Isaac Asimov

Also known as Isaak Osimov, Paul French, Asimov, Isaak Ozimov, Itzhak Ozimov

American writer and biochemist (1920–1992)

OverviewAI-generated

Isaac Asimov was a biochemist, novelist, prose writer, and autobiographer born in Petrovichi on 2 January 1920. He held citizenship in the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the United States. Asimov was educated at Columbia University and the Columbia University School of General Studies. He was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Democratic Party.

His notable works include the Foundation series, Robot series, Nightfall, and The Intelligent Man's Guide to Science. He received the Hugo Award, Edward E. Smith Memorial Award, Nebula Award for Best Novel, and Locus Award for Best Novel. He also wrote under the pseudonyms Paul French and H. B. Ogden.

Asimov died in Manhattan on 6 April 1992 from kidney failure and heart failure due to natural causes. He participated in World War II. He spoke and wrote in English and Yiddish. His spouse was Janet Asimov.

Synthesized by Vinony from 54 facts across 10 sources: Wikidata, Crossref, Open Library, MusicBrainz, Last.fm, TMDb, Wikiquote, VIAF, Vinony collections, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Person · Open Library

Born: 2 January 1920
Died: 6 April 1992
Works: 1447

Top works

Great Tales of Crime and Detection
Eu, Robô
Eu, Robô
Box Fundação
The Foundation Novels 7-Book Bundle

via Open Library + Wikidata

Film & TV

Writing · Petrovichi, Russia

Isaac Asimov (born Isaak Yudovich Ozimov, January 2, 1920 – April 6, 1992) was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 9,000 letters and postcards. His works have been…

Known for

Isaac Asimov: A Message to the Future — Self (archive footage)2022
Rendezvous with the Future — Self (archive footage)2022
History 101 — Self (archive footage)2020
The Real History of Science Fiction — Himself (archive footage)2014
This Fantastic World 12 — (archive)1987
Isaac Asimov: Voyage to the Outer Planets & Beyond — Self - Host1986
Who's Who1986
Doctor Who's Who's Who1985
Target... Earth? — Self1980
Since '45 — Self1979

via TMDB

Music · MusicBrainz

Type: Person
Gender: Male
Origin: United States
Active from: 1920
Active to: 1992

has german audio plays

Discography

Discogs

via MusicBrainz · CC0

Listeners · Last.fm

Listeners: 6,376
Total plays: 153,267

Recent publications · Crossref

5 total works indexed

via Crossref · CC0

Authority record · VIAF

Lifespan: 1920–1992
Nationality: US, RU, USA
Role / Field: Authors, Science writers, Romanciers, Medical teaching personnel, Humanists, Short stories
Language: eng
Gender: Male

Recorded by 42 libraries

via VIAF · OCLC

Quotes

“It is the nature of science that answers automatically pose new and more subtle questions.”
“People who want to do so can lose weight most safely and permanently if they realize that above all they must be patient. ... It is better to eat a little less at each meal than impulse would suggest and to do that constantly. Add to this a little more exercise or activity than impulse suggests and keep that up constantly too. A few less calories taken in each day and a few more used up will decrease weight, slowly, to be sure, but without undue misery. And with better long-range results too.”
“The dullness of fact is the mother of fiction.”
“An observer studying the Solar system dispassionately, and finding himself capable of bringing the four giant planets to his notice, could reasonably say that the Solar system consisted of one star, four planets, and some traces of debris.”
“Outside intelligences, exploring the Solar System with true impartiality, would be quite likely to enter the Sun in their records thus: Star X, spectral class G0, 4 planets plus debris.”
“Predicting the future is a hopeless, thankless task, with ridicule to begin with and, all too often, scorn to end with.”

via Wikiquote · CC BY-SA

~40 min read

Encyclopedic overview

Isaac Asimov (/ˈæzɪmɒv/ AZ-im-ov; c. January 2, 1920 – April 6, 1992) was an American writer and professor of biochemistry at Boston University. During his lifetime, Asimov was considered one of the "Big Three" science fiction writers, along with Robert A. Heinlein and Arthur C. Clarke. He wrote or edited more than 500 books. He also wrote an estimated 90,000 letters and postcards. Best known for his hard science fiction, Asimov also wrote mysteries and fantasy, as well as popular science and other non-fiction, including guides to the Bible and William Shakespeare.

Asimov's most famous work is the Foundation series about a fallen space empire, the first three books of which won the one-time Hugo Award for "Best All-Time Series" in 1966. His other major series are the Galactic Empire series and the Robot series, which include major works such as The Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun, both written in the mid-1950s. The Galactic Empire novels are set in the much earlier history of the same fictional universe as the Foundation series. Later, with Foundation and Earth (1986), he linked this distant future to the Robot series, creating a unified "future history" for his works. He also wrote more than 380 short stories, including the social science fiction novelette "Nightfall", which in 1964 was voted the best short science fiction story of all time by the Science Fiction Writers of America. Asimov wrote the Lucky Starr series of juvenile science-fiction novels using the pen name Paul French.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Isaac Asimov” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.