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Isaac Asimov's Inferno
The ''Robot'' series is a series of 37 science fiction short stories and six novels by American writer Isaac Asimov, featuring positronic robots. Later, Asimov would merge the ''Robot'' series with his ''Foundation'' series. Robot novels and stories The series started in 1940, with the story " Robbie" in the September 1940 '' Super Science Stories'' (appearing under the title "Strange Playfellow", which was not Asimov's title). Although it was originally written as a stand-alone story, the following year Asimov published a series of additional robot stories, which fit together into a narrative that was then put together as the book '' I, Robot''. List of works in the Robot series, in chronological order by narrative # '' I, Robot'' (1950) and later collections: '' The Complete Robot'' (1982), '' Robot Dreams'' (1986), '' Robot Visions'' (1990), and '' Gold'' (1995). #* In 1964, '' The Rest of the Robots'' was published - all of the short stories in that collection are ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Isaac Asimov
yi, יצחק אזימאװ , birth_date = , birth_place = Petrovichi, Russian SFSR , spouse = , relatives = , children = 2 , death_date = , death_place = Manhattan, New York City, U.S. , nationality = Russian (1920–1922)Soviet (1922–1928)American (1928–1992) , occupation = Writer, professor of biochemistry , years_active = 1939–1992 , genre = Science fiction (hard SF, social SF), mystery, popular science , subject = Popular science, science textbooks, essays, history, literary criticism , education = Columbia University ( BA, MA, PhD) , movement = Golden Age of Science Fiction , module = , signature = Isaac Asimov signature.svg Isaac Asimov ( ; 1920 – April 6, 1992) was an American writer and professor of biochemistry at Boston University. During his lifetime, Asimov was considered one of the "Big Three" science fiction writers, along with Robert A. Heinlein and Arthur C. Clarke. A prolific writer, he wrote or edited more than 500 books ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mother Earth (novelette)
"Mother Earth" is a science fiction novella by American writer Isaac Asimov. It was written from September 1 to October 10, 1948, and published in the May 1949 issue of ''Astounding Science Fiction''. It was republished in Asimov's 1972 short story collection ''The Early Asimov''. Context within Asimov's universe No individual robots appear, but positronic robots are part of the background. With fifty Spacer worlds led by Aurora, this tale seems to bridge the gap between the early robot stories and ''The Caves of Steel''. Asimov himself is ambiguous about the link, saying: The term "Galactic Empire" appears at the end of the novel. This could indicate a possible link to the Empire Series. The first Empire novel, ''Pebble in the Sky'', was written in 1947, the year before "Mother Earth". Themes A major theme of the story is the way in which the Spacers have closed their thinly populated worlds to Earth's crowded inhabitants. This was not an abstraction to Isaac Asimov, who was b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robot Dreams (Asimov Short Story)
"Robot Dreams" is a science fiction short story by American writer Isaac Asimov exploring the unbalance of robot/human relationships under Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics. It was nominated for a Hugo Award in 1987. It won the Locus Award for Best Short Story in 1987. at isfdb.com "Robot Dreams", along with 20 other short stories by Asimov, was published in '' Robot Dreams'' in 1986 by . The short story was alluded to in the 2004 film ''I, Robot'' (film) , where the robot protagonist ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because there was no large-scale fighting directly between the two superpowers, but they each supported major regional conflicts known as proxy wars. The conflict was based around the ideological and geopolitical struggle for global influence by these two superpowers, following their temporary alliance and victory against Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan in 1945. Aside from the nuclear arsenal development and conventional military deployment, the struggle for dominance was expressed via indirect means such as psychological warfare, propaganda campaigns, espionage, far-reaching embargoes, rivalry at sports events, and technological competitions such as the Space Race. The Western Bloc was led by the United States as well as a number of other First W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Let's Get Together (short Story)
"Let's Get Together" is a science fiction short story by American writer Isaac Asimov. It was originally published in the February 1957 issue of ''Infinity Science Fiction'', and included in the collections ''The Rest of the Robots'' (1964) and ''The Complete Robot'' (1982). The robots in this tale are very different from Asimov's norm, being quite willing to work as war machines. The tale is also based on a continuation of Cold War hostility, rather than the peaceful unified world of most of the robot stories. Plot summary The Cold War has endured for a century and an uneasy peace between "Us" and "Them" exists. A secret agent arrives in America from Moscow with the story that robots identical to humans in appearance and behaviour have been developed by Them and that ten have already been infiltrated into America. When they get together, they will trigger a nuclear-level explosion (they are components of a total conversion bomb). A conference of "Our" greatest minds in all t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Victory Unintentional
"Victory Unintentional" is a humorous science fiction short story by American writer Isaac Asimov, published in the August 1942 issue of '' Super Science Stories'' and included in the collections '' The Rest of the Robots'' (1964) and '' The Complete Robot'' (1982). Background Written in January and February 1942, "Victory Unintentional" is a sequel to a non-robot story, " Not Final!". John W. Campbell of ''Astounding Science Fiction'' so disliked the story that he rejected it with the chemical formula for butyl mercaptan. Campbell knew the chemistry graduate-student Asimov would understand this as saying that the story stunk. Asimov sold it to '' Super Science Stories'' in March, which published the story in August 1942. It was the last story he wrote for 14 months, as he became busy with graduate school, got a job at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, and met and married Gertrude Blugerman. Plot Human colonists on Ganymede send three extremely hardy and durable robots, ZZ One, ZZ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Foundation Universe
The ''Foundation universe'' is the future history of humanity's colonisation of the galaxy, spanning nearly 25,000 years, created through the gradual fusion of the ''Robot'', ''Galactic Empire'', ''Foundation'' book series written by American author Isaac Asimov. Works set in the universe Asimov's ''Greater Foundation'' series Merging the ''Robot'', the ''Empire'' and the ''Foundation'' series The ''Foundation'' series is set in the same universe as Asimov's first published novel, ''Pebble in the Sky'', although ''Foundation'' takes place about 10,000 years later. ''Pebble in the Sky'' became the basis for the ''Galactic Empire'' series. Then, at some unknown date (prior to writing ''Foundation's Edge'') Asimov decided to merge the ''Foundation''/''Galactic Empire'' series with his ''Robot'' series. Thus, all three series are set in the same universe, giving them a combined length of 18 novels, and a total of about 1,500,000 words. The merge also created a time-span of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Positronic Brain
A positronic brain is a fictional technological device, originally conceived by science fiction writer Isaac Asimov. It functions as a central processing unit (CPU) for robots, and, in some unspecified way, provides them with a form of consciousness recognizable to humans. When Asimov wrote his first robot stories in 1939 and 1940, the positron was a newly discovered particle, and so the buzz word "positronic" added a scientific connotation to the concept. Asimov's 1942 short story " Runaround" elaborates his fictional Three Laws of Robotics, which are ingrained in the positronic brains of nearly all of his robots. Conceptual overview Asimov remained vague about the technical details of positronic brains except to assert that their substructure was formed from an alloy of platinum and iridium. They were said to be vulnerable to radiation and apparently involve a type of volatile memory (since robots in storage required a power source keeping their brains "alive"). The focus of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Three Laws Of Robotics
The Three Laws of Robotics (often shortened to The Three Laws or known as Asimov's Laws) are a set of rules devised by science fiction author Isaac Asimov. The rules were introduced in his 1942 short story " Runaround" (included in the 1950 collection ''I, Robot''), although they had been foreshadowed in some earlier stories. The Three Laws, quoted from the "Handbook of Robotics, 56th Edition, 2058 A.D.", are: ;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 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. These form an organizing principle and unifying theme for Asimov's robotic-based fiction, appearing in his ''Robot'' series, the stories linked to it, and his ''Lucky Starr'' series of young-adult fiction. The Laws are incorp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robot
A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may be constructed to evoke human form, but most robots are task-performing machines, designed with an emphasis on stark functionality, rather than expressive aesthetics. Robots can be autonomous or semi-autonomous and range from humanoids such as Honda's ''Advanced Step in Innovative Mobility'' ( ASIMO) and TOSY's ''TOSY Ping Pong Playing Robot'' (TOPIO) to industrial robots, medical operating robots, patient assist robots, dog therapy robots, collectively programmed ''swarm'' robots, UAV drones such as General Atomics MQ-1 Predator, and even microscopic nano robots. By mimicking a lifelike appearance or automating movements, a robot may convey a sense of intelligence or thought of its own. Autonomous things are expected to proliferate in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robots And Empire
''Robots and Empire'' is a science fiction novel by the American author Isaac Asimov, published by Doubleday Books in 1985. It is part of Asimov's ''Robot'' series, which consists of many short stories (collected in ''I, Robot'', ''The Rest of the Robots'', ''The Complete Robot'', ''Robot Dreams'', ''Robot Visions'', and ''Gold'') and five novels (including ''The Positronic Man'', ''The Caves of Steel'', ''The Naked Sun'', and ''The Robots of Dawn''). ''Robots and Empire'' is part of Asimov's consolidation of his three major series of science fiction stories and novels into a single future history: his ''Robot'' series, his ''Galactic Empire'' series and his ''Foundation'' series. (Asimov also carried out this unification in ''Foundation's Edge'' and its sequel.) In the novel, Asimov depicts the transition from his earlier Milky Way Galaxy, inhabited by both human beings and positronic robots, to his Galactic Empire. The galaxy of his earlier trilogy of ''Robot'' novels is do ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Robots Of Dawn
''The Robots of Dawn'' is a "whodunit" science fiction novel by American writer Isaac Asimov, first published in 1983. It is the third novel in Asimov's ''Robot'' series. Plot summary Detective Elijah Baley of Earth is training with his son and others to overcome their socially ingrained agoraphobia when he is told that the Spacer world of Aurora has requested him to investigate a crime: the destruction of the mind of R. Jander Panell, a humaniform robot identical to R. Daneel Olivaw, with a mental block. The robot's inventor, Han Fastolfe, has admitted that he is the only person with the skill to have done this, but denies having done so. Fastolfe is also a prominent member of the Auroran political faction that favors Earth; therefore, it is politically expedient that he be exonerated. En route to Aurora, Baley again is partnered with R. Daneel Olivaw, and introduced to R. Giskard Reventlov, a robot of an earlier model. On Aurora, he interviews Gladia Delmarre, R. Jander's l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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