"Risk" is a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

by American writer

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 (192 ...

, first published in the May 1955 issue of ''

Astounding Science Fiction ''Analog Science Fiction and Fact'' is an American science fiction magazine published under various titles since 1930. Originally titled ''Astounding Stories of Super-Science'', the first issue was dated January 1930, published by William C ...

'', and reprinted in the collections ''

The Rest of the Robots ''The Rest of the Robots'' is a collection of eight short stories and two full-length novels by American writer Isaac Asimov, published in 1964. The stories, centred on positronic robots, are all part of the ''Robot'' series, most of which ta ...

'' (1964) and ''

The Complete Robot ''The Complete Robot'' (1982) is a collection of 31 of the 37 science fiction short stories about robots by American writer Isaac Asimov, written between 1939 and 1977.Introduction, ''The Complete Robot'', Isaac Asimov Most of the stories had bee ...

'' (1982). The story is a sequel to "

Little Lost Robot "Little Lost Robot" is a science fiction short story by American writer Isaac Asimov. It was first published in the March 1947 issue of ''Astounding Science Fiction'' and reprinted in the collections ''I, Robot'' (1950), ''The Complete Robot'' (1 ...

". It is set in the same location, but involves a different positronic robot – one of the few in Asimov's stories to have neither a serial number nor nickname.

Plot summary

The researchers at Hyper Base are ready to test the first

hyperspace In science fiction, hyperspace (also known as nulspace, subspace, overspace, jumpspace and similar terms) is a concept relating to dimension#Additional dimensions, higher dimensions as well as parallel universes in fiction, parallel universe ...

ship. Previous experiments were successful in transportation of inert objects, but all attempts to transport living creatures have led to complete loss of higher brain function. As such, the ship has a positronic robot at the controls, since a robot is more expendable than a human, and its brain can later be precisely analyzed for errors to determine the cause. The ship fails to function as planned, and

Susan Calvin Dr. Susan Calvin is a fictional character appearing in Isaac Asimov's ''Robot'' series of science fiction short stories. According to I, Robot, Susan Calvin was born in the year 1982 and died at the age of 82, either in 2064 or 2065. She was t ...

persuades Gerald Black, an etherics engineer (who had also appeared in "Little Lost Robot"), to board the ship in order to locate the fault. As Calvin suspects, Black finds that the fault lies with the robot, which, as a result of imprecise orders, has damaged the controls of the ship. They realize that the precise and finite robot mind must be compensated for by human ingenuity.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Risk (Short Story) Robot series short stories by Isaac Asimov 1955 short stories Works originally published in Analog Science Fiction and Fact