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'X' Stands For Unknown
Gli Asimoviani sono creature di senza scherzi, vengono così chiamati i milioni di lettori che ogni mese, puntualmente, seguono gli articoli che Isaac Asimov pubblica sul Magazine of F & SF .
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First published June 1, 1983
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About the author
Isaac Asimov
4,475 books27.4k followersWorks of prolific Russian-American writer Isaac Asimov include popular explanations of scientific principles,
The Foundation Trilogy
(1951-1953), and other volumes of fiction.
Isaac Asimov, a professor of biochemistry, wrote as a highly successful author, best known for his books.
Asimov, professor, generally considered of all time, edited more than five hundred books and ninety thousand letters and postcards. He published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey decimal classification but lacked only an entry in the category of philosophy (100).
People widely considered Asimov, a master of the genre alongside Robert Anson Heinlein and Arthur Charles Clarke as the "big three" during his lifetime. He later tied Galactic Empire and the Robot into the same universe as his most famous series to create a unified "future history" for his stories much like those that Heinlein pioneered and Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson previously produced. He penned "Nightfall," voted in 1964 as the best short story of all time; many persons still honor this title. He also produced well mysteries, fantasy, and a great quantity of nonfiction. Asimov used Paul French, the pen name, for the Lucky Starr, series of juvenile novels.
Most books of Asimov in a historical way go as far back to a time with possible question or concept at its simplest stage. He often provides and mentions well nationalities, birth, and death dates for persons and etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Guide to Science, the tripartite set Understanding Physics, and Chronology of Science and Discovery exemplify these books.
Asimov, a long-time member, reluctantly served as vice president of Mensa international and described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs." He took more pleasure as president of the humanist association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov's Science Fiction, an elementary school in Brooklyn in New York, and two different awards honor his name.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_As...
Isaac Asimov, a professor of biochemistry, wrote as a highly successful author, best known for his books.
Asimov, professor, generally considered of all time, edited more than five hundred books and ninety thousand letters and postcards. He published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey decimal classification but lacked only an entry in the category of philosophy (100).
People widely considered Asimov, a master of the genre alongside Robert Anson Heinlein and Arthur Charles Clarke as the "big three" during his lifetime. He later tied Galactic Empire and the Robot into the same universe as his most famous series to create a unified "future history" for his stories much like those that Heinlein pioneered and Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson previously produced. He penned "Nightfall," voted in 1964 as the best short story of all time; many persons still honor this title. He also produced well mysteries, fantasy, and a great quantity of nonfiction. Asimov used Paul French, the pen name, for the Lucky Starr, series of juvenile novels.
Most books of Asimov in a historical way go as far back to a time with possible question or concept at its simplest stage. He often provides and mentions well nationalities, birth, and death dates for persons and etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Guide to Science, the tripartite set Understanding Physics, and Chronology of Science and Discovery exemplify these books.
Asimov, a long-time member, reluctantly served as vice president of Mensa international and described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs." He took more pleasure as president of the humanist association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov's Science Fiction, an elementary school in Brooklyn in New York, and two different awards honor his name.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_As...
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
January 21, 2018
Now here is a book I am thoroughly more comfortable with.
When I first started reading I was still very limited and shy over over what to read. The internet was not up and running and the libraries were geared up more towards academia than fiction (that fiction where either dusty romances set on the moors or thrillers set in the 1950s).
However I did stumble across a number of science fiction titles at a charity sale and I was instantly introduced to Isaac Asimov, Edmund Cooper, Robert Heinlein and Arthur C Clark (as well as the incredible works of Chris Foss).
So started my love of read Asimov - an author who seemed to turns hand to just about anything (and reading his bibliography he pretty much did). Among these books were a series of science essays. He himself was from the science community and had not only connections but practical experience. That linked to the fact he was an excellent orator who could take complex and difficult to image concepts and make them both real and accessible, this book after all was written in the 80s although my edition was somewhat newer.
So for a young teenager was spoilt with the fact I was reading more Asimov (where each new title seemed harder and harder to find) and that my early love of science was just forming and here was one of my literary heroes making it not just sound so real but also interesting.
The book is broken in the subjects, physics, chemistry, astronomy and mathematic and talked about some the challenges and "unknowns" that have over the years (and even more so since the book was published) been delved in to.
Now I know this book was written for the casual reader and if you spoke to the science community they would feel it is only really giving passing acknowledgement to the extensive studies in the various fields - but if you want to glimpse of what possibilities there are and what they can lead to science writings of Isaac Asimov are an excellent starting point - even if they are a little dated now.
When I first started reading I was still very limited and shy over over what to read. The internet was not up and running and the libraries were geared up more towards academia than fiction (that fiction where either dusty romances set on the moors or thrillers set in the 1950s).
However I did stumble across a number of science fiction titles at a charity sale and I was instantly introduced to Isaac Asimov, Edmund Cooper, Robert Heinlein and Arthur C Clark (as well as the incredible works of Chris Foss).
So started my love of read Asimov - an author who seemed to turns hand to just about anything (and reading his bibliography he pretty much did). Among these books were a series of science essays. He himself was from the science community and had not only connections but practical experience. That linked to the fact he was an excellent orator who could take complex and difficult to image concepts and make them both real and accessible, this book after all was written in the 80s although my edition was somewhat newer.
So for a young teenager was spoilt with the fact I was reading more Asimov (where each new title seemed harder and harder to find) and that my early love of science was just forming and here was one of my literary heroes making it not just sound so real but also interesting.
The book is broken in the subjects, physics, chemistry, astronomy and mathematic and talked about some the challenges and "unknowns" that have over the years (and even more so since the book was published) been delved in to.
Now I know this book was written for the casual reader and if you spoke to the science community they would feel it is only really giving passing acknowledgement to the extensive studies in the various fields - but if you want to glimpse of what possibilities there are and what they can lead to science writings of Isaac Asimov are an excellent starting point - even if they are a little dated now.
July 24, 2021
This is another book that on re-reading I feel obliged to put into the 5 star class. Asimov was in top form writing these essays. The ones about science are excellent and as always I like it when Asimov does what in Wikipedia would be dismissed as “original research“. His reasoning for the shortest and longest possible wave-length is just amazing.
The best essays though are on non-science topics. There is one against fundamentalism. For some reason the true Christians insists on the Bible telling us that Earth is a sphere. (When one thinks about it this is perhaps a good sign, they have enough common sense left to not endorse flat-earth theories.) But of course, for the writers of the Bible there was no question. Of course, the Earth is flat for them. And when the Bible mentions “circles“ is just means a round disc.
Even better “Armies of the Night“, one of the Asimov essays that should be required reading for everyone.
The best essays though are on non-science topics. There is one against fundamentalism. For some reason the true Christians insists on the Bible telling us that Earth is a sphere. (When one thinks about it this is perhaps a good sign, they have enough common sense left to not endorse flat-earth theories.) But of course, for the writers of the Bible there was no question. Of course, the Earth is flat for them. And when the Bible mentions “circles“ is just means a round disc.
Even better “Armies of the Night“, one of the Asimov essays that should be required reading for everyone.
September 19, 2024
Interesante ensayo. Comparte muchos datos desde su punto de vista y cuenta muchos datos históricos para la sucesión de eventos que permitieron que se desarrollarán ciertos descubrimientos muy interesantes. Me encantó la parte donde habla de la vida de silicio.
January 13, 2011
This book is a hard-sell. Non-fiction, sciency stuff. If you are still reading...then maybe you should give this book a try! If "Non-fiction, sciency stuff" doesn't totally scare you away, you would get a lot out of this. If you like reading Popular Science, or even National Geographic, read on...
'X' Stands for Unknowns is broken up into 5 sections (this is not to mention the introduction section which completely blew my mind! Issac Asimov is not just one of the world's greatest science fiction writers, but honestly, one of the world's greatest philosophers.):
-Physics
-Chemistry
-Astronomy
-Mathematics
-The Fringe
Each section has a few chapters, and every single chapter starts with a personal anecdote from Isaac's life, as a segway into the science. Now, which sections are enlightening and totally interesting, and which sections are unbearable and almost unreadable-is most definitely a matter of personal opinion. I was utterly in love with his sections of Physics, Astronomy, and The Fringe. Unfortunately I couldn't give the book 5 stars because of those pesky sections on Chemistry and Mathematics. Okay, even the math was mildly interesting. Chemistry can just go die, as far as I'm concerned.
So there is my opinion. Come learn some new stuff. You can learn about how many "octaves" are in different types of non-visible light (one "octave" being red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo (blah), purple). You can learn about the first, and the second, and the twenty-seventh sighting of Halley's comet. It's just science, written to inspire.
I leave you with a quote from the book:
"There may never be a time when all mysteries are resolved, when nothing remains to be done within the field that the scientific process is competent to deal with. Consequently, at any fixed moment- say, now- there are unsolved problems, and this proves nothing with respect to G-d, one way or the other. Nor should this eternal perpetuation of mystery be a source of disappointment, it seems to me. It should, rather, be a source of overwhelming relief. If all questions were answered, all riddles solved, every fold unfolded, every wrinkle in the fabric of the Universe smoothed-the greatest and noblest game in the Universe would be ended, and there would be nothing left for the mind to do but console itself with trivia.
Unbearable."
'X' Stands for Unknowns is broken up into 5 sections (this is not to mention the introduction section which completely blew my mind! Issac Asimov is not just one of the world's greatest science fiction writers, but honestly, one of the world's greatest philosophers.):
-Physics
-Chemistry
-Astronomy
-Mathematics
-The Fringe
Each section has a few chapters, and every single chapter starts with a personal anecdote from Isaac's life, as a segway into the science. Now, which sections are enlightening and totally interesting, and which sections are unbearable and almost unreadable-is most definitely a matter of personal opinion. I was utterly in love with his sections of Physics, Astronomy, and The Fringe. Unfortunately I couldn't give the book 5 stars because of those pesky sections on Chemistry and Mathematics. Okay, even the math was mildly interesting. Chemistry can just go die, as far as I'm concerned.
So there is my opinion. Come learn some new stuff. You can learn about how many "octaves" are in different types of non-visible light (one "octave" being red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo (blah), purple). You can learn about the first, and the second, and the twenty-seventh sighting of Halley's comet. It's just science, written to inspire.
I leave you with a quote from the book:
"There may never be a time when all mysteries are resolved, when nothing remains to be done within the field that the scientific process is competent to deal with. Consequently, at any fixed moment- say, now- there are unsolved problems, and this proves nothing with respect to G-d, one way or the other. Nor should this eternal perpetuation of mystery be a source of disappointment, it seems to me. It should, rather, be a source of overwhelming relief. If all questions were answered, all riddles solved, every fold unfolded, every wrinkle in the fabric of the Universe smoothed-the greatest and noblest game in the Universe would be ended, and there would be nothing left for the mind to do but console itself with trivia.
Unbearable."
June 5, 2007
Isaac Asimov is best known as a science fiction author, yet nonetheless wrote far more about true science—hundreds of books, in fact. Over several decades Asimov wrote a monthly science column for the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. Many of these essays were later published in paperback form as collections.
Asimov was one of the all-time greatest explainers of science. He generally wrote for an intelligent audience of non-scientists, and so he usually started at the very beginning and buildt gradually toward the complete idea. It's a delight to see how Asimov develops and explains a particular topic, even—and especially—when I know exactly what the punchline is going to be. Consequently, I greatly enjoy reading his work, even when the science is hopelessly out of date.
I will gradually read, and review, my collection of Asimov's essay compilations, which is very nearly complete. Partly, this is for my benefit, as I have long desired a catalog and handy reference guide to the essays I found particularly illuminating or masterfully written. Thus, these reviews will mostly center on the material itself, and not on the writing, which is uniformly excellent.
X Stands for Unknown includes the MFSF columns from January 1982 through May 1983, fairly late in Asimov's career. Of the seventeen essays, four concern the history of our knowledge of the electromagnetic spectrum, from radio waves to gamma rays. Four compare the chemistry of carbon and silicon and show why silicon life is not possible in an Earthlike (or, probably, any other) environment. (This was more powerfully explained in "The One and Only" in The Tragedy of the Moon, 1973.) "Silicon Life after All" contains a very nice explanation of semiconductors and transistors. Two feature Halley's Comet and discuss the historical context of its recorded appearances. Two trace how the Earth has become more and more insignificant within the known universe over the past two thousand years.
In the last two essays, Asimov illustrates the illogic and short-sightedness of Biblical literalism and pseudoscience (mainly astrology), respectively. These both contain great examples of scholarly yet venomously sarcastic wit.
In "Whatzisname's Orbit," he explains geostationary orbits and the generalization, Clarke orbits. "To Gild Unrefinèd Gold" is a subpar discussion on the Golden Ratio. Finally, "Ready and Waiting" presents the history of supernova astronomy (with very little theory).
Asimov was one of the all-time greatest explainers of science. He generally wrote for an intelligent audience of non-scientists, and so he usually started at the very beginning and buildt gradually toward the complete idea. It's a delight to see how Asimov develops and explains a particular topic, even—and especially—when I know exactly what the punchline is going to be. Consequently, I greatly enjoy reading his work, even when the science is hopelessly out of date.
I will gradually read, and review, my collection of Asimov's essay compilations, which is very nearly complete. Partly, this is for my benefit, as I have long desired a catalog and handy reference guide to the essays I found particularly illuminating or masterfully written. Thus, these reviews will mostly center on the material itself, and not on the writing, which is uniformly excellent.
X Stands for Unknown includes the MFSF columns from January 1982 through May 1983, fairly late in Asimov's career. Of the seventeen essays, four concern the history of our knowledge of the electromagnetic spectrum, from radio waves to gamma rays. Four compare the chemistry of carbon and silicon and show why silicon life is not possible in an Earthlike (or, probably, any other) environment. (This was more powerfully explained in "The One and Only" in The Tragedy of the Moon, 1973.) "Silicon Life after All" contains a very nice explanation of semiconductors and transistors. Two feature Halley's Comet and discuss the historical context of its recorded appearances. Two trace how the Earth has become more and more insignificant within the known universe over the past two thousand years.
In the last two essays, Asimov illustrates the illogic and short-sightedness of Biblical literalism and pseudoscience (mainly astrology), respectively. These both contain great examples of scholarly yet venomously sarcastic wit.
In "Whatzisname's Orbit," he explains geostationary orbits and the generalization, Clarke orbits. "To Gild Unrefinèd Gold" is a subpar discussion on the Golden Ratio. Finally, "Ready and Waiting" presents the history of supernova astronomy (with very little theory).
December 2, 2019
Como fan de Asimov...Qué se puede decir de esta ensalada de ensayos científicos? Poco más que aplaudir al autor. Lectura muy agradable, por lo tanto, se hace muy rápida. Aunque uno domine los diversos campos de los ensayos, siempre hay algún detalle personal de Isaac que le redescubre al lector algo de todo aquello que ya sabías. Muy recomendado a cualquier amante de las ciencias y de la observación del autor.
August 23, 2018
Puedo decir que ha sido una gran lectura. Si quieren saber cómo se descubrió el espectro electromagnético, la vida del silicio, desde su descubrimiento, pasando por su semejanza con el átomo de carbono y su utilidad como semiconductor, algunas curiosidades sobre el cometa Halley, la órbita de Clarke (en honor a Arthur C. Clarke) y otras curiosidades más, les recomiendo este libro.
June 3, 2016
Su lectura me ha supuesto un esfuerzo de memoria y de búsqueda de términos que nunca he aprendido o ya había olvidado. Algunas partes se hacen un poco más pesadas pero en líneas generales me ha gustado, entretenido y enseñado cosas.
May 11, 2019
As always - Asimov, at his unwavering best.
April 11, 2025
Asimov explora explora la curiosidad humana a través de ensayos sobre física, química, astronomía y matemáticas. Revela la importancia del conocimiento como juego, desde la visión óptica hasta el carbono como esencia de vida, culminando en el entendimiento del cosmos. Con una mezcla de ciencia e introspección a profundizar en la observación y el análisis para comprender mejor nuestro mundo y a nosotros mismos.
January 4, 2019
F&SF Science articles from 1982 and 1983.
October 14, 2023
Asimov wrote about so many topics! So far I have only read the title story which was about the discovery of x-rays and radiation - quite interesting! I found myself reading bits aloud to my husband and then we fell down the Internet rabbit hole. Back to reading…
December 16, 2016
I have a feeling I'm going to be reading and rating as 5 star a lot of Asimov's works. Something about his writing, style of humor, and intelligence that just connects with me. It doesn't matter what he writes about. This collection of pop science essays was wonderful. Such a treasure of knowledge in topics that include Physics, Chemistry, Astronomy, and Mathematics. If I would have known about these in high school it would have greatly improved my appreciation for the sciences and certainly makes me want to support the current push for STEM education.
The physics essays were on the Electromagnetic Spectrum and went from the visible spectrum up through x-rays in the 4 essays. The chemistry essays were about Silicon and were probably my least favorite and took the longest to get through but had an interesting ending. I think I enjoyed the Astronomy essays the most as well as the final 2 which were under the heading Fringe. These talked about Fundamentalist Christians and how the Bible talks about a flat earth in the first essay and the mass of uneducated pushing pseudoscience and fake news in the second. He ends the book with a 30+ year message to those of us that try to push forward with fact and rigor through the sea of make-believe that armchair facebook warriors push.
The physics essays were on the Electromagnetic Spectrum and went from the visible spectrum up through x-rays in the 4 essays. The chemistry essays were about Silicon and were probably my least favorite and took the longest to get through but had an interesting ending. I think I enjoyed the Astronomy essays the most as well as the final 2 which were under the heading Fringe. These talked about Fundamentalist Christians and how the Bible talks about a flat earth in the first essay and the mass of uneducated pushing pseudoscience and fake news in the second. He ends the book with a 30+ year message to those of us that try to push forward with fact and rigor through the sea of make-believe that armchair facebook warriors push.
March 14, 2016
It is kind of embarrassing to admit that this is the first Isaac Asimov book that I have read, and it's not even science fiction or a book about robots. Nonetheless, I did enjoy Asimov's non-fiction writing in this compilation of his science essays from 1982 to 1983.
The essays in this book are divided into five sections: 1) Physics where Asimov told the tale of discovering various waves starting from the visible light to the infrared and ultraviolet, and beyond; 2) Chemistry where he discussed the similarity of carbon and silicon, why carbon has been the basis of life, and how silicon was able to develop into the basis of [artificial] life; 3) Astronomy where Asimov talked about axis, orbits, and our physical place (i.e. location) in the universe; 4) Mathematics which contains only one chapter which I only half-read as I was too lazy to exercise my math skills to understand him; and 5) The Fringe where Asimov talked about the pseudoscientific claims of the Biblical flat earth and astrology.
Over-all, I enjoyed reading his writing style of starting each chapter with oftentimes humorous personal anecdotes. It is also quite fun to discover what the over-all theme of a particular section is especially that their titles are very general and vague.
The essays in this book are divided into five sections: 1) Physics where Asimov told the tale of discovering various waves starting from the visible light to the infrared and ultraviolet, and beyond; 2) Chemistry where he discussed the similarity of carbon and silicon, why carbon has been the basis of life, and how silicon was able to develop into the basis of [artificial] life; 3) Astronomy where Asimov talked about axis, orbits, and our physical place (i.e. location) in the universe; 4) Mathematics which contains only one chapter which I only half-read as I was too lazy to exercise my math skills to understand him; and 5) The Fringe where Asimov talked about the pseudoscientific claims of the Biblical flat earth and astrology.
Over-all, I enjoyed reading his writing style of starting each chapter with oftentimes humorous personal anecdotes. It is also quite fun to discover what the over-all theme of a particular section is especially that their titles are very general and vague.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 1, 2016
As a collection of scientific essays, this work offers quite a bit of variety, and a fair amount of depth. Ranging from chemistry to mathematics, and from astronomy to physics and beyond, Asimov's writing balances an exploration of how we've come to know and understand facets of existence and science with questions of why the journey forward toward truth has been so important and varied, as well as with what comes next. Though some of the essays are heavy enough in the terminology of science that they make for slow reading, many of them are not, and Asimov seems to write with the average reader in mind--one who knows a bit about science, and is interested, but hasn't made a career out of it. Thus, though some essays slowed me down more than others, I really enjoy wandering through the collection. Basic as the topics are, Asimov's presentation and depth, with a focus on uncovering how we've gotten this far in terms of understanding, was a nice overview and refresher.
All told, yes, I'd recommend it for those who find themselves interested.
All told, yes, I'd recommend it for those who find themselves interested.
Read
December 26, 2014 This book is brilliant, I've been never interested in science but this is BLOW-MINDING. It is a collection of seventeen nonfiction science essays,my favorite was Chemistry.
My story with the book is; I had a mathematical research so I went to University’s library and found it, I was fascinated with everything. I thought it will be a good idea since the science wasn't my thing. I wanted to give it a try on something I was surely I won't like. I borrowed it for two week and it was amazing, sadly next week I'll bring it back, my heart is falling into pieces,if I find it I'll definitely buy it.I recommend it for everyone.
And yeah there was an interesting quote I've found in the end of the introduction " May X always be with us to afford to pleasure us."
My story with the book is; I had a mathematical research so I went to University’s library and found it, I was fascinated with everything. I thought it will be a good idea since the science wasn't my thing. I wanted to give it a try on something I was surely I won't like. I borrowed it for two week and it was amazing, sadly next week I'll bring it back, my heart is falling into pieces,if I find it I'll definitely buy it.I recommend it for everyone.
And yeah there was an interesting quote I've found in the end of the introduction " May X always be with us to afford to pleasure us."
February 22, 2009
Some nice essays on a variety of scientific subjects: the physics essays concentrate on electromagnetic radiation whilst those on chemistry discuss silicon and carbon. The last two essays contain well-needed attacks on creationism and astrology: sometimes I wish that Asimov was still around today so he could go on one of those silly religious ''debating'' programs and teach the zealots a lesson or two.
December 5, 2016
The 17 essays in this collection were originally printed in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. They cover topics in physics, chemistry, astronomy and mathematics. The ending essays deal with the state of science in education and religion. For the most part they covered the major developments and discoveries in these fields from their beginnings to the early 80s and are the basis for technology today. Interesting and informative.
April 30, 2011
un memorable
December 31, 2016
PAs la bonne édition, il faut corriger ça.
De la vulgarisation scientifique de qualité, mais trop simple pour quelqu'un qui possède un peu de background scientifique pré-existant.
De la vulgarisation scientifique de qualité, mais trop simple pour quelqu'un qui possède un peu de background scientifique pré-existant.
June 30, 2013
A collection of Asmiov's science articles.
March 23, 2018
I liked the astronomy essays in particular. He describes novas and a supernova from the year 1054 which was brighter than Venus at its peak and was visible in the daytime for 3 weeks. This is now visible as the crab nebula (M1).
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews