Isaac Asimov

Isaac Asimov concerned himself greatly with futuristic matters, especially with technological innovations. He was also greatly concerned with the evolution of man, not just the physical evolution, but also the intellectual, social, and cultural. Putting these two aspects together, he often wrote about how technology changes the evolution of humans. In his writings he wanted to stress humans as much as possible rather than technology. For example, he would emphasize more on how certain technological changes affected or had an impact on humans and how humans reacted, rather than the technological change itself. Asimov based his science fiction on the sociological changes of mankind. He wrote about how this process is unstoppable, which is the whole basis behind the science of psychohistory. Also, in Foundation he stresses ideas more than battles. There are two very important steps that Asimov saw for the immediate future that need to be covered in a research paper: 1) computerization of society, and 2) the extension of our capabilities through space research and exploration. He wrote about how the computer was not only necessary for the future, but the only future that would work (A Prophet For Our Time). Also, how technological advances and over-population could present a danger in the future, and how these advances could prevent these dangers. He also wrote about how humans and robotics could aid humans and how computers would work within robots. Back in the middle of this century these ideas would have been laughed at; however, they are actually being played out today. We can especially see this in the computerization of our society. Humans have become ever so dependant on computers.

Considering how Asimov was an atheist one can see why he would use the word "barbarians" to describe those who believe, and "delusional" to describe religion in general. This is most likely because Asimov thought that people who believed in Christianity did so only because they were uneducated and ignorant. He basically says that religion is a crutch for people's stupidity and weak minds. Asimov is quoted, "To surrender to ignorance and call it God has always been premature, and it remains premature today." Another factor would be history; how knowledge of history is so vital to the human race. Asimov is greatly concerned with the intellectual and cultural evolution of man. He always shows that what will happen in the future is just history repeating itself. This is the concept of psychohistory. He constantly refers to the past to present many topics and to back up many arguments. For example, Seldon He makes references to the Roman Empire; about its rises and collapse. Asimov frequently recalls the humanist movement and the Enlightenment. Isaac Asimov would definitely fall into the category of humanists and rationalists. He said that we should feel free to think for ourselves, using reason as our guide. This was a popular ideal of the Enlightenment. We may provide you with a custom essay on Foundation, in which Asimov presents a very strange concept, psychohistory. This is a science of mathematics that involves predicting mass human behavior and future history, along with the history of human's reactions to economic and social stimuli. (20 century) Lastly, the period in which he lived had an impact on his writings. When he talks about government in his books he refers to how the present system of government evolved and how it is prospering.