Isaac Asimov

Born

in Petrovichi, Russian Federation

January 02, 1920

Died

April 06, 1992

Website

http://www.asimovonline.com/

Genre

Science Fiction & Fantasy, Mystery & Thrillers, Science

Influences

Robert Ingersoll, Henry Moseley, John Dalton ...more

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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 t 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... ...more

Combine Editions
Isaac Asimov’s books

Average rating: 4.16 · 1,989,090 ratings · 58,208 reviews · 2,817 distinct works • Similar authors

	Foundation (Foundation, #1) 4.17 avg rating — 405,888 ratings — published 1951 — 206 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	I, Robot (Robot, #0.1) 4.20 avg rating — 273,794 ratings — published 1950 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Foundation and Empire (Foundation #2) 4.22 avg rating — 154,366 ratings — published 1952 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Second Foundation (Foundation #3) 4.25 avg rating — 142,931 ratings — published 1953 — 175 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Foundation Trilogy (Foundation, #1-3) 4.41 avg rating — 88,231 ratings — published 1953 — 105 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Caves of Steel (Robot #1) 4.17 avg rating — 78,826 ratings — published 1954 — 161 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Foundation's Edge (Foundation #4) 4.13 avg rating — 68,455 ratings — published 1982 — 124 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Prelude to Foundation 4.13 avg rating — 66,532 ratings — published 1988 — 114 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Foundation and Earth (Foundation #5) 4.06 avg rating — 55,005 ratings — published 1986	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Gods Themselves 4.09 avg rating — 52,288 ratings — published 1972 — 119 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Isaac Asimov…

Series by Isaac Asimov

Galactic Empire (3 books)
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3.83 avg rating — 50,726 ratings

Fantastic Voyage (2 books)
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3.88 avg rating — 27,021 ratings

The Complete Stories (3 books)
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4.36 avg rating — 8,495 ratings

Historia Universal Asimov (14 books)
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4.16 avg rating — 4,853 ratings

The Autobiography of Isaac Asimov (4 books)
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Janet Asimov (Editor)

4.20 avg rating — 3,246 ratings

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Quotes by Isaac Asimov

“The saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom.”
― Isaac Asimov

tags: life, science, wisdom

12699 likes

“Never let your sense of morals prevent you from doing what is right.”
― Isaac Asimov, Foundation

tags: humor, inspirational, philosophy, wisdom

6866 likes

“In life, unlike chess, the game continues after checkmate.”
― Isaac Asimov

3671 likes

See all Isaac Asimov's quotes »

Polls

Which Classic SF/F Novel do You want to Discuss with the Group in February (runoff)?

Prelude to Foundation (Foundation Prequel, #1) by Isaac Asimov

Prelude to Foundation by Isaac Asimov

6 votes, 66.7%

To Your Scattered Bodies Go (Riverworld, #1) by Philip José Farmer

To Your Scattered Bodies Go by Philip José Farmer

3 votes, 33.3%

9 total votes

2 comments

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