Isaac Asimov

Author

Isaac Asimov was one of the most prolific and influential science fiction writers in history, a towering figure whose ideas about robots, artificial intelligence, and the future of civilisation have shaped not just the genre but the real world. He was also a distinguished scientist and one of the greatest science popularisers of the... twentieth century. Born Isaak Yudovich Ozimov in Petrovichi, Russia in 1920, Asimov emigrated to the United States with his family as a toddler and grew up in Brooklyn, New York. He showed extraordinary intellectual ability from a young age, teaching himself to read and devouring the science fiction magazines sold in his family's sweet shop. He studied Chemistry at Columbia University, earning his PhD, and went on to teach Biochemistry at Boston University. His science fiction career began in the late 1930s with short stories published in the legendary magazine Astounding Science Fiction. His early stories about robots introduced the Three Laws of Robotics — a set of rules governing robot behaviour that have become the most famous concept in the history of science fiction and have influenced real-world discussions about artificial intelligence and ethics. The Foundation series, beginning with Foundation in 1951, imagines a mathematician who uses a science called psychohistory to predict the fall of a galactic empire and attempts to shorten the dark age that follows. The series won a special Hugo Award as the best all-time series and was adapted by Apple TV+ into a major television production. Asimov's other major works include the Robot novels (The Caves of Steel, The Naked Sun), the Empire novels, and hundreds of short stories. He wrote or edited over 500 books across virtually every category of the Dewey Decimal System, including popular science, history, Shakespeare guides, and joke books. The audiobook editions of Asimov's classic novels and stories have introduced his work to new generations of listeners, with narrators bringing his ideas and characters to life for modern audiences. His clear, accessible prose translates beautifully to audio. Isaac Asimov died in 1992. His influence on science fiction, on the public understanding of science, and on our cultural imagination about the future is immeasurable. His books and audiobooks remain essential for anyone who wants to understand where modern science fiction began — and where the future might take us. Read more Show less