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I might be unusual in the sense that in my teens I absolutely adored Asimov as a writer of non-fiction rather than as a sci-fi author. For the current generati
by srean 11mo ago
I might be unusual in the sense that in my teens I absolutely adored Asimov as a writer of non-fiction rather than as a sci-fi author.
For the current generation, I never miss a chance to mention Gamow's non-fiction.
It's unfortunate that works of great non-fiction writers evaporate away from our cultural consciousness after their death.
It makes me sad that there will be a generation, or maybe it's already upon us, one that has not delighted in Martin Gardner.
- asimoff 11mo ago> I absolutely adored Asimov as a writer of non-fiction rather than as a sci-fi author. I am the same, though frustratingly he still somehow managed to weave his casual misogyny into even his non-fiction works.
- falcor84 11mo agoI don't know if it says good or bad things about me, but I never noticed that. But maybe it's just because I started reading his works long after their initial release. In particular, I was quite surprised to later learn that "Asimov's New Guide to Science" was originally published as "The Intelligent Man's Guide to Science".
- opo 11mo agoThe title was chosen by the publisher: >...The book's title was Svirsky's, chosen as a deliberate homage to George Bernard Shaw's The Intelligent Woman's Guide to Socialism and Capitalism (1928). Asimov feared the title would be seen as elitist and condescending, and he suggested Everyone's Guide to Science as an alternative, but Svirsky refused. Years later, when he was confronted by annoyed feminists who asked why the book was restricted to men, Asimov would claim that the "intelligent man" of the title referred to himself;[3] thus anticipating the title Asimov's Guide to Science adopted for the third edition. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Intelligent_Man%27s_Guide_to_Science https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Intelligent_Man%27s_Guide_...
- sam_lowry_ 11mo agoSays an account created just to post this horseshit.
- asimoff 11mo agoClearly you and I have different definitions of "horseshit". Is this your immature way of asking for an example of what I am addressing in my comment?
- fn-mote 11mo agoThis would be a much more appreciated comment if it included even one example. I’m willing to believe it, but I didn’t notice any in the time I was reading his fiction.
- carbarjartar 11mo agoOne example off the top of my head... In The Building Blocks Of The Universe's section on Calcium: > Another way of getting round the problem of hard water is to manufacture compounds that behave like soap but don't form insoluble compounds with calcium. Many types of such detergents have been put on the market in the last ten years, and hard water is far less of a problem for the housewife than it used to be. Reads like '90s era comedy, ala "women be cleaning, amirite?", without even the lazy backdoor of "its just a joke".
- chmod775 11mo agoThis is such an uncharitable reading. "Housewifes" were extremely common then and were marketed to quite extensively in those product categories. Acknowledging them in some form is not the same as saying "I have deeply thought about the state of our society and have come to the conclusion that all is as should be."
- veqq 11mo agoWhich of Gamow's do you recommend? Physics Foundation and Frontiers looks nice.
- srean 11mo agoMy favorite is one two three ... infinity.
- akashshah87 11mo ago>> I might be unusual in the sense that in my teens I absolutely adored Asimov as a writer of non-fiction rather than as a sci-fi author. That's because he was only the second-best sci-fi writer but the best science writer in the world at the time [Clarke-Asimov Treaty of Park Avenue|https://sfandfantasy.co.uk/php/the-big-3.php https://sfandfantasy.co.uk/php/the-big-3.php]
- srean 11mo agoHa! I did not know about this. Arthur C Clarke was indeed my favourite at that time (even now). Asimov, however, killed it with his two goosebump-good shorts, Nightfall and Last Question.
- pavel_lishin 11mo agoI don't remember reading any Clarke short stories, though I do remember a few books favorably - but Asimov's stories were incredible, and stick with me to this day. I should get a few more of his short story collections for the kiddo, I think I have a few of his non-fiction ones on a bookshelf somewhere.
- addaon 11mo ago> I don't remember reading any Clarke short stories Stop what you’re doing and read The Star.
- pavel_lishin 11mo agoOh yeah, I remember that one! I forgot that Clarke wrote it.
- throwaway81523 11mo agoThe 9 billion names of God is very famous.
- zem 11mo agobrilliant stories both, but my two favourite asimov shorts are "profession" (I really, really love the trope that a regimented society depends on outcasts and outsiders for any sort of innovation) and "the martian way" (one of his more minor shorts, but it captures the joy and optimism of golden age solar system exploration fiction like nothing else I've read)
- the__alchemist 11mo agoSagan's books are still very popular, long after his time.
- mmooss 11mo ago> It's unfortunate that works of great non-fiction writers evaporate away from our cultural consciousness after their death. That's a bit of an overstatement? There's Confucius, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad, ... Darwin, Newton, Einstein, ... Jefferson, Decartes, .... (you get the idea). It is a competitive field; what's sufficient to win attention in the current generation is often not enough for future generations, which have their own contemporary writers.
- zem 11mo agomartin gardner stood head and shoulders above everyone else for me, but asimov did indeed have some great works of non-fiction.