Friday, April 01, 2011

Azimov- A to Z Challenge







Isaac Asimov is one of the fathers of modern science Fiction.  His short stories in I, Robot were recommended to me by my mother and bridged a generational gap with equal enjoyment on both sides.  Foundation inspired and entertained us.  He is the master of the serial, giving his readers complete stories volume by volume. 

He is a man so important to science fiction that he has an award and magazine named after him.  He is even credited with coining  the term robot.  He was a prolific writer in multiple dramas and was also a doctor of biochemistry. 

I have not read all of Asimov's scifi.  I have barely scratched the surface.  I find the tales themselves are quite simple, but very enjoyable.   A little known fact is that he died of AIDS after contracting HIV through a blood transfusion.  I will end with a story that I heard about him during a screening of 2001.  When the movie was finished Clarke asked Asimov what he thought, to which Asimov in anger stated that Hal didn't follow the three laws of robotics.  I am not sure if it is true but it brings a smile to my face. 

Hopefully they programmed the 3 laws into Watson

16 comments:

baygirl32 said...

day 1 of the A to Z challenge, and I've already learned something new!

http://baygirl32.blogspot.com

Bev Hankins said...

Asimov is one of my favorites in science fiction. Glad to see him highlighted!

And, actually, "robot" is first used in Karl Capek's play "R.U.R." (1921)--although Asimov did coin the term "robotics" and establish the three laws.

Trevor Peck said...

Thanks for the cool facts! Good luck A2Z(ing)!

Misha Gerrick said...

Interesting post...

I never knew that Asimov died of AIDS.

Such a pity.

:-)

TS Hendrik said...

Huh. Yeah I had no idea that was how he died. I must confess I've never been a big fan of his. He can be a bit dry for me. So are you going to do profiles of SF writers throughout the challenge?

Budd said...

I plan on doing a couple. You can look forward to Richard Matheson on R day for sure.

Kal said...

Oh Asimov. He was a sweet kid but hopelessly naieve about the way people would REALLY program a robot. What good is a metal killing machine if it can't kill? Then once you cross that line, even once, then it's SKYNET all over again.

Unknown said...

I really do need to read some of his stuff. Thanks for bringing it up.

Teresa
http://icecoldpenguin.blogspot.com

Jan Morrison said...

love Asimov - I was introduced to him during my first marriage back in the ice age and he weathered well.
Jan Morrison

alberta ross said...

a favourite of mine in my youth I must brush the dust of gently and ip in again - thanks for reminder - he was a great influence

Pat Tillett said...

Asimov is one of the big three! The others being Clarke and Heinlein... Genius, all of them!

I used to try to read all of the books by a particular author if I liked them. I must have read 40 or so Asimov books before I realized that he had written at least a couple hundred of them. I stopped. His style wasn't the most exciting, but the things he wrote about sure were...

The Words Crafter said...

I can't believe I haven't read any of his stuff!!!! One day, when I have lots of time, I need to catch up on all the books I want to read. Starting with one if his!

Rachael Harrie said...

Great person to highlight for day 1 of the Challenge. Love Asimov's comment about the three laws of robotics!

Hugs

Rach

Unknown said...

I'd like to read his stuff someday... I never saw (nor wanted to see) the movie I, Robert... but I bet the book would be great.

Bob Sanchez said...

I'm in awe of Asimov, even though I don't read much sci-fi.

StuartOhQueue said...

Much love for Asimov. Too bad "I,Robot" wasn't given any sort of justice on screen.