{"id":653,"date":"2015-11-15T04:50:14","date_gmt":"2015-11-15T04:50:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/repeatright.com\/engine\/?p=653"},"modified":"2018-10-09T02:17:02","modified_gmt":"2018-10-09T02:17:02","slug":"asimov-isaac","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.repeatright.com\/engine\/asimov-isaac\/","title":{"rendered":"ASIMOV, Isaac"},"content":{"rendered":"
[vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453315804311{margin-top: -40px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531588223-e020d87d-f7dd094f-cf630460-f785″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cI don\u2019t subscribe to the thesis, \u201cLet the buyer beware.\u201d I prefer the disregarded one that goes, \u201cLet the seller be honest.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

Response to unnamed correspondent (13 April 1969) in Yours, Isaac Asimov, A Lifetime of Letters<\/em>, ed. Stanley Asimov, New York: Doubleday, 1995, p. 251<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531588755-96303790-852e094f-cf630460-f785″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0<\/em><\/strong> [Letter excerpt \u2013 Chapter 38. Full excerpt cited from selection of nearly \u201c45,000 carbons\u201d [copies] of letters from Asimov that his brother, Stanley Asimov, reviewed after his death. In his introduction to Yours, Isaac Asimov<\/em>, Asimov noted that \u201c…because the contents of the letters stand on their own merits, I have omitted the names of the recipients. Only in those cases where it\u2019s vital to understanding the letters have I indicated to whom the letter was written.\u201d (p. xiii)]:<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t subscribe to the thesis, \u201cLet the buyer beware.\u201d I prefer the disregarded one that goes, \u201cLet the seller be honest.<\/span>\u201d<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1449531589797-29580b31-8c50094f-cf630460-f785″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Editor\u2019s copy \u2013 Yours, Isaac Asimov, A Lifetime of Letters <\/em>(1995) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-385-47624-8[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315829087-ce67c619-0fbc0460-f785″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cI suppose he\u2019s entitled to his opinion, but I don\u2019t suppose it very hard.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

\u201cSeven Steps to Grand Master\u201d (1988) in The Nebula Awards 22: SFWA\u2019s Choices for the Best Science Fiction and Fantasy 1986<\/em>, ed. George Zebrowski, Vol. 22, New York,\u00a0NY:Arbor House, 1988, p. 25<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315829475-7c82a017-1e620460-f785″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/p>\n

\u201cStep 6 \u2013 A Critic Asks a Question | In 1957, I published my novel The Naked Sun<\/em> in book form. It was a science fiction mystery. Also, it had a rather understated love story in it with a rather toughing final scene between the lovers. Damon Knight reviewed the book, and he wasn\u2019t in the least impressed by the science fiction or the mystery. (I suppose he\u2019s entitled to his opinion, but I don\u2019t suppose it very hard.<\/span>) However, he liked the love story. \u201cIf you can write like that, Asimov,\u201d he asked rhetorically in the course of his review, \u201cwhy do you bother writing science fiction?\u201d To which I answered in a letter that appeared in the magazine in with the review had earlier appeared, \u201cBecause I love science fiction. No matter what else happens, I will never stop writing science fiction. \u2026\u201d (p. 25)<\/p>\n

Source note<\/em><\/strong>: Asimov also included the essay in book The Tyrannosaurus Prescription and 100 Other Essays<\/em> [Prometheus Books, 1989 (ISBN) 0-87975-540-7][\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1453315829682-63e8fade-cf4c0460-f785″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Library \u2013 The Nebula Awards 22<\/em> (1988) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-15-665476-8[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1e0460-f785″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cIt is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be\u2026This, in turn, means that our statesmen, our businessmen, our everyman must take on a science fictional way of thinking.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

\u201cMy Own View,\u201d foreword to The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction <\/em>(1978) Reprint in Asimov on Science Fiction<\/em>, New York, NY:Doubleday, 1 Jan. 1981, p. 19<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bf0460-f785″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0<\/em><\/strong> [Encyclopedia foreword, reprinted in Asimov essay collection]:<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be \u2013 and naturally this means that there must be an accurate perception of the world as it will be.<\/span> This, in turn, means that our statesmen, our businessmen, our everyman must take on a science fictional way of thinking.<\/span>\u201d (p. 19)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1453315828572-dac97b48-68e00460-f785″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>:<\/span> Library \u2013 Asimov on Science Fiction<\/em> (1981) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-385-17443-8[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf630460-f785″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cI<\/strong>t isn\u2019t just a library. It is a space ship that will take you to the farthest reaches of the Universe, a time machine that will take you to the far past and far future, a teacher that knows more than any human being, a friend that will amuse you and console you \u2013 and most of all, a gateway to a better and happier and more useful life.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

Letter to the Troy Public Library (16 March 1971) Troy, Michigan; image & transcript of Asimov\u2019s letter online via Shaun Usher, \u201cA library is many things,\u201d blog\u00a0post, Letters of Note,<\/em> www.lettersofnote.com<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf630460-f785″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0<\/em><\/strong> [Letter to children of Troy, MI, congratulating them on their new public library.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cCongratulations on the new library, because it isn\u2019t just a library. It is a space ship that will take you to the farthest reaches of the Universe, a time machine that will take you to the far past and far future, a teacher that knows more than any human being, a friend that will amuse you and console you \u2013 and most of all, a gateway to a better and happier and more useful life<\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1449531592891-f39e055b-a66e094f-cf630460-f785″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Asimov letter to Troy Public Library (16 Mar 1971) Image & text via Letters of Note<\/em>: http:\/\/www.lettersofnote.com\/2011\/05\/library-is-many-things.html<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1523208421076-3a0069e1-3894″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cKnowledge is indivisible. When people grow wise in one direction, they are sure to make it easier for themselves to grow wise in other directions as well. On the other hand, when they split up knowledge, concentrate on their own field, and score and ignore other fields, they grow less wise \u2013 even in their own field.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

Introduction to a chapter discussing \u2018interconnection\u2019 between art and science, The Roving Mind<\/em> (1983) Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books, 1997 edition, p. 116<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1523208421282-c14eff53-e514″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0 <\/em><\/strong>[Non-fiction]:<\/p>\n

\u201cKnowledge is indivisible. When people grow wise in one direction, they are sure to make it easier for themselves to grow wise in other directions as well. On the other hand, when they split up knowledge, concentrate on their own field, and score and ignore other fields, they grow less wise \u2013 even in their own field.<\/span><\/p>\n

How often people speak of art and science as though they were two entirely different things, with no interconnection. \u2026 That is all wrong. The true artist is quite rational as well as imaginative and knows what he is doing; if he does not, his art suffers. The true scientist is quite imaginative as well as rational, and sometimes leaps to solutions where reason can follow only slowly; if he does not, his science suffers. (p. 116)[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1523208421396-2c85eae2-4c3e”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>:<\/span> Library \u2013 The Roving Mind<\/em> (1983) Prometheus Books, 1997 edition – International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 1-57392-181-5[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1523208407512-5855c806-a4c7″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cMan\u2019s greatest weapons in his conquest of knowledge are his understanding mind and the inexorable curiosity that drives it on.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

The Intelligent Man\u2019s Guide to Science <\/em>(1960) Vol. I, \u2018The Physical Sciences,\u2019 New York: Basic Books, 1962 edition, p. 64<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-ban” add_icon=”true” title=”Re-Quote” tab_id=”1523208407598-29db5bcb-4ac2″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Re-quote note<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: The original gender reference was edited when Basic Books republished Asimov\u2019s essay in Asimov\u2019s New Guide to Science <\/em>in 1984:<\/p>\n

1984<\/strong><\/span> update: \u201cThe greatest weapons in the conquest of knowledge are an understanding mind and the inexorable curiosity that drives it on<\/span>.\u201d (Basic Books, p. 56)<\/p>\n

1960<\/strong> <\/span>original text: “Man’s greatest weapons in his conquest of knowledge are his understanding mind and the inexorable curiosity that drives it on<\/span>.”[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1523208407694-9061c17c-6c45″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0<\/em><\/strong> [Non-fiction]:<\/p>\n

\u201cMan\u2019s greatest weapons in his conquest of knowledge are his understanding mind and the inexorable curiosity that drives it on.<\/span> And his resourceful mind has continually invented new instruments which have opened up horizons beyond the reach of his unaided sense organs.\u201d (p. 64)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1523208407796-646baae6-3a2e”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Library \u2013 The Intelligent Man\u2019s Guide to Science <\/em>(1962) Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) Number: 930530723<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1523209201658-84b8b193-adf5″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cNever let your sense of morals prevent you from doing what is right.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Wedge\u201d (October 1944) ‘Foundation’ series short story in Astounding Science Fiction<\/em>, ed. John W. Campbell, New York: Street & Smith Publications, Inc.; reprint as part of full story text; Foundation, <\/em>1951, New York: Bantam Dell, June 2004 edition, Vol. I, p. 143<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1523209201756-74306cc3-697d”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 <\/em>[Fictional narrative – \u2018Salvor Hardin\u2019 is a Asimov fictional character.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cTales without end are told of these massive, lonely figures who bore half-seriously, half-mockingly a motto adopted from one of Salvor Hardin\u2019s epigrams, \u201cNever let your sense of morals prevent you from doing what is right!<\/span>\u201d (p. 143)<\/p>\n

Source Note<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> \u201cThe Wedge\u201d is one in a series of eight \u201cFoundation\u201d short stories Asimov published in Astounding Science Fiction<\/em> between 1942 and 1950. The stories were eventually republished as part of Asimov\u2019s Foundation<\/em> trilogy book series beginning in 1951.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1523209201866-51050004-bb80″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>:\u00a0<\/span> Library \u2013 Foundation <\/em>(1951 \u2013 2004 Bantam Dell edition) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-553-90034-X<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1523209202136-48267e5a-a35e”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cOld men tend to forget what thought was like in their youth; they forget the quickness of the mental jump, the daring of the youthful intuition, the agility of the fresh insight.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

Pebble in the Sky<\/em> (1950) New York: Orb Books, 2010 edition, p. 131<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1523209202440-d4fb5f83-2dd1″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 <\/em>[Fictional narrative]:<\/p>\n

\u201cOld men tend to forget what thought was like in their youth; they forget the quickness of the mental jump, the daring of the youthful intuition, the agility of the fresh insight.<\/span> They become accustomed to the more plodding varieties of reason, and because this is more than made up by the accumulation of experience, old men think themselves wiser than the young.\u201d (p. 131)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1523209202662-33e9d14a-92da”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>:\u00a0 Library \u2013 Pebble in the Sky <\/em>(1950 \u2013 2010 Orb Books edition) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 978-0-7653-1913-5<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1523209196314-1d036f87-3919″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cScience does not purvey absolute truth, science is a mechanism. It\u2019s a way of trying to improve your knowledge of nature, it\u2019s a system for testing your thoughts against the universe and seeing whether they match.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

Partial response to interview question \u201cWhat\u2019s the real knowledge?\u201d (October 1988) Interview with Bill Moyers, Cooper Union, New York City; transcript in \u201cIsaac Asimov: Writer,\u201d Bill Moyers: A World of Ideas<\/em>, ed. Betty Sue Flowers, New York, NY: Doubleday, p. 270. Portions of interview video online via \u201cIsaac Asimov on His Faith in the Power of Human Reason,\u201d 17 October 1988, Moyers & Company, billmoyers.com<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1523209196404-f731520a-89e6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong> [Interview]:<\/p>\n

Interviewer Bill Moyers<\/u>: \u201cWhat\u2019s the real knowledge?\u201d<\/p>\n

Isaac Asimov<\/u>: \u201cWe can\u2019t be absolutely certain. Science does not purvey absolute truth, science is a mechanism. It\u2019s a way of trying to improve your knowledge of nature, it\u2019s a system for testing your thoughts against the universe and seeing whether they match.<\/span> This works not just for the ordinary aspects of science, but for all of life.\u201d (p. 270)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1523209196500-15222c3a-6fe9″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: [Book] Editor\u2019s copy \u2013 Bill Moyers: A World of Ideas<\/em> (May 1989) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-385-26278-5<\/p>\n

Source link<\/strong><\/span>:<\/em> [Video]: \u201cIsaac Asimov on His Faith in the Power of Human Reason\u201d (17 Oct. 1988) Moyers & Co: http:\/\/billmoyers.com\/content\/isaac-asimov-on-his-faith-in-the-power-of-human-reason\/<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1523209196724-2c6c99eb-342d”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cThere is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that \u201cmy ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

\u201cA Cult of Ignorance\u201d (21 January 1980) Newsweek<\/em> magazine, Vol. 95, column 1, p. 19; .pdf copy of article available online via Aphelis, www.aphelis.net<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1523209196966-4c4c118b-6550″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0 <\/em><\/strong>[Essay]:<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard to quarrel with that ancient justification of the free press: \u201cAmerica\u2019s right to know.\u201d It seems almost cruel to ask, ingenuously, \u201cAmerica\u2019s right to know what, please? Science? Mathematics? Economics? Foreign languages?\u201d<\/p>\n

None of those things, of course. In fact, one might well suppose that the popular feeling is that Americans are a lot better off without any of that tripe.<\/p>\n

There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that \u201cmy ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.<\/span>\u201d (column 1, p. 19)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1523209197094-069b5305-5955″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span>:\u00a0 \u201cA Cult of Ignorance\u201d (21 January 1980) Newsweek<\/em>; .pdf file of article online via Aphelis: http:\/\/media.aphelis.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/ASIMOV_1980_Cult_of_Ignorance.pdf<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1523209596246-b6a7a55e-8581″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cT<\/strong>here is no belief, however foolish, that will not gather its faithful adherents who will defend it to the death.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

\u201cScience: Worlds in Confusion\u201d (October 1969) The Magazine of <\/em>Fantasy and Science Fiction; <\/em>reprint in The Stars in Their Courses<\/em>, Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Co., 1971, p. 36<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1523209596390-f17f0e26-4d9c”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0 <\/em><\/strong>[Essay]:<\/p>\n

\u201cIn my recent book on the Bible, I naturally had occasion to refer to the plagues that visited Egypt in the time of Moses, as described in the Book of Exodus. In doing so I said:<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough these plagues, if they had taken place as described in the Bible, must have loomed large in any contemporary records or in later histories, no reference to them is to be found in any source outside the Bible. In 1950, Immanuel Velikovsky, in his book Worlds in Collision<\/em> attempted to account for the plagues (and for some other events described in the Bible) by supposing that the planet Venus had undergone a near collision with the earth. The book created a moderate sensation among the general public for a while but the reaction of astronomers varied from amusement to anger, and the Velikovsian theory has never, for one moment, been taken seriously either by scientists or by Biblical scholars.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s all I said, and it seems to me that I spoke gently and without undue heat. Nevertheless, the vials of wrath were opened upon me and I received a number of letters from ardent Velikovskians denouncing my innocent statement with a great deal of emotional fervor.<\/p>\n

Which just goes to bear out my feeling that there is no belief, however foolish, that will not gather its faithful adherents who will defend it to the death<\/span>.\u201d (p. 36)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1523209596538-55aa647c-c5d0″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>:<\/span> Library \u2013\u00a0The Stars in Their Courses <\/em>(1974) Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) No. 118506<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1523209596880-d6a30194-f7bb”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cTo surrender to ignorance and call it God has always been premature, and it remains premature today.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

\u201cThe \u2018Threat\u2019 of Creationism\u201d (14 June 1981) The New York Times <\/em>Magazine<\/em>, in The New York Times<\/em>, Vol. CXXX, No. 44,979, New York, NY: The New York Times Co., section 6, p. 92, column 3; online via The New York Times archives [subscription service], www.nytimes.com<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1523209597234-1cae09b9-d26b”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0<\/em><\/strong> [Essay]:<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are many aspects of the universe that still cannot be explained satisfactorily by science; but ignorance implies only ignorance that may someday be conquered. To surrender to ignorance and call it God has always been premature, and it remains premature today<\/span>.\u201d\u00a0 (Page 92, column 3 of NY Times Magazine<\/em>. Page 378 of full electronic edition file.)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1523209597452-5a68bf8a-277f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: \u201cThe \u2018Threat\u2019 of Creationism\u201d (14 June 1981) online via The New York Times Magazine<\/em>: http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1981\/06\/14\/magazine\/the-threat-of-creationism.html?pagewanted=2<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1523210174396-f64bb2e9-1526″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cWhere is the world whose people don\u2019t prefer a comfortable, warm, and well-worn belief, however illogical, to the chilly winds of uncertainty?\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

Foundation and Earth<\/em> (1986) Garden City, NY: Doubleday, September 1986 edition, p. 105<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1523210174572-b75cb1c4-083b”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0<\/em><\/strong> [Fictional dialogue]:<\/p>\n

\u201cExactly as you do, Councilman. I accept only what I am forced to accept by reasonably reliable evidence, and keep that acceptance tentative pending the arrival of further evidence. That doesn\u2019t make us popular.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy not?\u201d said Trevize.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wouldn\u2019t be popular anywhere. Where is the world whose people don\u2019t prefer a comfortable, warm, and well-worn belief, however illogical, to the chilly winds of uncertainty?<\/span>\u201d (p. 105)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1523210174782-1d7f211c-de2e”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>:<\/span> Library \u2013 Foundation and Earth<\/em> (1986) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-385-23312-4[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1523210175348-9b0219cb-0c40″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cViolence is the last refuge of the incompetent.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Isaac Asimov<\/strong>, Russian-American author, educator & scientist<\/p>\n

\u201cFoundation\u201d (1942) in Astounding Science Fiction<\/em>, Vol. XXIV, No. 3, ed. John W. Campbell, Jr., New York: Street & Smith Publications, Inc., May 1942, p. 49, column 2; scanned image online via Gabriel Schenk, \u201cAstounding Science-Fiction May 1942,\u201d blog post 1 March 2015, gabrielschenk.com<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-ban” add_icon=”true” title=”Re-Quote” tab_id=”1523210175616-4ab5b895-3ca2″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Re-quote note<\/em><\/strong><\/span>:<\/p>\n

The phrase \u201clast refuge of the incompetent<\/span>\u201d was not coined by Asimov. Although we did not find an earlier source that used the phrase to define violence, there were several other iterations of it in the early 1900s & late 1800s. Examples include:<\/p>\n

1878<\/u><\/strong><\/span>: \u201cUniversal philanthropy is the last refuge of the incompetent<\/strong><\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n

(Source<\/em>: \u201cNumber One,\u201d 7 March 1878, Truth <\/em>magazine, Vol. III, London: Truth, p. 310)<\/p>\n

1901<\/u><\/span><\/strong>: \u201cThe plea of the \u201cinevitable\u201d is the last refuge of the incompetent<\/strong><\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n

(Source:<\/em> Peace or War in South Africa, <\/em>A.M.S. Methuen, London: Methuen & Co., 16th ed., p. 238)<\/p>\n

1931<\/u><\/span>:<\/u><\/strong> \u201cPublic office\u2026is the last refuge of the incompetent<\/strong><\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n

(Source<\/em>: Boies Penrose, Pennsylvania senator, in \u201cPower & Glory,\u201d Collier\u2019s Weekly, 14 Feb. 1931)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1523210175922-c929afea-95c5″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0<\/em><\/strong> [Fictional dialogue]:<\/p>\n

\u201cYate Fulham\u2019s mustache twitched. \u201cThat sounds as if you have made up your mind that violence must be used against them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cViolence<\/span>,\u201d came the retort, \u201cis the last refuge of the incompetent.<\/span> But I certainly don\u2019t intent to lay down the welcome mat and brush off the best furniture for their use.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI still don\u2019t like the way you put that,\u201d insisted Fulham. \u201cIt is a dangerous attitude; the more dangerous because we have noticed lately that a sizable section of the populace seems to respond to all your suggestions just so.\u201d (p. 49, column 2)<\/p>\n

Source Note<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> \u201cFoundation\u201d is one in a series of eight \u201cFoundation\u201d short stories Asimov published in Astounding Science Fiction<\/em> between 1942 and 1950. The stories were eventually republished as part of Asimov\u2019s Foundation<\/em> trilogy book series beginning in 1951.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1523210176258-ae5bf2b2-f331″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: \u201cFoundation\u201d (May 1942) in Astounding Science Fiction<\/em>; scanned image via Gabriel Schenk: https:\/\/phnewby.net\/other\/astounding-may1942.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1523400515394-4130cad0-1897″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Misattributed to Isaac Asimov<\/em><\/strong><\/span>:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe world gathers knowledge faster than wisdom.<\/span>\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Harry Egerton (H.E.) Wimperi<\/span>s<\/strong>, English aeronautical engineer<\/p>\n

20th Wilbur Wright Memorial Lecture to the Royal Aeronautical Society (26 May 1932) British Science Museum, London; cited in \u201cResearch Director Not Sorry it Is Ended,\u201d Nottingham Evening Post<\/em>, 27 May 1932, No. 16,817, p. 9, column 5; online via The British Newspaper Archive [subscription service] www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-ban” add_icon=”true” title=”Misattribution” tab_id=”1523210171286-409e9ff1-7c75″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Re-quote & misattribution notes<\/em><\/strong><\/span>:<\/p>\n

H.E. Wimperis wasn\u2019t the first person to express the idea that innovations often progress faster than our capacity to thoughtfully incorporate them. The specific \u201cworld gathers knowledge faster than wisdom<\/strong><\/span>\u201d quote, however, seems to have originated (and was certainly popularized) in his 1932 speech. The Wimperis quote was repeated (and attributed to him) almost immediately in both British and American newspapers from 1932 onward, and his quote has appeared a number of times in popular science magazines like Discovery<\/em>, etc.<\/p>\n

In more recent years, the author & scientist Isaac Asimov<\/span> <\/strong>has received credit for a slightly different spin on the Wimperis quote:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom<\/strong><\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n

This quote was included as the heading for chapter 72 \u2013 \u201cScience and Society\u201d in Isaac Asimov\u2019s Book of Science and Nature Quotations<\/em>. (1988, p. 281)<\/p>\n

Although Asimov didn\u2019t indicate that he was paraphrasing Wimperis, his \u2018gathers knowledge\u2019 word choice comes to close to earn many points for originality. If you\u2019re citing this Asimov version, Wimperis should also get a nod of recognition.<\/p>\n

[Source<\/em>: Isaac Asimov\u2019s Book of Science and Nature Quotations (1988) eds. Isaac Asimov & Jason A. Shulman, New York: Weidenfeld & Nicolnson, p. 281; online via Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/a>]<\/span><\/p>\n[\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1523400515616-f51d3063-3762″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0 <\/em><\/strong>[Newspaper coverage of lecture]:<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter surveying new methods in aeronautical research, Mr. Wimperis said: \u201cCan I truthfully say that all this activity is imperatively bound to add to human happiness? I fear not.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe provision by scientific research of increased power over nature produces greater happiness if, and only if, it is wisely employed. The world gathers knowledge faster than wisdom<\/span>.\u201d (p. 9, column 5)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1523400515866-614f43b6-8c9e”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source link<\/em><\/strong> [Featured source]<\/span>: <\/span>\u201cResearch Director Not Sorry it Is Ended\u201d (27 May 1932) Nottingham Evening Post<\/em>; online via The British Newspaper Archive [subscription service]: https:\/\/www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk\/viewer\/bl\/0000321\/19320527\/034\/0009<\/a><\/p>\n

Source link <\/em><\/strong>[Asimov re-quote – 1988]<\/span>: Isaac Asimov\u2019s Book of Science and Nature Quotations<\/em> ; online via Internet Archive: https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/BookOfScienceAndNatureQuotations-IsaacAsimov\/asimov-nature-quotes#page\/n299\/mode\/2up\/search\/gathers<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1523210171068-0fadf9b7-d4d8″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Misattributed to Isaac Asimov:
\n<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

“Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won’t come in.”<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Alan Alda<\/strong><\/span>, American actor & director<\/p>\n

\u201c62nd Commencement Address\u201d (1 June 1980) Connecticut College, London, CT; transcript online via Connecticut College, Paper 7, p. 3; https:\/\/digitalcommons.conncoll.edu<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-ban” add_icon=”true” title=”Misattribution” tab_id=”1523210171286-409e9ff1-7c75″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Misattibution note<\/em><\/strong><\/span>:<\/p>\n

This quote is frequently misattributed to author Isaac Asimov<\/strong><\/span>. The words, however, are original to Alda \u2013 we could find no record of Asimov sharing this idea (or a similar phrase) in any of his writing, interviews or other material.<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1523210171524-4d205431-e44d”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0<\/em><\/strong> [Alan Alda’s commencement speech to graduating class of Connecticut College. His daughter, Eve, was one of the students receiving her degree that day.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we can make distinctions, we can be tolerant, and we can get to the heart of our problems instead of wrestling endlessly with their gross exteriors. And once you make a habit of making distinctions, you\u2019ll begin challenging your own assumptions. Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while or the light won\u2019t come in.<\/span> If you challenge your own, you won\u2019t be so quick to accept the unchallenged assumptions of others.\u201d (pp. 2-3)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1523210171794-553dc156-d61b”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: \u201c62nd Commencement Speech, 1980\u201d (June 1980) online via Connecticut College: http:\/\/digitalcommons.conncoll.edu\/commence\/7\/<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]\n

Resources<\/h4>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css_animation=”none” el_class=”Wrapper-Author-Resources”]Learn more about Isaac Asimov<\/strong>|<\/span> Here are a few good places to start –<\/p>\n