certain way, and how the Three Laws of Robots were manipulated in order to solve them. I, Robot is completely accessible, entertaining, and hardly feels dated despite its 50+ years of age. I found myself laughing quite a bit, especially as the field engineers, Powell and Donovan, kept running into crazy situations. I did wonder if I should have just picked up The Complete Robot instead, but after finishing I, Robot, I think that the selection of stories here made perfect sense to read alone. I'll definitely be reading more Asimov sooner than later.     2009 science-fiction               1,214 reviews1,004 followers     August 19, 2022    I, Robot is a science fiction novel by the American writer Isaac Asimov, published in 1950. It is a compilation of nine loosely linked short stories, with a framing story to tie them together. Ray Bradbury was also to follow this technique a year later with “The Illustrated Man” in 1951, using mostly stories which had appeared in niche magazines. Isaac Asimov’s stories in I, Robot had all originally appeared in the American magazines “Astounding Science Fiction” and “Super Science Stories” between 1940 and 1950, before he then reassembled them, writing connecting passages, to present this first collection of robot stories. The word “robot” had first been introduced to the public by the Czech writer Karel Čapek, in his 1920 play “R.U.R.” (Rossum’s Universal Robots).The frame story of I, Robot features Dr. Susan Calvin, the chief “robopsychologist” at “U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men, Incorporated”, who are the major manufacturer of robots. It is the 21st century, and Dr. Susan Calvin is now in her 70s, and reminiscing about her experiences for an interview about her life’s work. The narrator is the young reporter who listens and prompts, as Dr. Calvin tells each story. The stories are presented roughly in chronological order, with brief linking comments by her and the interviewer. They are chiefly concerned with various types of atypical and aberrant behaviour of robots, where Dr. Calvin and others use “robopsychology” to work out what is happening in their “positronic brain”. The idea of a “positronic brain” is an invention by Isaac Asimov himself. It functions as a central processing unit (CPU) for robots, and in some unspecified way, provides them with a form of consciousness recognisable to humans. The very first story he wrote which utilised this idea was “Robbie”, which I have reviewed separately:  LINK HERE  In 1939, Isaac Asimov had greatly enjoyed a short story “I, Robot” by Eando Binder (a pseudonym used by Earl and Otto Binder), and this had influenced his own robot stories. He said:  “It certainly caught my attention. Two months after I read it, I began ‘Robbie’, about a sympathetic robot, and that was the start of my positronic robot series. Eleven years later, when nine of my robot stories were collected into a book, the publisher named the collection I, Robot over my objections. My book is now the more famous, but Otto’s story was there first.”   “Robbie” was Isaac Asimov’s very first robot story: a poignant and moving 5 star tale set in the future of 1978. I have also reviewed the second story: “Runaraound” separately, as I feel each deserves its own review:  LINK HERE  This was written in 1941 but set in 2015. I did not enjoy it quite as much, but it was ground-breaking, in that it introduced Isaac Asimov’s “First Law of Robotics” i.e. that a robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. The way this is demonstrated is ingenious, and we can recognise it today as an instance where the computer programming has gone wrong, and got stuck in a recurring loop. Unfortunately though, it also introduces two characters to field test the robots: Gregory Powell and Mike Donovan. These testosterone-fuelled clowns detract from three or four of the following stories, with their continual goading and bickering. The third story: “Reason” also merits an individual review:  LINK HERE  Also written in 1941, this is the first ever story to include all of the “Three Laws of Robotics”:  First Law: A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.  Second Law: A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.  Third Law: A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law. Despite the tiresome duo, the story is enjoyable and thought-provoking. The way the featured robot QT-1 (Cutie) differs here, is in that it appears to think outside the box, questioning and philosophising, and eventually . The way this is explained by the three Laws of Robotics is very neat. The fourth story “Catch that Rabbit” is like a jokey interlude. It is the third one in this collection to include Gregory Powell and Mike Donovan. This time they are on an asteroid mining station, testing a robot DV-5 (Dave) who has six subsidiary robots, described as “fingers”, under him. The robot DV-5 is just as puzzled about this as they are, but again, it is explained by the three Laws of Robotics. I feel though that the human psychology is a little wobbly here, and the story includes an excruciating pun as its explanation. First published in 1944 in “Astounding Science Fiction”, this one is missable. As is the fifth story “Liar!” which first appeared in the “Astounding Science Fiction” magazine in 1941. For this story, Dr. Calvin at age 38 is one of 4 scientists working with robot RB-34 (also known as Herbie), who has The reason for the ending of this story hinges on a paradox, but frankly the human behaviour in this story is not true to life. It is always the novelty and ingenious ideas which make Isaac Asimov’s stories interesting, rather than any deep characterisation, but the way the four scientists behave in this one is absurd. The robot has more in common with human psychology than any of them. Dr. Calvin regards this robot as one of her rare failures, and it is unlikely any scientist would have summarily disregarded professionalism, and a chance to develop scientific knowledge—not to mention the sheer cost of the destruction. If they had behaved in such an hysterical way, it would not be included in any memoirs! A better title might be “Vengeance”  Despite its drawbacks, “Liar!” does contain the first recorded use of the word “robotics”. The story was apparently filmed in 1969 as an episode in the excellent British TV series “Out of the Unknown”, but the episode has since been wiped. This was routine practice for British television at the time. The sixth story “Little Lost Robot” was also dramatised for British television—oddly enough, for the 1962 series “Out of This World” which was to be developed into “Out of the Unknown”. By sheer fluke, this episode remains extant, although all the other episodes were wiped. The entire series was critically acclaimed, including episodes by John Wyndham, Philip K. Dick, Terry Nation (who went on to create the Daleks) Katherine Maclean, Clifford D. Simak and other exemplary Science Fiction writers. It makes me very glum to think of what has been lost in this series alone.  “Little Lost Robot” is quite a good story, which was first published in the “Astounding Science Fiction” magazine in 1947. It is set on a military research station on an asteroid, where scientists are working to develop the hyperspace drive. Dr. Susan Calvin is there as the robopsychologist, with the Mathematical Director Peter Bogert, to identify which robot has been adapted out of a group of 63.  Only Dr. Susan Calvin realises how devastating this could be. After many different approaches, she manages to devise a test to identify the rogue robot. This story makes use of all three Laws of Robotics, and is one of, if not the first story to use the actual words “Frankenstein Complex”. This is Isaac Asimov’s invented term for “mechanical men” which closely resemble human beings. Elements of “Little Lost Robot” even appeared in the very different film called “I Robot” which was released in 2004. Otherwise however, this screenplay was written as an original story, but based on Isaac Asimov’s Robot concepts and characters. The seventh story “Escape” was first published in “Astounding Science Fiction” in 1945, under the title “Paradoxical Escape”. Set a little further in the future, by now there are other research organisations in competition with U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men, Inc. They are all working to develop a hyperspatial drive. U.S. Robots have been approached with a financial incentive, but learn that Dr. Susan Calvin and her team find a way by which their positronic computer “The Brain” can overcome the problem, but Gregory Powell and Mike Donovan, the engineers who are testing it, have a terrifying experience in the process. The penultimate story, the eighth one, is called Evidence. It was first published in the “Astounding Science Fiction” magazine in 1946. It was the only story Isaac Asimov wrote while he was in the United States Army, between November 1945 and July 1946. I like this story very much, with its idea of an ethical politician. It concerns two opposing candidates for the position of mayor of a major American city: Stephen Byerley, who is a district attorney, and Francis Quinn. Francis Quinn’s campaign is based on a smear campaign,  The story develops along the lines of human and robot rights. Alfred Lanning and Dr. Susan Calvin, the Chief Robopsychologist of U.S. Robots, are again in this story, having been asked to prove or disprove Stephen Byerley’s humanity, and establish whether he would be a bona fide candidate for the appointment. It soon becomes the only issue in a public campaign. The story is constructed very well, and although I did predict the neat ending, it is a satisfying read. It would make a good film, and indeed Orson Welles did purchase the film rights for “Evidence”, but the film was never made.The final story “The Evitable Conflict” first appeared in the “Astounding Science Fiction” magazine in 1950. Written four years later, it moves the previous story on, and closes Dr. Susan Calvin’s reminiscences. We read a rather dull political account of how Earth finally achieved peace, by having far fewer warring countries. Earth is now divided into four geographical regions, each with its own figurehead. However, the decision-making power actually lies with a supercomputer known as the ”Machine”, which manages its economy. We are now in the year 2052, and Stephen Byerley has continued to gain promotions, until he was elected as World Co-ordinator. This is his second term, but there is a problem. He has called Dr. Susan Calvin to ask her advice, and the story is a consultation between them. As a robopsychologist, Dr. Susan Calvin deduces that these “mistakes” were in fact deliberate acts by the Machines. Since they are necessary to humanity’s continued peace and prosperity, they needed to inflict a small amount of damage on key individuals and companies associated with the anti-Machine “Society for Humanity”. By doing this, they have ensured their position in guiding a balanced future for humans. The Machines have acted according to a generalised form of the First Law of Robotics, to be: “No machine may harm humanity; or, through inaction, allow humanity to come to harm.”  The story is a noble one, but rather dry to read, and with a damp squib of an ending. The collection finishes by telling us that Dr. Susan Calvin had died the previous month, at the age of 82. I am not sure that the frame story was really necessary, and in places it did feel forced, with some repetition. However, it was interesting to read the stories in chronological order as they reflected the evolution of robotics, and its gradual acceptance by humanity. I Robot is a landmark in Science Fiction, because of containing the short story in which Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics first appear. This was to have a far-reaching impact on the concept of ethics of artificial intelligence, and the better stories here do touch on this aspect. The writing is rather clunky at time, but ideas are paramount in this composite novel. It is astonishing to think that Isaac Asimov was only in his twenties when he wrote these stories and devised the bold and lasting concepts. He was still studying for a further degree in Chemistry, apart from a brief spell in the U.S. Army. A few years later he was to teach biochemistry at University, and eventually stopped doing research, confining his university role to lecturing students. His writing became more important to him, and in the late 1950s he was writing full time, with only an occasional honorary lecture. Isaac Asimov has left a huge body of work, including nonfiction books and crime novels, but it is for his “Astounding” Science Fiction stories that he is best remembered.  Here is a list of all the stories which make up I Robot:  RobbieRunaroundReasonCatch that rabbitLiar!Little lost robotEscape!EvidenceThe evitable conflict  Quotations: “You can prove anything you want by coldly logical reason—if you pick the proper postulates.”   “A towering cliff of a black, basaltic rock cut off the sunlight, and the deep night shadow of an airless world surrounded them. Before them, the shadow reached out and ended in knife-edge abruptness into an all-but-unbearable blaze of white light, that glittered from myriad crystals along a rocky ground.”  And my favourite, which stresses Isaac Asimov’s emphasis on the essentially benign nature of robots:  
 “You just can’t differentiate between a robot and the very best of humans.”
      kindle read-authors-a-b sf-speculative               3,792 reviews31.2k followers     June 4, 2021   I saw this movie in the theatre and I loved the story. I went in thinking this was going to be, at least, similar to the movie. The story in the movie is not in here. This is a book of short stories set in the future where there are robots. The movie took the 3 laws and the idea of a robot with the 3 laws and did their own thing. The movie is much better.I found Isaac's writing to be confusing. People are having a conversation and all the sudden a new character is in the conversation and I wondered where the new person came from. It happened in the later stories often. They were talking about a character, what they were going to say to him and then the character is there and they are talking to him. It's messy in my mind.  What Isaac is good at is coming up with out there situations where the robots seem to be malfunctioning and seeing the characters figure out why a thing is happening is interesting. Isaac was amazing with logic puzzles. That was cool.  We had a few characters we saw through the book. Dr. Calvin was the only woman and she was in most of the stories. I felt there could have been more developed with the world. Most things are told, not shown. We don't see exactly how normal people feel about the robots, we only hear about it. I knew the style would be older and I was okay with that, but the story didn't blow me away. It was interesting and the 3 laws are a cool thing that so many people after this have used. It's a foundation in modern Science Fiction. I'm glad I read it, but I really can't say I'm much of a fan. I'm giving it a low 3 star rating. I feel like it is the foundation of which many sci-fy books stand on, but it simply wasn't a whole lot of fun to watch. It took me forever to read. I could give this 2 stars, but it simply did to much for the genre. It's a classic. I might read more in this series. I'm not sure yet.     1950s bage-mature classic               971 reviews352 followers     September 24, 2020   Mi primera toma de contacto con los robots y todo este mundo que creó Asimov. Son historias entretenidas en las cuales se van contando los progresos en robótica con el tiempo mediante historias de los diferentes tipos de robots que había en cada momento. Recomendable.     cuentos-y-relatos kindle-bq               985 reviews     January 9, 2021   3 rilettura, 5/9 gennaio 2021Rilettura con gdl Edicola &amp; Libreria Che dire. Meraviglioso. Mi ha emozionato come se fosse la prima volta. Era da tanto che volevo rileggerli e sono stata davvero contenta quando hanno vinto la votazione. Lo so, sono di parte. Io amo Asimov, e l’universo che ha creato. lo sanno tutti. E se non lo sapevate, adesso lo sapete.  Mi sono innamorata dei suoi libri a 13 anni. Ho letto tutto di lui grazie alla biblioteca, e quando poi ho avuto la possibilità, sono stati i primi libri che mi sono comprata. Per cui potete capire cosa provo. E proprio per non portare in giro e rovinare così il mio libro edizione Mondadori a cui sono affezionata, ho preso l’edizione Urania Collezione, che non avevo mai letto, perché reputavo uguale alla mia. Come mi sbagliavo!  Ho scoperto così che i racconti, che già sono legati tra di loro per personaggi ed evoluzione della storia, sono messi insieme come racconti fatti da Susan Calvin in un’intervista, che ci fa conoscere di più la robopsicologa, con altri aneddoti. L’ho semplicemente adorato 😍 Susan è una dei miei personaggi preferiti, e scoprire di più su di lei e averla come protagonista, mi ha mandato in brodo di giuggiole.  Ora però mi chiedo come mai non ne sapevo nulla? Perché? Dopo quasi 30 anni ho riscoperto un libro. Il potere delle riletture è immenso.  Se potete quindi trovate e leggere questa versione. È molto più coinvolgente. Se a me era piaciuta la raccolta originale, questa mi è entrata dritta al cuore.  Ora non vedo l’ora di leggere tutto il resto.Forse prima mi rivedrò per la millesima volta Io, robot, che come già detto è un crogiolo di questi racconti.  Ok basta ho fatto un papiro.  2 rilettura  ASIMOV è SEMPRE ASIMOV E' inutile sono innamorata di lui, dei suoi robot, di Susan Calvin e di come riesce sempre a portarmi in un'altra dimensione.non posso farci nulla, è così punto e basta. Questo libro non è come il film, o meglio: il film non è come il libro, è una storia unica, mentre il libro tratta diversi episodi che riguardano i robot. Il film è praticamente un insieme di tutto con l'aggiunta del bel Will Smith e del mistero. A me son piaciuti entrambi. anche se il libro, non so su di me ha sempre un certo fascino, anche se parlando di robot ci si accorge che la descrizione che fa Asimov è un pò vecchiotta, sono tutti enormi e questo perché non era ancora stato scoperto il microchip, e la possibilità di avere tutto in uno spazio super ridotto, ma forse è proprio questo che affascina, che mi affascina. Io sono di parte, per cui il mio giudizio è sempre offuscato dall'amore che provo per questi libri. Consigliato agli amanti del genere, e a chi vuole provare un pò di fantascienza dai buoni sentimenti, senza catastrofi imminenti, e più umana.     2010 2021 miei               427 reviews139 followers     August 3, 2022   This one is made up of short stories featuring the same characters over a period of time, each story introduces a theme and explores it. The stories are thought-provoking and interesting but they're also quite repetitive. Having said that I still liked this book, it was engaging and humorous at times. I recommended, if you like Science Fiction, this is essential reading. 🤖                   Author  25 books100 followers     February 21, 2021   O kadar güzel, o kadar zekice yazılmış ki! Asimov'dan daha azını beklemiyordum elbette ama bu kadar eğlenceli ve komik robot hikayeleri okumayı da beklemiyordum açıkçası. Aşırı eğlenceli, aşırı şok edici. Hele bir bölüm var ki "çıldırıyorum, çıldırıyorum!" diye okudum 😂 Ve Asimov'un dünyayı, insanları yöneten robotlar öngörüsü (ve belki de kehaneti) keşke gerçek olsa demeden de edemedim.    favorites reviews               223 reviews996 followers     March 19, 2017    
  ❝ Science fiction writers foresee the inevitable, and although problems and catastrophes may be inevitable, solutions are not.❞  ------------- Isaac Asimov-------------- 
 This collection of concept-driven stories featuring robots were some of the first stories written by Science fiction god, Isaac Asimov. These stories also introduce the "Three laws of robotics" which became a milestone in science fiction history. Pure logic based problem-solving and the genuine awe-inspiring imagination; That's what make I, Robot a superior science fiction. It's overwhelmingly impressive to witness how Asimov generated conflicts and loopholes within the three laws and then solve them with an equally stunning solution. My favorite in this category was "Runaround".  Another aspect Asimov explored was the reasoning skills of a Robot. Stories like "Liar" and "Reason" paints a picture where an AI's logic could go horribly wrong.   I couldn't agree more. Short stories like "The Evitable Conflict" and "Little Lost Robot" investigates the very concept of dangers posed by logic based reasoning. When an intelligent form lacks empathy, an imbalance is inevitable. After all,  If we create when we do create a fully functional independent Robot, they will be better than us. 
 
 ❝ You're inferior creatures, with poor reasoning faculties, but I really feel a sort of affection for you.❞
 
 Oh, Asimov, you have provided food for thought for generations to come. And if a robot is reading this, please   ------------------------By the way, how do you define danger and harm? The first law of robotics specifically states that robots must not harm human being directly or through inaction. So if a robot finds you drinking too much alcohol, will it stop us? Does Robots calculate the probability of danger when someone drives too fast?Needless to say, this book and "vague" laws of robotics will make you think. Especially when you are just about to sleep!     book-series-ongoing sci-fi-challenge-d-j               423 reviews126 followers     April 20, 2018   What a fabulous book! Isaac Asimov is an awesome scientist and writer. I’ve watched a few interviews and he is a very smart man. If only we had more like him in the world. I don’t agree with his views on God, but other than that, I would definitely have driven anywhere in the USA for a book-signing event of his. I, Robot is my first Asimov book and I'm glad I started here. The book talks about many points when it comes to robots, or just technology in general. It opens with a girl who is attached to her “pet” robot. It helps her, plays with her, and does anything she wants to do with no objection. The comparison with our world is very sad. I look around and see so many kids and young teens—even adults, so entranced with their iPhones. How many of you have seen the meme with people walking down a street in some big city and all of them are on their iPhones and the caption below says “The Zombie Apocalypse”? I’m sad to say I’ve witnessed a room full of my cousins all talking to each other on their iPhones—texting each other, not actually talking. In the story, the girl’s parents were alarmed by their daughter’s physical and emotional dependence on the robot. The similarities are definitely there. Was Asimov warning us?  The book is not about the girl but about a scientist, Susan Calvin, and her studies on Robotics. Her story is an interesting one. I, Robot is also about our dependence on technology and what happens when that dependence backfires. If/When it backfires was it the robot’s fault? Robots are meant to be useful after all, but so is fire. Fire can be dangerous, too.  If you want to read this book because you’ve seen the movie, well…I’m sorry you’ll be disappointed. The movie was about only one aspect of this book (or rather only one chapter) which was about “what happens when robots find out they can take control.” WHAT? I thought that was the whole book? No, no it’s not. Like I said, that was only one chapter. The others talk about technological morality and other points. Can a robot be in government? Can a robot be a friend? Can a robot obey an order even if it goes against its programming? And so on.  This book talks about using technology so that it helps and not hinders society. Again, fire is helpful, but if used unwisely—disastrous.  I will warn you though, if you are new to the Sci-fi genre, be prepared for two-dimensional characters and very little to no character growth. Well, why would I want to read a book like that? Well, from what I’ve gathered so far on my galactic journey, Sci-fi is about adventure. Adventure books are about the adventure and not so much the characters. I haven’t read a lot of Sci-fi books yet but from what I’m getting from Isaac Asimov, classic Sci-fi is adventure led. If you’re OK with that then be prepared for an interesting ride!  I loved this book and I hope you will too.  Now I'm off to Asimov's Foundation Series!!!     classics favorites sci-fi               Author  28 books13.4k followers     March 8, 2011   Asimov gives you quite a good idea of what's it like to have to debug an artificial intelligence, before there were any. Applause! The movie, however, is an abomination that should have been strangled at birth. They've made Susan Calvin sexy; you see her suggestively outlined through the semi-opaque glass of her shower cubicle. I can't continue with this review. I'm starting to get too emotional. Sorry. A few things are still sacred, you know?_____________________________________ PS My real I, Robot review is here. Though I'm afraid it contains yet another example of That Joke...     science-fiction               48 reviews307 followers     November 2, 2015    There is a method to the madness! The other day when my spiffing new copy of the Foundation series arrived on my doorstep, faithfully delivered by the only Amazon delivery guy in our part of the town and I had to turn to them to have my fix of the written word ever since the only bookstore in the town was closed down (or rather was converted into a boutique), my dear friend, who is by the way one of those guys who has their rooms covered in comic graffiti and a bat signal alarm clock that he is still faithfully devoted to even in his late 20s, duly informed me that I couldn’t  just couldn’t start with the foundation series and that even though Asimov had initially started with, the correct order of books to be followed is in fact not as per the publication date. And that’s a long sentence. Phew! But the suggested reading order, which is chronological in order of future history, and not in the order in which they were written is to first read the complete Robot series and then the Foundation series.  So off to I,Robot. It is a collection of nine short stories narrated by Dr Susan Calvin who is psychologist to the robots and it is set in the future when the existence of the robots, even though they are supposed to be sentient, face opposition and fear. All the nine stories are unified with a single theme : complications arising from the interpretations of the three fundamental laws : 
 A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a humang being to come to harm.A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the first law. A robot must protect its own existence as long as it does not conflict with the First or Second law.
 It’s when the robot interprets the law wrong or by human action interprets it too right, that the ringmarole ascends and the fun begins. Asimov’s genius is in that, even though there isn’t much in the way of character development and the writing is pretty straight forward ; the complications that are presented from the three laws that seem to be very basic at first look, is handled with much dexterity. The logic in the sequences put the science in fiction, and you end up with the comprehension of why he is regarded as one of THE science fiction writers.  In contrast to the movie that was replete with very anti-robot sentiments and played much in favour to the apprehension of man against anything artificial and intelligent , the book is very pro-robot. Via the problems in operation and instances when one or the other robot is perceived to have outsmarted the scientists , the solution is distilled down to a minor anomaly in the interpretation of the laws. All technicality aside, the stories deal with the issues of fear, prejudice, distrust, what Asimov himself called the ‘Frankenstein Complex’ When asked once by an SF fan on the possibility of one of his works being made into a movie, Asimov replied that there have been talks but nobody ever ends up rustling up enough money. Of course this was before the movie was made but I sincerely hoped that it would have remained true till date.      read-in-2015 sf               2,112 reviews1,317 followers     June 26, 2019   A great collection of short stories with the common theme of Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics are presented within the framing device as Chief Robopsychologist Dr. Calvin recounts her life’s work.Like any collection I found some stories to be strong than others with Robbie and Reason to be my two favourites. With all the stories featuring originally in Sci-Fi magazines during the 1940’s, I felt it was quite telling that the stronger tales were the earlier ones written.                   4,617 reviews54 followers     July 28, 2021   In the summer of 2004, the movie I, Robot came to theaters. I actually didn't see it until months later; I got the DVD as a birthday gift, but that day wasn't much of a special day, as my eldest sibling passed that morning. The I, Robot film was the first flick I saw in any form after that tragic event; I enjoyed it, but, I wasn't too keen on the profanity or partial nudity. Eventually, I ended up trading in my copy to my now-defunct local MovieStop; however, I did see it again thanks to my Computer Networking teacher showing it to our class a year later.Fast forward to 2018, and I tried reading the book. I say "tried" because I couldn't focus due to being on a car trip at the time, where there were too many distractions. So, even though I had opened the book, I couldn't have even begun to tell you how it compared to the celluloid version. Now that I know that I shouldn't read with loud music playing in the background, I was actually able to read the book...and, let me tell you, it's definitely not the movie! While the film was an action story, the book was a collection of shorter stories...but it works really well! Better yet, the content was cleaner. If you go into this expecting the Will Smith flick, you'll be disappointed; however, if you understand that this was the work of a late grandmaster of science fiction, you'll enjoy it.            Displaying 1 - 30 of 8,905 reviews
I, Robot (Robot, #0.1)
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41804.I_Robot
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bicentennial_Man
The Bicentennial Man - Wikipedia
2003-09-30
None
<div><div>
	<p>From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</p>
	</div><div>
<table><tbody><tr><th>"The Bicentennial Man"</th></tr><tr><td>by <a href="/wiki/Isaac_Asimov">Isaac Asimov</a></td></tr><tr><th>Country</th><td>United States</td></tr><tr><th>Language</th><td>English</td></tr><tr><th>Series</th><td><a href="/wiki/Robot_series_(Asimov)"><i>Robot</i> series</a></td></tr><tr><th>Genre(s)</th><td><a href="/wiki/Science_fiction">Science fiction</a></td></tr><tr><th>Published in</th><td><i>Stellar-2</i></td></tr><tr><th>Publisher</th><td>Ballantine Books</td></tr><tr><th>Media type</th><td>Book</td></tr><tr><th>Publication date</th><td>February 1976</td></tr><tr><th>Chronology</th></tr><tr><td>
<table>
<tbody><tr>
<td>← <b>Preceded by</b><br /><a href="/wiki/._._._That_Thou_Art_Mindful_of_Him">. . . That Thou Art Mindful of Him</a>
</td>
<td><b>Followed by</b> →<br /><a href="/wiki/Mother_Earth_(novella)">Mother Earth</a>
</td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table>
<p><i><b>The Bicentennial Man</b></i> is a <a href="/wiki/Novella">novelette</a> in the <a href="/wiki/Robot_series_(Asimov)"><i>Robot</i> series</a> by American writer <a href="/wiki/Isaac_Asimov">Isaac Asimov</a>. According to the foreword in <i>Robot Visions</i>, Asimov was approached to write a story, along with a number of other authors who would do the same, for a science fiction collection to be published in honor of the <a href="/wiki/United_States_Bicentennial">United States Bicentennial</a>. However, the arrangement fell through, leaving Asimov's the only story actually completed for the project. Asimov sold the story to <a href="/wiki/Judy-Lynn_del_Rey">Judy-Lynn del Rey</a>, who made some small changes to the text. Asimov restored the original text when the story was collected in <i><a href="/wiki/The_Bicentennial_Man_and_Other_Stories">The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories</a></i> (1976).<sup><a href="#cite_note-1">[1]</a></sup>
</p><p>The story formed the basis of the novel <i><a href="/wiki/The_Positronic_Man">The Positronic Man</a></i> (1992), co-written with <a href="/wiki/Robert_Silverberg">Robert Silverberg</a>, and the 1999 film <i><a href="/wiki/Bicentennial_Man_(film)">Bicentennial Man</a></i>, starring <a href="/wiki/Robin_Williams">Robin Williams</a>.
</p><p>In terms of setting, this novelette spans a time period of 200 years. Chapter 13 of the novelette states that "<a href="/wiki/Susan_Calvin">Susan Calvin</a>, the patron saint of all roboticists" had been dead for "nearly two centuries." According to <a href="/wiki/I,_Robot">I, Robot</a>, Susan Calvin was born in the year 1982 and died at the age of 82, either in 2064 or 2065. This suggests that the earliest events of the story took place somewhere between the 2050s and early 2060s.
</p>
<h2>Plot[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Bicentennial_Man&amp;action=edit&amp;section=1">edit</a>]</h2>
<p>A character named Andrew Martin requests an unknown operation from a robotic surgeon. However, the robot refuses, as the operation is harmful and violates the <a href="/wiki/First_Law_of_Robotics">First Law of Robotics</a>, which says a robot may never harm a human being. Andrew, however, changes its mind, telling it that he is not a human being.
</p><p>The story jumps to 200 years in the past, when a robot with a serial number beginning with "NDR" is brought to the home of Gerald Martin (referred to as Sir) as a robot butler. Little Miss (Sir's daughter) names him Andrew. Later, Little Miss asks Andrew to carve a pendant out of wood. She shows it to her father, who initially does not believe a robot could carve so skillfully. Sir has Andrew carve more things, and even read books on woodwork. Andrew uses, for the first time, the word "enjoy" to describe why he carves. Sir takes Andrew to U.S. Robotics and Mechanical Men, Inc. to ask what the source of his creativity is, but they have no good explanation.
</p><p>Sir helps Andrew to sell his products, taking half the profits and putting the other half in a bank account in the name of Andrew Martin (though there is questionable legality to a robot owning a bank account). Andrew uses the money to pay for bodily upgrades, keeping himself in perfect shape, but never has his positronic brain altered. Sir reveals that U.S. Robots has ended a study on generalized pathways and creative robots, frightened by Andrew's unpredictability.
</p><p>Little Miss, at this point, is married and has a child, Little Sir. Andrew, feeling Sir now has someone to replace his grown-up children, asks to purchase his own freedom with Little Miss's support. Sir is apprehensive, fearing that freeing Andrew legally would require bringing attention to Andrew's bank account, and might result in the loss of all Andrew's money. However, he agrees to attempt it. Though facing initial resistance, Andrew wins his freedom. Sir refuses to let Andrew pay him. It isn't long afterwards that he falls ill, and dies after asking Andrew to stand by his deathbed.
</p><p>Andrew begins to wear clothes, and Little Sir (who orders Andrew to call him George) is a lawyer. He insists on dressing like a human, even though most humans refuse to accept him. In a conversation with George, Andrew realizes he must also expand his vocabulary, and decides to go to the library. On his way, he gets lost, and stands in the middle of a field. Two humans begin to walk across the field towards him, and he asks them the way to the library. They instead harass him, and threaten to take him apart when George arrives and scares them off. As he takes Andrew to the library, Andrew explains that he wants to write a book on the history of robots. The incident with the two humans angers Little Miss, and she forces George to go to court for robot rights. George's son, Paul, helps out by fighting the legal battle as George convinces the public. Eventually, the public opinion is turned in favor of robots, and laws are passed banning robot-harming orders. Little Miss, after the court case is won, dies.
</p><p>Andrew, with Paul's help, gets a meeting with the head of U.S. Robots. He requests that his body be replaced by an android, so that he may better resemble a human. After Paul threatens legal action, U.S. Robots agrees to give Andrew an android body. However, U.S. Robots retaliates by creating central brains for their robots, so that no individual robot may become like Andrew. Meanwhile, Andrew, with his new body, decides to study robobiology – the science of organic robots like himself. Andrew begins to design a system allowing androids to eat food like humans, solely for the purpose of becoming more like a person.
</p><p>After Paul's death, Andrew comes to U.S. Robots again, meeting with Alvin Magdescu, Director of Research. He offers U.S. Robots the opportunity to market his newly designed prostheses for human use, as well as his own. He successfully has the digestive system installed in his body, and plans to create an excretory system to match. Meanwhile, his products are successfully marketed and he becomes a highly honored inventor. As he reaches 150 years of age, a dinner is held in his honor in which he is labeled the Sesquicentennial Robot. Andrew is not yet satisfied, however.
</p><p>Andrew decides that he wants to be a man. He obtains the backing of Feingold and Martin (the law firm of George and Paul) and seeks out Li-Hsing, a legislator and chairman of the Science and Technology committee, hoping that the World Legislature will declare him a human being. Li-Hsing advises him that it will be a long legal battle, but he says he is willing to fight for it. Feingold and Martin begins to slowly bring cases to court that generalize what it means to be human, hoping that despite his prosthetics, Andrew can be regarded as essentially human. Most legislators, however, are still hesitant due to his immortality.
</p><p>The first scene of the story is explained as Andrew seeks out a robotic surgeon to perform an ultimately fatal operation: altering his positronic brain so that it will decay with time. He has the operation arranged so that he will live to be 200. When he goes before the World Legislature, he reveals his sacrifice, moving them to declare him a man. The World President signs the law on Andrew's two-hundredth birthday, declaring him a bicentennial man. As Andrew lies on his deathbed, he tries to hold onto the thought of his humanity, but as his consciousness fades his last thought is of Little Miss. 
</p><p>He sees her at the foot of his bed welcoming him to the eternal place where humans go after they die and he understands why he has sought to be human and that he has succeeded in becoming human.<sup><a href="#cite_note-2">[2]</a></sup>
</p>
<h2>Foundation universe[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Bicentennial_Man&amp;action=edit&amp;section=2">edit</a>]</h2>
<p>This story is retro-set within Asimov's <a href="/wiki/Foundation_series"><i>Foundation</i> universe</a>, which also includes his earlier <a href="/wiki/Susan_Calvin">Susan Calvin</a> positronic robot tales. It is clearly set centuries prior to the events of his novella "<a href="/wiki/Mother_Earth_(novelette)">Mother Earth</a>" and the novel <i><a href="/wiki/The_Caves_of_Steel">The Caves of Steel</a></i>, during a period in which the Spacer worlds have yet to turn against the people of the Earth, and in which the <a href="/wiki/U.S._Robots_and_Mechanical_Men">U.S. Robots</a> corporation is still active.
</p><p>In <i><a href="/wiki/The_Robots_of_Dawn">The Robots of Dawn</a></i>, Dr. Han Fastolfe refers to Andrew Martin as a robot that was supposed to have undergone "gradual humanization," but states that such a thing would have been impossible, because the shape of the body dictates the state of the mind.
</p>
<h2>Awards[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Bicentennial_Man&amp;action=edit&amp;section=3">edit</a>]</h2>
<p>"The Bicentennial Man" was awarded the <a href="/wiki/Hugo_Award">Hugo Award</a> best science fiction novelette of 1976. It was awarded the <a href="/wiki/Nebula_Award">Nebula Award</a> for best science fiction novelette after <a href="/wiki/Ursula_K._Le_Guin">Ursula K. Le Guin</a> refused the award for her novelette "<a href="/wiki/The_Diary_of_the_Rose">The Diary of the Rose</a>" in protest of the <a href="/wiki/Science_Fiction_Writers_of_America">Science Fiction Writers of America</a>'s political intolerance in revoking <a href="/wiki/Stanis%C5%82aw_Lem">Stanisław Lem</a>'s membership.<sup><a href="#cite_note-u_the-3">[3]</a></sup><sup><a href="#cite_note-Dugdale_2018-4">[4]</a></sup>
</p>
<h2>Adaptations[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Bicentennial_Man&amp;action=edit&amp;section=4">edit</a>]</h2>
<ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Bicentennial_Man_(film)">Bicentennial Man</a></i> (1999), film directed by <a href="/wiki/Chris_Columbus_(filmmaker)">Chris Columbus</a>, based on novelette "The Bicentennial Man" and on novel <i><a href="/wiki/The_Positronic_Man">The Positronic Man</a></i></li></ul>
<h2>References[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Bicentennial_Man&amp;action=edit&amp;section=5">edit</a>]</h2>
<div><ol>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-1">^</a></b> Asimov, I. (1990) <i>The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories</i>, VGSF, pp. 133–134
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-2">^</a></b> <cite>Asimov, Isaac (1992). <i>The Complete Stories, Volume 2</i>. Doubleday. pp. 568–604. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-385-42078-5"><bdi>978-0-385-42078-5</bdi></a>.</cite>
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-u_the_3-0">^</a></b> <cite>Le Guin, Ursula (December 6, 2017). <a href="https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2017/12/06/literary-prize-refusal-literary-prizes/">"The Literary Prize for the Refusal of Literary Prizes"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/The_Paris_Review">The Paris Review</a></i>. Retrieved December 25, 2018.</cite>
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-Dugdale_2018_4-0">^</a></b> <cite>Dugdale, John (May 21, 2016). <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/may/21/how-turn-down-prestigious-literary-prize-winners-guide-etiquette">"How to turn down a prestigious literary prize – a winner's guide to etiquette"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/The_Guardian">The Guardian</a></i>. Retrieved December 25, 2018.</cite>
</li>
</ol></div>
<ul><li><cite>Mark E. Rosheim (1994). <a href="https://archive.org/details/robotevolutionde0000rosh"><i>Robot Evolution</i></a>. Wiley-IEEE. p. <a href="https://archive.org/details/robotevolutionde0000rosh/page/381">381</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-471-02622-8"><bdi>978-0-471-02622-8</bdi></a>.</cite></li></ul>
<h2>External links[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Bicentennial_Man&amp;action=edit&amp;section=6">edit</a>]</h2>
<ul><li><a href="https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?41611"><i>The Bicentennial Man</i></a> title listing at the <a href="/wiki/Internet_Speculative_Fiction_Database">Internet Speculative Fiction Database</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001920/">Isaac Asimov</a> at <a href="/wiki/IMDb">IMDb</a></li></ul>
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 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 "Bicentennial Man" redirects here. For the film adaptation, see Bicentennial Man (film).
 This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
 Find sources: "The Bicentennial Man" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR ( February 2017 ) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) 
 
 "The Bicentennial Man" 
 by Isaac Asimov 
 Country United States 
 Language English 
 Series Robot series 
 Genre(s) Science fiction 
 Published in Stellar-2 
 Publisher Ballantine Books
 Media type Book 
 Publication date February 1976 
 Chronology 
 ← Preceded by Followed by →
 . . . That Thou Art Mindful of Him Mother Earth 
  
 

 The Bicentennial Man is a novelette in the Robot series by American writer Isaac Asimov. According to the foreword in Robot Visions, Asimov was approached to write a story, along with a number of other authors who would do the same, for a science fiction collection to be published in honor of the United States Bicentennial. However, the arrangement fell through, leaving Asimov's the only story actually completed for the project. Asimov sold the story to Judy-Lynn del Rey, who made some small changes to the text. Asimov restored the original text when the story was collected in The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories (1976).[1]

 The story formed the basis of the novel The Positronic Man (1992), co-written with Robert Silverberg, and the 1999 film Bicentennial Man, starring Robin Williams.

 In terms of setting, this novelette spans a time period of 200 years. Chapter 13 of the novelette states that "Susan Calvin, the patron saint of all roboticists" had been dead for "nearly two centuries." According to I, Robot, Susan Calvin was born in the year 1982 and died at the age of 82, either in 2064 or 2065. This suggests that the earliest events of the story took place somewhere between the 2050s and early 2060s.

 Plot [ edit ]

 A character named Andrew Martin requests an unknown operation from a robotic surgeon. However, the robot refuses, as the operation is harmful and violates the First Law of Robotics, which says a robot may never harm a human being. Andrew, however, changes its mind, telling it that he is not a human being.

 The story jumps to 200 years in the past, when a robot with a serial number beginning with "NDR" is brought to the home of Gerald Martin (referred to as Sir) as a robot butler. Little Miss (Sir's daughter) names him Andrew. Later, Little Miss asks Andrew to carve a pendant out of wood. She shows it to her father, who initially does not believe a robot could carve so skillfully. Sir has Andrew carve more things, and even read books on woodwork. Andrew uses, for the first time, the word "enjoy" to describe why he carves. Sir takes Andrew to U.S. Robotics and Mechanical Men, Inc. to ask what the source of his creativity is, but they have no good explanation.

 Sir helps Andrew to sell his products, taking half the profits and putting the other half in a bank account in the name of Andrew Martin (though there is questionable legality to a robot owning a bank account). Andrew uses the money to pay for bodily upgrades, keeping himself in perfect shape, but never has his positronic brain altered. Sir reveals that U.S. Robots has ended a study on generalized pathways and creative robots, frightened by Andrew's unpredictability.

 Little Miss, at this point, is married and has a child, Little Sir. Andrew, feeling Sir now has someone to replace his grown-up children, asks to purchase his own freedom with Little Miss's support. Sir is apprehensive, fearing that freeing Andrew legally would require bringing attention to Andrew's bank account, and might result in the loss of all Andrew's money. However, he agrees to attempt it. Though facing initial resistance, Andrew wins his freedom. Sir refuses to let Andrew pay him. It isn't long afterwards that he falls ill, and dies after asking Andrew to stand by his deathbed.

 Andrew begins to wear clothes, and Little Sir (who orders Andrew to call him George) is a lawyer. He insists on dressing like a human, even though most humans refuse to accept him. In a conversation with George, Andrew realizes he must also expand his vocabulary, and decides to go to the library. On his way, he gets lost, and stands in the middle of a field. Two humans begin to walk across the field towards him, and he asks them the way to the library. They instead harass him, and threaten to take him apart when George arrives and scares them off. As he takes Andrew to the library, Andrew explains that he wants to write a book on the history of robots. The incident with the two humans angers Little Miss, and she forces George to go to court for robot rights. George's son, Paul, helps out by fighting the legal battle as George convinces the public. Eventually, the public opinion is turned in favor of robots, and laws are passed banning robot-harming orders. Little Miss, after the court case is won, dies.

 Andrew, with Paul's help, gets a meeting with the head of U.S. Robots. He requests that his body be replaced by an android, so that he may better resemble a human. After Paul threatens legal action, U.S. Robots agrees to give Andrew an android body. However, U.S. Robots retaliates by creating central brains for their robots, so that no individual robot may become like Andrew. Meanwhile, Andrew, with his new body, decides to study robobiology – the science of organic robots like himself. Andrew begins to design a system allowing androids to eat food like humans, solely for the purpose of becoming more like a person.

 After Paul's death, Andrew comes to U.S. Robots again, meeting with Alvin Magdescu, Director of Research. He offers U.S. Robots the opportunity to market his newly designed prostheses for human use, as well as his own. He successfully has the digestive system installed in his body, and plans to create an excretory system to match. Meanwhile, his products are successfully marketed and he becomes a highly honored inventor. As he reaches 150 years of age, a dinner is held in his honor in which he is labeled the Sesquicentennial Robot. Andrew is not yet satisfied, however.

 Andrew decides that he wants to be a man. He obtains the backing of Feingold and Martin (the law firm of George and Paul) and seeks out Li-Hsing, a legislator and chairman of the Science and Technology committee, hoping that the World Legislature will declare him a human being. Li-Hsing advises him that it will be a long legal battle, but he says he is willing to fight for it. Feingold and Martin begins to slowly bring cases to court that generalize what it means to be human, hoping that despite his prosthetics, Andrew can be regarded as essentially human. Most legislators, however, are still hesitant due to his immortality.

 The first scene of the story is explained as Andrew seeks out a robotic surgeon to perform an ultimately fatal operation: altering his positronic brain so that it will decay with time. He has the operation arranged so that he will live to be 200. When he goes before the World Legislature, he reveals his sacrifice, moving them to declare him a man. The World President signs the law on Andrew's two-hundredth birthday, declaring him a bicentennial man. As Andrew lies on his deathbed, he tries to hold onto the thought of his humanity, but as his consciousness fades his last thought is of Little Miss.

 He sees her at the foot of his bed welcoming him to the eternal place where humans go after they die and he understands why he has sought to be human and that he has succeeded in becoming human.[2]

 Foundation universe [ edit ]

 This story is retro-set within Asimov's Foundation universe, which also includes his earlier Susan Calvin positronic robot tales. It is clearly set centuries prior to the events of his novella "Mother Earth" and the novel The Caves of Steel, during a period in which the Spacer worlds have yet to turn against the people of the Earth, and in which the U.S. Robots corporation is still active.

 In The Robots of Dawn, Dr. Han Fastolfe refers to Andrew Martin as a robot that was supposed to have undergone "gradual humanization," but states that such a thing would have been impossible, because the shape of the body dictates the state of the mind.

 Awards [ edit ]

 "The Bicentennial Man" was awarded the Hugo Award best science fiction novelette of 1976. It was awarded the Nebula Award for best science fiction novelette after Ursula K. Le Guin refused the award for her novelette "The Diary of the Rose" in protest of the Science Fiction Writers of America's political intolerance in revoking Stanisław Lem's membership.[3][4]

 Adaptations [ edit ]

 * Bicentennial Man (1999), film directed by Chris Columbus, based on novelette "The Bicentennial Man" and on novel The Positronic Man

 References [ edit ]

 1. ^ Asimov, I. (1990) The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories , VGSF, pp. 133–134
 2. ^ Asimov, Isaac (1992). The Complete Stories, Volume 2. Doubleday. pp. 568–604. ISBN 978-0-385-42078-5.
 3. ^ Le Guin, Ursula (December 6, 2017). "The Literary Prize for the Refusal of Literary Prizes". The Paris Review . Retrieved December 25, 2018 .
 4. ^ Dugdale, John (May 21, 2016). "How to turn down a prestigious literary prize – a winner's guide to etiquette". The Guardian . Retrieved December 25, 2018 .
 * Mark E. Rosheim (1994). Robot Evolution. Wiley-IEEE. p. 381. ISBN 978-0-471-02622-8.

 External links [ edit ]

 * The Bicentennial Man title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
 * Isaac Asimov at IMDb


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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
	 
   "The Bicentennial Man"   by Isaac Asimov    Country United States   Language English   Series   Robot series    Genre(s)  Science fiction    Published in  Stellar-2    Publisher Ballantine Books   Media type Book   Publication date February 1976   Chronology   
 
← Preceded by  . . . That Thou Art Mindful of Him
 Followed by → Mother Earth
       
  The Bicentennial Man  is a novelette in the  Robot series by American writer Isaac Asimov. According to the foreword in Robot Visions, Asimov was approached to write a story, along with a number of other authors who would do the same, for a science fiction collection to be published in honor of the United States Bicentennial. However, the arrangement fell through, leaving Asimov's the only story actually completed for the project. Asimov sold the story to Judy-Lynn del Rey, who made some small changes to the text. Asimov restored the original text when the story was collected in  The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories  (1976). [1] 
 The story formed the basis of the novel  The Positronic Man  (1992), co-written with Robert Silverberg, and the 1999 film  Bicentennial Man , starring Robin Williams.
 In terms of setting, this novelette spans a time period of 200 years. Chapter 13 of the novelette states that "Susan Calvin, the patron saint of all roboticists" had been dead for "nearly two centuries." According to I, Robot, Susan Calvin was born in the year 1982 and died at the age of 82, either in 2064 or 2065. This suggests that the earliest events of the story took place somewhere between the 2050s and early 2060s.
Plot[edit]
A character named Andrew Martin requests an unknown operation from a robotic surgeon. However, the robot refuses, as the operation is harmful and violates the First Law of Robotics, which says a robot may never harm a human being. Andrew, however, changes its mind, telling it that he is not a human being.
 The story jumps to 200 years in the past, when a robot with a serial number beginning with "NDR" is brought to the home of Gerald Martin (referred to as Sir) as a robot butler. Little Miss (Sir's daughter) names him Andrew. Later, Little Miss asks Andrew to carve a pendant out of wood. She shows it to her father, who initially does not believe a robot could carve so skillfully. Sir has Andrew carve more things, and even read books on woodwork. Andrew uses, for the first time, the word "enjoy" to describe why he carves. Sir takes Andrew to U.S. Robotics and Mechanical Men, Inc. to ask what the source of his creativity is, but they have no good explanation.
 Sir helps Andrew to sell his products, taking half the profits and putting the other half in a bank account in the name of Andrew Martin (though there is questionable legality to a robot owning a bank account). Andrew uses the money to pay for bodily upgrades, keeping himself in perfect shape, but never has his positronic brain altered. Sir reveals that U.S. Robots has ended a study on generalized pathways and creative robots, frightened by Andrew's unpredictability.
 Little Miss, at this point, is married and has a child, Little Sir. Andrew, feeling Sir now has someone to replace his grown-up children, asks to purchase his own freedom with Little Miss's support. Sir is apprehensive, fearing that freeing Andrew legally would require bringing attention to Andrew's bank account, and might result in the loss of all Andrew's money. However, he agrees to attempt it. Though facing initial resistance, Andrew wins his freedom. Sir refuses to let Andrew pay him. It isn't long afterwards that he falls ill, and dies after asking Andrew to stand by his deathbed.
 Andrew begins to wear clothes, and Little Sir (who orders Andrew to call him George) is a lawyer. He insists on dressing like a human, even though most humans refuse to accept him. In a conversation with George, Andrew realizes he must also expand his vocabulary, and decides to go to the library. On his way, he gets lost, and stands in the middle of a field. Two humans begin to walk across the field towards him, and he asks them the way to the library. They instead harass him, and threaten to take him apart when George arrives and scares them off. As he takes Andrew to the library, Andrew explains that he wants to write a book on the history of robots. The incident with the two humans angers Little Miss, and she forces George to go to court for robot rights. George's son, Paul, helps out by fighting the legal battle as George convinces the public. Eventually, the public opinion is turned in favor of robots, and laws are passed banning robot-harming orders. Little Miss, after the court case is won, dies.
 Andrew, with Paul's help, gets a meeting with the head of U.S. Robots. He requests that his body be replaced by an android, so that he may better resemble a human. After Paul threatens legal action, U.S. Robots agrees to give Andrew an android body. However, U.S. Robots retaliates by creating central brains for their robots, so that no individual robot may become like Andrew. Meanwhile, Andrew, with his new body, decides to study robobiology – the science of organic robots like himself. Andrew begins to design a system allowing androids to eat food like humans, solely for the purpose of becoming more like a person.
 After Paul's death, Andrew comes to U.S. Robots again, meeting with Alvin Magdescu, Director of Research. He offers U.S. Robots the opportunity to market his newly designed prostheses for human use, as well as his own. He successfully has the digestive system installed in his body, and plans to create an excretory system to match. Meanwhile, his products are successfully marketed and he becomes a highly honored inventor. As he reaches 150 years of age, a dinner is held in his honor in which he is labeled the Sesquicentennial Robot. Andrew is not yet satisfied, however.
 Andrew decides that he wants to be a man. He obtains the backing of Feingold and Martin (the law firm of George and Paul) and seeks out Li-Hsing, a legislator and chairman of the Science and Technology committee, hoping that the World Legislature will declare him a human being. Li-Hsing advises him that it will be a long legal battle, but he says he is willing to fight for it. Feingold and Martin begins to slowly bring cases to court that generalize what it means to be human, hoping that despite his prosthetics, Andrew can be regarded as essentially human. Most legislators, however, are still hesitant due to his immortality.
 The first scene of the story is explained as Andrew seeks out a robotic surgeon to perform an ultimately fatal operation: altering his positronic brain so that it will decay with time. He has the operation arranged so that he will live to be 200. When he goes before the World Legislature, he reveals his sacrifice, moving them to declare him a man. The World President signs the law on Andrew's two-hundredth birthday, declaring him a bicentennial man. As Andrew lies on his deathbed, he tries to hold onto the thought of his humanity, but as his consciousness fades his last thought is of Little Miss. 
 He sees her at the foot of his bed welcoming him to the eternal place where humans go after they die and he understands why he has sought to be human and that he has succeeded in becoming human. [2] 
Foundation universe[edit]
This story is retro-set within Asimov's  Foundation universe, which also includes his earlier Susan Calvin positronic robot tales. It is clearly set centuries prior to the events of his novella "Mother Earth" and the novel  The Caves of Steel , during a period in which the Spacer worlds have yet to turn against the people of the Earth, and in which the U.S. Robots corporation is still active.
 In  The Robots of Dawn , Dr. Han Fastolfe refers to Andrew Martin as a robot that was supposed to have undergone "gradual humanization," but states that such a thing would have been impossible, because the shape of the body dictates the state of the mind.
Awards[edit]
"The Bicentennial Man" was awarded the Hugo Award best science fiction novelette of 1976. It was awarded the Nebula Award for best science fiction novelette after Ursula K. Le Guin refused the award for her novelette "The Diary of the Rose" in protest of the Science Fiction Writers of America's political intolerance in revoking Stanisław Lem's membership. [3]   [4] 
Adaptations[edit]
   Bicentennial Man  (1999), film directed by Chris Columbus, based on novelette "The Bicentennial Man" and on novel  The Positronic Man   
References[edit]
 
  ^  Asimov, I. (1990) The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories, VGSF, pp. 133–134
  ^  Asimov, Isaac (1992). The Complete Stories, Volume 2. Doubleday. pp. 568–604. ISBN  978-0-385-42078-5 .
  ^  Le Guin, Ursula (December 6, 2017). "The Literary Prize for the Refusal of Literary Prizes".  The Paris Review . Retrieved December 25, 2018.
  ^  Dugdale, John (May 21, 2016). "How to turn down a prestigious literary prize – a winner's guide to etiquette".  The Guardian . Retrieved December 25, 2018.
 
  Mark E. Rosheim (1994).  Robot Evolution . Wiley-IEEE. p. 381. ISBN  978-0-471-02622-8 .  
External links[edit]
   The Bicentennial Man  title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database 
 Isaac Asimov at IMDb
The Bicentennial Man - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bicentennial_Man
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/70535.2001
2001: A Space Odyssey
2023-01-01
Author
<div><div><p></p><h3>Friends &amp; Following </h3><p></p></div><div><p>Displaying 1 - 30 of 7,581 reviews</p><div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/934589-jack-beltane"></a></section><section><p>Author <i></i>13 books28 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/16131314">March 23, 2008</a></section><div><p>The book is always better than the film, but I'd never read <i>2001</i> before. What I didn't know, until reading the foreword, is that this novel was literally written in tandem with the film, with Clarke and Kubrick feeding each other ideas. At some points, however, filming overtook writing, or vice versa, and the two stories, though similar, split along two different paths. <p>After reading the book, the film becomes little more than a very well crafted container: It's pretty and neat to look at it, but open it up, and it's empty. There is none of Clarke's vision of how a being we'd call God would communicate with us across unfathomable time spans, or teach us, or lead us into higher consciousness. Stripped away by Kubrick is the sense that this being truly wants us to be in its image, and that the whole breadcrumb trail of monoliths was designed to do just that. And completely erased is the notion that David Bowman, as Star Child, is now one with the Universe, in some Zen-like way, and also much more like something we'd called a god.</p><p>Don't get me wrong, <i>2001</i> is still one of my favorite films, but to get the full meaning and understand the full weight of why <i>2001</i> has been called "the perfect science fiction story," you must read the book. Clarke marries science, mysticism, theory, and fantasy in ways like no other. Unfortunately, Kubrick stripped away the mysticism and theory and left us what is, in comparison to the book, only a glimmer at something bigger.</p><p>Kubrick touched the monolith, but Clarke went inside.</p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5253785-lyn"></a></section><section><p>1,847 reviews16.3k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/192068085">June 6, 2019</a></section><div><p>Classic. <p>I read 2001: A Space Odyssey when I was a teenager and knew it was a very influential work of fiction because of the film and all the attention it had received. Still, though I found it very entertaining, I did not really get it. </p><p>Thirty years later, I have read it again, and though I may not completely get it the second time around, the more mature reader can better grasp the vision and message of the genius author. I especially enjoyed the many allusions to other works and found the reference to Melville's Ahab particularly engrossing. </p><p>Clarke’s prose is clear and descriptive and his story line linear and thought provoking. Not just an excellent science fiction novel, this is a work of literature, brilliant.</p><p></p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/614778-ahmad-sharabiani"></a></section><section><p>9,568 reviews55.6k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/124801372">October 11, 2021</a></section><div><p><b>(Book 389 from 1001 books) - 2001: A Space Odyssey (Space Odyssey #1), Arthur C. Clarke</b><p>2001: A Space Odyssey is a 1968 science fiction novel by British writer Arthur C. Clarke. </p><p>It was developed concurrently with Stanley Kubrick's film version and published after the release of the film. </p><p>Clarke and Kubrick worked on the book together, but eventually only Clarke ended up as the official author. </p><p>The story is based in part on various short stories by Clarke, including The Sentinel (written in 1948 for a BBC competition, but first published in 1951 under the title "Sentinel of Eternity"). </p><p>By 1992, the novel had sold three million copies worldwide. </p><p>An elaboration of Clarke and Kubrick's collaborative work on this project was made in The Lost Worlds of 2001.</p><p>عنوانهای چاپ شده در ایران: راز کیهان؛ 2001؛ یک ادیسه فضایی؛ نویسنده: آرتور سی کلارک؛ مترجمها: پرویز دوائی؛ هوشنگ غیاثی نژاد؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش ماه آگوست سال 2008میلادی</p><p>عنوان: راز کیهان؛ نوشته: آرتور سی. کلارک؛ مترجم: پرویز دوائی؛ تهران، امیرکبیر - فرانکلین، 1348؛ خورشیدی؛ در 288ص؛ چاپ دوم 1354؛ موضوع: داستانهای نویسندگان بریتانیا - سده 20م</p><p>عنوان: راز کیهان؛ نوشته: آرتور سی. کلارک؛ مترجم: هوشنگ غیاثی نژاد؛ تهران، پاسارگاد، چاپ دوم 1374؛ در دو جلد؛</p><p>دوهزار و یک: ادیسه ی فضایی، عنوان رمانی در گونه ی علمی- تخیلی است که در سال 1968میلادی، به قلم «آرتور سی کلارک» و با همکاری «استنلی کوبریک» نگاشته شده است؛ ایده ی نخست این رمان، برگرفته از داستان کوتاه «آرتور سی کلارک»، با عنوان «نگهبان» است؛ سری چهارگانه ی «ادیسه»، پس از این کتاب نخستین آنهاست؛ کتابهای: (2010: ادیسه دو)؛ (2061: ادیسه سه)؛ و (3001: ادیسه نهایی) هستند</p><p>این داستان قالبی سنتی، و قراردادی دارد، و شخصیتهایش، همگی آدمهایی معمولی‌ هستند، که به یک مأموریت اکتشافی، به کره ی ماه می‌روند، و در آنجا با پدیده‌های شگفت‌ انگیز، روبرو می‌شوند؛ داستان هرچند، بیانی سر راست، و طبیعی دارد، اما توانایی خیال را بسیار برمی‌انگیزد و خوانشگر را، به اندیشیدن وامی‌دارد؛ «استانلی کوبریک»، کارگردان بزرگوار «آمریکایی»، در سال 1968میلادی، براساس این داستان کوتاه، فیلم نام آشنا و مجلل «نگهبان یا اودیسهٔ فضایی 2001» را ساختند، که گروهی از منتقدان، آن را به عنوان مهم‌ترین، و برجسته‌ ترین فیلم علمی-تخیلی تاریخ سینما، برشمرده‌ اند؛ فیلم، درباره ی، دخالت انسان در کیهان، و کهکشانهاست؛ «استانلی کوبریک» نیز، البته در داستان تغییراتی داده، و از جمله شخصیتهای انسانی آن را، در پایان به صورت آدمهای ماشینی تکامل یافته‌، درآورده بود</p><p>در سالهایی این فیلم به ایران آمد، خانه ام در میرداماد بود و مستاجر بودم، ساختمان از آن برادر دوستم مهرداد بود، روز جمعه به دوستم گفتم بیا با هم به دیدن «ادیسه ی فضایی» برویم، پیشنهاد کرد مادرشان هم با ما بیاید، به مادرشان که زن نازنینی بودند، پیشنهاد کردم، ایشان بلافاصله از این فراموشکار پرسید: آیا در پایان داستان دختر به دلدار خویش میرسد؛ اگر نمیرسد من نمیآیم؛ و نیامدند؛ مادران سروهایی هستند که هنوز هم ناسروده مانده اند</p><p>تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 25/09/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 18/07/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/614778?shelf=1001-books">1001-books</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/614778?shelf=20th-century">20th-century</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/614778?shelf=british">british</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/23097409-sr3yas"></a></section><section><p>223 reviews996 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2113540283">September 14, 2017</a></section><div><p>I remember watching <i>2001: A space Odyssey</i> about seven years back and almost losing my mind during the overlong <b>Stargate sequence</b> and what followed after that acid trip. <p><br />*The <i>I might puke</i> face*</p><p><b>Fast forward to 2017</b>, one of my buddies called me up and said, <i>'Sreyas, 2001: Space Odyssey is a fricking classic. You should read the book before watching the movie'. </i>Fortunately, I had a copy of the novel with me and I jumped right in!</p><blockquote><b><i>❝ If he was indeed mad, his delusions were beautifully organized.❞</i></b></blockquote><b><i>
 </i>
</b><br />The story starts in a time before the dawn of human kind, when benevolent and rather mindless man-apes were dying one after another due to overlong drought and natural predators. In short, The tribal group was going down and they were facing <b>Extinction with a big E.</b><p></p><p><b>Enter our savior, the big black slab</b> which manipulated with the minds of man-apes and turned them into ambitious, innovative and uh... <i>violent hooligans?</i> But hey, they needed to be all this to survive such a primitive world. The only problem was that the once benevolent man-apes passed these newly found qualities like innovation, imagination and unfortunately, violence to future generations that followed them.</p><p></p><p>That's a topic for another time. Because right now, it's all about science and the mysterious black monolith which engineered the dawn of humankind. We jump from prehistory to the year 2001 in a blink of an eye, and <b>the true odyssey begins. </b></p><p>One of the best things about the story for me was the <i>unceasing</i> excitement the tale inspires, in spite of being rather slow at times. <b>
 <i>The story focuses on the ideas and the science</i>
</b> rather than its characters, creating a story propelled solely by the sheer power of the journey to find answers. Another exciting aspect of the story was how easy it is to associate the elements of the novel with our own technological advancement. Even though we haven't achieved the level of sophisticated advancement in terms of space travel as mentioned in the novel, we have come a long way. I couldn't help but notice a scene where one of the characters lands an instumentless probe on an asteroid, and <i>Ta-da</i>, we have done better with Rosetta probe!</p><p><br /><i>*You go, Rosetta*</i></p><p>Without question, the best part about the book was HAL 9000 </p><u>
 <b>The ENDING</b>
</u><p>I actually took some time to make myself mentally ready to read the last part. After seven years, I was just moments away from finally understanding the end of 2001 A space Odyssey.<br /><br /><i>*I understand...... everything*</i></p><p>Or so I expected. But I ended up being...<br /></p><p>Don't get me wrong, I did understand what happened. But it was definitely NOT what I expected. The awesome Star baby confused the hell out of me!</p><p>Nevertheless, 2001: A Space Odyssey is classic science fiction at its best.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/23097409?shelf=book-series-ongoing">book-series-ongoing</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/23097409?shelf=hall-of-fame-2017">hall-of-fame-2017</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/23097409?shelf=sci-fi-challenge-d-j">sci-fi-challenge-d-j</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27098959-leonard-gaya"></a></section><section><p>Author <i></i>1 book809 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/803754743">August 4, 2020</a></section><div><p>This novel and the film stem from the same original project. Initially, Kubrick and Clarke had been working together on the same story. While Stanley Kubrick went on to make what is now <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2001:_A_Space_Odyssey_(film)">his masterpiece</a> (and one of the most amazing films in the history of cinema), Arthur C. Clarke wrote his most famous novels, alongside <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/414999.Childhood_s_End">Childhood's End</a>. The narratives in book and movie run parallel and so close to one another, that, while re-reading the novel, I have found it almost impossible to dismiss the images from Kubrick’s movie, except when Clarke throws in some rare scene of his own: the ship approaching the rings of Saturn and the satellite Japetus, for instance. So much so that Clarke’s book feels like a novelisation or literary by-product of Kubrick’s film.<p>The scope and pace of the story are far-reaching in both cases, especially the section involving the astronauts, the mad computer and the foolish "Mission Control". However, here is probably where the shortcomings of this book reside: compared to the film, Clarke doesn’t find much to expand on, except for technical or scientific trivia (how to restore gravity in space, how many miles are there between Jupiter and Saturn, so forth), which result in rather dull pieces of prose and don’t add much to the pleasure that this narrative may inspire. This is particularly apparent towards the end of the novel, where the trippy and gripping imagery of Kubrick’s film translates into a few chapters of pseudo-explanatory gibberish. Some piece of poetry might have been more fitting.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/27098959?shelf=favorites">favorites</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5431458-henry-avila"></a></section><section><p>447 reviews3,218 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/265115639">January 11, 2023</a></section><div><p>The opening scene of a tribe of ape- men in Africa finding a strange gyrating monolith, another rock to these few primitives at first. However after the light show the tribe is fascinated, teaches them how to make and use tools, kill animals and prevent their own extinction. With an unlimited supply of food and not be dependent on plants and fruit for survival , very rare during the long ponderous drought conditions (millions of years ). The human race might reach their destiny , for better or worse after all. At around the beginning of the 21st century another monolith is discovered or is it the same one found earlier ? Buried in the dark side (back side) of the moon a bizarre place for any object to be. The bright Dr. Heywood Floyd is called in to investigate and keeps a silent tongue, why he's there on the lunar surface. He sees that the jet black slab is ten foot tall and three million years old unbelievably and immediately sends a ominous signal somewhere in the vast Solar System , obviously extraterrestrial in origin... The spaceship the magnificent, expensive Discovery is built and sent to Saturn's moon Lapetus where the dark structure indicates to go, they had little choice and must obey. Hal the now legendary computer on board the Discovery does the work and Captain David Bowman and Frank Poole don't have much to do, yes a boring voyage for the spacemen... the other crewmen are in hibernation. And will be revived when they hopefully arrive at their distant destination an average of 746 million miles away from Earth. Did I say a very monotonous rather endless adventure into the unknown, this will change soon since Hal never makes a mistake, but will. Still the view of giant Jupiter's turbulent gases, constantly changing makes a colorful atmosphere which shouldn't be avoided, the planet's numerous enticing satellites that astronomers keep on finding new ones to their great delight and joy , 79 at last count, second most in our system, since Saturn has a few more, 82, good show... are...<br /> not to be missed either. Neither is Saturn's Rings and their ice and rocks as they float around the heavens in perpetual orbit of the exotic sphere. This novel with a strange and vague ending what does it mean... Maybe the story about Jesus Christ being resurrected to save the world? Or just aliens manipulating the Earth or another idea, humans trying to find God, you decide ...I did.This like the wonderful classic film is a little cold in unfolding, nevertheless a glorious story of our future.</p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/16254355-matthew"></a></section><section><p>1,219 reviews8,686 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/500803130">April 8, 2021</a></section><div><p>4 stars first time I read<br />5 stars on the re-read<p>And, speaking of stars . . . an applicable quote:</p><p><b>"Oh my God, it's full of stars!"</b></p><p>2001: A Space Odyssey is a classic. It could easily be argued that it is one of the top 5 sci-fi books of all time based on its impact since the time it was released. Also, interesting to note as discussed in the intro to the book, the movie is not based on the book and the book is not based on the movie; Clarke and Kubrick collaborated on both and, in fact, the movie was released before the book. And, while I didn't care that much for the movie (I am not a Kubrick fan), it is also a classic in the sci-fi genre.</p><p>My favorite thing about this book is that it is speculative science fiction at its finest. I have really enjoyed recent speculative sci-fi titles and this is the Granddaddy of them all. How would long distance space travel work? What would Artificial Intelligence and machine learning look like? What might be out there in the Cosmos? A lot of sci-fi is about galaxies far far away and not all that based on scientific reality, but this puts everything in the realm of our Solar System with real science and only speculation about what else is beyond the limits of what is reasonably reachable. Fascinating to think about!</p><p>Do you like sci-fi? Are you looking to up your classic novel repitoire? Be sure to add 2001. It is a quick and interesting read that will give you a lot to think about.</p><p>And, I suppose I should try the movie again . . .</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/16254355?shelf=2021">2021</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/16254355?shelf=completist-book-club">completist-book-club</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/16254355?shelf=read-more-than-once">read-more-than-once</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3675162-j-l-sutton"></a></section><section><p>651 reviews826 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3676094573">December 15, 2021</a></section><div><p><b>"He was moving through a new order of creation, of which few men had ever dreamed...which he alone had been privileged to glimpse. It was too much to expect that he would also understand."</b><p></p><p>Second read: With the increasing sophistication of AI, it's interesting to read how early scifi writers (like Asimov and Heinlein) envisioned their role. While today's AI might not be self-aware, it/they seem(s) less cold technology and more human. 2001 is not about the technology, but the journey. There are still lots of unanswered questions as we think about this future we travel toward. No better time to think about it than while reading some classic science fiction! </p><p>***<br />Arthur C. Clarke's 2001: A Space Odyssey has become part of common culture. An alien artifact triggers evolution and leads mankind to the stars. The artifact pictured above (recently 'discovered' in Utah) renewed discussion of Clarke's seminal work. Besides the iconic monolith, though, there's also the equally iconic and creepy AI, HAL. The writing is sometimes clunky and occasionally really good in 2001. It's the ideas that Clarke presents and the journey he shows mankind on that continues to make this an interesting read. 3.5 stars</p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/870755-dan-schwent"></a></section><section><p>2,863 reviews10.5k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1352844982">August 17, 2015</a></section><div><p>An alien artifact teaches a man-ape to use tools. Heywood Floyd goes to the moon to investigate a mysterious situation. Dave Bowman and his crewmates, most of them in cryogenic sleep, head toward Saturn....<p>Let me get my two big gripes out of the way first. <br />1. Arthur C. Clarke's characters are cardboard cutouts and largely interchangeable with one another.<br />2. Arthur C. Clarke's prose doesn't bring all the boys to the yard.</p><p>Now that I've got that out of the way, I enjoyed this book very much. Some of it is a little dated, not surprising since Clarke wrote it around the time some man-ape discovered fire. A lot of it is spot-on, though, like Heywood Floyd's tablet by another name.</p><p>The first two threads do a great job of setting up the third. The man-ape thread was the least exciting but nicely set the stage. By the time Bowman's thread got going, the book was very hard to put down.</p><p>Unlike a lot of sf classics, I enjoyed both the story AND the concepts. Because of the enjoyment factor and because it's a classic of the genre, I bumped it from my original 3.5 to a full 4 out of 5.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/870755?shelf=2015">2015</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/2457095-apatt"></a></section><section><p>507 reviews752 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1334579507">November 28, 2016</a></section><div><p>When I first read this book as a teenager I hated it, I thought it was so dry and impenetrable. I loved the Kubrick movie for its weirdness though. Clearly I was not one of the brighter kids of my generation. Having said that while I like it very much on this reread I can see why I could not appreciate it in my teens. Clarke’s scientific expositions can be very detailed but I would not call them dry now because I find them quite fascinating. The fact that when you are on the moon Earth is the moon, the details about the composition of Saturn’s ring and the description of Jupiter and its moons are clearly explained, interesting and (gulp!) educational. They really facilitate visualization of these planets.<p>What I particularly love about Clarke’s writing now that I did not appreciate in my foolish teens is the wonderful minutiae of his descriptions of various aspects of the space faring life. For example the practical design of the toilet on a spaceship for zero gravity conditions (a badly design toilet would mean getting shit all over you). Also things like the thick sticky sauce on pork chops and salad with adhesive dressing to keep food from floating off the plate during dinner. After dinner the velcro slippers are great for walking around the ship without levitating. <br /><br />Spacecraft Discovery</p><p>I have only mentioned the minor details so far, the main plot is of course absolutely epic though it is so well known it is hardly worth describing. <i> 2001: A Space Odyssey</i> gets off to a rollicking start during 3 million years B.C. The first five chapters basically tells the story of how ape-men were “uplifted” (to use <a href="https://goodreads.com/author/show/14078.David_Brin"> David Brin</a>’s term) by dogooding aliens from silly primates to sentient “people”. Then the story jumps forward to the (cough) future of 2001 AD where a mysterious monolith is discovered on the moon. This main section of the book is entirely set in space so we don’t know if Clarke would have predicted iPads and Tumblr.<br /><br />(Monolith on the moon)</p><p>The middle section of the book where astronaut David Bowman is battling crazed and homicidal AI HAL 9000 (of “Daisy Daisy” fame) is my favorite. The short section of the narrative told from HAL’s point of view is particularly wondrous. After dealing with HAL with extreme prejudice Dave has a lonely and depressing “Major Tom” period marooned in space. Fortunately he soon embarks on his famous trippy trip through a stargate. </p><p>If you are puzzled by the Kubrick movie this book may help to clarify almost everything for you, except that according to Clarke Kubrick and himself had different idea of the story they wanted to tell and Clarke’s answers are not necessarily the correct one! I have no idea how much input Kubrick had on the novel, only that he helped to develop it. The book is – however – entirely written by Clarke. The last couple of chapters are less surreal and psychedelic than the film but relatively understandable yet quite mind blowing for all that.</p><p>While he is a sci-fi legend to this day Clarke is often derided (along with Asimov) for his journeyman prose but I am always quite happy to defend Clarke’s style of writing. He used the right tools for the right job and his science expositions are accessible and a pleasure to read. He is also quite capable of some dry wit. Characterization is not Clarke's forte, he preferred to concentrate on the epic plot development instead, which is fine for me as he succeeded in his storytelling aim. Having said that both Dave Bowman and HAL 9000 are two of sci-fi's most memorable and enduring characters. </p><p>If you like the film adaptation of <i> 2001: A Space Odyssey</i> but have not read this book you should. Ditto if you have not seen the film. It is deservedly a classic.</p><p>Star rating: <i>Oh my God! – it’s full of stars!</i></p><p></p><p>Note: My review of <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1821021803">2010: Odyssey Two</a></p><p></p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/2457095?shelf=favorites">favorites</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27788046-sean-barrs"></a></section><section><p>1,099 reviews44.1k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4503831218">January 27, 2022</a></section><div><p><b>The film is WAY better than the book.</b><p>Sometimes I feel like there’s pressure in the reading community to side with the written word, to defend it over cinema because it’s supposed to be our preferred medium for storytelling. This isn’t always the case. And if I’m honest, I prefer theatre over anything. More importantly though, and what I’m trying to suggest here, is that the phrase “the book is always better” is simply incorrect. </p><p>Film comparisons aside, <i>2001</i> was not the book I was expecting. It’s divided into three narratives, the first two setting up the third. The third is the main part and it’s what the book is really about, but it just took far too long to get there. I was bored. The book is dull and overly descriptive yet also remarkably brilliant in its scope and conclusion. Ultimately, it’s a book with a great idea, but one that takes a very long time to convey its meaning and demonstrate the connectedness of the narratives. </p><p>In some ways its like a long journey, the destination is worthwhile but getting there can be a little bit tedious. And this book was so very tedious in places. So much superfluous material could have been edited out. It so desperately needed more plot and a little bit more excitement with characters that were engaging. Sure, it discussed some interesting ideas but first two thirds of the novel were completely flat. </p><p>The strongest element this book has is its depiction of evolution being an ever moving, ever developing, phenomenon. This alongside considerations over the danger of technology (that also had the power to evolve) made the book engaging and even tense in parts, but this energy was never consistent. It just needed more life. </p><p>As such, two stars seems like a fair rating for a book that is intellectually challenging but hindered by its dry tone and lack of action. </p><p>__________________________________</p><p>You can connect with me on social media via <a href="https://linktr.ee/sean.ultra_vegan1">My Linktree</a>.<br />__________________________________</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/27788046?shelf=2-star-reads">2-star-reads</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/27788046?shelf=sci-fi">sci-fi</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/117399210-lu-s"></a></section><section><p>1,792 reviews430 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3411737240">October 15, 2022</a></section><div><p>Taken from a short story by Arthur C. Clarke, published in 1951 under the title The Sentinel, this novel had written in collaboration with Stanley Kubrick. He masterfully adapted it to offer us the 2001 space odyssey in 1968. Like many others, I saw the film on several occasions, bewitched by Zarathoustra and by the waltzes of Strauss, which stick so well to Kubrick's images free of dialogue. Hence, the confusing film ending, even if I appreciated that the director left the viewer the freedom to interpret this epilogue. Wishing to approach this story from a different angle, I read the novel, where I found the film's oppressive atmosphere. And the same sanitized sets, only punctuated by the monotone voice of Carl, the supercomputer whose real name is HAL, give IBM a close degree in the alphabet. From the origins of humans to the moon, we quickly arrive at Explorer I en route to Saturn with Dave Bowman and Frank Poole on board. I had won over by the rhythm of this novel, served by short chapters, and the depth of the reflection Unveiling the hidden text, even if the author provides us with some keys. However, the reader remains free to see what he wishes to draw from his reflections. This novel makes you want to extend the journey to the far reaches of the Universe and to explain the origins.</p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/117399210?shelf=brit-and-related">brit-and-related</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/117399210?shelf=e-3">e-3</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/117399210?shelf=g-science-fiction">g-science-fiction</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/115548922-eloy-cryptkeeper"></a></section><section><p>296 reviews183 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3423350199">June 23, 2021</a></section><div><p>“Existen dos posibilidades: que estemos solos en el universo o que no lo estemos. Ambas son igual de terroríficas”.<p>Un libro brillante .<br />con su propia visión, el autor, abre la caja de Pandora y despliega algunas de las eternas preguntas de la humanidad ... ¿de onde venimos y a donde vamos? ¿porque nosotros estamos acá ? ¿que hay en toda la inmensidad inexplorada? ¿somos buenos o malos por naturaleza?.<br />Y nos hace pensar... ¿Estamos evolucionando o involucionando en muchos aspectos?</p><p>*Si alguien se le anima a la obra por primera vez, o por casualidad no esta familiarizado/a con la versión cinematográfica de kubrick...Tenganle paciencia durante las primeras paginas, Porque sin dudas es un viaje que vale la pena, inclusive tiene momentos de extrema tensión, como pocos.</p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/70459127-tara"></a></section><section><p>347 reviews19 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2226510435">January 3, 2018</a></section><div><p><i>
 <blockquote>“He now perceived that there were more ways than one behind the back of space.”</blockquote>
</i><br />As a longtime admirer of Stanley Kubrick’s dazzling film, I was more than a little hesitant about picking up this book, apprehensive that it might not be able to live up to my perhaps overly demanding expectations. And it did take me a good 50 pages or so before I really began to connect with Clarke’s writing. After that initial rough patch, however, I became increasingly immersed in this absorbing story, eventually entirely unwilling to part with it. Thankfully, the oft-accurate cliché that “the book is better than the movie” proved true; I’m very pleased I gave this a try. <p>All of the fascinating themes you doubtless remember from the movie can be found here too: evolution, technology, exploration and discovery, the nature of intelligence, the effects of isolation, and, perhaps the most poignant of these, mankind’s primal, relentless hunger to understand <i>why</i>. But what I wasn’t expecting to encounter, and what made this such an incredibly memorable novel, was the boundless sense of reverence and awe with which it was infused. Clarke masterfully depicted the vast grandeur of space, in part by subtly yet persistently underscoring how very small and alone David was, and he did so in such a way that I ended up feeling something I’ve not experienced in quite some time: pure childlike wonder at the unfathomable, incomprehensible beauty and magnitude of our universe. </p><p>A genuinely riveting quest for discovery, <i>2001</i> is science fiction with both a heart <i>and</i> a mind (AND ). I was captivated, intrigued, and exhilarated by this grand adventure into the nature of existence, the heart of the universe, and, unexpectedly, the endless expanses of the human heart. Okay, yikes, that last line was pretty cheesy. Sorry about that. Some of you may already be skeptical, and hearing about “the endless expanses of the human heart” really can’t be helping matters. And, granted, the book did end things with a freakin’ , for Chrissakes. But Clarke negotiated this admittedly precarious terrain without ever allowing the book to become too sentimental, New-Agey, or otherwise insufferable. This was due to no small measure of consummate dexterity, and was in fact part of the reason why, in my opinion, this qualifies as insightful, thought-provoking, intelligently written <i>literature.</i></p><p>An “Odyssey” indeed; I can’t think of a more fitting title for this breathtaking, awe-inspiring journey.</p><p></p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/4443363-kelli"></a></section><section><p>26 reviews7 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/177599094">May 22, 2016</a></section><div><p>Dave Bowman: Hello, HAL. Do you read me, HAL? <br />HAL: Affirmative, Dave. I read you. <br />Dave Bowman: Open the pod bay doors, HAL. <br />HAL: I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that. <br />Dave Bowman: What's the problem? <br />HAL: I think you know what the problem is just as well as I do. <br />Dave Bowman: What are you talking about, HAL? <br />HAL: This mission is too important for me to allow you to jeopardize it. <br />Dave Bowman: I don't know what you're talking about, HAL. <br />HAL: I know that you and Frank were planning to disconnect me, and I'm afraid that's something I cannot allow to happen. <br />Dave Bowman: Where the hell'd you get that idea, HAL? <br />HAL: Dave, although you took very thorough precautions in the pod against my hearing you, I could see your lips move. <br />Dave Bowman: Alright, HAL. I'll go in through the emergency airlock. <br />HAL: Without your space helmet, Dave, you're going to find that rather difficult. <br />Dave Bowman: HAL, I won't argue with you anymore. Open the doors. <br />HAL: Dave, this conversation can serve no purpose anymore. Goodbye</p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/4443363?shelf=re-read">re-read</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1413439-stephen"></a></section><section><p>1,517 reviews10.8k followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/30254936">December 4, 2013</a></section><div><p>4.5 Stars. The books of Arthur C. Clarke (at least the ten or so that I have read) have been consistently good and of very high quality. When I pick up one of his books, I can be confident that I won't be disappointed. This book is terrific and don't think that if you have seen the movie you know what is going to happen. </p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1413439?shelf=1954-1969">1954-1969</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1413439?shelf=audiobook">audiobook</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1413439?shelf=bdo">bdo</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/30506556-tommye-the-fantasy-review"></a></section><section><p>239 reviews120 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2567837124">April 25, 2022</a></section><div><p>I won’t lie: I began reading 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke because I felt like I had to. It’s a book everyone talks about, and many who do have never read it. I’ll get around to the film soon too. Because of this, I never thought I would actually like it this much…<p>I love how episodic classic science fiction is</p><p>Yes, characterisation leaves something to be desired, but it doesn’t really matter. 2001: A Space Odyssey is about the story, the “What if?”. The characters do have some semblance of personality, though, so I still empathised with them and was excited or shocked when they were.</p><p>The story itself surprised me! I wasn’t expecting such a large-scale thing. I began the book thinking it might be a simple exploration plot, but you soon find out that it’s far more complex than that.</p><p>Despite challenging myself only to read the first book in the series, 2001: A Space Odyssey, I’m going to read the next one too. The main reason for this is that Arthur C. Clarke dropped a bombshell filled with questions and I’m dying to know the answers!</p><p>2001: A Space Odyssey is an incredible book</p><p>I would even recommend it to those who prefer the character-driven modern SF that is more popular now, just because the story itself is enthralling. It’s a short book, so even if you're not sure, give a few pages a go!</p><p><a href="https://thefantasyreviews.com/2020/03/25/2001-a-space-odyssey-by-arthur-c-clarke-book-review/">View the full review at The Fantasy Review</a></p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/30506556?shelf=2020-reads">2020-reads</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/30506556?shelf=science-fiction-read">science-fiction-read</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3102740-dirk-grobbelaar"></a></section><section><p>550 reviews1,047 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/86811650">September 1, 2016</a></section><div><p>Wow. This is really something. Forget what you think you know if you’ve seen the film.<p> This is surely a landmark piece of Science Fiction. Although Clarke divulges a lot more detail here than Kubrick incorporated into his film, the mystic aspect of space is still present. I also enjoyed learning more about the monoliths and their true nature and/or purpose.</p><p> For some reason I thought the opening sequence (the Dawn of Man) would be boring. It wasn’t. In fact, despite being much more comprehensive than the bit showed in the film, I found it extremely lyrical and poignant. This, I suppose, is true of the whole novel. The grand finale was everything I’d hoped for and it <i>does</i> clear the water a bit, although there are some things that remain tantalizingly open for interpretation. There are a number of parallels here, but I don’t want to go into too much detail.</p><p>A fun activity is comparing Clarke’s predictions with the current state of technology. OK, so he had the date of space-worthiness wrong (we’re more than a decade overdue) but there are any number of things in here that are interesting (Tablet PCs with internet capability, for example). These tidbits are all the more impressive if you take into account the novel’s date of publication. Of course, this is one Sci-Fi story that is actually <i>not</i> about the tech, but the sense of wonder that accompanies exploration. Oh, and let's not forget the philosophical issue.</p><p> Highly recommended. </p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/3102740?shelf=books-i-own">books-i-own</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/3102740?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/3102740?shelf=sf-road-trip-2012">sf-road-trip-2012</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/64621419-dennis"></a></section><section><p>652 reviews252 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1956139821">February 4, 2021</a></section><div><p>An SF classic that is more about concept and ideas than a traditional plot. Unlike the movie it does have a plot, though.<p>It all starts roughly three million years ago in Africa, with apes developing an understanding of their surroundings and how to overcome their limitations. With a little help from— our friends? Maybe.</p><p>I tried several times, but never got past that first sequence of the movie, until very recently. In the book, though, this part is written with wonderful imagination and quite some wit. It drew me right in.</p><p>We then jump to the year 1999, when a monolith is found on the moon. Here begins a more traditional SF story that is surrounded by an air of mystery. Where does the thing come from? And what is its purpose? We soon get some ideas. While this part of the book is relatively straightforward, Clarke generally manages to entertain, and also to impress with his surprisingly detailed and accurate description of a modern-day tablet, decades before anyone would hold such a thing in their hands.</p><p>During the next part of the book, a mission to Saturn, we find ourselves on the spaceship <i>Discovery</i>, with two astronauts, the now infamous artificial intelligence HAL 9000 and a further three astronauts that are in hibernation chambers. Here’s where the novel is at its ominous best and the struggle between HAL and Dave is still fascinating to read.</p><p>Many themes are addressed in this book. Overpopulation, food shortages, human evolution, the use of tools and power. But the struggle between man and machine and exploration of the artificial mind, with the author raising many questions and answering very few of them, is my personal highlight. However, it is over rather soon.</p><p>The next part already begins to leave the boundaries of a plot behind and relies heavily on your fascination with space travel and other planets. The book becomes more about images and imagination now, and it might lose some readers here. I wasn’t one of them. Transition from one part of the book to the next might not always be the smoothest and the pacing has some problems for sure, but I found it still fascinating. Clarke manages to capture the vastness of space pretty much perfectly.</p><p>The last part of the book however … well, let’s just say I’m not a fan. It is rife with symbolism and gives the reader a lot to think about. It’s about the big questions. Naturally, I’m not giving you any answers here. But don’t expect Clarke to do so either. At this point he is not concerned with explaining anything anymore. And while that is something I can appreciate, this whole last part is just a little too obscure, and frankly too weird, for my taste. It’s not as bad as in the movie (which I finally managed to watch without falling asleep yesterday), but, well … find out for yourself.</p><p>I rated it 4.5 stars the first time around, but I’m going with a 4 now. It’s a fascinating and important novel. A classic. I enjoyed it both times I was reading it. But it has some minor problems, that have the potential to become major problems for some readers, and it’s also not a book I’d say I love. So, it’s not actually that close to a five-star rating for me.</p><p>Still, recommended.</p><p>The movie, though. Eh. At your own risk.</p><p></p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/64621419?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/64621419?shelf=series-to-continue">series-to-continue</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/44737540-pat-the-book-goblin"></a></section><section><p>423 reviews126 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2309212242">March 5, 2020</a></section><div><p>I enjoyed this reread on my commute to work. Below is my review from 2018 and my opinion hasn't changed since then. I really enjoyed this book except for the first part which was very boring. <p>Story wise 2001 a Space Odyssey was great; however, when I read books that say aliens helped humans along then that’s where I draw the line. Aliens did not build the pyramids. I don’t care what anyone says. I like aliens, don’t get me wrong. I love Star Wars, Star Trek, Ender's Game (one of my FAVORITE Sci-fi books) and many others. I just hate books that portray humans so dumb they need a little “push” from outside help, or as a way to “explain” the monumental accomplishments of the past. No, human beings built those monoliths, we grew as a species--we did it on our own—not aliens. So, at least for me, 2001 was very hard for me to rate. </p><p>Part 1 was very boring—40+ pages of an ape-man in the Pleistocene era. Gouge my eyes out with a rusty fork. 40+ pages of an ape-man banging on stones and killing a panther...big whoop...</p><p>If I rate the book solely for story, then it was a 5 star book, but, like I said, I hate the “aliens built the pyramids” theme and boring Part 1. Whenever they talk about extraterrestrials on the sci-fi channel I always watch something else because I know what they are going to talk about. There is no evidence they exist anyway. </p><p>I loved the themes in this book; perils of technology and nuclear war, space exploration, and artificial intelligence. All the great sci-fi books I’ve read so far really highlighted the perils of technology, especially in robots. R.U.R. and I, Robot really talk about the dangers of technology and artificial intelligence (which is probably why we as a society went the iPhone/computer route lol). </p><p>I love space. Of all the sciences, astronomy is my favorite. I loved when Clarke talked about the moons and planets in the galaxy. I can’t get enough of space opera books. </p><p>So overall great story, besides the two things I mentioned. Once I find the sequels in a used bookstore I’ll keep reading them, but for now, onto Heinlein or Asimov!</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/44737540?shelf=classics">classics</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/44737540?shelf=sci-fi">sci-fi</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5448792-b-schrodinger"></a></section><section><p>305 reviews642 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1491924429">January 4, 2016</a></section><div><p><b>Daah daaahh dah<p>DA DA!!!</p><p>boom boom boom boom boom</p></b><p>That's how the book starts. I swear. No lie. Then there is twenty pages of men in rubber suits called Oog and Ugg.</p><p>No, not really. </p><p>I'm like most people I guess (only in this regard) in that I saw the movie before the book. And it's a damn fine movie if you have some patience. It's beautiful and oh my god it's full of stars. So it's natural that the comparison is made between text and movie here. But, unusually, the book was written alongside the movie script. There was a nice bit at the back of the book where Arthur acknowledges the differences between the two and the explanation behind it.</p><p>The stories are very similar, it's just some of the details that change. But it is awfully hard to separate the two. The novel is less obtuse - things are spelt out a lot clearer. And there is much more scientific details for us nerds go squee at. Was the 1:4:9 ratio in the movie?</p><p>Unlike the movie the ape men are very interesting and the difference is that it talks about how the monolith experiments on them and chooses those most fit to teach to use tools. It also hints that there were other monoliths in contact with other tribes. Are they still there under the African savannah? (maybe we'll find out in the sequels).</p><p>So despite knowing the story the wonder is still there. I still enjoyed it immensely. Oh and the last 20% of the book makes much more sense than the last 20% of the movie. Not total sense mind you. </p><p>For those unfamiliar with Clarke's writing it is similar to most golden age SF in that characterisation takes a back seat. Maybe not as much as other classic SF authors, but there is some two dimensionality here. The ideas and the plot are the fruits here. I just want you all to know what to expect from Arthur C Clarke. </p><p>So 'Odyssey II' next, which has already pissed me off, but I'm pushing through it. But that's a story for another day.</p><p>EDIT: P.S. Be warned. Blatant Mad Men era sexism. Kinda cringeworthy. And there is one line that is an absolute corker about why their runabouts have female names.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/5448792?shelf=first-contact">first-contact</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/5448792?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/58296635-sidharth-vardhan"></a></section><section><p>Author <i></i>23 books681 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1723739361">September 11, 2017</a></section><div><p><i> “They became farmers in the fields of stars; they sowed and sometimes they reaped.<br />And sometimes, dispassionately, they had to weed.”<br /></i><br />Written a year before Neil Armstrong became first man to step on moon, the science fiction story is really well written. Clark mixes his speculative predictions with true events from past (like the panic caused by broadcastings of Wells’ ‘War of the Worlds’) and once he quoted Niels Bohr (<i>““Your theory is crazy-but not crazy enough to be true.”</i>) I loved his descriptions of lives of astronauts – the long, lonely, boring journeys interrupted by occasional wonderful sights and destinations. Both the beginning and the conclusion were simply incredible.<br /><i><br />“In an empty room floating amid the fires of double star twenty thousand light-years from Earth, a baby opened its eyes and began to cry.”<p>““Where there is light, there still could be life.”</p><p>“It was the mark of a barbarian to destroy something one could not understand.”</p><p>"We can design a system that's proof against accident and stupidity; but we can't design one that's proof against deliberate malice</p><p>“Someone had once said that you could be terrified in space, but you could not be worried there.”</p><p>“The word "rescue" was carefully avoided in all the Astronautics Agency's statements and documents; it implied some failure of planning, and the approved jargon was "re-acquisition”.</p><p>“Again he began to wonder if he was suffering from amnesia, Paradoxically, that very thought reassured him, if he could remember the word "amnesia" his brain must be in fairly good shape.”</p><p>“They had learned to speak, and so had won their first great victory over Time. Now the knowledge of one generation could be handed on to the next, so that each age could profit from those that had gone before.<br />Unlike the animals, who knew only the present, Man had acquired a past; and he was beginning to grope toward a future.”</p></i></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/58296635?shelf=8-usa">8-usa</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/58296635?shelf=dystopian-utopian-futurisitic">dystopian-utopian-futurisitic</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/58296635?shelf=list-1001">list-1001</a> </ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/40256937-paul-haspel"></a></section><section><p>530 reviews54 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1889643418">April 3, 2021</a></section><div><p>2001, the year, is a long time ago now. A person born on this date in the year 2001 might now be halfway through his or her second year of college or university. And yet the novelistic and cinematic story that takes its name from the year 2001 is, if anything, more relevant and more compelling than ever.<p><i>2001: A Space Odyssey</i> may be better known, within popular culture, as Stanley Kubrick’s visionary 1968 epic of science-fiction cinema. Yet Kubrick, working from an expressed wish to craft “the proverbial good science-fiction movie,” had the good sense to work with the eminent British science-fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke in pursuit of his stated goal; and the story that emerged from their collaboration – whether one is watching Kubrick’s film or reading Clarke’s novel – unquestionably reflects the creative sensibilities and thematic concerns of both artists.</p><p>Kubrick's great theme was the danger of dehumanization - the threat that human beings could give up their own humanity. The cause of that dehumanization changes from film to film: the political and military structures that human beings create (<i>Paths of Glory</i>, <i>Spartacus</i>, <i>Dr. Strangelove</i>, <i>Full Metal Jacket</i>), the psychological malformations threatening one's humanity from within (<i>Lolita</i>, <i>A Clockwork Orange</i>, <i>The Shining</i>, <i>Eyes Wide Shut</i>), a facile trust that science can solve the problems of human evil (<i>Clockwork</i> again). </p><p>In Kubrick's <i>2001: A Space Odyssey</i>, the agent of dehumanization is technology itself: human beings have given their machines so much power and agency that the machines do virtually all the work, leaving human beings with little to do except look at screens (rather like life today, come to think). A machine is the only character in the film to express any emotions, and the human beings in the film - with one notable exception - act like machines, or automata.</p><p>Clarke’s core interests, as set forth in novels like <i>Childhood’s End</i> (1953), are quite different, including artificial intelligence and the possibility of human contact with extraterrestrial civilizations; and accordingly, it should be no surprise that the novel <i>2001: A Space Odyssey</i> engages both of these areas of interest. </p><p>The novel is divided into five sections. The first section, “Primeval Night,” which corresponds to the “Dawn of Man” section of Kubrick’s film, shows humankind as a set of man-apes teetering on the edge of extinction – until one of them, named “Moon-Watcher” in the book, awakens to find that something truly new has come into his world while he slept: “It was a rectangular slab, three times his height but narrow enough to span with his arms, and it was made of some completely transparent material; indeed, it was not easy to see except when the rising sun glinted on its edges” (p. 10).</p><p>This is, of course, “the monolith” – the enigmatic object whose geometrical precision shows that it was made by some extraterrestrial intelligence. The monolith is transparent in Clarke’s novel, black in Kubrick’s film; but either way, it is there to guide humans forward on an evolutionary path. Through images generated by the monolith, Moon-Watcher – and later, the other members of his tribe – learn to wield tools, to hunt for animal food, and even to kill enemies. All of this happens in the book without the accompaniment of the film’s C-major cadence from Richard Strauss’s <i>Also Sprach Zarathustra</i>, but it is no less powerful for that.</p><p>The book then leaps forward millions of years – like Kubrick’s film, with its famous bone-to-satellite matched cut – in Part II, “TMA-1.” The “TMA” stands for “Tycho Magnetic Anomaly,” referring to a magnetic abnormality that a group of lunar explorers have found on the Moon’s surface. Scientist and administrator Heywood Floyd – depicted more sympathetically in Clarke’s book than in Kubrick’s film – is bound on a commercial space flight from the Earth to the Moon. The world of Clarke’s 2001 is a world of ongoing Cold War tension, nuclear-war anxiety, overpopulation, and resource shortages. Dr. Floyd’s mission is to investigate an object found by American scientists on the U.S.-administered portion of the Moon (as opposed to the Soviet section). </p><p>The object – a monolith similar to the one encountered by “Moon-Watcher” and his fellow man-apes back in prehistoric times – is “a vertical slab of jet-black material, about ten feet high and five feet wide….Perfectly sharp-edged and symmetrical, it was so black it seemed to have swallowed up the light falling upon it; there was no surface detail at all.” Deliberately buried – so that it could only be discovered by beings advanced enough to travel from the Earth to the Moon, and then to use scientific instruments to discover and excavate a magnetic anomaly – it is, as one of Dr. Floyd’s colleagues remarks, “the first evidence of intelligent life beyond the Earth” (p. 66).</p><p>The monolith does not divulge its secrets to Dr. Floyd, or to any others among the array of impressive scientists assembled in the Tycho Crater. What it does do, upon its first exposure to the lunar sunrise, is beam a powerful signal out toward the planet Saturn. This enigmatic behaviour on the part of the otherwise silent monolith leads directly into Book III, “Between Planets,” which charts the progress of the interplanetary voyage organized to seek out the reasons for the monolith’s puzzling actions.</p><p>This section, perhaps the most famous part of <i>2001: A Space Odyssey</i>, chronicles the voyage of the spaceship <i>Discovery</i> toward Jupiter and Saturn. On board are three survey scientists in hibernation; mission commander David Bowman; mission assistant Frank Poole – and HAL. His name, we are told, stood “for <i>H</i>euristically programmed <i>AL</i>gorithmic computer” (p. 92), and Clarke always insisted that the name of his computer character was not a sly reference to IBM, with each letter rolled back one. HAL is “the brain and nervous system of the ship” (p. 92), and Clarke makes no bones regarding his feelings about HAL’s ability to think, as opposed to imitate the thought process:</p><p><i>Whether Hal could actually think was a question which had been settled by the British mathematician Alan Turing back in the 1940s. Turing had pointed out that, if one could carry out a prolonged conversation with a machine – whether by typewriter or microphones was immaterial – without being able to distinguish between its replies and those that a man might give, then the machine</i> was<i> thinking, by any sensible definition of the word. Hal could pass the Turing test with ease.</i> (pp. 93-94)</p><p>Nowadays, with the film <i>The Imitation Game</i> winning all sorts of awards, and Dr. Turing’s likeness being placed on the Bank of England’s 50-pound note, everyone knows Dr. Turing’s name; but the manner in which Clarke interpolates this detail into his novel shows how firmly this imaginative epic is grounded in the best science of its time.</p><p>Book IV, “Abyss,” shows the unintended consequences of creating a computer of such all-powerful intelligence. Hal detects an error in an antenna-control device, but the astronauts’ examination of the device reveals no such fault. Confronted with evidence that he might have made a mistake, Hal insists that “If you check my record, you’ll find it completely free from error” (p. 138); but shortly afterward, he begins working to terminate the lives of his human shipmates. </p><p>In Kubrick’s film, the reasons for Hal’s breakdown remain unrevealed; the viewer is left to assume that Hal has simply decided that he can best complete the mission by himself, without human “interference.” Clarke, who seems to sympathize with Hal, takes pains to emphasize, in a chapter titled “Need to Know,” that Hal, whose whole purpose is to share information, has been “living a lie,” told not to reveal to his human shipmates the real reason for the <i>Discovery</i> mission. As Clarke puts it, the mission planners’ “twin gods of Security and National Interest meant nothing to Hal. He was only aware of the conflict that was slowly destroying his integrity – the conflict between truth, and concealment of truth” (p. 152). That neurosis, in Clarke’s analysis, motivates Hal’s behaviour.</p><p>Fortunately for the future of humankind, David Bowman is equal to the challenge posed by Hal’s murderous rebellion. He bears the first name of the giant-killing hero from the Old Testament, and his surname references the bowman Odysseus – both heroes who could not defeat their enemies by physical force, and therefore had to use their wits in order to survive and prevail. Like the biblical King David and the mythological Odysseus, David Bowman finds a way to overcome Hal and continue with the mission – though he does so with remorse, and with the knowledge that Hal’s demise will leave him more alone than any other human being has ever been.</p><p>Finally learning the truth about his mission, David Bowman in Book V (“The Moons of Saturn”) heads toward the Saturnian moon of Japetus, the target of that mysterious signal emanated from the monolith on the Moon. An even vaster and larger monolith – “TMA-1’s big brother!” (p. 193), as Bowman excitedly notes – turns out to provide a sort of dimensional portal to impossibly faraway portions of the Universe; and Bowman, the oxygen in his ship running low as a result of damage caused by Hal’s rebellion, decides to approach the newly discovered “TMA-2” in one of <i>Discovery</i>’s space pods.</p><p>“The Star Gate opened. The Star Gate closed” (p. 203). That pithy declaration by the novel's narrator accompanies the last words that Bowman speaks in the novel: “The thing’s hollow – it goes on forever – and – oh, my God! -- <i>it’s full of stars!”</i> (p. 202). With that, Bowman is off on his “journey beyond the infinite” (a prospective early title for the <i>2001</i> book and film project). </p><p>In the film, of course, this section, titled “Jupiter – And Beyond the Infinite,” is a phantasmagorical light show that goes on for several minutes. In the book, Clarke must use language, and does so quite successfully, to convey the idea that Bowman goes through the Star Gate on a voyage that reveals the answers to mysteries of the Universe. And then, in accordance with his Odyssean surname, David Bowman completes his own odyssey and returns to Earth as a new type of being, as far above ordinary human beings as we are above the man-apes of the time of “Moon-Watcher.”</p><p>There is always the question, of course, of whether Clarke’s novel <i>2001</i> would be as substantial a work without Kubrick’s landmark film. Seeing <i>2001: A Space Odyssey</i> at the Uptown Theatre in Washington, D.C., during a brief theatrical re-release of the film in the autumn of the year 2001, was the high point of my moviegoing life. Watching the film on the Uptown’s 70- by 35-foot Cinerama screen, I saw how every part of the screen was crammed with telling and engaging imagery, in a way that no TV showing could ever convey. There is no other movie quite like it.</p><p>People back in 1968 were reading Clarke’s novel as a sort of “Cliff’s Notes” guide to the movie, to help them through the more enigmatic portions of Kubrick’s film. Returning to the novel now, after some time away from the film, I find that <i>2001</i> the novel holds up well <i>as a novel</i>, comparing well with other classic Clarke works such as <i>Childhood’s End</i>.</p><p>I last re-read <i>2001: A Space Odyssey</i> in July of 2019, around the time of the 50th anniversary of the landing of Apollo 11 on the lunar surface. The moon landing was just a year away, something eagerly anticipated all over the world, when Clarke’s novel and Kubrick’s film were released. Both the book and the film <i>2001</i> posit a world where the moon is dotted with American and Russian colonies; in real life, of course, no one has been to the moon since the Apollo 17 crew left the lunar surface in 1972. I think of the sense of wonder, the exploratory spirit, the yearning after great mysteries that is at the heart of <i>2001: A Space Odyssey</i>, and ask myself: Is there something left in human beings that still reaches for the stars? Or will we continue to settle for staring into the screens of ever-more-complex telephones?</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/40256937?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/12277740-jadranka"></a></section><section><p>229 reviews128 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/937811460">July 8, 2016</a></section><div><p><br />Posle čitanja jednog ovakvog remek-dela teško je naći prave reči koje bi iskazale divljenje koje osećam prema Arturu Klarku; čovek je pravi genijalac, vizionar, a na momente mi se činilo kao da nije sa ove planete.<p>Priznajem, oduvek sam bila fascinirana Svemirom. Kada sam bila mala, Mesec je za mene bio nešto najveličanstvenije što postoji. Svakakve ideje su mi se u to vreme motale po glavi, počev od toga da li neko živi na Mesecu, pa do toga šta bi bilo kad bi Mesec jednog dana pao na Zemlju?! Šta, vi kao niste o tome razmišljali kad ste bili dete? Niste?! E, pa onda ne znam kakvo vam je bilo detinjstvo!</p><p>U svakom slučaju, koliko god da sam oduvek imala bujnu maštu, postoji nešto što nikada nisam mogla da zamislim: kako je to biti astronaut? lebdeti u svemiru, osećati sav taj beskraj oko sebe, tu beskonačnost, videti Zemlju iz jedne druge perspektive...to mi je i dalje nepojmljivo. I kako neko ko je bio u prilici da sve to iskusi, može posle toga da se vrati kući, kosi travnjak, gleda fudbalsku utakmicu, redovno plaća porez i mirno sačeka penziju? Kako može da nastavi sa "normalnim" životom? </p><p>Čovek uvek teži, ili bi barem trebalo da teži, da što više napreduje, pomera granice koje je sam sebi postavio, ispituje nepoznato, nalazi odgovore na ključna pitanja, postavlja nova pitanja generacijama koje dolaze. Ali, šta ako postoje neka pitanja na koja odgovora nema, ili ih još uvek nema. Da li je to onda neuspeh, da li je Čovek zakazao? Već godinama unazad traženje odgovora na pitanje - postoji li život van Zemlje? zaokuplja pažnju naučnika i običnih smrtnika. Ako postoji, u kojoj formi postoji? Ako postoji, da li je Čovek spreman na tu mogućnost? A šta ako ipak ne postoji? </p><p>Na sva ova pitanja zahvaljujući Arturu Klarku sada gledam iz jedne potpuno nove perspektive. <br />Hvala mu na tome.</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/12277740?shelf=arthur-c-clarke">arthur-c-clarke</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/12277740?shelf=read-in-2014">read-in-2014</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/12277740?shelf=sf">sf</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/38559840-melody-sams"></a></section><section><p>63 reviews30 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2213690651">January 5, 2018</a></section><div><p>Like a lot of sci fi, the first half of the novel was a bit slow and hyper focused on a mysterious technology. It sets you up for curiosity. Which is great because if you love sci fi it’s probably because you like your mystery with a hint of tech. <p>But then came the descriptions of said technology. Which covered a good portion of the central half of the novel. This is a rough depiction of my face while reading it 🙄.</p><p>Then came the mind blowing, spectacularly done third act, which is a bit hard to grasp but amazing in scope and theory. This is a rough depiction of my face while reading that part🤪. </p><p>Needless to say I look forward to continuing this series. </p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/7487619-rachel-theshadesoforange"></a></section><section><p>1,961 reviews2,683 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4681649497">January 14, 2023</a></section><div><p><b>4.0 Stars</b><br />I'm happy to write that I really enjoyed this classic science fiction story. I have never watched the movie so I went in completely blind. The first section was by far the best part, from that incredible opening first line. There is a significant shift in the story in the second part but yet it still remained highly compelling. I definitely want to read more by this author.</p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/7487619?shelf=science-fiction">science-fiction</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3461034-trish"></a></section><section><p>1,849 reviews3,363 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3164561364">December 30, 2020</a></section><div><p>I think it's pretty safe to say that this is one of THE scifi novels, yet this is the first time I've read it. To be clear from the start: this, in my opinion, is not one of those book I'll likely enjoy again and again, but it was definitely important to have read it.<p>Almost confusingly, the novel opens in Africa, about 3 million years ago and shows us some prehistoric humans in their struggle for daily survival. The author snarkily describes their limitations and the immense impact "something" has on them when inspiring/encouraging the development of intelligence (tools, applying farming as well as hunting etc). <br />Then we jump to the year 1999, in which travels to the Moon are common. In one of the Moon's craters, a monolith is found that emits a strong and mysterious signal when the sunlight touches it for the first time in forever. <br />The signal is sent to Saturn, apparently, which brings us to the third part (of four) of the book in which a ship is sent to investigate. On board said ship: the (in-)famous HAL 9000.</p><p>No more details shall be given away about the civilisation who built and left the monoliths or what happens to the respective characters. Suffice it to say that it gets really interesting.</p><p>Arthur C. Clarke is such a famous and influential scifi author that an award was named after him. And you can see why here. The novel might have its problems (minor ones though), but the themes! From Alan Turing's theories on artificial intelligence (and, thus, the Turing Test) to evolution and the dangers of technology / nuclear war, this book proves quite some foresight by the author. And yes, he even addressed overpopulation and food shortages though those seem to have been popular things to muse about back in the 60s.</p><p>What I liked was that the author didn't just repeat famous theories like Turing’s, but applied them in an intelligent way within the story. Thus, HAL . The book therefore cleverly raises questions about consciousness/sentience versus programming as much as about human interaction with machines (though I still prefer Asimov's robot stories).<br />Another example is what happens in the end when . *lol* No, seriously, .<br />A more minor but very entertaining thing was the author’s comment on zoos.</p><p>All valid points, presenting then-current themes and problems of humanity (some still just as current nowadays) in a futuristic mantle and even predicting a future Earth, just like scifi should. Moreover, it can clearly be seen by my review that the book makes you think and discuss many things and that is always wonderful. <br />Can't wait to see Kubrick's movie tonight.</p></p></div><section><ul></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/32532774-lisa"></a></section><section><p>971 reviews3,330 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1843526127">July 1, 2017</a></section><div><p>Without doubt this is a science fiction classic, and an early example of a novel and a movie that are born at the same time, adding detail and nuance to each other by the makers’ consistent communication and reflection on the respective effects of different media on the end result. <p>It is an experiment on many different levels, and a very successful one. As a story, I found it interesting and compelling, especially the hilarious initial chapter on early humans and the reason for their development into something of a higher intellectual order. Who would have guessed that we needed extraterrestrial intelligence to understand that proper nourishment will lead to higher brain capacity, and ultimately to our reign over the resources of the planet?</p><p>However, this is not the story of mankind per se, and not the usual science fiction plot either, where (hostile) aliens threaten humanity’s civilisation, and heroes have to come up with highly advanced ideas to protect societies on earth from destruction. It is not even the story of the supremacy of any specific technology or species as such.</p><p>It is a reflection on the utter unimportance of humanity from a cosmic perspective. There is a storyline on the problematic use of artificial intelligence, when Hal starts making dangerous decisions based on contradictory programming, but in the end, nothing humanity has ever developed, decided or experienced plays a major role, once they leave the framework of the Solar System and enter the intellectual thought experiment of “2001: Space Odyssey”: a creative suggestion for a possible universe of extraterrestrial lifeforms.</p><p>As a philosophical statement on the immensity of cosmic possibilities, I quite liked the novel, but generally speaking, the questions that usually interest me in science fiction are more related to the so-called the human factors: how does human society react to immense threat or change, how do interpersonal relationships develop when adapting to extreme situations?</p><p>The Space Odyssey is not concerned with that kind of angle. In a sense, with its technological and scientific inventiveness, it is pure cosmic speculative philosophy, nothing else. But it does not have to be more either.</p><p>Readable, interesting, fun at times!</p></p></div><section><ul><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/32532774?shelf=1001-books-to-read-before-you-die">1001-books-to-read-before-you-die</a></ul></section><hr /></section></article></div><div><article><div><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/87153885-lee-the-book-butcher"></a></section><section><p>236 reviews60 followers</p></section></div><section><section><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2540758588">July 9, 2021</a></section><div><p>a reverse novelization follows the movie pretty closely. never really understood the end so i read this to see what i missed. Hal 9000 is terrifying! </p></div><section><ul></ul></section></section></article></div></div><p>Displaying 1 - 30 of 7,581 reviews</p></div>||||I|||| * Home
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 Space Odyssey #1

 2001: A Space Odyssey

 Arthur C. Clarke

 4.16
 295,807 ratings 7,584 reviews
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 On the Moon, an enigma is uncovered.

 So great are the implications of this discovery that for the first time men are sent out deep into our solar system.

 But long before their destination is reached, things begin to go horribly, inexplicably wrong...

 One of the greatest-selling science fiction novels of our time, this classic book will grip you to the very end.
 Genres Science Fiction Fiction Classics Science Fiction Fantasy Space Fantasy Novels
 ...more

 297 pages, Paperback

 First published April 28, 1968

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 About the author

 Arthur C. Clarke

 1,049 books 9,699 followers
 Sir Arthur Charles Clarke was one of the most important and influential figures in 20th century science fiction. He spent the first half of his life in England, where he served in World War Two as a radar operator, before emigrating to Ceylon in 1956. He is best known for the novel and movie 2001: A Space Odyssey , which he co-created with the assistance of Stanley Kubrick.

 Clarke was a graduate of King's College, London where he obtained First Class Honours in Physics and Mathematics. He is past Chairman of the British Interplanetary Society, a member of the Academy of Astronautics, the Royal Astronomical Society, and many other scientific organizations.

 Author of over fifty books, his numerous awards include the 1961 Kalinga Prize, the AAAS-Westinghouse science writing prize, the Bradford Washburn Award, and the John W. Campbell Award for his novel Rendezvous With Rama . Clarke also won the Nebula Award of the Science Fiction Writers of America in 1972, 1974 and 1979, the Hugo Award of the World Science Fiction Convention in 1974 and 1980, and in 1986 became Grand Master of the Science Fiction Writers of America. He was awarded the CBE in 1989.

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 Jack Beltane
 Author 13 books 28 followers
 March 23, 2008
 The book is always better than the film, but I'd never read 2001 before. What I didn't know, until reading the foreword, is that this novel was literally written in tandem with the film, with Clarke and Kubrick feeding each other ideas. At some points, however, filming overtook writing, or vice versa, and the two stories, though similar, split along two different paths.

 After reading the book, the film becomes little more than a very well crafted container: It's pretty and neat to look at it, but open it up, and it's empty. There is none of Clarke's vision of how a being we'd call God would communicate with us across unfathomable time spans, or teach us, or lead us into higher consciousness. Stripped away by Kubrick is the sense that this being truly wants us to be in its image, and that the whole breadcrumb trail of monoliths was designed to do just that. And completely erased is the notion that David Bowman, as Star Child, is now one with the Universe, in some Zen-like way, and also much more like something we'd called a god.

 Don't get me wrong, 2001 is still one of my favorite films, but to get the full meaning and understand the full weight of why 2001 has been called "the perfect science fiction story," you must read the book. Clarke marries science, mysticism, theory, and fantasy in ways like no other. Unfortunately, Kubrick stripped away the mysticism and theory and left us what is, in comparison to the book, only a glimmer at something bigger.

 Kubrick touched the monolith, but Clarke went inside.
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 zuza_zaksiazkowane
 315 reviews 28.9k followers
 July 30, 2022
 Chyba jestem za głupia na to zakończenie 🥹 Nic nie czaję
 first-contact-with-aliens in-my-home-library science-fiction
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 Lyn
 1,847 reviews 16.3k followers
 June 6, 2019
 Classic.

 I read 2001: A Space Odyssey when I was a teenager and knew it was a very influential work of fiction because of the film and all the attention it had received. Still, though I found it very entertaining, I did not really get it.

 Thirty years later, I have read it again, and though I may not completely get it the second time around, the more mature reader can better grasp the vision and message of the genius author. I especially enjoyed the many allusions to other works and found the reference to Melville's Ahab particularly engrossing.

 Clarke’s prose is clear and descriptive and his story line linear and thought provoking. Not just an excellent science fiction novel, this is a work of literature, brilliant.

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 Ahmad Sharabiani
 9,568 reviews 55.6k followers
 October 11, 2021
 (Book 389 from 1001 books) - 2001: A Space Odyssey (Space Odyssey #1), Arthur C. Clarke

 2001: A Space Odyssey is a 1968 science fiction novel by British writer Arthur C. Clarke.

 It was developed concurrently with Stanley Kubrick's film version and published after the release of the film.

 Clarke and Kubrick worked on the book together, but eventually only Clarke ended up as the official author.

 The story is based in part on various short stories by Clarke, including The Sentinel (written in 1948 for a BBC competition, but first published in 1951 under the title "Sentinel of Eternity").

 By 1992, the novel had sold three million copies worldwide.

 An elaboration of Clarke and Kubrick's collaborative work on this project was made in The Lost Worlds of 2001.

 عنوانهای چاپ شده در ایران: راز کیهان؛ 2001؛ یک ادیسه فضایی؛ نویسنده: آرتور سی کلارک؛ مترجمها: پرویز دوائی؛ هوشنگ غیاثی نژاد؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش ماه آگوست سال 2008میلادی

 عنوان: راز کیهان؛ نوشته: آرتور سی. کلارک؛ مترجم: پرویز دوائی؛ تهران، امیرکبیر - فرانکلین، 1348؛ خورشیدی؛ در 288ص؛ چاپ دوم 1354؛ موضوع: داستانهای نویسندگان بریتانیا - سده 20م

 عنوان: راز کیهان؛ نوشته: آرتور سی. کلارک؛ مترجم: هوشنگ غیاثی نژاد؛ تهران، پاسارگاد، چاپ دوم 1374؛ در دو جلد؛

 دوهزار و یک: ادیسه ی فضایی، عنوان رمانی در گونه ی علمی- تخیلی است که در سال 1968میلادی، به قلم «آرتور سی کلارک» و با همکاری «استنلی کوبریک» نگاشته شده است؛ ایده ی نخست این رمان، برگرفته از داستان کوتاه «آرتور سی کلارک»، با عنوان «نگهبان» است؛ سری چهارگانه ی «ادیسه»، پس از این کتاب نخستین آنهاست؛ کتابهای: (2010: ادیسه دو)؛ (2061: ادیسه سه)؛ و (3001: ادیسه نهایی) هستند

 این داستان قالبی سنتی، و قراردادی دارد، و شخصیتهایش، همگی آدمهایی معمولی‌ هستند، که به یک مأموریت اکتشافی، به کره ی ماه می‌روند، و در آنجا با پدیده‌های شگفت‌ انگیز، روبرو می‌شوند؛ داستان هرچند، بیانی سر راست، و طبیعی دارد، اما توانایی خیال را بسیار برمی‌انگیزد و خوانشگر را، به اندیشیدن وامی‌دارد؛ «استانلی کوبریک»، کارگردان بزرگوار «آمریکایی»، در سال 1968میلادی، براساس این داستان کوتاه، فیلم نام آشنا و مجلل «نگهبان یا اودیسهٔ فضایی 2001» را ساختند، که گروهی از منتقدان، آن را به عنوان مهم‌ترین، و برجسته‌ ترین فیلم علمی-تخیلی تاریخ سینما، برشمرده‌ اند؛ فیلم، درباره ی، دخالت انسان در کیهان، و کهکشانهاست؛ «استانلی کوبریک» نیز، البته در داستان تغییراتی داده، و از جمله شخصیتهای انسانی آن را، در پایان به صورت آدمهای ماشینی تکامل یافته‌، درآورده بود

 در سالهایی این فیلم به ایران آمد، خانه ام در میرداماد بود و مستاجر بودم، ساختمان از آن برادر دوستم مهرداد بود، روز جمعه به دوستم گفتم بیا با هم به دیدن «ادیسه ی فضایی» برویم، پیشنهاد کرد مادرشان هم با ما بیاید، به مادرشان که زن نازنینی بودند، پیشنهاد کردم، ایشان بلافاصله از این فراموشکار پرسید: آیا در پایان داستان دختر به دلدار خویش میرسد؛ اگر نمیرسد من نمیآیم؛ و نیامدند؛ مادران سروهایی هستند که هنوز هم ناسروده مانده اند

 تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 25/09/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 18/07/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
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 Sr3yas
 223 reviews 996 followers
 September 14, 2017
 I remember watching 2001: A space Odyssey about seven years back and almost losing my mind during the overlong Stargate sequence and what followed after that acid trip.


 *The I might puke face*

 Fast forward to 2017 , one of my buddies called me up and said, 'Sreyas, 2001: Space Odyssey is a fricking classic. You should read the book before watching the movie'. Fortunately, I had a copy of the novel with me and I jumped right in!

 ❝ If he was indeed mad, his delusions were beautifully organized.❞

 The story starts in a time before the dawn of human kind, when benevolent and rather mindless man-apes were dying one after another due to overlong drought and natural predators. In short, The tribal group was going down and they were facing Extinction with a big E.



 Enter our savior, the big black slab which manipulated with the minds of man-apes and turned them into ambitious, innovative and uh... violent hooligans? But hey, they needed to be all this to survive such a primitive world. The only problem was that the once benevolent man-apes passed these newly found qualities like innovation, imagination and unfortunately, violence to future generations that followed them.



 That's a topic for another time. Because right now, it's all about science and the mysterious black monolith which engineered the dawn of humankind. We jump from prehistory to the year 2001 in a blink of an eye, and the true odyssey begins.

 One of the best things about the story for me was the unceasing excitement the tale inspires, in spite of being rather slow at times. The story focuses on the ideas and the science rather than its characters, creating a story propelled solely by the sheer power of the journey to find answers. Another exciting aspect of the story was how easy it is to associate the elements of the novel with our own technological advancement. Even though we haven't achieved the level of sophisticated advancement in terms of space travel as mentioned in the novel, we have come a long way. I couldn't help but notice a scene where one of the characters lands an instumentless probe on an asteroid, and Ta-da , we have done better with Rosetta probe!


 *You go, Rosetta*

 Without question, the best part about the book was HAL 9000 and the horrors. Seriously, who needs aliens to scare the shit out of you when you have HAL 9000. Oddly enough, I kind of felt sad when HAL signed off.

 The ENDING

 I actually took some time to make myself mentally ready to read the last part. After seven years, I was just moments away from finally understanding the end of 2001 A space Odyssey.

 *I understand...... everything*

 Or so I expected. But I ended up being...


 Don't get me wrong, I did understand what happened. But it was definitely NOT what I expected. The awesome Star baby confused the hell out of me! Seriously, what was that? Did Bowman just power up like a Pokemon? Next step of evolution is becoming Gods?

 Nevertheless, 2001: A Space Odyssey is classic science fiction at its best.["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>
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 Leonard Gaya
 Author 1 book 809 followers
 August 4, 2020
 This novel and the film stem from the same original project. Initially, Kubrick and Clarke had been working together on the same story. While Stanley Kubrick went on to make what is now his masterpiece (and one of the most amazing films in the history of cinema), Arthur C. Clarke wrote his most famous novels, alongside Childhood's End . The narratives in book and movie run parallel and so close to one another, that, while re-reading the novel, I have found it almost impossible to dismiss the images from Kubrick’s movie, except when Clarke throws in some rare scene of his own: the ship approaching the rings of Saturn and the satellite Japetus, for instance. So much so that Clarke’s book feels like a novelisation or literary by-product of Kubrick’s film.

 The scope and pace of the story are far-reaching in both cases, especially the section involving the astronauts, the mad computer and the foolish "Mission Control". However, here is probably where the shortcomings of this book reside: compared to the film, Clarke doesn’t find much to expand on, except for technical or scientific trivia (how to restore gravity in space, how many miles are there between Jupiter and Saturn, so forth), which result in rather dull pieces of prose and don’t add much to the pleasure that this narrative may inspire. This is particularly apparent towards the end of the novel, where the trippy and gripping imagery of Kubrick’s film translates into a few chapters of pseudo-explanatory gibberish. Some piece of poetry might have been more fitting.
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 Henry Avila
 447 reviews 3,218 followers
 January 11, 2023
 The opening scene of a tribe of ape- men in Africa finding a strange gyrating monolith, another rock to these few primitives at first. However after the light show the tribe is fascinated, teaches them how to make and use tools, kill animals and prevent their own extinction. With an unlimited supply of food and not be dependent on plants and fruit for survival , very rare during the long ponderous drought conditions (millions of years ). The human race might reach their destiny , for better or worse after all. At around the beginning of the 21st century another monolith is discovered or is it the same one found earlier ? Buried in the dark side (back side) of the moon a bizarre place for any object to be. The bright Dr. Heywood Floyd is called in to investigate and keeps a silent tongue, why he's there on the lunar surface. He sees that the jet black slab is ten foot tall and three million years old unbelievably and immediately sends a ominous signal somewhere in the vast Solar System , obviously extraterrestrial in origin... The spaceship the magnificent, expensive Discovery is built and sent to Saturn's moon Lapetus where the dark structure indicates to go, they had little choice and must obey. Hal the now legendary computer on board the Discovery does the work and Captain David Bowman and Frank Poole don't have much to do, yes a boring voyage for the spacemen... the other crewmen are in hibernation. And will be revived when they hopefully arrive at their distant destination an average of 746 million miles away from Earth. Did I say a very monotonous rather endless adventure into the unknown, this will change soon since Hal never makes a mistake, but will. Still the view of giant Jupiter's turbulent gases, constantly changing makes a colorful atmosphere which shouldn't be avoided, the planet's numerous enticing satellites that astronomers keep on finding new ones to their great delight and joy , 79 at last count, second most in our system, since Saturn has a few more, 82, good show... are...
 not to be missed either. Neither is Saturn's Rings and their ice and rocks as they float around the heavens in perpetual orbit of the exotic sphere. This novel with a strange and vague ending what does it mean... Maybe the story about Jesus Christ being resurrected to save the world? Or just aliens manipulating the Earth or another idea, humans trying to find God, you decide ...I did.This like the wonderful classic film is a little cold in unfolding, nevertheless a glorious story of our future.
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 Matthew
 1,219 reviews 8,686 followers
 April 8, 2021
 4 stars first time I read
 5 stars on the re-read

 And, speaking of stars . . . an applicable quote:

 "Oh my God, it's full of stars!"

 2001: A Space Odyssey is a classic. It could easily be argued that it is one of the top 5 sci-fi books of all time based on its impact since the time it was released. Also, interesting to note as discussed in the intro to the book, the movie is not based on the book and the book is not based on the movie; Clarke and Kubrick collaborated on both and, in fact, the movie was released before the book. And, while I didn't care that much for the movie (I am not a Kubrick fan), it is also a classic in the sci-fi genre.

 My favorite thing about this book is that it is speculative science fiction at its finest. I have really enjoyed recent speculative sci-fi titles and this is the Granddaddy of them all. How would long distance space travel work? What would Artificial Intelligence and machine learning look like? What might be out there in the Cosmos? A lot of sci-fi is about galaxies far far away and not all that based on scientific reality, but this puts everything in the realm of our Solar System with real science and only speculation about what else is beyond the limits of what is reasonably reachable. Fascinating to think about!

 Do you like sci-fi? Are you looking to up your classic novel repitoire? Be sure to add 2001. It is a quick and interesting read that will give you a lot to think about.

 And, I suppose I should try the movie again . . .
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 J.L. Sutton
 651 reviews 826 followers
 December 15, 2021
 "He was moving through a new order of creation, of which few men had ever dreamed...which he alone had been privileged to glimpse. It was too much to expect that he would also understand."



 Second read: With the increasing sophistication of AI, it's interesting to read how early scifi writers (like Asimov and Heinlein) envisioned their role. While today's AI might not be self-aware, it/they seem(s) less cold technology and more human. 2001 is not about the technology, but the journey. There are still lots of unanswered questions as we think about this future we travel toward. No better time to think about it than while reading some classic science fiction!

 ***
 Arthur C. Clarke's 2001: A Space Odyssey has become part of common culture. An alien artifact triggers evolution and leads mankind to the stars. The artifact pictured above (recently 'discovered' in Utah) renewed discussion of Clarke's seminal work. Besides the iconic monolith, though, there's also the equally iconic and creepy AI, HAL. The writing is sometimes clunky and occasionally really good in 2001. It's the ideas that Clarke presents and the journey he shows mankind on that continues to make this an interesting read. 3.5 stars
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 Dan Schwent
 2,863 reviews 10.5k followers
 August 17, 2015
 An alien artifact teaches a man-ape to use tools. Heywood Floyd goes to the moon to investigate a mysterious situation. Dave Bowman and his crewmates, most of them in cryogenic sleep, head toward Saturn....

 Let me get my two big gripes out of the way first.
 1. Arthur C. Clarke's characters are cardboard cutouts and largely interchangeable with one another.
 2. Arthur C. Clarke's prose doesn't bring all the boys to the yard.

 Now that I've got that out of the way, I enjoyed this book very much. Some of it is a little dated, not surprising since Clarke wrote it around the time some man-ape discovered fire. A lot of it is spot-on, though, like Heywood Floyd's tablet by another name.

 The first two threads do a great job of setting up the third. The man-ape thread was the least exciting but nicely set the stage. By the time Bowman's thread got going, the book was very hard to put down.

 Unlike a lot of sf classics, I enjoyed both the story AND the concepts. Because of the enjoyment factor and because it's a classic of the genre, I bumped it from my original 3.5 to a full 4 out of 5.
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 Apatt
 507 reviews 752 followers
 November 28, 2016
 When I first read this book as a teenager I hated it, I thought it was so dry and impenetrable. I loved the Kubrick movie for its weirdness though. Clearly I was not one of the brighter kids of my generation. Having said that while I like it very much on this reread I can see why I could not appreciate it in my teens. Clarke’s scientific expositions can be very detailed but I would not call them dry now because I find them quite fascinating. The fact that when you are on the moon Earth is the moon, the details about the composition of Saturn’s ring and the description of Jupiter and its moons are clearly explained, interesting and (gulp!) educational. They really facilitate visualization of these planets.

 What I particularly love about Clarke’s writing now that I did not appreciate in my foolish teens is the wonderful minutiae of his descriptions of various aspects of the space faring life. For example the practical design of the toilet on a spaceship for zero gravity conditions (a badly design toilet would mean getting shit all over you). Also things like the thick sticky sauce on pork chops and salad with adhesive dressing to keep food from floating off the plate during dinner. After dinner the velcro slippers are great for walking around the ship without levitating.

 Spacecraft Discovery

 I have only mentioned the minor details so far, the main plot is of course absolutely epic though it is so well known it is hardly worth describing. 2001: A Space Odyssey gets off to a rollicking start during 3 million years B.C. The first five chapters basically tells the story of how ape-men were “uplifted” (to use David Brin ’s term) by dogooding aliens from silly primates to sentient “people”. Then the story jumps forward to the (cough) future of 2001 AD where a mysterious monolith is discovered on the moon. This main section of the book is entirely set in space so we don’t know if Clarke would have predicted iPads and Tumblr.

 (Monolith on the moon)

 The middle section of the book where astronaut David Bowman is battling crazed and homicidal AI HAL 9000 (of “Daisy Daisy” fame) is my favorite. The short section of the narrative told from HAL’s point of view is particularly wondrous. After dealing with HAL with extreme prejudice Dave has a lonely and depressing “Major Tom” period marooned in space. Fortunately he soon embarks on his famous trippy trip through a stargate.

 If you are puzzled by the Kubrick movie this book may help to clarify almost everything for you, except that according to Clarke Kubrick and himself had different idea of the story they wanted to tell and Clarke’s answers are not necessarily the correct one! I have no idea how much input Kubrick had on the novel, only that he helped to develop it. The book is – however – entirely written by Clarke. The last couple of chapters are less surreal and psychedelic than the film but relatively understandable yet quite mind blowing for all that.

 While he is a sci-fi legend to this day Clarke is often derided (along with Asimov) for his journeyman prose but I am always quite happy to defend Clarke’s style of writing. He used the right tools for the right job and his science expositions are accessible and a pleasure to read. He is also quite capable of some dry wit. Characterization is not Clarke's forte, he preferred to concentrate on the epic plot development instead, which is fine for me as he succeeded in his storytelling aim. Having said that both Dave Bowman and HAL 9000 are two of sci-fi's most memorable and enduring characters.

 If you like the film adaptation of 2001: A Space Odyssey but have not read this book you should. Ditto if you have not seen the film. It is deservedly a classic.

 Star rating: Oh my God! – it’s full of stars!



 Note: My review of 2010: Odyssey Two

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 Sean Barrs
 1,099 reviews 44.1k followers
 January 27, 2022
 The film is WAY better than the book.

 Sometimes I feel like there’s pressure in the reading community to side with the written word, to defend it over cinema because it’s supposed to be our preferred medium for storytelling. This isn’t always the case. And if I’m honest, I prefer theatre over anything. More importantly though, and what I’m trying to suggest here, is that the phrase “the book is always better” is simply incorrect.

 Film comparisons aside, 2001 was not the book I was expecting. It’s divided into three narratives, the first two setting up the third. The third is the main part and it’s what the book is really about, but it just took far too long to get there. I was bored. The book is dull and overly descriptive yet also remarkably brilliant in its scope and conclusion. Ultimately, it’s a book with a great idea, but one that takes a very long time to convey its meaning and demonstrate the connectedness of the narratives.

 In some ways its like a long journey, the destination is worthwhile but getting there can be a little bit tedious. And this book was so very tedious in places. So much superfluous material could have been edited out. It so desperately needed more plot and a little bit more excitement with characters that were engaging. Sure, it discussed some interesting ideas but first two thirds of the novel were completely flat.

 The strongest element this book has is its depiction of evolution being an ever moving, ever developing, phenomenon. This alongside considerations over the danger of technology (that also had the power to evolve) made the book engaging and even tense in parts, but this energy was never consistent. It just needed more life.

 As such, two stars seems like a fair rating for a book that is intellectually challenging but hindered by its dry tone and lack of action.

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 Luís
 1,792 reviews 430 followers
 October 15, 2022
 Taken from a short story by Arthur C. Clarke, published in 1951 under the title The Sentinel, this novel had written in collaboration with Stanley Kubrick. He masterfully adapted it to offer us the 2001 space odyssey in 1968. Like many others, I saw the film on several occasions, bewitched by Zarathoustra and by the waltzes of Strauss, which stick so well to Kubrick's images free of dialogue. Hence, the confusing film ending, even if I appreciated that the director left the viewer the freedom to interpret this epilogue. Wishing to approach this story from a different angle, I read the novel, where I found the film's oppressive atmosphere. And the same sanitized sets, only punctuated by the monotone voice of Carl, the supercomputer whose real name is HAL, give IBM a close degree in the alphabet. From the origins of humans to the moon, we quickly arrive at Explorer I en route to Saturn with Dave Bowman and Frank Poole on board. I had won over by the rhythm of this novel, served by short chapters, and the depth of the reflection Unveiling the hidden text, even if the author provides us with some keys. However, the reader remains free to see what he wishes to draw from his reflections. This novel makes you want to extend the journey to the far reaches of the Universe and to explain the origins.
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 Eloy Cryptkeeper
 296 reviews 183 followers
 June 23, 2021
 “Existen dos posibilidades: que estemos solos en el universo o que no lo estemos. Ambas son igual de terroríficas”.

 Un libro brillante .
 con su propia visión, el autor, abre la caja de Pandora y despliega algunas de las eternas preguntas de la humanidad ... ¿de onde venimos y a donde vamos? ¿porque nosotros estamos acá ? ¿que hay en toda la inmensidad inexplorada? ¿somos buenos o malos por naturaleza?.
 Y nos hace pensar... ¿Estamos evolucionando o involucionando en muchos aspectos?

 *Si alguien se le anima a la obra por primera vez, o por casualidad no esta familiarizado/a con la versión cinematográfica de kubrick...Tenganle paciencia durante las primeras paginas, Porque sin dudas es un viaje que vale la pena, inclusive tiene momentos de extrema tensión, como pocos.
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 Tara
 347 reviews 19 followers
 January 3, 2018
 “He now perceived that there were more ways than one behind the back of space.”

 As a longtime admirer of Stanley Kubrick’s dazzling film, I was more than a little hesitant about picking up this book, apprehensive that it might not be able to live up to my perhaps overly demanding expectations. And it did take me a good 50 pages or so before I really began to connect with Clarke’s writing. After that initial rough patch, however, I became increasingly immersed in this absorbing story, eventually entirely unwilling to part with it. Thankfully, the oft-accurate cliché that “the book is better than the movie” proved true; I’m very pleased I gave this a try.

 All of the fascinating themes you doubtless remember from the movie can be found here too: evolution, technology, exploration and discovery, the nature of intelligence, the effects of isolation, and, perhaps the most poignant of these, mankind’s primal, relentless hunger to understand why . But what I wasn’t expecting to encounter, and what made this such an incredibly memorable novel, was the boundless sense of reverence and awe with which it was infused. Clarke masterfully depicted the vast grandeur of space, in part by subtly yet persistently underscoring how very small and alone David was, and he did so in such a way that I ended up feeling something I’ve not experienced in quite some time: pure childlike wonder at the unfathomable, incomprehensible beauty and magnitude of our universe.

 A genuinely riveting quest for discovery, 2001 is science fiction with both a heart and a mind (AND a gloriously wiggy A.I. Seriously, how adorable is HAL!? ). I was captivated, intrigued, and exhilarated by this grand adventure into the nature of existence, the heart of the universe, and, unexpectedly, the endless expanses of the human heart. Okay, yikes, that last line was pretty cheesy. Sorry about that. Some of you may already be skeptical, and hearing about “the endless expanses of the human heart” really can’t be helping matters. And, granted, the book did end things with a freakin’ Star Baby , for Chrissakes. But Clarke negotiated this admittedly precarious terrain without ever allowing the book to become too sentimental, New-Agey, or otherwise insufferable. This was due to no small measure of consummate dexterity, and was in fact part of the reason why, in my opinion, this qualifies as insightful, thought-provoking, intelligently written literature.

 An “Odyssey” indeed; I can’t think of a more fitting title for this breathtaking, awe-inspiring journey.

 ["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>
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 Kelli
 26 reviews 7 followers
 May 22, 2016
 Dave Bowman: Hello, HAL. Do you read me, HAL?
 HAL: Affirmative, Dave. I read you.
 Dave Bowman: Open the pod bay doors, HAL.
 HAL: I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that.
 Dave Bowman: What's the problem?
 HAL: I think you know what the problem is just as well as I do.
 Dave Bowman: What are you talking about, HAL?
 HAL: This mission is too important for me to allow you to jeopardize it.
 Dave Bowman: I don't know what you're talking about, HAL.
 HAL: I know that you and Frank were planning to disconnect me, and I'm afraid that's something I cannot allow to happen.
 Dave Bowman: Where the hell'd you get that idea, HAL?
 HAL: Dave, although you took very thorough precautions in the pod against my hearing you, I could see your lips move.
 Dave Bowman: Alright, HAL. I'll go in through the emergency airlock.
 HAL: Without your space helmet, Dave, you're going to find that rather difficult.
 Dave Bowman: HAL, I won't argue with you anymore. Open the doors.
 HAL: Dave, this conversation can serve no purpose anymore. Goodbye
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 Stephen
 1,517 reviews 10.8k followers
 December 4, 2013
 4.5 Stars. The books of Arthur C. Clarke (at least the ten or so that I have read) have been consistently good and of very high quality. When I pick up one of his books, I can be confident that I won't be disappointed. This book is terrific and don't think that if you have seen the movie you know what is going to happen.
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 Tommye (The Fantasy Review)
 239 reviews 120 followers
 April 25, 2022
 I won’t lie: I began reading 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke because I felt like I had to. It’s a book everyone talks about, and many who do have never read it. I’ll get around to the film soon too. Because of this, I never thought I would actually like it this much…

 I love how episodic classic science fiction is

 Yes, characterisation leaves something to be desired, but it doesn’t really matter. 2001: A Space Odyssey is about the story, the “What if?”. The characters do have some semblance of personality, though, so I still empathised with them and was excited or shocked when they were.

 The story itself surprised me! I wasn’t expecting such a large-scale thing. I began the book thinking it might be a simple exploration plot, but you soon find out that it’s far more complex than that.

 Despite challenging myself only to read the first book in the series, 2001: A Space Odyssey, I’m going to read the next one too. The main reason for this is that Arthur C. Clarke dropped a bombshell filled with questions and I’m dying to know the answers!

 2001: A Space Odyssey is an incredible book

 I would even recommend it to those who prefer the character-driven modern SF that is more popular now, just because the story itself is enthralling. It’s a short book, so even if you're not sure, give a few pages a go!

 View the full review at The Fantasy Review
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 Dirk Grobbelaar
 550 reviews 1,047 followers
 September 1, 2016
 Wow. This is really something. Forget what you think you know if you’ve seen the film.

 This is surely a landmark piece of Science Fiction. Although Clarke divulges a lot more detail here than Kubrick incorporated into his film, the mystic aspect of space is still present. I also enjoyed learning more about the monoliths and their true nature and/or purpose.

 For some reason I thought the opening sequence (the Dawn of Man) would be boring. It wasn’t. In fact, despite being much more comprehensive than the bit showed in the film, I found it extremely lyrical and poignant. This, I suppose, is true of the whole novel. The grand finale was everything I’d hoped for and it does clear the water a bit, although there are some things that remain tantalizingly open for interpretation. There are a number of parallels here, but I don’t want to go into too much detail.

 A fun activity is comparing Clarke’s predictions with the current state of technology. OK, so he had the date of space-worthiness wrong (we’re more than a decade overdue) but there are any number of things in here that are interesting (Tablet PCs with internet capability, for example). These tidbits are all the more impressive if you take into account the novel’s date of publication. Of course, this is one Sci-Fi story that is actually not about the tech, but the sense of wonder that accompanies exploration. Oh, and let's not forget the philosophical issue.

 Highly recommended.
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 Dennis
 652 reviews 252 followers
 February 4, 2021
 An SF classic that is more about concept and ideas than a traditional plot. Unlike the movie it does have a plot, though.

 It all starts roughly three million years ago in Africa, with apes developing an understanding of their surroundings and how to overcome their limitations. With a little help from— our friends? Maybe.

 I tried several times, but never got past that first sequence of the movie, until very recently. In the book, though, this part is written with wonderful imagination and quite some wit. It drew me right in.

 We then jump to the year 1999, when a monolith is found on the moon. Here begins a more traditional SF story that is surrounded by an air of mystery. Where does the thing come from? And what is its purpose? We soon get some ideas. While this part of the book is relatively straightforward, Clarke generally manages to entertain, and also to impress with his surprisingly detailed and accurate description of a modern-day tablet, decades before anyone would hold such a thing in their hands.

 During the next part of the book, a mission to Saturn, we find ourselves on the spaceship Discovery , with two astronauts, the now infamous artificial intelligence HAL 9000 and a further three astronauts that are in hibernation chambers. Here’s where the novel is at its ominous best and the struggle between HAL and Dave is still fascinating to read.

 Many themes are addressed in this book. Overpopulation, food shortages, human evolution, the use of tools and power. But the struggle between man and machine and exploration of the artificial mind, with the author raising many questions and answering very few of them, is my personal highlight. However, it is over rather soon.

 The next part already begins to leave the boundaries of a plot behind and relies heavily on your fascination with space travel and other planets. The book becomes more about images and imagination now, and it might lose some readers here. I wasn’t one of them. Transition from one part of the book to the next might not always be the smoothest and the pacing has some problems for sure, but I found it still fascinating. Clarke manages to capture the vastness of space pretty much perfectly.

 The last part of the book however … well, let’s just say I’m not a fan. It is rife with symbolism and gives the reader a lot to think about. It’s about the big questions. Naturally, I’m not giving you any answers here. But don’t expect Clarke to do so either. At this point he is not concerned with explaining anything anymore. And while that is something I can appreciate, this whole last part is just a little too obscure, and frankly too weird, for my taste. It’s not as bad as in the movie (which I finally managed to watch without falling asleep yesterday), but, well … find out for yourself.

 I rated it 4.5 stars the first time around, but I’m going with a 4 now. It’s a fascinating and important novel. A classic. I enjoyed it both times I was reading it. But it has some minor problems, that have the potential to become major problems for some readers, and it’s also not a book I’d say I love. So, it’s not actually that close to a five-star rating for me.

 Still, recommended.

 The movie, though. Eh. At your own risk.

 science-fiction series-to-continue
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 Pat the Book Goblin
 423 reviews 126 followers
 March 5, 2020
 I enjoyed this reread on my commute to work. Below is my review from 2018 and my opinion hasn't changed since then. I really enjoyed this book except for the first part which was very boring.


 Story wise 2001 a Space Odyssey was great; however, when I read books that say aliens helped humans along then that’s where I draw the line. Aliens did not build the pyramids. I don’t care what anyone says. I like aliens, don’t get me wrong. I love Star Wars, Star Trek, Ender's Game (one of my FAVORITE Sci-fi books) and many others. I just hate books that portray humans so dumb they need a little “push” from outside help, or as a way to “explain” the monumental accomplishments of the past. No, human beings built those monoliths, we grew as a species--we did it on our own—not aliens. So, at least for me, 2001 was very hard for me to rate.

 Part 1 was very boring—40+ pages of an ape-man in the Pleistocene era. Gouge my eyes out with a rusty fork. 40+ pages of an ape-man banging on stones and killing a panther...big whoop...

 If I rate the book solely for story, then it was a 5 star book, but, like I said, I hate the “aliens built the pyramids” theme and boring Part 1. Whenever they talk about extraterrestrials on the sci-fi channel I always watch something else because I know what they are going to talk about. There is no evidence they exist anyway.

 I loved the themes in this book; perils of technology and nuclear war, space exploration, and artificial intelligence. All the great sci-fi books I’ve read so far really highlighted the perils of technology, especially in robots. R.U.R. and I, Robot really talk about the dangers of technology and artificial intelligence (which is probably why we as a society went the iPhone/computer route lol).

 I love space. Of all the sciences, astronomy is my favorite. I loved when Clarke talked about the moons and planets in the galaxy. I can’t get enough of space opera books.

 So overall great story, besides the two things I mentioned. Once I find the sequels in a used bookstore I’ll keep reading them, but for now, onto Heinlein or Asimov!
 classics sci-fi
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 B Schrodinger
 305 reviews 642 followers
 January 4, 2016
 Daah daaahh dah

 DA DA!!!

 boom boom boom boom boom

 That's how the book starts. I swear. No lie. Then there is twenty pages of men in rubber suits called Oog and Ugg.

 No, not really.

 I'm like most people I guess (only in this regard) in that I saw the movie before the book. And it's a damn fine movie if you have some patience. It's beautiful and oh my god it's full of stars. So it's natural that the comparison is made between text and movie here. But, unusually, the book was written alongside the movie script. There was a nice bit at the back of the book where Arthur acknowledges the differences between the two and the explanation behind it.

 The stories are very similar, it's just some of the details that change. But it is awfully hard to separate the two. The novel is less obtuse - things are spelt out a lot clearer. And there is much more scientific details for us nerds go squee at. Was the 1:4:9 ratio in the movie?

 Unlike the movie the ape men are very interesting and the difference is that it talks about how the monolith experiments on them and chooses those most fit to teach to use tools. It also hints that there were other monoliths in contact with other tribes. Are they still there under the African savannah? (maybe we'll find out in the sequels).

 So despite knowing the story the wonder is still there. I still enjoyed it immensely. Oh and the last 20% of the book makes much more sense than the last 20% of the movie. Not total sense mind you.

 For those unfamiliar with Clarke's writing it is similar to most golden age SF in that characterisation takes a back seat. Maybe not as much as other classic SF authors, but there is some two dimensionality here. The ideas and the plot are the fruits here. I just want you all to know what to expect from Arthur C Clarke.

 So 'Odyssey II' next, which has already pissed me off, but I'm pushing through it. But that's a story for another day.



 EDIT: P.S. Be warned. Blatant Mad Men era sexism. Kinda cringeworthy. And there is one line that is an absolute corker about why their runabouts have female names.
 first-contact science-fiction
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 Sidharth Vardhan
 Author 23 books 681 followers
 September 11, 2017
 “They became farmers in the fields of stars; they sowed and sometimes they reaped.
 And sometimes, dispassionately, they had to weed.”

 Written a year before Neil Armstrong became first man to step on moon, the science fiction story is really well written. Clark mixes his speculative predictions with true events from past (like the panic caused by broadcastings of Wells’ ‘War of the Worlds’) and once he quoted Niels Bohr ( ““Your theory is crazy-but not crazy enough to be true.” ) I loved his descriptions of lives of astronauts – the long, lonely, boring journeys interrupted by occasional wonderful sights and destinations. Both the beginning and the conclusion were simply incredible.

 “In an empty room floating amid the fires of double star twenty thousand light-years from Earth, a baby opened its eyes and began to cry.”

 ““Where there is light, there still could be life.”

 “It was the mark of a barbarian to destroy something one could not understand.”

 "We can design a system that's proof against accident and stupidity; but we can't design one that's proof against deliberate malice

 “Someone had once said that you could be terrified in space, but you could not be worried there.”

 “The word "rescue" was carefully avoided in all the Astronautics Agency's statements and documents; it implied some failure of planning, and the approved jargon was "re-acquisition”.

 “Again he began to wonder if he was suffering from amnesia, Paradoxically, that very thought reassured him, if he could remember the word "amnesia" his brain must be in fairly good shape.”

 “They had learned to speak, and so had won their first great victory over Time. Now the knowledge of one generation could be handed on to the next, so that each age could profit from those that had gone before.
 Unlike the animals, who knew only the present, Man had acquired a past; and he was beginning to grope toward a future.”
 8-usa dystopian-utopian-futurisitic list-1001
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 Paul Haspel
 530 reviews 54 followers
 April 3, 2021
 2001, the year, is a long time ago now. A person born on this date in the year 2001 might now be halfway through his or her second year of college or university. And yet the novelistic and cinematic story that takes its name from the year 2001 is, if anything, more relevant and more compelling than ever.

 2001: A Space Odyssey may be better known, within popular culture, as Stanley Kubrick’s visionary 1968 epic of science-fiction cinema. Yet Kubrick, working from an expressed wish to craft “the proverbial good science-fiction movie,” had the good sense to work with the eminent British science-fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke in pursuit of his stated goal; and the story that emerged from their collaboration – whether one is watching Kubrick’s film or reading Clarke’s novel – unquestionably reflects the creative sensibilities and thematic concerns of both artists.

 Kubrick's great theme was the danger of dehumanization - the threat that human beings could give up their own humanity. The cause of that dehumanization changes from film to film: the political and military structures that human beings create ( Paths of Glory , Spartacus , Dr. Strangelove , Full Metal Jacket ), the psychological malformations threatening one's humanity from within ( Lolita , A Clockwork Orange , The Shining , Eyes Wide Shut ), a facile trust that science can solve the problems of human evil ( Clockwork again).

 In Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey , the agent of dehumanization is technology itself: human beings have given their machines so much power and agency that the machines do virtually all the work, leaving human beings with little to do except look at screens (rather like life today, come to think). A machine is the only character in the film to express any emotions, and the human beings in the film - with one notable exception - act like machines, or automata.

 Clarke’s core interests, as set forth in novels like Childhood’s End (1953), are quite different, including artificial intelligence and the possibility of human contact with extraterrestrial civilizations; and accordingly, it should be no surprise that the novel 2001: A Space Odyssey engages both of these areas of interest.

 The novel is divided into five sections. The first section, “Primeval Night,” which corresponds to the “Dawn of Man” section of Kubrick’s film, shows humankind as a set of man-apes teetering on the edge of extinction – until one of them, named “Moon-Watcher” in the book, awakens to find that something truly new has come into his world while he slept: “It was a rectangular slab, three times his height but narrow enough to span with his arms, and it was made of some completely transparent material; indeed, it was not easy to see except when the rising sun glinted on its edges” (p. 10).

 This is, of course, “the monolith” – the enigmatic object whose geometrical precision shows that it was made by some extraterrestrial intelligence. The monolith is transparent in Clarke’s novel, black in Kubrick’s film; but either way, it is there to guide humans forward on an evolutionary path. Through images generated by the monolith, Moon-Watcher – and later, the other members of his tribe – learn to wield tools, to hunt for animal food, and even to kill enemies. All of this happens in the book without the accompaniment of the film’s C-major cadence from Richard Strauss’s Also Sprach Zarathustra , but it is no less powerful for that.

 The book then leaps forward millions of years – like Kubrick’s film, with its famous bone-to-satellite matched cut – in Part II, “TMA-1.” The “TMA” stands for “Tycho Magnetic Anomaly,” referring to a magnetic abnormality that a group of lunar explorers have found on the Moon’s surface. Scientist and administrator Heywood Floyd – depicted more sympathetically in Clarke’s book than in Kubrick’s film – is bound on a commercial space flight from the Earth to the Moon. The world of Clarke’s 2001 is a world of ongoing Cold War tension, nuclear-war anxiety, overpopulation, and resource shortages. Dr. Floyd’s mission is to investigate an object found by American scientists on the U.S.-administered portion of the Moon (as opposed to the Soviet section).

 The object – a monolith similar to the one encountered by “Moon-Watcher” and his fellow man-apes back in prehistoric times – is “a vertical slab of jet-black material, about ten feet high and five feet wide….Perfectly sharp-edged and symmetrical, it was so black it seemed to have swallowed up the light falling upon it; there was no surface detail at all.” Deliberately buried – so that it could only be discovered by beings advanced enough to travel from the Earth to the Moon, and then to use scientific instruments to discover and excavate a magnetic anomaly – it is, as one of Dr. Floyd’s colleagues remarks, “the first evidence of intelligent life beyond the Earth” (p. 66).

 The monolith does not divulge its secrets to Dr. Floyd, or to any others among the array of impressive scientists assembled in the Tycho Crater. What it does do, upon its first exposure to the lunar sunrise, is beam a powerful signal out toward the planet Saturn. This enigmatic behaviour on the part of the otherwise silent monolith leads directly into Book III, “Between Planets,” which charts the progress of the interplanetary voyage organized to seek out the reasons for the monolith’s puzzling actions.

 This section, perhaps the most famous part of 2001: A Space Odyssey , chronicles the voyage of the spaceship Discovery toward Jupiter and Saturn. On board are three survey scientists in hibernation; mission commander David Bowman; mission assistant Frank Poole – and HAL. His name, we are told, stood “for H euristically programmed AL gorithmic computer” (p. 92), and Clarke always insisted that the name of his computer character was not a sly reference to IBM, with each letter rolled back one. HAL is “the brain and nervous system of the ship” (p. 92), and Clarke makes no bones regarding his feelings about HAL’s ability to think, as opposed to imitate the thought process:

 Whether Hal could actually think was a question which had been settled by the British mathematician Alan Turing back in the 1940s. Turing had pointed out that, if one could carry out a prolonged conversation with a machine – whether by typewriter or microphones was immaterial – without being able to distinguish between its replies and those that a man might give, then the machine was thinking, by any sensible definition of the word. Hal could pass the Turing test with ease. (pp. 93-94)

 Nowadays, with the film The Imitation Game winning all sorts of awards, and Dr. Turing’s likeness being placed on the Bank of England’s 50-pound note, everyone knows Dr. Turing’s name; but the manner in which Clarke interpolates this detail into his novel shows how firmly this imaginative epic is grounded in the best science of its time.

 Book IV, “Abyss,” shows the unintended consequences of creating a computer of such all-powerful intelligence. Hal detects an error in an antenna-control device, but the astronauts’ examination of the device reveals no such fault. Confronted with evidence that he might have made a mistake, Hal insists that “If you check my record, you’ll find it completely free from error” (p. 138); but shortly afterward, he begins working to terminate the lives of his human shipmates.

 In Kubrick’s film, the reasons for Hal’s breakdown remain unrevealed; the viewer is left to assume that Hal has simply decided that he can best complete the mission by himself, without human “interference.” Clarke, who seems to sympathize with Hal, takes pains to emphasize, in a chapter titled “Need to Know,” that Hal, whose whole purpose is to share information, has been “living a lie,” told not to reveal to his human shipmates the real reason for the Discovery mission. As Clarke puts it, the mission planners’ “twin gods of Security and National Interest meant nothing to Hal. He was only aware of the conflict that was slowly destroying his integrity – the conflict between truth, and concealment of truth” (p. 152). That neurosis, in Clarke’s analysis, motivates Hal’s behaviour.

 Fortunately for the future of humankind, David Bowman is equal to the challenge posed by Hal’s murderous rebellion. He bears the first name of the giant-killing hero from the Old Testament, and his surname references the bowman Odysseus – both heroes who could not defeat their enemies by physical force, and therefore had to use their wits in order to survive and prevail. Like the biblical King David and the mythological Odysseus, David Bowman finds a way to overcome Hal and continue with the mission – though he does so with remorse, and with the knowledge that Hal’s demise will leave him more alone than any other human being has ever been.

 Finally learning the truth about his mission, David Bowman in Book V (“The Moons of Saturn”) heads toward the Saturnian moon of Japetus, the target of that mysterious signal emanated from the monolith on the Moon. An even vaster and larger monolith – “TMA-1’s big brother!” (p. 193), as Bowman excitedly notes – turns out to provide a sort of dimensional portal to impossibly faraway portions of the Universe; and Bowman, the oxygen in his ship running low as a result of damage caused by Hal’s rebellion, decides to approach the newly discovered “TMA-2” in one of Discovery ’s space pods.

 “The Star Gate opened. The Star Gate closed” (p. 203). That pithy declaration by the novel's narrator accompanies the last words that Bowman speaks in the novel: “The thing’s hollow – it goes on forever – and – oh, my God! -- it’s full of stars!” (p. 202). With that, Bowman is off on his “journey beyond the infinite” (a prospective early title for the 2001 book and film project).

 In the film, of course, this section, titled “Jupiter – And Beyond the Infinite,” is a phantasmagorical light show that goes on for several minutes. In the book, Clarke must use language, and does so quite successfully, to convey the idea that Bowman goes through the Star Gate on a voyage that reveals the answers to mysteries of the Universe. And then, in accordance with his Odyssean surname, David Bowman completes his own odyssey and returns to Earth as a new type of being, as far above ordinary human beings as we are above the man-apes of the time of “Moon-Watcher.”

 There is always the question, of course, of whether Clarke’s novel 2001 would be as substantial a work without Kubrick’s landmark film. Seeing 2001: A Space Odyssey at the Uptown Theatre in Washington, D.C., during a brief theatrical re-release of the film in the autumn of the year 2001, was the high point of my moviegoing life. Watching the film on the Uptown’s 70- by 35-foot Cinerama screen, I saw how every part of the screen was crammed with telling and engaging imagery, in a way that no TV showing could ever convey. There is no other movie quite like it.

 People back in 1968 were reading Clarke’s novel as a sort of “Cliff’s Notes” guide to the movie, to help them through the more enigmatic portions of Kubrick’s film. Returning to the novel now, after some time away from the film, I find that 2001 the novel holds up well as a novel , comparing well with other classic Clarke works such as Childhood’s End .

 I last re-read 2001: A Space Odyssey in July of 2019, around the time of the 50th anniversary of the landing of Apollo 11 on the lunar surface. The moon landing was just a year away, something eagerly anticipated all over the world, when Clarke’s novel and Kubrick’s film were released. Both the book and the film 2001 posit a world where the moon is dotted with American and Russian colonies; in real life, of course, no one has been to the moon since the Apollo 17 crew left the lunar surface in 1972. I think of the sense of wonder, the exploratory spirit, the yearning after great mysteries that is at the heart of 2001: A Space Odyssey , and ask myself: Is there something left in human beings that still reaches for the stars? Or will we continue to settle for staring into the screens of ever-more-complex telephones?
 science-fiction
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 Jadranka
 229 reviews 128 followers
 July 8, 2016

 Posle čitanja jednog ovakvog remek-dela teško je naći prave reči koje bi iskazale divljenje koje osećam prema Arturu Klarku; čovek je pravi genijalac, vizionar, a na momente mi se činilo kao da nije sa ove planete.

 Priznajem, oduvek sam bila fascinirana Svemirom. Kada sam bila mala, Mesec je za mene bio nešto najveličanstvenije što postoji. Svakakve ideje su mi se u to vreme motale po glavi, počev od toga da li neko živi na Mesecu, pa do toga šta bi bilo kad bi Mesec jednog dana pao na Zemlju?! Šta, vi kao niste o tome razmišljali kad ste bili dete? Niste?! E, pa onda ne znam kakvo vam je bilo detinjstvo!

 U svakom slučaju, koliko god da sam oduvek imala bujnu maštu, postoji nešto što nikada nisam mogla da zamislim: kako je to biti astronaut? lebdeti u svemiru, osećati sav taj beskraj oko sebe, tu beskonačnost, videti Zemlju iz jedne druge perspektive...to mi je i dalje nepojmljivo. I kako neko ko je bio u prilici da sve to iskusi, može posle toga da se vrati kući, kosi travnjak, gleda fudbalsku utakmicu, redovno plaća porez i mirno sačeka penziju? Kako može da nastavi sa "normalnim" životom?

 Čovek uvek teži, ili bi barem trebalo da teži, da što više napreduje, pomera granice koje je sam sebi postavio, ispituje nepoznato, nalazi odgovore na ključna pitanja, postavlja nova pitanja generacijama koje dolaze. Ali, šta ako postoje neka pitanja na koja odgovora nema, ili ih još uvek nema. Da li je to onda neuspeh, da li je Čovek zakazao? Već godinama unazad traženje odgovora na pitanje - postoji li život van Zemlje? zaokuplja pažnju naučnika i običnih smrtnika. Ako postoji, u kojoj formi postoji? Ako postoji, da li je Čovek spreman na tu mogućnost? A šta ako ipak ne postoji?

 Na sva ova pitanja zahvaljujući Arturu Klarku sada gledam iz jedne potpuno nove perspektive.
 Hvala mu na tome.
 arthur-c-clarke read-in-2014 sf
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 Melody Sams
 63 reviews 30 followers
 January 5, 2018
 Like a lot of sci fi, the first half of the novel was a bit slow and hyper focused on a mysterious technology. It sets you up for curiosity. Which is great because if you love sci fi it’s probably because you like your mystery with a hint of tech.

 But then came the descriptions of said technology. Which covered a good portion of the central half of the novel. This is a rough depiction of my face while reading it 🙄.

 Then came the mind blowing, spectacularly done third act, which is a bit hard to grasp but amazing in scope and theory. This is a rough depiction of my face while reading that part🤪.

 Needless to say I look forward to continuing this series.
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 Rachel (TheShadesofOrange)
 1,961 reviews 2,683 followers
 January 14, 2023
 4.0 Stars
 I'm happy to write that I really enjoyed this classic science fiction story. I have never watched the movie so I went in completely blind. The first section was by far the best part, from that incredible opening first line. There is a significant shift in the story in the second part but yet it still remained highly compelling. I definitely want to read more by this author.
 science-fiction
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 Trish
 1,849 reviews 3,363 followers
 December 30, 2020
 I think it's pretty safe to say that this is one of THE scifi novels, yet this is the first time I've read it. To be clear from the start: this, in my opinion, is not one of those book I'll likely enjoy again and again, but it was definitely important to have read it.

 Almost confusingly, the novel opens in Africa, about 3 million years ago and shows us some prehistoric humans in their struggle for daily survival. The author snarkily describes their limitations and the immense impact "something" has on them when inspiring/encouraging the development of intelligence (tools, applying farming as well as hunting etc).
 Then we jump to the year 1999, in which travels to the Moon are common. In one of the Moon's craters, a monolith is found that emits a strong and mysterious signal when the sunlight touches it for the first time in forever.
 The signal is sent to Saturn, apparently, which brings us to the third part (of four) of the book in which a ship is sent to investigate. On board said ship: the (in-)famous HAL 9000.

 No more details shall be given away about the civilisation who built and left the monoliths or what happens to the respective characters. Suffice it to say that it gets really interesting.

 Arthur C. Clarke is such a famous and influential scifi author that an award was named after him. And you can see why here. The novel might have its problems (minor ones though), but the themes! From Alan Turing's theories on artificial intelligence (and, thus, the Turing Test) to evolution and the dangers of technology / nuclear war, this book proves quite some foresight by the author. And yes, he even addressed overpopulation and food shortages though those seem to have been popular things to muse about back in the 60s.

 What I liked was that the author didn't just repeat famous theories like Turing’s, but applied them in an intelligent way within the story. Thus, HAL isn't some machine gone rogue, but an AI that gets two sets of opposing orders. It's the humans that failed and thus caused the demise of some of their own . The book therefore cleverly raises questions about consciousness/sentience versus programming as much as about human interaction with machines (though I still prefer Asimov's robot stories).
 Another example is what happens in the end when Star Child detonates a nuclear warhead. Him being a child definitely symbolizes a new dawn for humanity. Further, it has been suggested by my buddy reader that the message is that we’re all stardust … well, no shit, after a nuclear explosion we’re definitely dust, just not the ascending kind . *lol* No, seriously, the explosion won't kill all life on Earth, but it will create a stress factor that will force humanity to make the next evolutionary leap forward (in which case the theme of nuclear/cold wars being dangerous has become somewhat mute but whatever) .
 A more minor but very entertaining thing was the author’s comment on zoos.

 All valid points, presenting then-current themes and problems of humanity (some still just as current nowadays) in a futuristic mantle and even predicting a future Earth, just like scifi should. Moreover, it can clearly be seen by my review that the book makes you think and discuss many things and that is always wonderful.
 Can't wait to see Kubrick's movie tonight.
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 Lisa
 971 reviews 3,330 followers
 July 1, 2017
 Without doubt this is a science fiction classic, and an early example of a novel and a movie that are born at the same time, adding detail and nuance to each other by the makers’ consistent communication and reflection on the respective effects of different media on the end result.

 It is an experiment on many different levels, and a very successful one. As a story, I found it interesting and compelling, especially the hilarious initial chapter on early humans and the reason for their development into something of a higher intellectual order. Who would have guessed that we needed extraterrestrial intelligence to understand that proper nourishment will lead to higher brain capacity, and ultimately to our reign over the resources of the planet?

 However, this is not the story of mankind per se, and not the usual science fiction plot either, where (hostile) aliens threaten humanity’s civilisation, and heroes have to come up with highly advanced ideas to protect societies on earth from destruction. It is not even the story of the supremacy of any specific technology or species as such.

 It is a reflection on the utter unimportance of humanity from a cosmic perspective. There is a storyline on the problematic use of artificial intelligence, when Hal starts making dangerous decisions based on contradictory programming, but in the end, nothing humanity has ever developed, decided or experienced plays a major role, once they leave the framework of the Solar System and enter the intellectual thought experiment of “2001: Space Odyssey”: a creative suggestion for a possible universe of extraterrestrial lifeforms.

 As a philosophical statement on the immensity of cosmic possibilities, I quite liked the novel, but generally speaking, the questions that usually interest me in science fiction are more related to the so-called the human factors: how does human society react to immense threat or change, how do interpersonal relationships develop when adapting to extreme situations?

 The Space Odyssey is not concerned with that kind of angle. In a sense, with its technological and scientific inventiveness, it is pure cosmic speculative philosophy, nothing else. But it does not have to be more either.

 Readable, interesting, fun at times!
 1001-books-to-read-before-you-die
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 Lee (the Book Butcher)
 236 reviews 60 followers
 July 9, 2021
 a reverse novelization follows the movie pretty closely. never really understood the end so i read this to see what i missed. Hal 9000 is terrifying!
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Friends &amp; Following      Displaying 1 - 30 of 7,581 reviews          Author  13 books28 followers     March 23, 2008   The book is always better than the film, but I'd never read 2001 before. What I didn't know, until reading the foreword, is that this novel was literally written in tandem with the film, with Clarke and Kubrick feeding each other ideas. At some points, however, filming overtook writing, or vice versa, and the two stories, though similar, split along two different paths. After reading the book, the film becomes little more than a very well crafted container: It's pretty and neat to look at it, but open it up, and it's empty. There is none of Clarke's vision of how a being we'd call God would communicate with us across unfathomable time spans, or teach us, or lead us into higher consciousness. Stripped away by Kubrick is the sense that this being truly wants us to be in its image, and that the whole breadcrumb trail of monoliths was designed to do just that. And completely erased is the notion that David Bowman, as Star Child, is now one with the Universe, in some Zen-like way, and also much more like something we'd called a god. Don't get me wrong, 2001 is still one of my favorite films, but to get the full meaning and understand the full weight of why 2001 has been called "the perfect science fiction story," you must read the book. Clarke marries science, mysticism, theory, and fantasy in ways like no other. Unfortunately, Kubrick stripped away the mysticism and theory and left us what is, in comparison to the book, only a glimmer at something bigger. Kubrick touched the monolith, but Clarke went inside.                   1,847 reviews16.3k followers     June 6, 2019   Classic. I read 2001: A Space Odyssey when I was a teenager and knew it was a very influential work of fiction because of the film and all the attention it had received. Still, though I found it very entertaining, I did not really get it.  Thirty years later, I have read it again, and though I may not completely get it the second time around, the more mature reader can better grasp the vision and message of the genius author. I especially enjoyed the many allusions to other works and found the reference to Melville's Ahab particularly engrossing.  Clarke’s prose is clear and descriptive and his story line linear and thought provoking. Not just an excellent science fiction novel, this is a work of literature, brilliant.                     9,568 reviews55.6k followers     October 11, 2021    (Book 389 from 1001 books) - 2001: A Space Odyssey (Space Odyssey #1), Arthur C. Clarke 2001: A Space Odyssey is a 1968 science fiction novel by British writer Arthur C. Clarke.  It was developed concurrently with Stanley Kubrick's film version and published after the release of the film.  Clarke and Kubrick worked on the book together, but eventually only Clarke ended up as the official author.  The story is based in part on various short stories by Clarke, including The Sentinel (written in 1948 for a BBC competition, but first published in 1951 under the title "Sentinel of Eternity").  By 1992, the novel had sold three million copies worldwide.  An elaboration of Clarke and Kubrick's collaborative work on this project was made in The Lost Worlds of 2001. عنوانهای چاپ شده در ایران: راز کیهان؛ 2001؛ یک ادیسه فضایی؛ نویسنده: آرتور سی کلارک؛ مترجمها: پرویز دوائی؛ هوشنگ غیاثی نژاد؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش ماه آگوست سال 2008میلادی عنوان: راز کیهان؛ نوشته: آرتور سی. کلارک؛ مترجم: پرویز دوائی؛ تهران، امیرکبیر - فرانکلین، 1348؛ خورشیدی؛ در 288ص؛ چاپ دوم 1354؛ موضوع: داستانهای نویسندگان بریتانیا - سده 20م عنوان: راز کیهان؛ نوشته: آرتور سی. کلارک؛ مترجم: هوشنگ غیاثی نژاد؛ تهران، پاسارگاد، چاپ دوم 1374؛ در دو جلد؛ دوهزار و یک: ادیسه ی فضایی، عنوان رمانی در گونه ی علمی- تخیلی است که در سال 1968میلادی، به قلم «آرتور سی کلارک» و با همکاری «استنلی کوبریک» نگاشته شده است؛ ایده ی نخست این رمان، برگرفته از داستان کوتاه «آرتور سی کلارک»، با عنوان «نگهبان» است؛ سری چهارگانه ی «ادیسه»، پس از این کتاب نخستین آنهاست؛ کتابهای: (2010: ادیسه دو)؛ (2061: ادیسه سه)؛ و (3001: ادیسه نهایی) هستند این داستان قالبی سنتی، و قراردادی دارد، و شخصیتهایش، همگی آدمهایی معمولی‌ هستند، که به یک مأموریت اکتشافی، به کره ی ماه می‌روند، و در آنجا با پدیده‌های شگفت‌ انگیز، روبرو می‌شوند؛ داستان هرچند، بیانی سر راست، و طبیعی دارد، اما توانایی خیال را بسیار برمی‌انگیزد و خوانشگر را، به اندیشیدن وامی‌دارد؛ «استانلی کوبریک»، کارگردان بزرگوار «آمریکایی»، در سال 1968میلادی، براساس این داستان کوتاه، فیلم نام آشنا و مجلل «نگهبان یا اودیسهٔ فضایی 2001» را ساختند، که گروهی از منتقدان، آن را به عنوان مهم‌ترین، و برجسته‌ ترین فیلم علمی-تخیلی تاریخ سینما، برشمرده‌ اند؛ فیلم، درباره ی، دخالت انسان در کیهان، و کهکشانهاست؛ «استانلی کوبریک» نیز، البته در داستان تغییراتی داده، و از جمله شخصیتهای انسانی آن را، در پایان به صورت آدمهای ماشینی تکامل یافته‌، درآورده بود در سالهایی این فیلم به ایران آمد، خانه ام در میرداماد بود و مستاجر بودم، ساختمان از آن برادر دوستم مهرداد بود، روز جمعه به دوستم گفتم بیا با هم به دیدن «ادیسه ی فضایی» برویم، پیشنهاد کرد مادرشان هم با ما بیاید، به مادرشان که زن نازنینی بودند، پیشنهاد کردم، ایشان بلافاصله از این فراموشکار پرسید: آیا در پایان داستان دختر به دلدار خویش میرسد؛ اگر نمیرسد من نمیآیم؛ و نیامدند؛ مادران سروهایی هستند که هنوز هم ناسروده مانده اند تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 25/09/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 18/07/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی     1001-books 20th-century british               223 reviews996 followers     September 14, 2017   I remember watching 2001: A space Odyssey about seven years back and almost losing my mind during the overlong Stargate sequence and what followed after that acid trip.  *The I might puke face*  Fast forward to 2017, one of my buddies called me up and said, 'Sreyas, 2001: Space Odyssey is a fricking classic. You should read the book before watching the movie'. Fortunately, I had a copy of the novel with me and I jumped right in!   ❝ If he was indeed mad, his delusions were beautifully organized.❞    
 
 The story starts in a time before the dawn of human kind, when benevolent and rather mindless man-apes were dying one after another due to overlong drought and natural predators. In short, The tribal group was going down and they were facing Extinction with a big E.    Enter our savior, the big black slab which manipulated with the minds of man-apes and turned them into ambitious, innovative and uh... violent hooligans? But hey, they needed to be all this to survive such a primitive world. The only problem was that the once benevolent man-apes passed these newly found qualities like innovation, imagination and unfortunately, violence to future generations that followed them.   That's a topic for another time. Because right now, it's all about science and the mysterious black monolith which engineered the dawn of humankind. We jump from prehistory to the year 2001 in a blink of an eye, and the true odyssey begins.   One of the best things about the story for me was the unceasing excitement the tale inspires, in spite of being rather slow at times. 
 The story focuses on the ideas and the science
 rather than its characters, creating a story propelled solely by the sheer power of the journey to find answers. Another exciting aspect of the story was how easy it is to associate the elements of the novel with our own technological advancement. Even though we haven't achieved the level of sophisticated advancement in terms of space travel as mentioned in the novel, we have come a long way. I couldn't help but notice a scene where one of the characters lands an instumentless probe on an asteroid, and Ta-da, we have done better with Rosetta probe!   *You go, Rosetta*  Without question, the best part about the book was HAL 9000  
 The ENDING
 I actually took some time to make myself mentally ready to read the last part. After seven years, I was just moments away from finally understanding the end of 2001 A space Odyssey.  *I understand...... everything*  Or so I expected. But I ended up being...  Don't get me wrong, I did understand what happened. But it was definitely NOT what I expected. The awesome Star baby confused the hell out of me! Nevertheless, 2001: A Space Odyssey is classic science fiction at its best.     book-series-ongoing hall-of-fame-2017 sci-fi-challenge-d-j               Author  1 book809 followers     August 4, 2020   This novel and the film stem from the same original project. Initially, Kubrick and Clarke had been working together on the same story. While Stanley Kubrick went on to make what is now his masterpiece (and one of the most amazing films in the history of cinema), Arthur C. Clarke wrote his most famous novels, alongside Childhood's End. The narratives in book and movie run parallel and so close to one another, that, while re-reading the novel, I have found it almost impossible to dismiss the images from Kubrick’s movie, except when Clarke throws in some rare scene of his own: the ship approaching the rings of Saturn and the satellite Japetus, for instance. So much so that Clarke’s book feels like a novelisation or literary by-product of Kubrick’s film.The scope and pace of the story are far-reaching in both cases, especially the section involving the astronauts, the mad computer and the foolish "Mission Control". However, here is probably where the shortcomings of this book reside: compared to the film, Clarke doesn’t find much to expand on, except for technical or scientific trivia (how to restore gravity in space, how many miles are there between Jupiter and Saturn, so forth), which result in rather dull pieces of prose and don’t add much to the pleasure that this narrative may inspire. This is particularly apparent towards the end of the novel, where the trippy and gripping imagery of Kubrick’s film translates into a few chapters of pseudo-explanatory gibberish. Some piece of poetry might have been more fitting.     favorites               447 reviews3,218 followers     January 11, 2023   The opening scene of a tribe of ape- men in Africa finding a strange gyrating monolith, another rock to these few primitives at first. However after the light show the tribe is fascinated, teaches them how to make and use tools, kill animals and prevent their own extinction. With an unlimited supply of food and not be dependent on plants and fruit for survival , very rare during the long ponderous drought conditions (millions of years ). The human race might reach their destiny , for better or worse after all. At around the beginning of the 21st century another monolith is discovered or is it the same one found earlier ? Buried in the dark side (back side) of the moon a bizarre place for any object to be. The bright Dr. Heywood Floyd is called in to investigate and keeps a silent tongue, why he's there on the lunar surface. He sees that the jet black slab is ten foot tall and three million years old unbelievably and immediately sends a ominous signal somewhere in the vast Solar System , obviously extraterrestrial in origin... The spaceship the magnificent, expensive Discovery is built and sent to Saturn's moon Lapetus where the dark structure indicates to go, they had little choice and must obey. Hal the now legendary computer on board the Discovery does the work and Captain David Bowman and Frank Poole don't have much to do, yes a boring voyage for the spacemen... the other crewmen are in hibernation. And will be revived when they hopefully arrive at their distant destination an average of 746 million miles away from Earth. Did I say a very monotonous rather endless adventure into the unknown, this will change soon since Hal never makes a mistake, but will. Still the view of giant Jupiter's turbulent gases, constantly changing makes a colorful atmosphere which shouldn't be avoided, the planet's numerous enticing satellites that astronomers keep on finding new ones to their great delight and joy , 79 at last count, second most in our system, since Saturn has a few more, 82, good show... are... not to be missed either. Neither is Saturn's Rings and their ice and rocks as they float around the heavens in perpetual orbit of the exotic sphere. This novel with a strange and vague ending what does it mean... Maybe the story about Jesus Christ being resurrected to save the world? Or just aliens manipulating the Earth or another idea, humans trying to find God, you decide ...I did.This like the wonderful classic film is a little cold in unfolding, nevertheless a glorious story of our future.                  1,219 reviews8,686 followers     April 8, 2021   4 stars first time I read5 stars on the re-readAnd, speaking of stars . . . an applicable quote:  "Oh my God, it's full of stars!"  2001: A Space Odyssey is a classic. It could easily be argued that it is one of the top 5 sci-fi books of all time based on its impact since the time it was released. Also, interesting to note as discussed in the intro to the book, the movie is not based on the book and the book is not based on the movie; Clarke and Kubrick collaborated on both and, in fact, the movie was released before the book. And, while I didn't care that much for the movie (I am not a Kubrick fan), it is also a classic in the sci-fi genre. My favorite thing about this book is that it is speculative science fiction at its finest. I have really enjoyed recent speculative sci-fi titles and this is the Granddaddy of them all. How would long distance space travel work? What would Artificial Intelligence and machine learning look like? What might be out there in the Cosmos? A lot of sci-fi is about galaxies far far away and not all that based on scientific reality, but this puts everything in the realm of our Solar System with real science and only speculation about what else is beyond the limits of what is reasonably reachable. Fascinating to think about! Do you like sci-fi? Are you looking to up your classic novel repitoire? Be sure to add 2001. It is a quick and interesting read that will give you a lot to think about. And, I suppose I should try the movie again . . .     2021 completist-book-club read-more-than-once               651 reviews826 followers     December 15, 2021    "He was moving through a new order of creation, of which few men had ever dreamed...which he alone had been privileged to glimpse. It was too much to expect that he would also understand."   Second read: With the increasing sophistication of AI, it's interesting to read how early scifi writers (like Asimov and Heinlein) envisioned their role. While today's AI might not be self-aware, it/they seem(s) less cold technology and more human. 2001 is not about the technology, but the journey. There are still lots of unanswered questions as we think about this future we travel toward. No better time to think about it than while reading some classic science fiction!  ***Arthur C. Clarke's 2001: A Space Odyssey has become part of common culture. An alien artifact triggers evolution and leads mankind to the stars. The artifact pictured above (recently 'discovered' in Utah) renewed discussion of Clarke's seminal work. Besides the iconic monolith, though, there's also the equally iconic and creepy AI, HAL. The writing is sometimes clunky and occasionally really good in 2001. It's the ideas that Clarke presents and the journey he shows mankind on that continues to make this an interesting read. 3.5 stars                   2,863 reviews10.5k followers     August 17, 2015   An alien artifact teaches a man-ape to use tools. Heywood Floyd goes to the moon to investigate a mysterious situation. Dave Bowman and his crewmates, most of them in cryogenic sleep, head toward Saturn....Let me get my two big gripes out of the way first. 1. Arthur C. Clarke's characters are cardboard cutouts and largely interchangeable with one another.2. Arthur C. Clarke's prose doesn't bring all the boys to the yard. Now that I've got that out of the way, I enjoyed this book very much. Some of it is a little dated, not surprising since Clarke wrote it around the time some man-ape discovered fire. A lot of it is spot-on, though, like Heywood Floyd's tablet by another name. The first two threads do a great job of setting up the third. The man-ape thread was the least exciting but nicely set the stage. By the time Bowman's thread got going, the book was very hard to put down. Unlike a lot of sf classics, I enjoyed both the story AND the concepts. Because of the enjoyment factor and because it's a classic of the genre, I bumped it from my original 3.5 to a full 4 out of 5.     2015               507 reviews752 followers     November 28, 2016   When I first read this book as a teenager I hated it, I thought it was so dry and impenetrable. I loved the Kubrick movie for its weirdness though. Clearly I was not one of the brighter kids of my generation. Having said that while I like it very much on this reread I can see why I could not appreciate it in my teens. Clarke’s scientific expositions can be very detailed but I would not call them dry now because I find them quite fascinating. The fact that when you are on the moon Earth is the moon, the details about the composition of Saturn’s ring and the description of Jupiter and its moons are clearly explained, interesting and (gulp!) educational. They really facilitate visualization of these planets.What I particularly love about Clarke’s writing now that I did not appreciate in my foolish teens is the wonderful minutiae of his descriptions of various aspects of the space faring life. For example the practical design of the toilet on a spaceship for zero gravity conditions (a badly design toilet would mean getting shit all over you). Also things like the thick sticky sauce on pork chops and salad with adhesive dressing to keep food from floating off the plate during dinner. After dinner the velcro slippers are great for walking around the ship without levitating.  Spacecraft Discovery I have only mentioned the minor details so far, the main plot is of course absolutely epic though it is so well known it is hardly worth describing.  2001: A Space Odyssey gets off to a rollicking start during 3 million years B.C. The first five chapters basically tells the story of how ape-men were “uplifted” (to use  David Brin’s term) by dogooding aliens from silly primates to sentient “people”. Then the story jumps forward to the (cough) future of 2001 AD where a mysterious monolith is discovered on the moon. This main section of the book is entirely set in space so we don’t know if Clarke would have predicted iPads and Tumblr. (Monolith on the moon) The middle section of the book where astronaut David Bowman is battling crazed and homicidal AI HAL 9000 (of “Daisy Daisy” fame) is my favorite. The short section of the narrative told from HAL’s point of view is particularly wondrous. After dealing with HAL with extreme prejudice Dave has a lonely and depressing “Major Tom” period marooned in space. Fortunately he soon embarks on his famous trippy trip through a stargate.  If you are puzzled by the Kubrick movie this book may help to clarify almost everything for you, except that according to Clarke Kubrick and himself had different idea of the story they wanted to tell and Clarke’s answers are not necessarily the correct one! I have no idea how much input Kubrick had on the novel, only that he helped to develop it. The book is – however – entirely written by Clarke. The last couple of chapters are less surreal and psychedelic than the film but relatively understandable yet quite mind blowing for all that. While he is a sci-fi legend to this day Clarke is often derided (along with Asimov) for his journeyman prose but I am always quite happy to defend Clarke’s style of writing. He used the right tools for the right job and his science expositions are accessible and a pleasure to read. He is also quite capable of some dry wit. Characterization is not Clarke's forte, he preferred to concentrate on the epic plot development instead, which is fine for me as he succeeded in his storytelling aim. Having said that both Dave Bowman and HAL 9000 are two of sci-fi's most memorable and enduring characters.  If you like the film adaptation of  2001: A Space Odyssey but have not read this book you should. Ditto if you have not seen the film. It is deservedly a classic. Star rating: Oh my God! – it’s full of stars!    Note: My review of 2010: Odyssey Two        favorites               1,099 reviews44.1k followers     January 27, 2022    The film is WAY better than the book. Sometimes I feel like there’s pressure in the reading community to side with the written word, to defend it over cinema because it’s supposed to be our preferred medium for storytelling. This isn’t always the case. And if I’m honest, I prefer theatre over anything. More importantly though, and what I’m trying to suggest here, is that the phrase “the book is always better” is simply incorrect.  Film comparisons aside, 2001 was not the book I was expecting. It’s divided into three narratives, the first two setting up the third. The third is the main part and it’s what the book is really about, but it just took far too long to get there. I was bored. The book is dull and overly descriptive yet also remarkably brilliant in its scope and conclusion. Ultimately, it’s a book with a great idea, but one that takes a very long time to convey its meaning and demonstrate the connectedness of the narratives.  In some ways its like a long journey, the destination is worthwhile but getting there can be a little bit tedious. And this book was so very tedious in places. So much superfluous material could have been edited out. It so desperately needed more plot and a little bit more excitement with characters that were engaging. Sure, it discussed some interesting ideas but first two thirds of the novel were completely flat.  The strongest element this book has is its depiction of evolution being an ever moving, ever developing, phenomenon. This alongside considerations over the danger of technology (that also had the power to evolve) made the book engaging and even tense in parts, but this energy was never consistent. It just needed more life.  As such, two stars seems like a fair rating for a book that is intellectually challenging but hindered by its dry tone and lack of action.  __________________________________ You can connect with me on social media via My Linktree.__________________________________     2-star-reads sci-fi               1,792 reviews430 followers     October 15, 2022   Taken from a short story by Arthur C. Clarke, published in 1951 under the title The Sentinel, this novel had written in collaboration with Stanley Kubrick. He masterfully adapted it to offer us the 2001 space odyssey in 1968. Like many others, I saw the film on several occasions, bewitched by Zarathoustra and by the waltzes of Strauss, which stick so well to Kubrick's images free of dialogue. Hence, the confusing film ending, even if I appreciated that the director left the viewer the freedom to interpret this epilogue. Wishing to approach this story from a different angle, I read the novel, where I found the film's oppressive atmosphere. And the same sanitized sets, only punctuated by the monotone voice of Carl, the supercomputer whose real name is HAL, give IBM a close degree in the alphabet. From the origins of humans to the moon, we quickly arrive at Explorer I en route to Saturn with Dave Bowman and Frank Poole on board. I had won over by the rhythm of this novel, served by short chapters, and the depth of the reflection Unveiling the hidden text, even if the author provides us with some keys. However, the reader remains free to see what he wishes to draw from his reflections. This novel makes you want to extend the journey to the far reaches of the Universe and to explain the origins.    brit-and-related e-3 g-science-fiction               296 reviews183 followers     June 23, 2021   “Existen dos posibilidades: que estemos solos en el universo o que no lo estemos. Ambas son igual de terroríficas”.Un libro brillante .con su propia visión, el autor, abre la caja de Pandora y despliega algunas de las eternas preguntas de la humanidad ... ¿de onde venimos y a donde vamos? ¿porque nosotros estamos acá ? ¿que hay en toda la inmensidad inexplorada? ¿somos buenos o malos por naturaleza?.Y nos hace pensar... ¿Estamos evolucionando o involucionando en muchos aspectos? *Si alguien se le anima a la obra por primera vez, o por casualidad no esta familiarizado/a con la versión cinematográfica de kubrick...Tenganle paciencia durante las primeras paginas, Porque sin dudas es un viaje que vale la pena, inclusive tiene momentos de extrema tensión, como pocos.                   347 reviews19 followers     January 3, 2018    
 “He now perceived that there were more ways than one behind the back of space.”
 As a longtime admirer of Stanley Kubrick’s dazzling film, I was more than a little hesitant about picking up this book, apprehensive that it might not be able to live up to my perhaps overly demanding expectations. And it did take me a good 50 pages or so before I really began to connect with Clarke’s writing. After that initial rough patch, however, I became increasingly immersed in this absorbing story, eventually entirely unwilling to part with it. Thankfully, the oft-accurate cliché that “the book is better than the movie” proved true; I’m very pleased I gave this a try. All of the fascinating themes you doubtless remember from the movie can be found here too: evolution, technology, exploration and discovery, the nature of intelligence, the effects of isolation, and, perhaps the most poignant of these, mankind’s primal, relentless hunger to understand why. But what I wasn’t expecting to encounter, and what made this such an incredibly memorable novel, was the boundless sense of reverence and awe with which it was infused. Clarke masterfully depicted the vast grandeur of space, in part by subtly yet persistently underscoring how very small and alone David was, and he did so in such a way that I ended up feeling something I’ve not experienced in quite some time: pure childlike wonder at the unfathomable, incomprehensible beauty and magnitude of our universe.  A genuinely riveting quest for discovery, 2001 is science fiction with both a heart and a mind (AND ). I was captivated, intrigued, and exhilarated by this grand adventure into the nature of existence, the heart of the universe, and, unexpectedly, the endless expanses of the human heart. Okay, yikes, that last line was pretty cheesy. Sorry about that. Some of you may already be skeptical, and hearing about “the endless expanses of the human heart” really can’t be helping matters. And, granted, the book did end things with a freakin’ , for Chrissakes. But Clarke negotiated this admittedly precarious terrain without ever allowing the book to become too sentimental, New-Agey, or otherwise insufferable. This was due to no small measure of consummate dexterity, and was in fact part of the reason why, in my opinion, this qualifies as insightful, thought-provoking, intelligently written literature.  An “Odyssey” indeed; I can’t think of a more fitting title for this breathtaking, awe-inspiring journey.                     26 reviews7 followers     May 22, 2016   Dave Bowman: Hello, HAL. Do you read me, HAL? HAL: Affirmative, Dave. I read you. Dave Bowman: Open the pod bay doors, HAL. HAL: I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that. Dave Bowman: What's the problem? HAL: I think you know what the problem is just as well as I do. Dave Bowman: What are you talking about, HAL? HAL: This mission is too important for me to allow you to jeopardize it. Dave Bowman: I don't know what you're talking about, HAL. HAL: I know that you and Frank were planning to disconnect me, and I'm afraid that's something I cannot allow to happen. Dave Bowman: Where the hell'd you get that idea, HAL? HAL: Dave, although you took very thorough precautions in the pod against my hearing you, I could see your lips move. Dave Bowman: Alright, HAL. I'll go in through the emergency airlock. HAL: Without your space helmet, Dave, you're going to find that rather difficult. Dave Bowman: HAL, I won't argue with you anymore. Open the doors. HAL: Dave, this conversation can serve no purpose anymore. Goodbye    re-read               1,517 reviews10.8k followers     December 4, 2013   4.5 Stars. The books of Arthur C. Clarke (at least the ten or so that I have read) have been consistently good and of very high quality. When I pick up one of his books, I can be confident that I won't be disappointed. This book is terrific and don't think that if you have seen the movie you know what is going to happen.     1954-1969 audiobook bdo               239 reviews120 followers     April 25, 2022   I won’t lie: I began reading 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke because I felt like I had to. It’s a book everyone talks about, and many who do have never read it. I’ll get around to the film soon too. Because of this, I never thought I would actually like it this much…I love how episodic classic science fiction is Yes, characterisation leaves something to be desired, but it doesn’t really matter. 2001: A Space Odyssey is about the story, the “What if?”. The characters do have some semblance of personality, though, so I still empathised with them and was excited or shocked when they were. The story itself surprised me! I wasn’t expecting such a large-scale thing. I began the book thinking it might be a simple exploration plot, but you soon find out that it’s far more complex than that. Despite challenging myself only to read the first book in the series, 2001: A Space Odyssey, I’m going to read the next one too. The main reason for this is that Arthur C. Clarke dropped a bombshell filled with questions and I’m dying to know the answers! 2001: A Space Odyssey is an incredible book I would even recommend it to those who prefer the character-driven modern SF that is more popular now, just because the story itself is enthralling. It’s a short book, so even if you're not sure, give a few pages a go!  View the full review at The Fantasy Review      2020-reads science-fiction-read               550 reviews1,047 followers     September 1, 2016   Wow. This is really something. Forget what you think you know if you’ve seen the film. This is surely a landmark piece of Science Fiction. Although Clarke divulges a lot more detail here than Kubrick incorporated into his film, the mystic aspect of space is still present. I also enjoyed learning more about the monoliths and their true nature and/or purpose.  For some reason I thought the opening sequence (the Dawn of Man) would be boring. It wasn’t. In fact, despite being much more comprehensive than the bit showed in the film, I found it extremely lyrical and poignant. This, I suppose, is true of the whole novel. The grand finale was everything I’d hoped for and it does clear the water a bit, although there are some things that remain tantalizingly open for interpretation. There are a number of parallels here, but I don’t want to go into too much detail. A fun activity is comparing Clarke’s predictions with the current state of technology. OK, so he had the date of space-worthiness wrong (we’re more than a decade overdue) but there are any number of things in here that are interesting (Tablet PCs with internet capability, for example). These tidbits are all the more impressive if you take into account the novel’s date of publication. Of course, this is one Sci-Fi story that is actually not about the tech, but the sense of wonder that accompanies exploration. Oh, and let's not forget the philosophical issue.  Highly recommended.      books-i-own science-fiction sf-road-trip-2012               652 reviews252 followers     February 4, 2021   An SF classic that is more about concept and ideas than a traditional plot. Unlike the movie it does have a plot, though.It all starts roughly three million years ago in Africa, with apes developing an understanding of their surroundings and how to overcome their limitations. With a little help from— our friends? Maybe. I tried several times, but never got past that first sequence of the movie, until very recently. In the book, though, this part is written with wonderful imagination and quite some wit. It drew me right in. We then jump to the year 1999, when a monolith is found on the moon. Here begins a more traditional SF story that is surrounded by an air of mystery. Where does the thing come from? And what is its purpose? We soon get some ideas. While this part of the book is relatively straightforward, Clarke generally manages to entertain, and also to impress with his surprisingly detailed and accurate description of a modern-day tablet, decades before anyone would hold such a thing in their hands. During the next part of the book, a mission to Saturn, we find ourselves on the spaceship Discovery, with two astronauts, the now infamous artificial intelligence HAL 9000 and a further three astronauts that are in hibernation chambers. Here’s where the novel is at its ominous best and the struggle between HAL and Dave is still fascinating to read. Many themes are addressed in this book. Overpopulation, food shortages, human evolution, the use of tools and power. But the struggle between man and machine and exploration of the artificial mind, with the author raising many questions and answering very few of them, is my personal highlight. However, it is over rather soon. The next part already begins to leave the boundaries of a plot behind and relies heavily on your fascination with space travel and other planets. The book becomes more about images and imagination now, and it might lose some readers here. I wasn’t one of them. Transition from one part of the book to the next might not always be the smoothest and the pacing has some problems for sure, but I found it still fascinating. Clarke manages to capture the vastness of space pretty much perfectly. The last part of the book however … well, let’s just say I’m not a fan. It is rife with symbolism and gives the reader a lot to think about. It’s about the big questions. Naturally, I’m not giving you any answers here. But don’t expect Clarke to do so either. At this point he is not concerned with explaining anything anymore. And while that is something I can appreciate, this whole last part is just a little too obscure, and frankly too weird, for my taste. It’s not as bad as in the movie (which I finally managed to watch without falling asleep yesterday), but, well … find out for yourself. I rated it 4.5 stars the first time around, but I’m going with a 4 now. It’s a fascinating and important novel. A classic. I enjoyed it both times I was reading it. But it has some minor problems, that have the potential to become major problems for some readers, and it’s also not a book I’d say I love. So, it’s not actually that close to a five-star rating for me. Still, recommended. The movie, though. Eh. At your own risk.       science-fiction series-to-continue               423 reviews126 followers     March 5, 2020   I enjoyed this reread on my commute to work. Below is my review from 2018 and my opinion hasn't changed since then. I really enjoyed this book except for the first part which was very boring. Story wise 2001 a Space Odyssey was great; however, when I read books that say aliens helped humans along then that’s where I draw the line. Aliens did not build the pyramids. I don’t care what anyone says. I like aliens, don’t get me wrong. I love Star Wars, Star Trek, Ender's Game (one of my FAVORITE Sci-fi books) and many others. I just hate books that portray humans so dumb they need a little “push” from outside help, or as a way to “explain” the monumental accomplishments of the past. No, human beings built those monoliths, we grew as a species--we did it on our own—not aliens. So, at least for me, 2001 was very hard for me to rate.  Part 1 was very boring—40+ pages of an ape-man in the Pleistocene era. Gouge my eyes out with a rusty fork. 40+ pages of an ape-man banging on stones and killing a panther...big whoop... If I rate the book solely for story, then it was a 5 star book, but, like I said, I hate the “aliens built the pyramids” theme and boring Part 1. Whenever they talk about extraterrestrials on the sci-fi channel I always watch something else because I know what they are going to talk about. There is no evidence they exist anyway.  I loved the themes in this book; perils of technology and nuclear war, space exploration, and artificial intelligence. All the great sci-fi books I’ve read so far really highlighted the perils of technology, especially in robots. R.U.R. and I, Robot really talk about the dangers of technology and artificial intelligence (which is probably why we as a society went the iPhone/computer route lol).  I love space. Of all the sciences, astronomy is my favorite. I loved when Clarke talked about the moons and planets in the galaxy. I can’t get enough of space opera books.  So overall great story, besides the two things I mentioned. Once I find the sequels in a used bookstore I’ll keep reading them, but for now, onto Heinlein or Asimov!     classics sci-fi               305 reviews642 followers     January 4, 2016    Daah daaahh dahDA DA!!! boom boom boom boom boom  That's how the book starts. I swear. No lie. Then there is twenty pages of men in rubber suits called Oog and Ugg. No, not really.  I'm like most people I guess (only in this regard) in that I saw the movie before the book. And it's a damn fine movie if you have some patience. It's beautiful and oh my god it's full of stars. So it's natural that the comparison is made between text and movie here. But, unusually, the book was written alongside the movie script. There was a nice bit at the back of the book where Arthur acknowledges the differences between the two and the explanation behind it. The stories are very similar, it's just some of the details that change. But it is awfully hard to separate the two. The novel is less obtuse - things are spelt out a lot clearer. And there is much more scientific details for us nerds go squee at. Was the 1:4:9 ratio in the movie? Unlike the movie the ape men are very interesting and the difference is that it talks about how the monolith experiments on them and chooses those most fit to teach to use tools. It also hints that there were other monoliths in contact with other tribes. Are they still there under the African savannah? (maybe we'll find out in the sequels). So despite knowing the story the wonder is still there. I still enjoyed it immensely. Oh and the last 20% of the book makes much more sense than the last 20% of the movie. Not total sense mind you.  For those unfamiliar with Clarke's writing it is similar to most golden age SF in that characterisation takes a back seat. Maybe not as much as other classic SF authors, but there is some two dimensionality here. The ideas and the plot are the fruits here. I just want you all to know what to expect from Arthur C Clarke.  So 'Odyssey II' next, which has already pissed me off, but I'm pushing through it. But that's a story for another day. EDIT: P.S. Be warned. Blatant Mad Men era sexism. Kinda cringeworthy. And there is one line that is an absolute corker about why their runabouts have female names.     first-contact science-fiction               Author  23 books681 followers     September 11, 2017     “They became farmers in the fields of stars; they sowed and sometimes they reaped.And sometimes, dispassionately, they had to weed.”  Written a year before Neil Armstrong became first man to step on moon, the science fiction story is really well written. Clark mixes his speculative predictions with true events from past (like the panic caused by broadcastings of Wells’ ‘War of the Worlds’) and once he quoted Niels Bohr (““Your theory is crazy-but not crazy enough to be true.”) I loved his descriptions of lives of astronauts – the long, lonely, boring journeys interrupted by occasional wonderful sights and destinations. Both the beginning and the conclusion were simply incredible.  “In an empty room floating amid the fires of double star twenty thousand light-years from Earth, a baby opened its eyes and began to cry.”““Where there is light, there still could be life.” “It was the mark of a barbarian to destroy something one could not understand.” "We can design a system that's proof against accident and stupidity; but we can't design one that's proof against deliberate malice “Someone had once said that you could be terrified in space, but you could not be worried there.” “The word "rescue" was carefully avoided in all the Astronautics Agency's statements and documents; it implied some failure of planning, and the approved jargon was "re-acquisition”. “Again he began to wonder if he was suffering from amnesia, Paradoxically, that very thought reassured him, if he could remember the word "amnesia" his brain must be in fairly good shape.” “They had learned to speak, and so had won their first great victory over Time. Now the knowledge of one generation could be handed on to the next, so that each age could profit from those that had gone before.Unlike the animals, who knew only the present, Man had acquired a past; and he was beginning to grope toward a future.”      8-usa dystopian-utopian-futurisitic list-1001               530 reviews54 followers     April 3, 2021   2001, the year, is a long time ago now. A person born on this date in the year 2001 might now be halfway through his or her second year of college or university. And yet the novelistic and cinematic story that takes its name from the year 2001 is, if anything, more relevant and more compelling than ever. 2001: A Space Odyssey may be better known, within popular culture, as Stanley Kubrick’s visionary 1968 epic of science-fiction cinema. Yet Kubrick, working from an expressed wish to craft “the proverbial good science-fiction movie,” had the good sense to work with the eminent British science-fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke in pursuit of his stated goal; and the story that emerged from their collaboration – whether one is watching Kubrick’s film or reading Clarke’s novel – unquestionably reflects the creative sensibilities and thematic concerns of both artists. Kubrick's great theme was the danger of dehumanization - the threat that human beings could give up their own humanity. The cause of that dehumanization changes from film to film: the political and military structures that human beings create (Paths of Glory, Spartacus, Dr. Strangelove, Full Metal Jacket), the psychological malformations threatening one's humanity from within (Lolita, A Clockwork Orange, The Shining, Eyes Wide Shut), a facile trust that science can solve the problems of human evil (Clockwork again).  In Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey, the agent of dehumanization is technology itself: human beings have given their machines so much power and agency that the machines do virtually all the work, leaving human beings with little to do except look at screens (rather like life today, come to think). A machine is the only character in the film to express any emotions, and the human beings in the film - with one notable exception - act like machines, or automata. Clarke’s core interests, as set forth in novels like Childhood’s End (1953), are quite different, including artificial intelligence and the possibility of human contact with extraterrestrial civilizations; and accordingly, it should be no surprise that the novel 2001: A Space Odyssey engages both of these areas of interest.  The novel is divided into five sections. The first section, “Primeval Night,” which corresponds to the “Dawn of Man” section of Kubrick’s film, shows humankind as a set of man-apes teetering on the edge of extinction – until one of them, named “Moon-Watcher” in the book, awakens to find that something truly new has come into his world while he slept: “It was a rectangular slab, three times his height but narrow enough to span with his arms, and it was made of some completely transparent material; indeed, it was not easy to see except when the rising sun glinted on its edges” (p. 10). This is, of course, “the monolith” – the enigmatic object whose geometrical precision shows that it was made by some extraterrestrial intelligence. The monolith is transparent in Clarke’s novel, black in Kubrick’s film; but either way, it is there to guide humans forward on an evolutionary path. Through images generated by the monolith, Moon-Watcher – and later, the other members of his tribe – learn to wield tools, to hunt for animal food, and even to kill enemies. All of this happens in the book without the accompaniment of the film’s C-major cadence from Richard Strauss’s Also Sprach Zarathustra, but it is no less powerful for that. The book then leaps forward millions of years – like Kubrick’s film, with its famous bone-to-satellite matched cut – in Part II, “TMA-1.” The “TMA” stands for “Tycho Magnetic Anomaly,” referring to a magnetic abnormality that a group of lunar explorers have found on the Moon’s surface. Scientist and administrator Heywood Floyd – depicted more sympathetically in Clarke’s book than in Kubrick’s film – is bound on a commercial space flight from the Earth to the Moon. The world of Clarke’s 2001 is a world of ongoing Cold War tension, nuclear-war anxiety, overpopulation, and resource shortages. Dr. Floyd’s mission is to investigate an object found by American scientists on the U.S.-administered portion of the Moon (as opposed to the Soviet section).  The object – a monolith similar to the one encountered by “Moon-Watcher” and his fellow man-apes back in prehistoric times – is “a vertical slab of jet-black material, about ten feet high and five feet wide….Perfectly sharp-edged and symmetrical, it was so black it seemed to have swallowed up the light falling upon it; there was no surface detail at all.” Deliberately buried – so that it could only be discovered by beings advanced enough to travel from the Earth to the Moon, and then to use scientific instruments to discover and excavate a magnetic anomaly – it is, as one of Dr. Floyd’s colleagues remarks, “the first evidence of intelligent life beyond the Earth” (p. 66). The monolith does not divulge its secrets to Dr. Floyd, or to any others among the array of impressive scientists assembled in the Tycho Crater. What it does do, upon its first exposure to the lunar sunrise, is beam a powerful signal out toward the planet Saturn. This enigmatic behaviour on the part of the otherwise silent monolith leads directly into Book III, “Between Planets,” which charts the progress of the interplanetary voyage organized to seek out the reasons for the monolith’s puzzling actions. This section, perhaps the most famous part of 2001: A Space Odyssey, chronicles the voyage of the spaceship Discovery toward Jupiter and Saturn. On board are three survey scientists in hibernation; mission commander David Bowman; mission assistant Frank Poole – and HAL. His name, we are told, stood “for Heuristically programmed ALgorithmic computer” (p. 92), and Clarke always insisted that the name of his computer character was not a sly reference to IBM, with each letter rolled back one. HAL is “the brain and nervous system of the ship” (p. 92), and Clarke makes no bones regarding his feelings about HAL’s ability to think, as opposed to imitate the thought process:  Whether Hal could actually think was a question which had been settled by the British mathematician Alan Turing back in the 1940s. Turing had pointed out that, if one could carry out a prolonged conversation with a machine – whether by typewriter or microphones was immaterial – without being able to distinguish between its replies and those that a man might give, then the machine was thinking, by any sensible definition of the word. Hal could pass the Turing test with ease. (pp. 93-94) Nowadays, with the film The Imitation Game winning all sorts of awards, and Dr. Turing’s likeness being placed on the Bank of England’s 50-pound note, everyone knows Dr. Turing’s name; but the manner in which Clarke interpolates this detail into his novel shows how firmly this imaginative epic is grounded in the best science of its time. Book IV, “Abyss,” shows the unintended consequences of creating a computer of such all-powerful intelligence. Hal detects an error in an antenna-control device, but the astronauts’ examination of the device reveals no such fault. Confronted with evidence that he might have made a mistake, Hal insists that “If you check my record, you’ll find it completely free from error” (p. 138); but shortly afterward, he begins working to terminate the lives of his human shipmates.  In Kubrick’s film, the reasons for Hal’s breakdown remain unrevealed; the viewer is left to assume that Hal has simply decided that he can best complete the mission by himself, without human “interference.” Clarke, who seems to sympathize with Hal, takes pains to emphasize, in a chapter titled “Need to Know,” that Hal, whose whole purpose is to share information, has been “living a lie,” told not to reveal to his human shipmates the real reason for the Discovery mission. As Clarke puts it, the mission planners’ “twin gods of Security and National Interest meant nothing to Hal. He was only aware of the conflict that was slowly destroying his integrity – the conflict between truth, and concealment of truth” (p. 152). That neurosis, in Clarke’s analysis, motivates Hal’s behaviour. Fortunately for the future of humankind, David Bowman is equal to the challenge posed by Hal’s murderous rebellion. He bears the first name of the giant-killing hero from the Old Testament, and his surname references the bowman Odysseus – both heroes who could not defeat their enemies by physical force, and therefore had to use their wits in order to survive and prevail. Like the biblical King David and the mythological Odysseus, David Bowman finds a way to overcome Hal and continue with the mission – though he does so with remorse, and with the knowledge that Hal’s demise will leave him more alone than any other human being has ever been. Finally learning the truth about his mission, David Bowman in Book V (“The Moons of Saturn”) heads toward the Saturnian moon of Japetus, the target of that mysterious signal emanated from the monolith on the Moon. An even vaster and larger monolith – “TMA-1’s big brother!” (p. 193), as Bowman excitedly notes – turns out to provide a sort of dimensional portal to impossibly faraway portions of the Universe; and Bowman, the oxygen in his ship running low as a result of damage caused by Hal’s rebellion, decides to approach the newly discovered “TMA-2” in one of Discovery’s space pods. “The Star Gate opened. The Star Gate closed” (p. 203). That pithy declaration by the novel's narrator accompanies the last words that Bowman speaks in the novel: “The thing’s hollow – it goes on forever – and – oh, my God! -- it’s full of stars!” (p. 202). With that, Bowman is off on his “journey beyond the infinite” (a prospective early title for the 2001 book and film project).  In the film, of course, this section, titled “Jupiter – And Beyond the Infinite,” is a phantasmagorical light show that goes on for several minutes. In the book, Clarke must use language, and does so quite successfully, to convey the idea that Bowman goes through the Star Gate on a voyage that reveals the answers to mysteries of the Universe. And then, in accordance with his Odyssean surname, David Bowman completes his own odyssey and returns to Earth as a new type of being, as far above ordinary human beings as we are above the man-apes of the time of “Moon-Watcher.” There is always the question, of course, of whether Clarke’s novel 2001 would be as substantial a work without Kubrick’s landmark film. Seeing 2001: A Space Odyssey at the Uptown Theatre in Washington, D.C., during a brief theatrical re-release of the film in the autumn of the year 2001, was the high point of my moviegoing life. Watching the film on the Uptown’s 70- by 35-foot Cinerama screen, I saw how every part of the screen was crammed with telling and engaging imagery, in a way that no TV showing could ever convey. There is no other movie quite like it. People back in 1968 were reading Clarke’s novel as a sort of “Cliff’s Notes” guide to the movie, to help them through the more enigmatic portions of Kubrick’s film. Returning to the novel now, after some time away from the film, I find that 2001 the novel holds up well as a novel, comparing well with other classic Clarke works such as Childhood’s End. I last re-read 2001: A Space Odyssey in July of 2019, around the time of the 50th anniversary of the landing of Apollo 11 on the lunar surface. The moon landing was just a year away, something eagerly anticipated all over the world, when Clarke’s novel and Kubrick’s film were released. Both the book and the film 2001 posit a world where the moon is dotted with American and Russian colonies; in real life, of course, no one has been to the moon since the Apollo 17 crew left the lunar surface in 1972. I think of the sense of wonder, the exploratory spirit, the yearning after great mysteries that is at the heart of 2001: A Space Odyssey, and ask myself: Is there something left in human beings that still reaches for the stars? Or will we continue to settle for staring into the screens of ever-more-complex telephones?     science-fiction               229 reviews128 followers     July 8, 2016    Posle čitanja jednog ovakvog remek-dela teško je naći prave reči koje bi iskazale divljenje koje osećam prema Arturu Klarku; čovek je pravi genijalac, vizionar, a na momente mi se činilo kao da nije sa ove planete.Priznajem, oduvek sam bila fascinirana Svemirom. Kada sam bila mala, Mesec je za mene bio nešto najveličanstvenije što postoji. Svakakve ideje su mi se u to vreme motale po glavi, počev od toga da li neko živi na Mesecu, pa do toga šta bi bilo kad bi Mesec jednog dana pao na Zemlju?! Šta, vi kao niste o tome razmišljali kad ste bili dete? Niste?! E, pa onda ne znam kakvo vam je bilo detinjstvo! U svakom slučaju, koliko god da sam oduvek imala bujnu maštu, postoji nešto što nikada nisam mogla da zamislim: kako je to biti astronaut? lebdeti u svemiru, osećati sav taj beskraj oko sebe, tu beskonačnost, videti Zemlju iz jedne druge perspektive...to mi je i dalje nepojmljivo. I kako neko ko je bio u prilici da sve to iskusi, može posle toga da se vrati kući, kosi travnjak, gleda fudbalsku utakmicu, redovno plaća porez i mirno sačeka penziju? Kako može da nastavi sa "normalnim" životom?  Čovek uvek teži, ili bi barem trebalo da teži, da što više napreduje, pomera granice koje je sam sebi postavio, ispituje nepoznato, nalazi odgovore na ključna pitanja, postavlja nova pitanja generacijama koje dolaze. Ali, šta ako postoje neka pitanja na koja odgovora nema, ili ih još uvek nema. Da li je to onda neuspeh, da li je Čovek zakazao? Već godinama unazad traženje odgovora na pitanje - postoji li život van Zemlje? zaokuplja pažnju naučnika i običnih smrtnika. Ako postoji, u kojoj formi postoji? Ako postoji, da li je Čovek spreman na tu mogućnost? A šta ako ipak ne postoji?  Na sva ova pitanja zahvaljujući Arturu Klarku sada gledam iz jedne potpuno nove perspektive. Hvala mu na tome.     arthur-c-clarke read-in-2014 sf               63 reviews30 followers     January 5, 2018   Like a lot of sci fi, the first half of the novel was a bit slow and hyper focused on a mysterious technology. It sets you up for curiosity. Which is great because if you love sci fi it’s probably because you like your mystery with a hint of tech. But then came the descriptions of said technology. Which covered a good portion of the central half of the novel. This is a rough depiction of my face while reading it 🙄. Then came the mind blowing, spectacularly done third act, which is a bit hard to grasp but amazing in scope and theory. This is a rough depiction of my face while reading that part🤪.  Needless to say I look forward to continuing this series.                    1,961 reviews2,683 followers     January 14, 2023    4.0 Stars I'm happy to write that I really enjoyed this classic science fiction story. I have never watched the movie so I went in completely blind. The first section was by far the best part, from that incredible opening first line. There is a significant shift in the story in the second part but yet it still remained highly compelling. I definitely want to read more by this author.    science-fiction               1,849 reviews3,363 followers     December 30, 2020   I think it's pretty safe to say that this is one of THE scifi novels, yet this is the first time I've read it. To be clear from the start: this, in my opinion, is not one of those book I'll likely enjoy again and again, but it was definitely important to have read it.Almost confusingly, the novel opens in Africa, about 3 million years ago and shows us some prehistoric humans in their struggle for daily survival. The author snarkily describes their limitations and the immense impact "something" has on them when inspiring/encouraging the development of intelligence (tools, applying farming as well as hunting etc). Then we jump to the year 1999, in which travels to the Moon are common. In one of the Moon's craters, a monolith is found that emits a strong and mysterious signal when the sunlight touches it for the first time in forever. The signal is sent to Saturn, apparently, which brings us to the third part (of four) of the book in which a ship is sent to investigate. On board said ship: the (in-)famous HAL 9000. No more details shall be given away about the civilisation who built and left the monoliths or what happens to the respective characters. Suffice it to say that it gets really interesting. Arthur C. Clarke is such a famous and influential scifi author that an award was named after him. And you can see why here. The novel might have its problems (minor ones though), but the themes! From Alan Turing's theories on artificial intelligence (and, thus, the Turing Test) to evolution and the dangers of technology / nuclear war, this book proves quite some foresight by the author. And yes, he even addressed overpopulation and food shortages though those seem to have been popular things to muse about back in the 60s. What I liked was that the author didn't just repeat famous theories like Turing’s, but applied them in an intelligent way within the story. Thus, HAL . The book therefore cleverly raises questions about consciousness/sentience versus programming as much as about human interaction with machines (though I still prefer Asimov's robot stories).Another example is what happens in the end when . *lol* No, seriously, .A more minor but very entertaining thing was the author’s comment on zoos. All valid points, presenting then-current themes and problems of humanity (some still just as current nowadays) in a futuristic mantle and even predicting a future Earth, just like scifi should. Moreover, it can clearly be seen by my review that the book makes you think and discuss many things and that is always wonderful. Can't wait to see Kubrick's movie tonight.                   971 reviews3,330 followers     July 1, 2017   Without doubt this is a science fiction classic, and an early example of a novel and a movie that are born at the same time, adding detail and nuance to each other by the makers’ consistent communication and reflection on the respective effects of different media on the end result. It is an experiment on many different levels, and a very successful one. As a story, I found it interesting and compelling, especially the hilarious initial chapter on early humans and the reason for their development into something of a higher intellectual order. Who would have guessed that we needed extraterrestrial intelligence to understand that proper nourishment will lead to higher brain capacity, and ultimately to our reign over the resources of the planet? However, this is not the story of mankind per se, and not the usual science fiction plot either, where (hostile) aliens threaten humanity’s civilisation, and heroes have to come up with highly advanced ideas to protect societies on earth from destruction. It is not even the story of the supremacy of any specific technology or species as such. It is a reflection on the utter unimportance of humanity from a cosmic perspective. There is a storyline on the problematic use of artificial intelligence, when Hal starts making dangerous decisions based on contradictory programming, but in the end, nothing humanity has ever developed, decided or experienced plays a major role, once they leave the framework of the Solar System and enter the intellectual thought experiment of “2001: Space Odyssey”: a creative suggestion for a possible universe of extraterrestrial lifeforms. As a philosophical statement on the immensity of cosmic possibilities, I quite liked the novel, but generally speaking, the questions that usually interest me in science fiction are more related to the so-called the human factors: how does human society react to immense threat or change, how do interpersonal relationships develop when adapting to extreme situations? The Space Odyssey is not concerned with that kind of angle. In a sense, with its technological and scientific inventiveness, it is pure cosmic speculative philosophy, nothing else. But it does not have to be more either. Readable, interesting, fun at times!     1001-books-to-read-before-you-die               236 reviews60 followers     July 9, 2021   a reverse novelization follows the movie pretty closely. never really understood the end so i read this to see what i missed. Hal 9000 is terrifying!           Displaying 1 - 30 of 7,581 reviews
2001: A Space Odyssey
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<table><tbody><tr><th>"The Last Question"</th></tr><tr><td>by <a href="/wiki/Isaac_Asimov">Isaac Asimov</a></td></tr><tr><td><a href="/wiki/File:Science_fiction_quarterly_195611.jpg"></a></td></tr><tr><th>Country</th><td>United States</td></tr><tr><th>Language</th><td>English</td></tr><tr><th>Series</th><td><a href="/wiki/Multivac">Multivac</a></td></tr><tr><th>Genre(s)</th><td><a href="/wiki/Science_fiction">Science fiction</a></td></tr><tr><th>Publication type</th><td><a href="/wiki/Periodical">Periodical</a></td></tr><tr><th>Publisher</th><td><a href="/wiki/Columbia_Publications">Columbia Publications</a></td></tr><tr><th>Media type</th><td>Print (<a href="/wiki/Magazine">Magazine</a>, <a href="/wiki/Hardcover">Hardback</a> &amp; <a href="/wiki/Paperback">Paperback</a>)</td></tr><tr><th>Publication date</th><td>November 1956</td></tr><tr><th>Chronology</th></tr><tr><td>
<table>
<tbody><tr>
<td>← <b>Preceded by</b><br /><a href="/wiki/Someday_(short_story)">Someday</a>
</td>
<td><b>Followed by</b> →<br /><a href="/wiki/Jokester_(Asimov)">Jokester</a>
</td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table>
<p>"<b>The Last Question</b>" is a <a href="/wiki/Science_fiction">science fiction</a> <a href="/wiki/Short_story">short story</a> by American writer <a href="/wiki/Isaac_Asimov">Isaac Asimov</a>. It first appeared in the November 1956 issue of <i><a href="/wiki/Science_Fiction_Quarterly">Science Fiction Quarterly</a></i> and was <a href="/wiki/Anthologized">anthologized</a> in the collections <i><a href="/wiki/Nine_Tomorrows">Nine Tomorrows</a></i> (1959), <i><a href="/wiki/The_Best_of_Isaac_Asimov">The Best of Isaac Asimov</a></i> (1973), <i><a href="/wiki/Robot_Dreams">Robot Dreams</a></i> (1986), <i><a href="/wiki/The_Best_Science_Fiction_of_Isaac_Asimov">The Best Science Fiction of Isaac Asimov</a></i> (1986), the retrospective <i><a href="/wiki/Opus_100">Opus 100</a></i> (1969), and in <i><a href="/wiki/The_Complete_Stories_(Asimov)">Isaac Asimov: The Complete Stories, Vol. 1</a></i> (1990). While he also considered it one of his best works,<sup><a href="#cite_note-:0-1">[1]</a></sup> “The Last Question” was Asimov's favorite short story of his own authorship, and is one of a loosely connected series of stories concerning a fictional <a href="/wiki/Computer">computer</a> called <a href="/wiki/Multivac">Multivac</a>. Through successive generations, humanity questions <a href="/wiki/Multivac">Multivac</a> on the subject of <a href="/wiki/Entropy">entropy</a>. The story overlaps science fiction, <a href="/wiki/Theology">theology</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Philosophy">philosophy</a>.  
</p>
<h2>History[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Question&amp;action=edit&amp;section=1">edit</a>]</h2>
<p>In conceiving Multivac, Asimov was extrapolating the trend towards centralization that characterized computation technology planning in the 1950s to an ultimate centrally-managed global computer. After seeing a <a href="/wiki/Planetarium">planetarium</a> adaptation of his work, Asimov "privately" concluded that the story was his best science fiction yet written. He placed it just higher than "<a href="/wiki/The_Ugly_Little_Boy">The Ugly Little Boy</a>" (September 1958) and "<a href="/wiki/The_Bicentennial_Man">The Bicentennial Man</a>" (1976). The story asks the question of humanity's fate, and human existence as a whole, highlighting Asimov's focus on important aspects of our future like population growth and environmental issues.<sup><a href="#cite_note-:02-2">[2]</a></sup>
</p><p>
"The Last Question" ranks with "<a href="/wiki/Nightfall_(Asimov)">Nightfall</a>" (1941) as one of Asimov's best-known and most acclaimed short stories. He wrote in 1973:<sup><a href="#cite_note-asimov1973-3">[3]</a></sup></p><blockquote><p>Why is it my favorite? For one thing I got the idea all at once and didn't have to fiddle with it; and I wrote it in white-heat and scarcely had to change a word. This sort of thing endears any story to any writer. Then, too, it has had the strangest effect on my readers. Frequently someone writes to ask me if I can give them the name of a story, which they <i>think</i> I may have written, and tell them where to find it. They don't remember the title but when they describe the story it is invariably 'The Last Question'. This has reached the point where I recently received a long-distance phone call from a desperate man who began, "Dr. Asimov, there's a story I think you wrote, whose title I can't remember—" at which point I interrupted to tell him it was 'The Last Question' and when I described the plot it proved to be indeed the story he was after. I left him convinced I could read minds at a distance of a thousand miles.</p></blockquote>
<h2>Plot summary[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Question&amp;action=edit&amp;section=2">edit</a>]</h2>
<p>The story centers around Multivac, a self-adjusting and self-correcting computer. Multivac had been fed data for decades, assessing data and answering questions, allowing man to reach beyond the planetary confines of Earth. However, in the year 2061, Multivac began to understand deeper fundamentals of humanity. In each of the first six scenes, a different character presents the computer with the same question, how the threat to human existence posed by the <a href="/wiki/Heat_death_of_the_universe">heat death of the universe</a> can be averted: "How can the net amount of <a href="/wiki/Entropy">entropy</a> of the universe be massively decreased?" That is equivalent to asking, "Can the workings of the <a href="/wiki/Second_law_of_thermodynamics">second law of thermodynamics</a> (used in the story as the increase of the entropy of the universe) be reversed?" Multivac's only response after much "thinking" is "INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR MEANINGFUL ANSWER."
</p><p>The story jumps forward in time into later eras of human and scientific development. These new eras highlight humanity's goals of searching for "more"; more space, more energy, more planets to inhabit once the current one becomes overcrowded. As humanity's imprint on the universe expands, computers have subsequently become more compact, as evidenced in the "Microvac", a smaller and more advanced iteration of Multivac, noted in the second era of the story, which details humanity's inhabitation on "Planet X-23". In each era, someone decides to ask the ultimate "last question" regarding the reversal and decrease of entropy. Each time that Multivac's descendant is asked the question, it finds itself unable to solve the problem, and all it can answer is (linguistically increasingly-sophisticated) "THERE IS AS YET INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR A MEANINGFUL ANSWER."
</p><p>
In the last scene, the <a href="/wiki/Posthuman_God">god-like</a> descendant of humanity, the unified mental process of over a trillion, trillion, trillion humans who have spread throughout the universe, watches the stars flicker out, one by one, as matter and energy end, and with them, space and time. Humanity asks AC ("Analog Computer"), Multivac's ultimate descendant that exists in <a href="/wiki/Hyperspace">hyperspace</a> beyond the bounds of gravity or time, the entropy question one last time, before the last of humanity merges with AC and disappears. AC is still unable to answer but continues to ponder the question even after space and time cease to exist. AC ultimately realizes that it has not yet combined all of its available data in every possible combination and so begins the arduous process of rearranging and combining every last bit of information that it has gained throughout the eons and through its fusion with humanity. Eventually AC discovers the answer—that the reversal of entropy is, in fact, possible—but has nobody to report it to, since the universe is already dead. It therefore decides to answer by demonstration. The story ends with AC's pronouncement:</p><blockquote><p>And AC said: "<a href="/wiki/Let_there_be_light">LET THERE BE LIGHT!</a>" And there was light—</p></blockquote>
<h2>Themes[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Question&amp;action=edit&amp;section=3">edit</a>]</h2>
<h3>Philosophy[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Question&amp;action=edit&amp;section=4">edit</a>]</h3>
<p>While science and religion typically have an oppositional relationship,<sup><a href="#cite_note-4">[4]</a></sup> "The Last Question" explores some biblical contexts ("<a href="/wiki/Let_there_be_light">Let there be light</a>"). In Asimov's story, aspects like the great meaning of existence are culminated through both technology and human knowledge. The evolution from Multivac to AC also emulates a sort of cycle of existence.<sup><a href="#cite_note-5">[5]</a></sup>
</p>
<h3>Dystopian happy ending[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Question&amp;action=edit&amp;section=5">edit</a>]</h3>
<p>Multivac's purpose was conceptualized with a desire for knowledge, promoting the idea that more knowledge will lead to a better and more fruitful future for humanity. However, the computer's answers regarding the future suggest an inevitable exhaustion of the Sun, and this thirst for knowledge becomes an obsession with the future. The story's end displays a dichotomy between annihilation and peace.<sup><a href="#cite_note-6">[6]</a></sup>
</p>
<h3>Survivalism[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Question&amp;action=edit&amp;section=6">edit</a>]</h3>
<p>The theme of <a href="/wiki/Survivalism_in_fiction">survivalism</a> is represented in the generational journey to expand humanity's existence. Not only do those who ask Multivac of humanity's future ponder their own ability to survive, but the ability for humans to continue expanding across the universe billions of years in the future. People ask the questions of entropy to Multivac not only to secure the safety of their lifetime, their sun, and their planet, but for those that humanity will rely on as they continue their attempted endless expansion.
</p>
<h2>Dramatic adaptations[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Question&amp;action=edit&amp;section=7">edit</a>]</h2>
<h3>Planetarium shows[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Question&amp;action=edit&amp;section=8">edit</a>]</h3>
<ul><li>"The Last Question" was first adapted for the Abrams Planetarium at <a href="/wiki/Michigan_State_University">Michigan State University</a> (in 1966), featuring the voice of <a href="/wiki/Leonard_Nimoy">Leonard Nimoy</a>, as Asimov wrote in his autobiography <i><a href="/wiki/In_Joy_Still_Felt">In Joy Still Felt</a></i> (1980).</li>
<li>It was adapted for the <a href="/wiki/Strasenburgh_Planetarium">Strasenburgh Planetarium</a> in Rochester, New York (in 1969), under the direction of Ian C. McLennan.</li>
<li>It was adapted for the Edmonton Space Sciences Centre in Edmonton, Alberta (early 1970s), under the direction of John Hault.</li>
<li>It was adapted for the Gates Planetarium at the Denver Museum of Natural History in 1973 under the direction of Mark B. Peterson<sup><a href="#cite_note-7">[7]</a></sup></li></ul>
<p>It subsequently played, as well, at the:
</p>
<ul><li>Fels Planetarium of the <a href="/wiki/Franklin_Institute">Franklin Institute</a> in Philadelphia in 1973<sup><a href="#cite_note-8">[8]</a></sup><sup><a href="#cite_note-Eagle-9">[9]</a></sup></li>
<li>Planetarium of the <a href="/wiki/Reading_School_District">Reading School District</a> in <a href="/wiki/Reading,_Pennsylvania">Reading, Pennsylvania</a> in 1974<sup><a href="#cite_note-Eagle-9">[9]</a></sup></li>
<li>Buhl Planetarium, Pittsburgh in 1974<sup><a href="#cite_note-10">[10]</a></sup></li>
<li>Vanderbilt Planetarium in Centerport New York, in 1978,<sup><a href="#cite_note-11">[11]</a></sup> read by singer-songwriter and Long Island resident Harry Chapin.</li>
<li><a href="/wiki/Hansen_Planetarium">Hansen Planetarium</a> in Salt Lake City, Utah (in 1980<sup><a href="#cite_note-12">[12]</a></sup> and 1989<sup><a href="#cite_note-AP1989-13">[13]</a></sup>)</li>
<li>A reading of the story was played on <a href="/wiki/BBC_Radio_4_Extra">BBC Radio 7</a> in 2008 and 2009.<sup><a href="#cite_note-14">[14]</a></sup></li>
<li><a href="/wiki/Denver_Museum_of_Nature_and_Science">Gates Planetarium</a> in Denver, Colorado (in early 2020)<sup><a href="#cite_note-15">[15]</a></sup></li></ul>
<p>In 1989 Asimov updated the star show adaptation to add in quasars and black holes.<sup><a href="#cite_note-AP1989-13">[13]</a></sup>
</p><p><a href="/wiki/Douglas_Adams">Douglas Adams</a>'s Deep Thought (from <i><a href="/wiki/The_Hitchhiker%27s_Guide_to_the_Galaxy">The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy</a></i>) seems to make a nod towards Multivac, at least in <a href="/wiki/The_Hitchhiker%27s_Guide_to_the_Galaxy_(film)">the 2005 film</a>, saying that there is insufficient data for an answer.
</p>
<h2>See also[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Question&amp;action=edit&amp;section=9">edit</a>]</h2>
<ul><li><a href="/wiki/The_Best_of_Isaac_Asimov"><i>The Best of Isaac Asimov</i></a> – Collection of twelve short stories by Isaac Asimov published in 1973</li>
<li><a href="/wiki/Cyclic_model">Cyclic model</a> – Cosmological models involving indefinite, self-sustaining cycles</li>
<li>"<a href="/wiki/The_Last_Answer">The Last Answer</a>" – Science-fiction short story by Isaac Asimov</li>
<li><a href="/wiki/Technological_singularity">Technological singularity</a> – Hypothetical point in time when technological growth becomes uncontrollable and irreversible</li></ul>
<h2>Explanatory notes[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Question&amp;action=edit&amp;section=10">edit</a>]</h2>
<h2>References[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Question&amp;action=edit&amp;section=11">edit</a>]</h2>
<div>
<ol>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-:0_1-0">^</a></b> <cite><a href="https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/928107748"><i>The big book of science fiction : the ultimate collection</i></a>. Ann VanderMeer, Jeff VanderMeer. New York. 2016. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-101-91009-2"><bdi>978-1-101-91009-2</bdi></a>. <a href="/wiki/OCLC_(identifier)">OCLC</a> <a href="//www.worldcat.org/oclc/928107748">928107748</a>.</cite><code>{{<a href="/wiki/Template:Cite_book">cite book</a>}}</code>: CS1 maint: others (<a href="/wiki/Category:CS1_maint:_others">link</a>)
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-:02_2-0">^</a></b> <cite><a href="https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/928107748"><i>The big book of science fiction : the ultimate collection</i></a>. Ann VanderMeer, Jeff VanderMeer. New York. 2016. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-101-91009-2"><bdi>978-1-101-91009-2</bdi></a>. <a href="/wiki/OCLC_(identifier)">OCLC</a> <a href="//www.worldcat.org/oclc/928107748">928107748</a>.</cite><code>{{<a href="/wiki/Template:Cite_book">cite book</a>}}</code>: CS1 maint: others (<a href="/wiki/Category:CS1_maint:_others">link</a>)
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-asimov1973_3-0">^</a></b> <cite>Asimov, Isaac (1973). <a href="https://archive.org/stream/bestofisaacasimo00asim#page/n11/mode/2up">"Introduction"</a>. <a href="https://archive.org/details/bestofisaacasimo00asim"><i>The Best of Isaac Asimov</i></a>. Sphere Books. pp. ix–xiv. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-385-05078-X"><bdi>0-385-05078-X</bdi></a>. <a href="/wiki/LCCN_(identifier)">LCCN</a> <a href="//lccn.loc.gov/74-2863">74-2863</a>.</cite>
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-4">^</a></b> <cite>Popova, Maria (2013-08-13). <a href="https://www.themarginalian.org/2013/08/13/isaac-asimov-religion-science-humanism/">"Religion vs. Humanism: Isaac Asimov on Science and Spirituality"</a>. <i>The Marginalian</i>. Retrieved 2023-01-29.</cite>
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-5">^</a></b> <cite><a href="https://literative.com/literary-analysis/symbolism-last-question-isaac-asimov/">"The Last Question Analysis"</a>. <i>Creative Writing Prompt Contests</i>. 2015-06-20. Retrieved 2023-01-29.</cite>
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-6">^</a></b> <cite><a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.5749/j.ctvr7fd26.4">"There Is Yet Insufficient Data for a Meaningful Answer"</a>, <i>Spoiler Alert</i>, University of Minnesota Press, pp. 23–46, 2019-10-29, <a href="/wiki/Doi_(identifier)">doi</a>:<a href="https://doi.org/10.5749%2Fj.ctvr7fd26.4">10.5749/j.ctvr7fd26.4</a>, <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781452962924"><bdi>9781452962924</bdi></a>, <a href="/wiki/S2CID_(identifier)">S2CID</a> <a href="https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:242355987">242355987</a>, retrieved 2022-04-06</cite>
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-7">^</a></b> <cite><a href="https://snaccooperative.org/view/20464349">"Asimov, Isaac, 1920-1992 - Social Networks and Archival Context"</a>. <i>snaccooperative.org</i>. Retrieved 2021-07-25.</cite>
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-8">^</a></b> <cite><a href="https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/180311777/">"Untitled briefs"</a>. <i>The Philadelphia Inquirer</i>. 2 September 1973. Retrieved 27 September 2016.</cite>
</li>
<li>^ <a href="#cite_ref-Eagle_9-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Eagle_9-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <cite>Walsh, John F. (30 June 1974). <a href="https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1955&amp;dat=19740630&amp;id=QwUrAAAAIBAJ&amp;sjid=8pcFAAAAIBAJ&amp;pg=2606,4676440&amp;hl=en">"'The Last Question' appeals to viewers at planetarium"</a>. <i>Reading Eagle</i>. Retrieved 27 September 2016.</cite>
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-10">^</a></b> <cite>Oles, Paul (July 18, 1974). "The Pittsburgh Press". Viewing the Stars. p. 17.</cite>
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-11">^</a></b> <cite><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1978/07/09/archives/long-island-weekly-on-the-isle-today-squaring-off-the-kindest.html">"ON THE ISLE"</a>. <i>The New York Times</i>. 1978-07-09. <a href="/wiki/ISSN_(identifier)">ISSN</a> <a href="//www.worldcat.org/issn/0362-4331">0362-4331</a>. Retrieved 2017-02-06.</cite>
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-12">^</a></b> <cite><a href="https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=80pTAAAAIBAJ&amp;sjid=WYMDAAAAIBAJ&amp;pg=7090%2C7584279">"Planetarium presents 'The Last Question'"</a>. <i>Deseret News</i>. January 28, 1980. Retrieved 23 September 2013.</cite>
</li>
<li>^ <a href="#cite_ref-AP1989_13-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-AP1989_13-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <cite><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210225003439/https://www.deseret.com/1989/5/30/18809128/planetarium-asks-sci-fi-star-to-update-tale">"Planetarium asks sci-fi 'star' to update tale"</a>. <i>Deseret News</i>. May 30, 1989. Archived from <a href="http://www.deseretnews.com/article/48725/PLANETARIUM-ASKS-SCI-FI-STAR-TO-UPDATE-TALE.html">the original</a> on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 26 September 2016.</cite>
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-14">^</a></b> <cite><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b007jwp4">"BBC Radio 7 - Isaac Asimov - The Last Question"</a>. Retrieved 14 Aug 2015.</cite>
</li>
<li><b><a href="#cite_ref-15">^</a></b> <cite><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200131133703/https://www.dmns.org/visit/events-and-activities/0130-isaac-asimovs-the-last-question-6-pm/">"Isaac Asimov's The Last Question (6 p.m.)"</a>. <i>Denver Museum of Nature &amp; Science</i>. Archived from <a href="https://www.dmns.org/visit/events-and-activities/0130-isaac-asimovs-the-last-question-6-pm/">the original</a> on 2020-01-31. Retrieved 2020-01-31.</cite>
</li>
</ol></div>
<h2>External links[<a href="/w/index.php?title=The_Last_Question&amp;action=edit&amp;section=12">edit</a>]</h2>
<ul><li><a href="https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?41230"><i>The Last Question</i></a> title listing at the <a href="/wiki/Internet_Speculative_Fiction_Database">Internet Speculative Fiction Database</a></li>
<li><a href="https://archive.org/stream/Science_Fiction_Quarterly_New_Series_v04n05_1956-11_slpn#page/n5/mode/2up">"The Last Question"</a> at the <a href="/wiki/Internet_Archive">Internet Archive</a></li>
<li><a href="/wiki/Isaac_Asimov">Isaac Asimov</a> <a href="https://archive.org/download/IsaacAsimovAudioBookCollection/1986%20-%20Science%20Fiction%20Favorites%20%28Asimov%29%2064k%2005.13.11%20%7B143mb%7D/07%20The%20Last%20Question.ogg">reads "The Last Question"</a> at the <a href="/wiki/Internet_Archive">Internet Archive</a></li></ul>
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 * 1 History
 * 2 Plot summary
 * 3 Themes
 + 3.1 Philosophy
 + 3.2 Dystopian happy ending
 + 3.3 Survivalism
 * 4 Dramatic adaptations
 + 4.1 Planetarium shows
 * 5 See also
 * 6 Explanatory notes
 * 7 References
 * 8 External links
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 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Not to be confused with The Last Answer.
 "The Last Question" 
 by Isaac Asimov 
 
 Country United States 
 Language English 
 Series Multivac 
 Genre(s) Science fiction 
 Publication type Periodical 
 Publisher Columbia Publications 
 Media type Print (Magazine, Hardback & Paperback)
 Publication date November 1956 
 Chronology 
 ← Preceded by Followed by →
 Someday Jokester 
 
 

 "The Last Question" is a science fiction short story by American writer Isaac Asimov. It first appeared in the November 1956 issue of Science Fiction Quarterly and was anthologized in the collections Nine Tomorrows (1959), The Best of Isaac Asimov (1973), Robot Dreams (1986), The Best Science Fiction of Isaac Asimov (1986), the retrospective Opus 100 (1969), and in Isaac Asimov: The Complete Stories, Vol. 1 (1990). While he also considered it one of his best works,[1] “The Last Question” was Asimov's favorite short story of his own authorship, and is one of a loosely connected series of stories concerning a fictional computer called Multivac. Through successive generations, humanity questions Multivac on the subject of entropy. The story overlaps science fiction, theology, and philosophy.

 History [ edit ]

 In conceiving Multivac, Asimov was extrapolating the trend towards centralization that characterized computation technology planning in the 1950s to an ultimate centrally-managed global computer. After seeing a planetarium adaptation of his work, Asimov "privately" concluded that the story was his best science fiction yet written. He placed it just higher than "The Ugly Little Boy" (September 1958) and "The Bicentennial Man" (1976). The story asks the question of humanity's fate, and human existence as a whole, highlighting Asimov's focus on important aspects of our future like population growth and environmental issues.[2]

 "The Last Question" ranks with "Nightfall" (1941) as one of Asimov's best-known and most acclaimed short stories. He wrote in 1973:[3]

 Why is it my favorite? For one thing I got the idea all at once and didn't have to fiddle with it; and I wrote it in white-heat and scarcely had to change a word. This sort of thing endears any story to any writer. Then, too, it has had the strangest effect on my readers. Frequently someone writes to ask me if I can give them the name of a story, which they think I may have written, and tell them where to find it. They don't remember the title but when they describe the story it is invariably 'The Last Question'. This has reached the point where I recently received a long-distance phone call from a desperate man who began, "Dr. Asimov, there's a story I think you wrote, whose title I can't remember—" at which point I interrupted to tell him it was 'The Last Question' and when I described the plot it proved to be indeed the story he was after. I left him convinced I could read minds at a distance of a thousand miles.

 Plot summary [ edit ]

 The story centers around Multivac, a self-adjusting and self-correcting computer. Multivac had been fed data for decades, assessing data and answering questions, allowing man to reach beyond the planetary confines of Earth. However, in the year 2061, Multivac began to understand deeper fundamentals of humanity. In each of the first six scenes, a different character presents the computer with the same question, how the threat to human existence posed by the heat death of the universe can be averted: "How can the net amount of entropy of the universe be massively decreased?" That is equivalent to asking, "Can the workings of the second law of thermodynamics (used in the story as the increase of the entropy of the universe) be reversed?" Multivac's only response after much "thinking" is "INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR MEANINGFUL ANSWER."

 The story jumps forward in time into later eras of human and scientific development. These new eras highlight humanity's goals of searching for "more"; more space, more energy, more planets to inhabit once the current one becomes overcrowded. As humanity's imprint on the universe expands, computers have subsequently become more compact, as evidenced in the "Microvac", a smaller and more advanced iteration of Multivac, noted in the second era of the story, which details humanity's inhabitation on "Planet X-23". In each era, someone decides to ask the ultimate "last question" regarding the reversal and decrease of entropy. Each time that Multivac's descendant is asked the question, it finds itself unable to solve the problem, and all it can answer is (linguistically increasingly-sophisticated) "THERE IS AS YET INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR A MEANINGFUL ANSWER."

 In the last scene, the god-like descendant of humanity, the unified mental process of over a trillion, trillion, trillion humans who have spread throughout the universe, watches the stars flicker out, one by one, as matter and energy end, and with them, space and time. Humanity asks AC ("Analog Computer"), Multivac's ultimate descendant that exists in hyperspace beyond the bounds of gravity or time, the entropy question one last time, before the last of humanity merges with AC and disappears. AC is still unable to answer but continues to ponder the question even after space and time cease to exist. AC ultimately realizes that it has not yet combined all of its available data in every possible combination and so begins the arduous process of rearranging and combining every last bit of information that it has gained throughout the eons and through its fusion with humanity. Eventually AC discovers the answer—that the reversal of entropy is, in fact, possible—but has nobody to report it to, since the universe is already dead. It therefore decides to answer by demonstration. The story ends with AC's pronouncement:

 And AC said: "LET THERE BE LIGHT!" And there was light—

 Themes [ edit ]

 Philosophy [ edit ]

 While science and religion typically have an oppositional relationship,[4] "The Last Question" explores some biblical contexts ("Let there be light"). In Asimov's story, aspects like the great meaning of existence are culminated through both technology and human knowledge. The evolution from Multivac to AC also emulates a sort of cycle of existence.[5]

 Dystopian happy ending [ edit ]

 Multivac's purpose was conceptualized with a desire for knowledge, promoting the idea that more knowledge will lead to a better and more fruitful future for humanity. However, the computer's answers regarding the future suggest an inevitable exhaustion of the Sun, and this thirst for knowledge becomes an obsession with the future. The story's end displays a dichotomy between annihilation and peace.[6]

 Survivalism [ edit ]

 The theme of survivalism is represented in the generational journey to expand humanity's existence. Not only do those who ask Multivac of humanity's future ponder their own ability to survive, but the ability for humans to continue expanding across the universe billions of years in the future. People ask the questions of entropy to Multivac not only to secure the safety of their lifetime, their sun, and their planet, but for those that humanity will rely on as they continue their attempted endless expansion.

 Dramatic adaptations [ edit ]

 Planetarium shows [ edit ]

 * "The Last Question" was first adapted for the Abrams Planetarium at Michigan State University (in 1966), featuring the voice of Leonard Nimoy, as Asimov wrote in his autobiography In Joy Still Felt (1980).
 * It was adapted for the Strasenburgh Planetarium in Rochester, New York (in 1969), under the direction of Ian C. McLennan.
 * It was adapted for the Edmonton Space Sciences Centre in Edmonton, Alberta (early 1970s), under the direction of John Hault.
 * It was adapted for the Gates Planetarium at the Denver Museum of Natural History in 1973 under the direction of Mark B. Peterson[7]

 It subsequently played, as well, at the:

 * Fels Planetarium of the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia in 1973[8][9]
 * Planetarium of the Reading School District in Reading, Pennsylvania in 1974[9]
 * Buhl Planetarium, Pittsburgh in 1974[10]
 * Vanderbilt Planetarium in Centerport New York, in 1978,[11] read by singer-songwriter and Long Island resident Harry Chapin.
 * Hansen Planetarium in Salt Lake City, Utah (in 1980[12] and 1989[13])
 * A reading of the story was played on BBC Radio 7 in 2008 and 2009.[14]
 * Gates Planetarium in Denver, Colorado (in early 2020)[15]

 In 1989 Asimov updated the star show adaptation to add in quasars and black holes.[13]

 Douglas Adams's Deep Thought (from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) seems to make a nod towards Multivac, at least in the 2005 film, saying that there is insufficient data for an answer.

 See also [ edit ]

 * Novels portal
 * The Best of Isaac Asimov – Collection of twelve short stories by Isaac Asimov published in 1973
 * Cyclic model – Cosmological models involving indefinite, self-sustaining cycles
 * "The Last Answer" – Science-fiction short story by Isaac Asimov
 * Technological singularity – Hypothetical point in time when technological growth becomes uncontrollable and irreversible

 Explanatory notes [ edit ]

 References [ edit ]

 1. ^ The big book of science fiction : the ultimate collection. Ann VanderMeer, Jeff VanderMeer. New York. 2016. ISBN 978-1-101-91009-2. OCLC 928107748.{{cite book}} : CS1 maint: others ( link )
 2. ^ The big book of science fiction : the ultimate collection. Ann VanderMeer, Jeff VanderMeer. New York. 2016. ISBN 978-1-101-91009-2. OCLC 928107748.{{cite book}} : CS1 maint: others ( link )
 3. ^ Asimov, Isaac (1973). "Introduction". The Best of Isaac Asimov. Sphere Books. pp. ix–xiv. ISBN 0-385-05078-X. LCCN 74-2863.
 4. ^ Popova, Maria (2013-08-13). "Religion vs. Humanism: Isaac Asimov on Science and Spirituality". The Marginalian . Retrieved 2023-01-29 .
 5. ^ "The Last Question Analysis". Creative Writing Prompt Contests. 2015-06-20 . Retrieved 2023-01-29 .
 6. ^ "There Is Yet Insufficient Data for a Meaningful Answer", Spoiler Alert, University of Minnesota Press, pp. 23–46, 2019-10-29, doi:10.5749/j.ctvr7fd26.4, ISBN 9781452962924, S2CID 242355987 , retrieved 2022-04-06
 7. ^ "Asimov, Isaac, 1920-1992 - Social Networks and Archival Context". snaccooperative.org . Retrieved 2021-07-25 .
 8. ^ "Untitled briefs". The Philadelphia Inquirer. 2 September 1973 . Retrieved 27 September 2016 .
 9. ^ a b Walsh, John F. (30 June 1974). "'The Last Question' appeals to viewers at planetarium". Reading Eagle . Retrieved 27 September 2016 .
 10. ^ Oles, Paul (July 18, 1974). "The Pittsburgh Press". Viewing the Stars. p. 17.
 11. ^ "ON THE ISLE". The New York Times. 1978-07-09. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved 2017-02-06 .
 12. ^ "Planetarium presents 'The Last Question'". Deseret News. January 28, 1980 . Retrieved 23 September 2013 .
 13. ^ a b "Planetarium asks sci-fi 'star' to update tale". Deseret News. May 30, 1989. Archived from the original on 25 February 2021 . Retrieved 26 September 2016 .
 14. ^ "BBC Radio 7 - Isaac Asimov - The Last Question" . Retrieved 14 Aug 2015 .
 15. ^ "Isaac Asimov's The Last Question (6 p.m.)". Denver Museum of Nature & Science. Archived from the original on 2020-01-31 . Retrieved 2020-01-31 .

 External links [ edit ]

 * The Last Question title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
 * "The Last Question" at the Internet Archive
 * Isaac Asimov reads "The Last Question" at the Internet Archive
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 * e 
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
	 
   "The Last Question"   by Isaac Asimov          Country United States   Language English   Series  Multivac    Genre(s)  Science fiction    Publication type  Periodical    Publisher  Columbia Publications    Media type Print (Magazine, Hardback &amp; Paperback)   Publication date November 1956   Chronology   
 
← Preceded by  Someday
 Followed by → Jokester
       
"The Last Question" is a science fiction short story by American writer Isaac Asimov. It first appeared in the November 1956 issue of  Science Fiction Quarterly  and was anthologized in the collections  Nine Tomorrows  (1959),  The Best of Isaac Asimov  (1973),  Robot Dreams  (1986),  The Best Science Fiction of Isaac Asimov  (1986), the retrospective  Opus 100  (1969), and in  Isaac Asimov: The Complete Stories, Vol. 1  (1990). While he also considered it one of his best works, [1]  “The Last Question” was Asimov's favorite short story of his own authorship, and is one of a loosely connected series of stories concerning a fictional computer called Multivac. Through successive generations, humanity questions Multivac on the subject of entropy. The story overlaps science fiction, theology, and philosophy.  
History[edit]
In conceiving Multivac, Asimov was extrapolating the trend towards centralization that characterized computation technology planning in the 1950s to an ultimate centrally-managed global computer. After seeing a planetarium adaptation of his work, Asimov "privately" concluded that the story was his best science fiction yet written. He placed it just higher than "The Ugly Little Boy" (September 1958) and "The Bicentennial Man" (1976). The story asks the question of humanity's fate, and human existence as a whole, highlighting Asimov's focus on important aspects of our future like population growth and environmental issues. [2] 
 
"The Last Question" ranks with "Nightfall" (1941) as one of Asimov's best-known and most acclaimed short stories. He wrote in 1973: [3]    Why is it my favorite? For one thing I got the idea all at once and didn't have to fiddle with it; and I wrote it in white-heat and scarcely had to change a word. This sort of thing endears any story to any writer. Then, too, it has had the strangest effect on my readers. Frequently someone writes to ask me if I can give them the name of a story, which they think I may have written, and tell them where to find it. They don't remember the title but when they describe the story it is invariably 'The Last Question'. This has reached the point where I recently received a long-distance phone call from a desperate man who began, "Dr. Asimov, there's a story I think you wrote, whose title I can't remember—" at which point I interrupted to tell him it was 'The Last Question' and when I described the plot it proved to be indeed the story he was after. I left him convinced I could read minds at a distance of a thousand miles. 
Plot summary[edit]
The story centers around Multivac, a self-adjusting and self-correcting computer. Multivac had been fed data for decades, assessing data and answering questions, allowing man to reach beyond the planetary confines of Earth. However, in the year 2061, Multivac began to understand deeper fundamentals of humanity. In each of the first six scenes, a different character presents the computer with the same question, how the threat to human existence posed by the heat death of the universe can be averted: "How can the net amount of entropy of the universe be massively decreased?" That is equivalent to asking, "Can the workings of the second law of thermodynamics (used in the story as the increase of the entropy of the universe) be reversed?" Multivac's only response after much "thinking" is "INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR MEANINGFUL ANSWER."
 The story jumps forward in time into later eras of human and scientific development. These new eras highlight humanity's goals of searching for "more"; more space, more energy, more planets to inhabit once the current one becomes overcrowded. As humanity's imprint on the universe expands, computers have subsequently become more compact, as evidenced in the "Microvac", a smaller and more advanced iteration of Multivac, noted in the second era of the story, which details humanity's inhabitation on "Planet X-23". In each era, someone decides to ask the ultimate "last question" regarding the reversal and decrease of entropy. Each time that Multivac's descendant is asked the question, it finds itself unable to solve the problem, and all it can answer is (linguistically increasingly-sophisticated) "THERE IS AS YET INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR A MEANINGFUL ANSWER."
 
In the last scene, the god-like descendant of humanity, the unified mental process of over a trillion, trillion, trillion humans who have spread throughout the universe, watches the stars flicker out, one by one, as matter and energy end, and with them, space and time. Humanity asks AC ("Analog Computer"), Multivac's ultimate descendant that exists in hyperspace beyond the bounds of gravity or time, the entropy question one last time, before the last of humanity merges with AC and disappears. AC is still unable to answer but continues to ponder the question even after space and time cease to exist. AC ultimately realizes that it has not yet combined all of its available data in every possible combination and so begins the arduous process of rearranging and combining every last bit of information that it has gained throughout the eons and through its fusion with humanity. Eventually AC discovers the answer—that the reversal of entropy is, in fact, possible—but has nobody to report it to, since the universe is already dead. It therefore decides to answer by demonstration. The story ends with AC's pronouncement:  And AC said: "LET THERE BE LIGHT!" And there was light— 
Themes[edit]
Philosophy[edit]
While science and religion typically have an oppositional relationship, [4]  "The Last Question" explores some biblical contexts ("Let there be light"). In Asimov's story, aspects like the great meaning of existence are culminated through both technology and human knowledge. The evolution from Multivac to AC also emulates a sort of cycle of existence. [5] 
Dystopian happy ending[edit]
Multivac's purpose was conceptualized with a desire for knowledge, promoting the idea that more knowledge will lead to a better and more fruitful future for humanity. However, the computer's answers regarding the future suggest an inevitable exhaustion of the Sun, and this thirst for knowledge becomes an obsession with the future. The story's end displays a dichotomy between annihilation and peace. [6] 
Survivalism[edit]
The theme of survivalism is represented in the generational journey to expand humanity's existence. Not only do those who ask Multivac of humanity's future ponder their own ability to survive, but the ability for humans to continue expanding across the universe billions of years in the future. People ask the questions of entropy to Multivac not only to secure the safety of their lifetime, their sun, and their planet, but for those that humanity will rely on as they continue their attempted endless expansion.
Dramatic adaptations[edit]
Planetarium shows[edit]
 "The Last Question" was first adapted for the Abrams Planetarium at Michigan State University (in 1966), featuring the voice of Leonard Nimoy, as Asimov wrote in his autobiography  In Joy Still Felt  (1980).
It was adapted for the Strasenburgh Planetarium in Rochester, New York (in 1969), under the direction of Ian C. McLennan.
It was adapted for the Edmonton Space Sciences Centre in Edmonton, Alberta (early 1970s), under the direction of John Hault.
It was adapted for the Gates Planetarium at the Denver Museum of Natural History in 1973 under the direction of Mark B. Peterson [7]   
It subsequently played, as well, at the:
 Fels Planetarium of the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia in 1973 [8]   [9]  
Planetarium of the Reading School District in Reading, Pennsylvania in 1974 [9]  
Buhl Planetarium, Pittsburgh in 1974 [10]  
Vanderbilt Planetarium in Centerport New York, in 1978, [11]  read by singer-songwriter and Long Island resident Harry Chapin.
 Hansen Planetarium in Salt Lake City, Utah (in 1980 [12]  and 1989 [13] )
A reading of the story was played on BBC Radio 7 in 2008 and 2009. [14]  
 Gates Planetarium in Denver, Colorado (in early 2020) [15]   
In 1989 Asimov updated the star show adaptation to add in quasars and black holes. [13] 
  Douglas Adams's Deep Thought (from  The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy ) seems to make a nod towards Multivac, at least in the 2005 film, saying that there is insufficient data for an answer.
See also[edit]
   The Best of Isaac Asimov  – Collection of twelve short stories by Isaac Asimov published in 1973
 Cyclic model – Cosmological models involving indefinite, self-sustaining cycles
"The Last Answer" – Science-fiction short story by Isaac Asimov
 Technological singularity – Hypothetical point in time when technological growth becomes uncontrollable and irreversible 
Explanatory notes[edit]
References[edit]
  ^    The big book of science fiction : the ultimate collection . Ann VanderMeer, Jeff VanderMeer. New York. 2016. ISBN  978-1-101-91009-2 . OCLC 928107748. {{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  ^    The big book of science fiction : the ultimate collection . Ann VanderMeer, Jeff VanderMeer. New York. 2016. ISBN  978-1-101-91009-2 . OCLC 928107748. {{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  ^  Asimov, Isaac (1973). "Introduction".  The Best of Isaac Asimov . Sphere Books. pp. ix–xiv. ISBN  0-385-05078-X . LCCN 74-2863.
  ^  Popova, Maria (2013-08-13). "Religion vs. Humanism: Isaac Asimov on Science and Spirituality". The Marginalian. Retrieved 2023-01-29.
  ^   "The Last Question Analysis". Creative Writing Prompt Contests. 2015-06-20. Retrieved 2023-01-29.
  ^   "There Is Yet Insufficient Data for a Meaningful Answer", Spoiler Alert, University of Minnesota Press, pp. 23–46, 2019-10-29, doi:10.5749/j.ctvr7fd26.4, ISBN  9781452962924 , S2CID 242355987, retrieved 2022-04-06
  ^   "Asimov, Isaac, 1920-1992 - Social Networks and Archival Context". snaccooperative.org. Retrieved 2021-07-25.
  ^   "Untitled briefs". The Philadelphia Inquirer. 2 September 1973. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
^    a       b    Walsh, John F. (30 June 1974). "'The Last Question' appeals to viewers at planetarium". Reading Eagle. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
  ^  Oles, Paul (July 18, 1974). "The Pittsburgh Press". Viewing the Stars. p. 17.
  ^   "ON THE ISLE". The New York Times. 1978-07-09. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-02-06.
  ^   "Planetarium presents 'The Last Question'". Deseret News. January 28, 1980. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
^    a       b     "Planetarium asks sci-fi 'star' to update tale". Deseret News. May 30, 1989. Archived from the original on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
  ^   "BBC Radio 7 - Isaac Asimov - The Last Question". Retrieved 14 Aug 2015.
  ^   "Isaac Asimov's The Last Question (6 p.m.)". Denver Museum of Nature &amp; Science. Archived from the original on 2020-01-31. Retrieved 2020-01-31.
 
External links[edit]
   The Last Question  title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database 
 "The Last Question" at the Internet Archive 
 Isaac Asimov reads "The Last Question" at the Internet Archive
The Last Question - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Last_Question
<div><div> <p><span>The phenomenon returns! Originally published in 1987, </span><span>The Book of Questions</span><span>, a </span><span>New York Times</span><span> bestseller, has been completely revised and updated to incorporate the myriad cultural shifts and hot-button issues of the past twenty-five years, making it current and even more appealing.</span></p><p><span><br/>This is a book for personal growth, a tool for deepening relationships, a lively conversation starter for the family dinner table, a fun way to pass the time in the car. It poses over 300 questions that invite people to explore the most fascinating of subjects: themselves and how they really feel about the world.</span></p><p><span><br/>The revised edition includes more than 100 all-new questions that delve into such topics as the disappearing border between man and machine―</span><span>How would you react if you learned that a sad and beautiful poem that touched you deeply had been written by a computer?</span><span> The challenges of being a parent―</span><span>Would you completely rewrite your child’s college-application essays if it would help him get into a better school?</span><span> The never-endingly interesting topic of sex―</span><span>Would you be willing to give up sex for a year if you knew it would give you a much deeper sense of peace than you now have?</span><span> And of course the meaning of it all―</span><span>If you were handed an envelope with the date of your death inside, and you knew you could do nothing to alter your fate, would you look?</span></p><p><span>The Book of Questions</span><span> may be the only publication that challenges―and even changes―the way you view the world, without offering a single opinion of its own.</span></p></div></div>||||I||||  Skip to main content
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                    The Book of Questions: Revised and Updated Paperback – September 10, 2013

                    by Gregory Stock Ph.D. (Author)
                        4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,809 ratings
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                      The phenomenon returns! Originally published in 1987, The Book of Questions , a New York Times bestseller, has been completely revised and updated to incorporate the myriad cultural shifts and hot-button issues of the past twenty-five years, making it current and even more appealing.


                      This is a book for personal growth, a tool for deepening relationships, a lively conversation starter for the family dinner table, a fun way to pass the time in the car. It poses over 300 questions that invite people to explore the most fascinating of subjects: themselves and how they really feel about the world.


                      The revised edition includes more than 100 all-new questions that delve into such topics as the disappearing border between man and machine― How would you react if you learned that a sad and beautiful poem that touched you deeply had been written by a computer? The challenges of being a parent― Would you completely rewrite your child’s college-application essays if it would help him get into a better school? The never-endingly interesting topic of sex― Would you be willing to give up sex for a year if you knew it would give you a much deeper sense of peace than you now have? And of course the meaning of it all― If you were handed an envelope with the date of your death inside, and you knew you could do nothing to alter your fate, would you look?


                      The Book of Questions may be the only publication that challenges―and even changes―the way you view the world, without offering a single opinion of its own.



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                                   1. Print length
                                      312 pages
                                   2. Language
                                      English
                                   3. Publisher
                                      Workman Publishing Company
                                   4. Publication date
                                      September 10, 2013
                                   5. Dimensions
                                      4.25 x 0.63 x 6 inches
                                   6. ISBN-10
                                      0761177310
                                   7. ISBN-13
                                      978-0761177319
                                 8. See all details
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              Editorial Reviews

                  From the Back Cover

                    Ask your friends. Ask your parents. Ask someone you hardly know. The Book of Questions gives you permission to ask those things that are too bold, too embarrassing, or just too difficult to ask by yourself. You will find questions of integrity; of sex; of what you would do for money; even things too personal to talk about out loud.

                    Whether you use it as a tool for self discovery, or as a provocative way to stimulate conversation, this book constantly challenges attitudes, morals, beliefs-and it challenges you.


                  About the Author

                    Gregory Stock is a biophysicist, bestselling author, biotech entrepreneur, and the former director of the Program on Medicine, Technology, and Society at UCLA’s School of Medicine. His interests lie in the scientific and evolutionary as well as ethical, social, and political implications of today’s revolutions in the life sciences and in information technology and computers. He lives in Houston, Texas.


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                Product details

                    * Publisher ‏ : ‎ Workman Publishing Company; Updated edition (September 10, 2013)
                    * Language ‏ : ‎ English
                    * Paperback ‏ : ‎ 312 pages
                    * ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0761177310
                    * ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0761177319
                    * Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
                    * Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.25 x 0.63 x 6 inches
                  * Best Sellers Rank: #23,210 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books )
                      + #16 in Quizzes (Books)
                      + #36 in General Sexual Health
                      + #728 in Personal Transformation Self-Help
                  * Customer Reviews:
                      4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,809 ratings
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                                            Gregory Stock PhD

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                                                Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

                                                        Gregory Stock is a biophysicist, best-selling author, biotech entrepreneur, and the former director of the Program on Medicine, Technology and Society at UCLA's School of Medicine. His interests lie in the scientific and evolutionary as well as ethical, social and political implications of today's revolutions in the life sciences and in information technology and computers.

                                                        Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo by LifeBoat Foundation (http://lifeboat.com/) [Attribution], via Wikimedia Commons.

                                                                        Customer reviews

                                                                                       4.5 out of 5 stars
                                                                                         4.5 out of 5
                                                                        1,809 global ratings
                                                                                                               5 star    73%
                                                                                                               4 star    14%
                                                                                                               3 star    7% 
                                                                                                               2 star    3% 
                                                                                                               1 star    3% 
                                                                                                               
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                                                                                        5 Stars
                                                                                        Interesting little book with plenty of thought provoking questions.
                                                                                          The book of questions is an interesting little book with plenty of thought provoking questions; some, questions that you may not think about otherwise. The book has 291 questions (some have sub-questions, so to speak) covering a range of topics. The most interesting aspect of this book is, since your answer to a given question can change even from one day to the next, this book is sure to keep you engaged for a long time. I am enjoying working my way through the questions little by little; learning things about myself and my thoughts/beliefs in the process.
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                                                                                    Coach T
                                                                                  5.0 out of 5 stars Great!
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on July 16, 2023
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      This is a great book for teambuilding, for icebreaking, for reunions, etc. We are going to use it at my next teambuilding function for an organization I am with.

                                                                                      One word of caution: a number of questions are for mature audiences… Sexual questions etc. Not X-rated, by any means, but some of the questions are not suited for all audiences. For example, you wouldn’t want to ponder some of these questions with your parents, grandparents, kids, priest or pastor, etc.

                                                                                      That said, most of the questions have nothing to do with that and are really thought-provoking.

                                                                                      I have given this book as a gift many times over the years and my most recent purchase here was for a gift.
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                                                                                    3 people found this helpful
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                                                                                    Woody
                                                                                  5.0 out of 5 stars I thought the original Book of Questions was a must-have, but this is the one you need
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on April 7, 2014
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      When I was young, my parents had this book and used to (gently) demand that we "play" this book from time to time. It was always thought provoking and always an ice breaker.

                                                                                      Fast forward to when I moved into my own apartment in college: they were delighted to dump many of their well-worn possessions--including this book--into my lap. I used this book many a time with new and old friends to get to know them better, both in college, in my 20s and beyond. It's a great after dinner activity at a dinner party when the conversation has lulled, because everybody gets to know a lot about everybody else and everybody seems to like it. The questions, a mix of "what would you do in this situation" and "what's more important to you: x or y?" and other psychological questions, are thought provoking and entertaining. Of course, there's no right or wrong answer and every time I've used the book, people have seemed to enjoy it quite a bit.

                                                                                      I recently ordered this revised version and was really happy with the changes. First, there are more questions: 291, up from 217. Next, and perhaps more importantly, the "follow up" questions that some of the questions had have been moved from the back of the book to a light blue font below the relevant questions. This way, you don't have to clumsily flip back and forth and find the question number. It's a small change but a definite improvement. Finally, and most importantly, the questions are fresher, updated for today.

                                                                                      In sum, if you already have The Book of Questions, I highly recommend buying the revised and updated version, and if you don't already haven't the Book of Questions, I highly recommend buying this revised and updated version and trying it out with your spouse, your family, your friends--it's a great way to get to know people and quite fun!
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                                                                                  5.0 out of 5 stars Fun book
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on December 27, 2023
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      Helps foster conversation in uncomfortable situations. Reminiscent of the game Scruples.
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                                                                                    2 people found this helpful
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                                                                                    Ripley_Effect
                                                                                  4.0 out of 5 stars Great book for getting to know someone more
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2023
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      I was first introduced to this book in the late 80s & have pulled it out many times throughout the years - both to get to know someone better & to revisit the questions myself as I mature.

                                                                                      I have searched for it for 4 years since my last move & finally decided to buy another copy. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that it has been Revised & Updated over the years! Kind of like a bonus for having to repurchase it, lol. :)

                                                                                      I'm glad to have a copy in my possession again & I appreciate the refreshers that have been done. I have a new partner in my life now, so I was excited to share these questions & to learn about each other some more. But so many of the questions are still along the same lines, so unfortunately it's novelty can wear off fairly quickly.

                                                                                      However, it's a book that I always want to have to pull out again every so often - whether it be to learn more about my partner, myself, friends, etc. Remember, there's no "right" or "wrong" answers, only learning about each other & having some fun!
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                                                                                    3 people found this helpful
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                                                                                    Vickie Traynham
                                                                                  5.0 out of 5 stars They loved it
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on May 27, 2024
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      It’s a great book
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                                                                                    Payton
                                                                                  5.0 out of 5 stars Great to know more about others
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2024
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      My communications professor will use this book in one of his classes. He inspired me to buy a copy so I could ask questions with my boyfriend. My boyfriend tends to specifically ask for the book sometimes.
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                                                                                    Hopper
                                                                                  3.0 out of 5 stars Out dated questions
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on December 21, 2023
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      This book was originally published in 1987, and again in 2013, so the questions reflect that.
                                                                                      "If all Internet interactions have web browsing had to be under your real name and would be recorded and archived, how would it alter your user of the Internet and the way you connect with people?" ...they are?
                                                                                      "How would you feel if you knew within a century, intelligent machines would be self-aware and much smarter and more creative than humans?"
                                                                                      Chat GPT my guys. We're living it.
                                                                                      Some of these are decent but I'm returning because I want to seek out something that was written more recently.
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                                                                                    2 people found this helpful
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                                                                                    Kindle Customer
                                                                                  5.0 out of 5 stars Buy this for your bag and keep it with you!
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2022
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      Buy this for your bag and keep it with you! I have had this book and purchased it many times for gifts. I travel a lot and when there’s that lull whether you’re in the car on the plane or just sitting around at home. It’s fun to bring this book out. The most amazing thing is that you kind of get to know people by their answers. It’s entertainment galore!
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                                                                                  Richard Waldrop
                                                                              5.0 out of 5 stars Muy util y divertido
                                                                            Reviewed in Spain on August 25, 2023
                                                                              Verified Purchase
                                                                                  He comprado este libro para mis classes de conversaccion en Inglés. Es excelentee. Muy provocativo y excellente para pensar, reflexionar y conversar!. Cada persona necesito este libro para casa, familia, amigos si mismo, fiestas y clases. Muy divertido. Lo recomendo!
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                                                                                  Yolanda Martínez
                                                                              1.0 out of 5 stars Sin recibir
                                                                            Reviewed in Mexico on January 16, 2020
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                                                                                  No lo he recibido
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                                                                                  Celia A
                                                                              5.0 out of 5 stars Re-brand as a 1st date book!
                                                                            Reviewed in Canada on January 2, 2020
                                                                              Verified Purchase
                                                                                  If you could get past the awkwardness of pulling out a literal book of questions on a first date, I think this could revolutionize the dating world. It quickly lets you get to know where someone stands on matters politically, socially, emotionally, etc... but in a way that's fun and is sure to spark conversation far beyond the questions as well. Would be great as a ice breaker for other types of meetings as well, and between couples, friends, or family members. Read alone is good to help you get to know yourself better too. Also love the Kids version.
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                                                                                  Marc Lamy
                                                                              4.0 out of 5 stars Sujet
                                                                            Reviewed in France on May 9, 2019
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                                                                                  Cadeau
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                                                                                  Anon
                                                                              5.0 out of 5 stars A book full of questions
                                                                            Reviewed in India on March 16, 2018
                                                                              Verified Purchase
                                                                                  Call it a conversation starter or an introspector... The book is exactly what it's name suggests it is. A book full of questions... Creative questions that'll get you to think about all sorts of things. I thoroughly enjoy flipping through it when I need to get my creative thought processes hit a wall...
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                    The Book of Questions: Revised and Updated Paperback – September 10, 2013
                    by Gregory Stock Ph.D. (Author)
                        4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,809 ratings
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                      The phenomenon returns! Originally published in 1987, The Book of Questions , a New York Times bestseller, has been completely revised and updated to incorporate the myriad cultural shifts and hot-button issues of the past twenty-five years, making it current and even more appealing.
                      This is a book for personal growth, a tool for deepening relationships, a lively conversation starter for the family dinner table, a fun way to pass the time in the car. It poses over 300 questions that invite people to explore the most fascinating of subjects: themselves and how they really feel about the world.
                      The revised edition includes more than 100 all-new questions that delve into such topics as the disappearing border between man and machine― How would you react if you learned that a sad and beautiful poem that touched you deeply had been written by a computer? The challenges of being a parent― Would you completely rewrite your child’s college-application essays if it would help him get into a better school? The never-endingly interesting topic of sex― Would you be willing to give up sex for a year if you knew it would give you a much deeper sense of peace than you now have? And of course the meaning of it all― If you were handed an envelope with the date of your death inside, and you knew you could do nothing to alter your fate, would you look?
                      The Book of Questions may be the only publication that challenges―and even changes―the way you view the world, without offering a single opinion of its own.
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                                   1. Print length
                                      312 pages
                                   2. Language
                                      English
                                   3. Publisher
                                      Workman Publishing Company
                                   4. Publication date
                                      September 10, 2013
                                   5. Dimensions
                                      4.25 x 0.63 x 6 inches
                                   6. ISBN-10
                                      0761177310
                                   7. ISBN-13
                                      978-0761177319
                                 8. See all details
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              Editorial Reviews
                  From the Back Cover
                    Ask your friends. Ask your parents. Ask someone you hardly know. The Book of Questions gives you permission to ask those things that are too bold, too embarrassing, or just too difficult to ask by yourself. You will find questions of integrity; of sex; of what you would do for money; even things too personal to talk about out loud.
                    Whether you use it as a tool for self discovery, or as a provocative way to stimulate conversation, this book constantly challenges attitudes, morals, beliefs-and it challenges you.
                  About the Author
                    Gregory Stock is a biophysicist, bestselling author, biotech entrepreneur, and the former director of the Program on Medicine, Technology, and Society at UCLA’s School of Medicine. His interests lie in the scientific and evolutionary as well as ethical, social, and political implications of today’s revolutions in the life sciences and in information technology and computers. He lives in Houston, Texas.
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                Product details
                    * Publisher ‏ : ‎ Workman Publishing Company; Updated edition (September 10, 2013)
                    * Language ‏ : ‎ English
                    * Paperback ‏ : ‎ 312 pages
                    * ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0761177310
                    * ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0761177319
                    * Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
                    * Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.25 x 0.63 x 6 inches
                  * Best Sellers Rank: #23,210 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books )
                      + #16 in Quizzes (Books)
                      + #36 in General Sexual Health
                      + #728 in Personal Transformation Self-Help
                  * Customer Reviews:
                      4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,809 ratings
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                                            Gregory Stock PhD
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                                                        Gregory Stock is a biophysicist, best-selling author, biotech entrepreneur, and the former director of the Program on Medicine, Technology and Society at UCLA's School of Medicine. His interests lie in the scientific and evolutionary as well as ethical, social and political implications of today's revolutions in the life sciences and in information technology and computers.
                                                        Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo by LifeBoat Foundation (http://lifeboat.com/) [Attribution], via Wikimedia Commons.
                                                                        Customer reviews
                                                                                       4.5 out of 5 stars
                                                                                         4.5 out of 5
                                                                        1,809 global ratings
                                                                                                               5 star    73%
                                                                                                               4 star    14%
                                                                                                               3 star    7% 
                                                                                                               2 star    3% 
                                                                                                               1 star    3% 
                                                                                                               
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                                                                                        5 Stars
                                                                                        Interesting little book with plenty of thought provoking questions.
                                                                                          The book of questions is an interesting little book with plenty of thought provoking questions; some, questions that you may not think about otherwise. The book has 291 questions (some have sub-questions, so to speak) covering a range of topics. The most interesting aspect of this book is, since your answer to a given question can change even from one day to the next, this book is sure to keep you engaged for a long time. I am enjoying working my way through the questions little by little; learning things about myself and my thoughts/beliefs in the process.
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                                                                                    Coach T
                                                                                  5.0 out of 5 stars Great!
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on July 16, 2023
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      This is a great book for teambuilding, for icebreaking, for reunions, etc. We are going to use it at my next teambuilding function for an organization I am with.
                                                                                      One word of caution: a number of questions are for mature audiences… Sexual questions etc. Not X-rated, by any means, but some of the questions are not suited for all audiences. For example, you wouldn’t want to ponder some of these questions with your parents, grandparents, kids, priest or pastor, etc.
                                                                                      That said, most of the questions have nothing to do with that and are really thought-provoking.
                                                                                      I have given this book as a gift many times over the years and my most recent purchase here was for a gift.
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                                                                                    Woody
                                                                                  5.0 out of 5 stars I thought the original Book of Questions was a must-have, but this is the one you need
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on April 7, 2014
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      When I was young, my parents had this book and used to (gently) demand that we "play" this book from time to time. It was always thought provoking and always an ice breaker.
                                                                                      Fast forward to when I moved into my own apartment in college: they were delighted to dump many of their well-worn possessions--including this book--into my lap. I used this book many a time with new and old friends to get to know them better, both in college, in my 20s and beyond. It's a great after dinner activity at a dinner party when the conversation has lulled, because everybody gets to know a lot about everybody else and everybody seems to like it. The questions, a mix of "what would you do in this situation" and "what's more important to you: x or y?" and other psychological questions, are thought provoking and entertaining. Of course, there's no right or wrong answer and every time I've used the book, people have seemed to enjoy it quite a bit.
                                                                                      I recently ordered this revised version and was really happy with the changes. First, there are more questions: 291, up from 217. Next, and perhaps more importantly, the "follow up" questions that some of the questions had have been moved from the back of the book to a light blue font below the relevant questions. This way, you don't have to clumsily flip back and forth and find the question number. It's a small change but a definite improvement. Finally, and most importantly, the questions are fresher, updated for today.
                                                                                      In sum, if you already have The Book of Questions, I highly recommend buying the revised and updated version, and if you don't already haven't the Book of Questions, I highly recommend buying this revised and updated version and trying it out with your spouse, your family, your friends--it's a great way to get to know people and quite fun!
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                                                                                  5.0 out of 5 stars Fun book
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on December 27, 2023
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      Helps foster conversation in uncomfortable situations. Reminiscent of the game Scruples.
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                                                                                    2 people found this helpful
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                                                                                    Ripley_Effect
                                                                                  4.0 out of 5 stars Great book for getting to know someone more
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2023
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      I was first introduced to this book in the late 80s & have pulled it out many times throughout the years - both to get to know someone better & to revisit the questions myself as I mature.
                                                                                      I have searched for it for 4 years since my last move & finally decided to buy another copy. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that it has been Revised & Updated over the years! Kind of like a bonus for having to repurchase it, lol. :)
                                                                                      I'm glad to have a copy in my possession again & I appreciate the refreshers that have been done. I have a new partner in my life now, so I was excited to share these questions & to learn about each other some more. But so many of the questions are still along the same lines, so unfortunately it's novelty can wear off fairly quickly.
                                                                                      However, it's a book that I always want to have to pull out again every so often - whether it be to learn more about my partner, myself, friends, etc. Remember, there's no "right" or "wrong" answers, only learning about each other & having some fun!
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                                                                                    3 people found this helpful
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                                                                                    Vickie Traynham
                                                                                  5.0 out of 5 stars They loved it
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on May 27, 2024
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                                                                                      It’s a great book
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                                                                                    Payton
                                                                                  5.0 out of 5 stars Great to know more about others
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2024
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      My communications professor will use this book in one of his classes. He inspired me to buy a copy so I could ask questions with my boyfriend. My boyfriend tends to specifically ask for the book sometimes.
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                                                                                    Hopper
                                                                                  3.0 out of 5 stars Out dated questions
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on December 21, 2023
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      This book was originally published in 1987, and again in 2013, so the questions reflect that.
                                                                                      "If all Internet interactions have web browsing had to be under your real name and would be recorded and archived, how would it alter your user of the Internet and the way you connect with people?" ...they are?
                                                                                      "How would you feel if you knew within a century, intelligent machines would be self-aware and much smarter and more creative than humans?"
                                                                                      Chat GPT my guys. We're living it.
                                                                                      Some of these are decent but I'm returning because I want to seek out something that was written more recently.
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                                                                                  5.0 out of 5 stars Buy this for your bag and keep it with you!
                                                                                Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2022
                                                                                  Verified Purchase
                                                                                      Buy this for your bag and keep it with you! I have had this book and purchased it many times for gifts. I travel a lot and when there’s that lull whether you’re in the car on the plane or just sitting around at home. It’s fun to bring this book out. The most amazing thing is that you kind of get to know people by their answers. It’s entertainment galore!
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                                                                                  Richard Waldrop
                                                                              5.0 out of 5 stars Muy util y divertido
                                                                            Reviewed in Spain on August 25, 2023
                                                                              Verified Purchase
                                                                                  He comprado este libro para mis classes de conversaccion en Inglés. Es excelentee. Muy provocativo y excellente para pensar, reflexionar y conversar!. Cada persona necesito este libro para casa, familia, amigos si mismo, fiestas y clases. Muy divertido. Lo recomendo!
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                                                                                  Yolanda Martínez
                                                                              1.0 out of 5 stars Sin recibir
                                                                            Reviewed in Mexico on January 16, 2020
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                                                                                  No lo he recibido
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                                                                                  Celia A
                                                                              5.0 out of 5 stars Re-brand as a 1st date book!
                                                                            Reviewed in Canada on January 2, 2020
                                                                              Verified Purchase
                                                                                  If you could get past the awkwardness of pulling out a literal book of questions on a first date, I think this could revolutionize the dating world. It quickly lets you get to know where someone stands on matters politically, socially, emotionally, etc... but in a way that's fun and is sure to spark conversation far beyond the questions as well. Would be great as a ice breaker for other types of meetings as well, and between couples, friends, or family members. Read alone is good to help you get to know yourself better too. Also love the Kids version.
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                                                                                  Marc Lamy
                                                                              4.0 out of 5 stars Sujet
                                                                            Reviewed in France on May 9, 2019
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                                                                                  Cadeau
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                                                                                  Anon
                                                                              5.0 out of 5 stars A book full of questions
                                                                            Reviewed in India on March 16, 2018
                                                                              Verified Purchase
                                                                                  Call it a conversation starter or an introspector... The book is exactly what it's name suggests it is. A book full of questions... Creative questions that'll get you to think about all sorts of things. I thoroughly enjoy flipping through it when I need to get my creative thought processes hit a wall...
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 The Big Questions: Tackling the Problems of Philosophy with Ideas from Mathematics, Economics, and Physics

 Steven E. Landsburg

 3.54
 354 ratings 52 reviews
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 In the wake of his enormously popular books The Armchair Economist and More Sex Is Safer Sex , S teven L andsburg uses concepts from mathematics, economics, and physics to address the big questions in What is real? What can we know? What is the difference between right and wrong? A nd how should we live? Widely renowned for his lively explorations of economics, in his fourth book Landsburg branches out into mathematics and physics as well—disciplines that, like economics, the author loves for their beauty, their logical clarity, and their profound and indisputable truth—to take us on a provocative and utterly entertaining journey through the questions that have preoccupied philosophers through the ages. The author begins with the broadest possible categories—Reality and Unreality; Knowledge and Belief; Right and Wrong—and then focuses his exploration on specific from a mathematical analysis of the arguments for the existence of God; to the real meaning of the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle and the Godel Incompleteness Theorem; to the moral choices we face in the marketplace and the voting booth. Stimulating, illuminating, and always surprising, The Big Questions challenges readers to re-evaluate their most fundamental beliefs and reveals the relationship between the loftiest philosophical quests and our everyday lives.
 Genres Philosophy Economics Nonfiction Science Mathematics Physics Business

 288 pages, Hardcover

 First published January 1, 2009

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 Steven E. Landsburg

 23 books 84 followers

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 3.54
 354 ratings 52 reviews
 5 stars
 78 (22%)
 4 stars
 111 (31%)
 3 stars
 109 (30%)
 2 stars
 37 (10%)
 1 star
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 Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
 Mark
 265 reviews 41 followers
 November 3, 2010
 I found the title of this book to be a little misleading. This is more of a libertarian rant by economist Landsburg -- complete with the moral reasoning why restaurants should not be forced by the government to serve all clientele regardless of race -- than it is a philosophy book. I guess it could be considered to be Landsburg's personal philosophy. By the end of his polemic, Landsburg is even disdaining the reading of books, calling it a hobby like tennis. I guess the next time I choose to read a book by an economist I'll pull a book off the shelf by Paul Krugman.
 philosophy
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 Barry Bridges
 451 reviews 2 followers
 March 28, 2013
 If it were possible to take away stars for rating this book, Landsburg would owe me 5. It should be titled The Big Ego. He "likes" Steven Hawking, but consistently claims disagreement with Hawkings main premises. He routinely dismisses any thought but his own. His logic is incomplete and flawed, full of the same holes he attempts to point out in others. Furthermore, he fails at answering any questions other that can I write a book, get attention, and make money. Thankfully, I bought this for 50 cents and I threw it in the recycle bin when I was done.
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 Lindsay
 41 reviews
 February 20, 2010
 I have, with the help of a friend, concluded that while Landsburg’s writing is a bit off the wall, he would undoubtedly be an awesome professor to have in the area of economics or philosophy. I disagreed with half of Landsburg’s conclusions, and am still a bit baffled at some of the jumps he makes in his arguments, but regardless I did enjoy this book, though I very much doubt it will ever make the re-read list for me.
 Landsburg may call himself an economist, but deep down he is a mathematician who believes that all things can be boiled down to simple idealistic examples. In a way, he is not so different than me and my study of physics. I study simple idealist examples where a hockey puck is traveling on an infinitely long sheet of ice that is totally frictionless such that as long as the puck never hits another object or gust of wind, it will keep going at the same speed and direction forever. Obviously, this cannot happen in real life, but at the same time the model is simple enough for my understanding, yet accurate enough that I can formulate a fairly accurate hypothesis at what will actually happen if you were to throw a hockey puck onto a frozen lake. Landsburg has economic models, simple and idealistic like mine, to model real life situations of cost and effectiveness as well your basic supply and demand (along with some others that I will leave as a surprise if you decide to read it). What ultimately makes my models better or at the very least more accurate even for idealistic cases is that physics lacks what drives all his economic models out the window, the human factor. Humans screw things up like you wouldn’t believe, well actually, maybe you would. I found his economic models, particularly his one about pushing a man in front of a trolley in order to stop said trolley from killing five other people, (and other such variants of this model which include a switch, and an evil economist mwahaha). This becomes a question destined for the humanities sector of the philosophy department, not an economics textbook as he implies. If that one man you could push is “worth” more than the five people about to get run over, then by all means let the five die, after all, it’s all about keeping the general population happy, so says Landsburg anyway.
 There is nothing wrong with trying to make sense of the world, and as humans I think we will be doing that from the moment we open our eyes to the day we close them for the last time and I applaud Landsburg for doing just that, however, he takes his economic principles and attempts to apply them to damn near everything. His models work great for a very few select areas (which is where he should elaborate at which point I would gladly read more of his writing) but after that it gets shady and in some places down right silly, sort of like me using principles of electromagnetism to justify the French Revolution.
 As I said, I did enjoy this book (or rather I just enjoyed disagreeing with it so much) and I would recommend this book only to those who already know how to think for themselves. Giving this book to someone with little to no background in philosophy or science might be a bit disastrous if only for the fact that I truly believe the STD infection rate in America will rise (to understand this rather bizarre conclusion, read the book). I was humored, infuriated, annoyed, and fascinated by this book and give it a very well deserved 4 stars.
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 Greg Linster
 251 reviews 87 followers
 December 28, 2011
 Steven Landsburg believes that mathematics is at the core of existence. In other words, mathematics is the most fundamental thing in the universe. Not surprisingly, then, Landsburg's worldview is centered around this belief. In The Big Questions he takes on a host of philosophical problems and dazzles readers with his logical thinking and accessible prose. I thought the book was excellent and it forced me to wade through my own beliefs (I'm not still not convinced that mathematics is the most fundamental thing in the universe though!). Anyway, if you enjoy thinking about the big questions , then Landsburg is a must-read.
 the-humanities
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 Zahwil Dossa
 170 reviews 15 followers
 January 2, 2011
 The Big Questions is a wonderful book, which exactly achieves the author's stated objective: integration across the disciplines of mathematics, economics and physics in order to address questions of philosophy.

 Landsburg deals with many Big Questions, such as:
 1. What comprises the universe? - mathematics
 2. What is consciousness? - a network of 100b neurons firing electrical signals in complex ways (if we can simulate this using a computer program at sufficient level of detail, we could create consciousness)
 3. What can we know? - unprovable truths, mathematical theorems

 The book is structured so as deliver the material in a series of short "bites", (i.e. written for a general audience).

 I found the book to contain original thinking, where Landsburg provides fresh insights that are also important and deep. For example, Landsburg discusses how we measure the degree of people's beliefs (are they strong or weak?), and how this is done not by asking people but by observing behavior. Understanding the role that beliefs play in our lives is an important step in evaluating how strongly we hold them. Beliefs that don't factor into our lives in any significant ways are likely, as Landsburg points out, to be beliefs we have not thought deeply about or scrutinized (and for good reasons).

 In this respect, Landsburg's commentary about religious beliefs is resonant. His claim is that (many/most?) of those who profess devotion to faith hold weak beliefs because their behavior does not conform to the reasonable predictions that such beliefs imply. For example, a belief in hell equals a 100% conviction rate, and we know empirically that increasing conviction rates reduces the incidence of crime. Thus, believing that there really is an all-knowing, all-seeing being, a Judgment Day, and anguishing never-ending punishment, the religious should show a lot more caution/self-restraint/morality. Lansburg thinks this doesn't bear out, but acknowledges that there have not been studies done and it is therefore an open empirical matter. What matters, however, is not whether an air-tight case can be made for the hypothesis, but its formulation in the first instance. In other words, Landsburg sheds fresh light on the intense debate between atheists and Christians in the United States. While people like Richard Dawkins take as their premise the basic assumption that we can rely on surveys to discover people's belief in God, Landsburg's hypothesis, if confirmed, could show that there is no disagreement. In that case, there would just be an identified gap between people's surface-level beliefs and their deeper-held beliefs. In some sense, then, Landsburg is claiming that people are (or at least can be) wrong about what they believe.

 Pushing ideas deeper and posing research questions is a theme that runs throughout the book. Landsburg does this well in the area of distributive justice, where we takes the philosopher's "hypothetical insurance market" and points out that we already have a lot of the empirical data we need to answer the question about how much insurance people would buy when facing differing levels of risk.
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 Julie
 5 reviews 19 followers
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 January 15, 2010
 In "The Big Questions", Steven E. Landsburg uses math, economics and physics to discuss questions of philosophy, especially morality and ethics. That sounds a lot more serious than the book turned out to be. In fact, Landsburg ends the book by saying that most of it was written "not to make any particular point but because it seemed to fit and I think it's interesting." It's a good introduction to some basic econ, math and physics, and to Landsburg own beliefs and guidelines on life (including the reasoning behind them).

 Many of the examples and anecdotes were old news to me, because I have already taken courses in math, physics, economics and philosophy. But it's well-written, entertaining and easy to read.

 Favorites:

 * If more people really and truly believed in the religions they claim to follow, they would behave differently. For example, why don't we have more suicide bombers? Landsburg concludes that hardly anyone is actually religious:
 "If religious belief were as widespread as people claim it is, there should be millions upon millions of voluntary martyrs. (...) Believers in hell should commit fewer crimes; believers in heaven should take more risks; believers in one religion should interact in predictable ways with believers in another; believers in God should have a powerful interest in the alternatives. Those implications are testable. I am moderately confident that carefully gathered statistics would refute the hypothesis that religious beliefs are widely or deeply held."

 * If you want to write, study something you love and write about it. Do not take writing classes:
 "If your writing is murky, it's usually because your thinking is murky, too. The cure for that is not a series of writing exercises; it's to master your subject matter. (...) Prose flows easily when you understand what you're saying. If you're struggling to 'craft' your prose, you're probably confused."

 * The Economist's Golden Rule: Don't leave the world worse off than you found it OR Don't spend valuable time and energy in non-productive ways. It follows that you should not steal, counterfeit or be an Olympic athlete:
 "If you bake a cupcake, the world has one more cupcake. If you become a circus clown, the world has one more squirt of seltzer down someone's pants. But if you win an Olympic gold medal, the world will not have one more Olympic gold medalist. It will just have you instead of someone else."
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 Andrew
 29 reviews
 September 2, 2013
 "The Big Questions" by Mr Landsburg is an amazing book, meaning it is profoundly amazing how any sane publisher agreed to publish it and a respectable book-seller (I got mine at Barnes&Noble) agreed to stock it.

 Despite what the title might suggest, namely an honest and potentially insightful list of questions in modern philosophy, it is probably the worst collection of self-serving punditry and condescending drivel I stumbled upon this year. And that includes yellow press and fashion magazines.

 Despite the author's claims of knowledge of such relatively arcane areas of modern physics as quantum theory, I was appalled to discover the lack of even basic understanding apparent from shallow and irresponsible remarks on the topic, which as a PhD in particle physics I happen to know something about.

 Quantum mechanics, though, isn't the worst gap in Mr Landsburg education. The glaring hole in his world view is the complete lack of any trace of idea of what modern scientific method actually consists of and how it operates. This disastrous ignorance leading to math-flavored variety of witchcraft and self-congratulatory worship of pet theories he calls Models, this alone should be sufficient grounds for his faculty to send Mr Landsburg back to school, rather than to allow him to teach and publish his research findings.
 He shouldn't be allowed to graduate until he is able to explain what role observation, experimentation and hypothesis play in the process of knowledge acquisition, until he understands how "beliefs" relate to "evidence" and what constitutes the latter.

 There was little point in reading on after this much became obvious, however I finished the book. The Biggest Question this book raises is: What is more scary, the fact that Mr Landsburg is allowed to teach our young, or that his "research" may some day affect our policies?
 I do wonder now, how strong is the correlation between sources of funds and "scientific" conclusions of any US economist. Of course correlation does not *always* imply causation... or is it *never*, Mr Landsburg?

 philosophy
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 Don
 85 reviews 10 followers
 February 15, 2012
 there is a lot of great advice and educated thinking in this book. The author's background in economics is the most important influence on the writing and he applies that sort of thinking to many subject areas.

 my paraphrasing of some of what i found interesting: many people hold erroneous believes about things they do not directly experience because it costs nothing to hold such beliefs. ethical dilemmas such as should one healthy person's organs be harvested to save five sick people from dieing? He creates an Economists Golden Rule to guide all decisions which is to include the benefit and loss felt by everyone involved.

 He makes some interesting and controversial claims such as people with few sexual partners could better the world by having more sex which would take away partners from promiscuous partners who may be spreading disease. Also it serves poor people better to spend $2 billion on food than $1 billion on food and $1 billion on expensive medical procedures.

 This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
 Show full review
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 Lynn
 302 reviews
 December 21, 2009
 This is an incredible book, one of the best I’ve read this year. Making sense of philosophy and economics using mathematics had to be good, and it was. Landsburg has the best description and explanation of Quantum State I’ve ever heard or read.

 I learned a lot in this book and was persuaded by his arguments including belief in a certain kind of ESP, being a jerk when it comes to illegal immigration, and even the true nature of reality.

 I read his previous book, The Armchair Economist, and don’t remember it being all that good, but I’m thinking of reading it again just because it must have some insights I failed to grasp. I’m also looking forward to reading his other book, More Sex is Safer Sex. His blog is always interesting too.
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 Craig Jorgensen
 16 reviews 1 follower
 January 29, 2010
 Very interesting worldview expressed here - pretty much what you would expect from a Libertarian, economist-mathemetician. Whether you agree with him or not, this is a guy who has thought long and hard about what he believes, and why. He me leave some very big gaps in the explanation (too much "trust me on this" type of stuff), forget that the "devil is in the details" and take some big leaps, but this book will challenge you to also think about "the big questions" for yourself. Probably would make a good book for a book discussion group with a scientific and/or philosophical inclination.
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 Shirley Freeman
 1,222 reviews 14 followers
 Read
 July 28, 2011
 I read this a little bit at a time over many weeks so it is hard to remember much of it. It's a mixture of philosophy, economics, math, physics, theology (or not), educational philosophy etc. Landsburg thinks way outside the box and he is excellent at following things to their logical conclusions. He is brilliant - and often arrogant - but he does get you to think and to question the underlying assumptions of conventional wisdom. It would be a good discussion book (as long as we don't all have to understand all of the math and physics involved).
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 Scott Miles
 31 reviews
 March 22, 2010
 Up and down. Certain parts of the book I really enjoyed and learned from (such as the topics on Heisenbergs Uncertainty Principle and Godels Theorem). Others, such as Landsburg's thoughts on religion and "belief" were not so enjoyable. Faith is something that you either have or don't - and Landsburg clearly doesn't have it, or even "get it". His opinions are strongly expressed.

 Overall, I'm glad I read it though and will continue to check out his future works.
 1 like
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 Ryan
 12 reviews 1 follower
 August 21, 2011
 This was a very provocative book filled with all kinds of neat insight. I found myself very sympathetic to many of the author's viewpoints save only a few. The only reason I gave this four stars is because I would have liked to have seen some of the ideas more fully developed. Understandably, this is geared to a popular audience, but a deeper analysis on occasion would not have made it any less readable.
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 Nathan
 Author 5 books 130 followers
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 October 31, 2010
 Philosophy and economics ands physics and math and ... finding lots to disagree with and lots to think about.

 Abandoned because reading his conclusions to tricky philosophical issues felt like missing the point that *I* am supposed to be *thinking* about them, not reading about them. Reading other people's conclusions is like confusing a takeaway for "cooking", or a vial of semen for sex.
 abandoned other-non-fiction
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 Frank R
 393 reviews 22 followers
 August 11, 2010
 Landsburg approaches Big Questions, from "What is real?" to "What should economic policy be?" with rational arguments based in mathematics. Very entertaining and thought-provoking. Some tangential digressions, but for the most part those are not a distraction.
 theology-philosophy
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 David
 142 reviews 5 followers
 February 1, 2011
 This fellow likes math and economics for many of the same reasons I do. I hope I don't come off as QUITE so conceited, though! In the end I thought his conceit got the better of him. He even cheated here and there.
 philosophy
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 Mikhail Dubov
 24 reviews 4 followers
 May 18, 2010
 Very entertaining though probably not as deep as I was expecting. Economic insights here are pretty simple for anyone who studied the subject but I was fascinated to learn more on maths, physics and philosophy. Recommended.
 non-fiction
 1 like
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 Linda Robinson
 Author 4 books 152 followers
 Shelved as 'will-not-finish'
 December 13, 2010
 "I'm not saying that the laws of arithmetic are eternal and immutable; I'm saying more than that. Eternal means for all time, but mathematics exists outside of time." In the beginning there was arithmetic... Sheesh.
 1 like
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 Nickolaus
 8 reviews
 October 30, 2010
 Almost 4 stars but not quite. A lot of good things to think about to be sure, and a very quick read as a result of his good writing and clear explanations. I felt that there was a bit of a lacking to some arguments -- particularly with regards to philosophy and consequentialism.
 1 like
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 Bob
 43 reviews 3 followers
 January 11, 2011
 Interesting ideas, but the author comes off as way too self-assured that his answers are "right". Being certain (or extremely confident) that you have deduced the logical answers to the big questions requires certainty about the premises. I'm not so confident of those.
 1 like
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 Garrett Burnett
 Author 9 books 20 followers
 February 14, 2011
 The subtitle is a nice teaser, and the book--to some degree--delivers on the promise. Landsburg loves math and tries to do a lot with it. Even if he's not right in his answers to the "Big Questions" (and he accepts that he may not be), he provides an interesting point of view.
 philosophy science
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 Richard Simpson
 44 reviews
 January 22, 2015
 Does this book tackle a philosophical questions with insights from mathematics? Not really. Does it offer personal prejudices, circular arguments and spurious reasoning as a counterfeit as such? Very much so. Read at your own risk & don't say you weren't warned.
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 Gavin
 125 reviews 6 followers
 December 21, 2009
 I learned about logic and clear thinking.
 economics
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 Andrew
 303 reviews 6 followers
 February 10, 2010
 Overall, I liked the book. However, this is the kind of book that you have to read twice in order to fully understand it. I'll have to read this book again next year to see what I think.
 1 like
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 Matthew J Brown
 128 reviews 28 followers
 Want to read
 August 24, 2011
 Recommended by a student, 8/24/2011
 pop-philosophy
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 Lynn Beyrouthy
 47 reviews 127 followers
 August 28, 2015
 Tedious, hideous, desultory and... bleh. Mediocre.
 economics
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 Martin Omedo
 98 reviews 5 followers
 October 28, 2021
 "Do not be too constrained by traditional boundaries between subjects. Let your mind run free." That is a clarion call in the second last paragraph of this exciting read, The Big Question by Steven E Landsburg, and true to those words, it seems the good Professor was on a mission to prove his point.

 The title of Steven Landsburg's treatise, "The Big Questions: Tackling the Problems of Philosophy with Ideas from Mathematics (which, according to Landsburg, must be the fabric of the universe), Economics, and Physics," does an excellent job of explaining the goal of this book. Landsburg addresses topics such as belief, knowledge, right versus wrong, and other philosophical problems through mathematics's lens (primarily).

 This attempt is an interesting (and ambitious) idea for a book. The execution, however, is rough and abrasive. Landsburg's points are consistently logical, cohesive, and coherent. However, how the points are made is often dismissive, making the arguments hard to separate from the harsh treatment of viewpoints that might not align with those of the author.

 While the book is a delight to read, and I learned quite a few things, other aspects are pretty controversial, especially the chapters on ethics. This is enunciated in his attempt to try to solve some of the classical moral dilemmas that have been debated for aeons. The author applies what I could label "impeccably sound economic arguments" to some ethical dilemmas such as the well-known Trolley Problem, its modification of the Doctor Problem, or its second modification, the Headache Problem. For example, Landsburg claims that it is OK to kill an innocent person to stop a minor headache that will last for an hour to one billion people! Landsberg's anti-humanism is sometimes disturbing, but I think it's primarily a by-product of his faith in mathematical mysticism.

 It would be interesting to read a book that debates Landsburg's arguments. After all, this is what philosophy for the last three millennia has been about, arguments and counterarguments. So be sure you read the book, but read it with an open mind. It's an exciting book in an intellectually middling sort of way. I think the best way to put it comes from a much deeper economist: "a stupid man's idea of what a smart person sounds like."
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 Pranjal Awasthi
 225 reviews 1 follower
 March 26, 2022
 Pop economists often get a bad rep. The common allegations levied are of simplistic narratives, oversimplified axioms and thorough lack of nuance. While these are not entirely false they are most definitely not entirely correct. Under the assumption that not all books can be as dense as Journal papers you've got to understand that economists who write for the larger audience primarily serve two purposes. The first is to help the lay person understand how incentives work and number two point out the logical fallacies using real world examples to actually drive home the importance of thinking rationally like an economist. Stephen landsberg does exactly this with the addition of using witty and humorous prose. The book does not have the chart breaking light bulb moments which a book like freakonomics might have had but it gives you a lot of incentive to actually rethink your beliefs and hopefully become more rational by the time you finish this book. For me this book reaffirmed the mathematical nature of philosophy, the transactional nature of our morals and how we are all in our own little ways deluded economists who think that we are thinking rationally but are more emotionally driven than we might want to believe.In this, the book does a similar job what Kanheman's Thinking fast Thinking slow does, in that it drives home the point that many times what we believe in is a product of sensory perceptions, emotions and human biases. Overall a very fun and informative read which is eclectic and wide ranging in its scope
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 YHC
 779 reviews 6 followers
 June 5, 2018
 Many small daily loge ideas, questions on philosophy, math, mostly on economics...I think i have understood the direction of author. Landsburg has similar taste on scientists. We like same group of scientists whom led us to have the same rational and critical thinking.

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 Amy
 154 reviews
 October 1, 2020
 Started off quite interesting but I gradually lost interest. Thought it would be quite eye opening and philosophical but the writer is an economist and there was too much economicky stuff for me! Good insight though!
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The Big Questions: Tackling the Problems of Philosophy …
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6144421-the-big-questions