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Title: I ( Robot)
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Review of I ( Robot)

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Comments for I ( Robot)

• Posted on 2010-03-01
  Review of I, Robot
  
  I picked this book up out of my pile of books waiting to be read on a whim. I remembered vaguely watching a Will Smith movie by the same name and thought, hm.. this could be a fun, easy read.
  
  Boy was I wrong.
  
  It was fun! That I will say. Easy however, it was not. This book really made me think.
  
  First of all, this is a story about robots and their effect on the futuristic world (which in itself is pretty funny considering it begins in 1996 and the things being written about have yet to come to pass). But that description is of the story at its most basic.
  
  The first story being told in the book gripped me. The love a child has for a non-speaking robot nanny. But it didn't set the stage well for the story that followed after - not to say I didn't enjoy it, I just.. went into the book after that opening expecting something different. What I got was a harsh jolt of reality, a lot of science and multiple brain-teasing puzzles. Once I got over the initial shock I began to really enjoy myself, but had to stop several times to digest what I was reading and think it over.
  
  This book is told in a very journalistic style, which makes sense as the stories being told are being told to someone asking questions about them. It's not a warm, fuzzy feel-good type of story. It's cold and harsh at points and it fully lays open the flaws of humanity. Being human means despite good intentions, you can bring destruction in every sort of form, from physical to mental to spiritual. And the scenarios in this book really took me to those places and made me think hard.
  
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• Posted on 2009-10-11
  A look at robot history
  
  I enjoyed I, Robot, but probably won't ever reread it. As far as the content goes it is an interesting exploration of the development of artificial intelligence. At times though it became a little too technical or dry to be really enjoyable, especially considering all the tech or politics involved were totally fictional and isolated within that chapter. Nothing like the movie, the book almost reads like one person's memory of 70 years, skipping back episodically. I would definitely reccommend it to anyone who likes Heinlein
  
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• Posted on 2009-10-01
  These stories are timeless
  
  "I, Robot" is a collection of nine short stories, which where presented as the memoirs of robot psychologist Dr. Susan Calvin (an employee of "U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men Corporation"). Most people find the title of this book just plain weird until they read chapter 8 ("Evidence").
  
  Even though this book was originally published in 1950, the pre-1950 stories contained within seem to stand the test of time. This might have something to do with the fact that Asimov usually glosses over technological details while concentrating more on the humanity side of things. (Remember that these stories were written during the age of vacuum tubes thus predating the age of transistors and chips; Asimov never mentions tubes or transistors but he does mention something called the Positronic Brain with is just a literary device for "unknown technology")
  
  If you enjoy reading good science fiction then you will definitely like this book. You should also be aware of some future entertainment options: In 1988, Asimov published his suggestions on how to read his favorite fifteen books starting with "I, Robot" and ending with "Foundation and Earth". Here is his tweaked list
  
  1) The Complete Robot (1982) or I, Robot (1950).
  2) Caves of Steel (1954)
  3) The Naked Sun (1957)
  4) The Robots of Dawn (1983)
  5) Robots and Empire (1985).
  6) The Currents of Space (1952).
  7) The Stars, Like Dust (1951)
  8) Pebble in the Sky (1950).
  9) Prelude to Foundation (1988)
  10) Forward the Foundation (1993)
  11) Foundation (1951)
  12) Foundation and Empire (1952)
  13) Second Foundation (1953)
  14) Foundation's Edge (1982)
  15) Foundation and Earth (1986)
  
  I recently trekked this journey and invite all you sci-fi fanatics to follow my path.
  
  
  
  
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• Posted on 2009-07-30
  A fictional pre-history of Robotics
  
  Isaac Asimov's I Robot is a collection of nine short stories chronicling the history of robotics, as told by Susan Calvin - a robopsychologist - to an enquiring, faceless news man. The premise is merely preamble; its purpose the correlation of nine individual stories, previously published in a couple of sci-fi magazines. They feature the same recurring cast of characters, and as such reference and build upon one another.
  Each individual story is entertaining, and sequentially, each introduces another aspect of robotics, or elucidates some greater point of robotic logic/reasoning. Much like the Foundation novels (and Asimov's fiction in general, I'm beginning to suspect) the stories deal with situations; problems and solutions. The great fun of reading Asimov is watching his fictional characters encounter crisis and work through them - extrapolating, deducting, improvising - whatever need be. And the solutions - besides being entertaining - are usually quite clever! It's sometimes hard to believe that one man could write so many clever stories...
  Plotting aside, you can't help but fall in love with some of Asimov's characters. The "field" team of Mike Donavan and Gregory Powell are an endearing comedic duo. Susan Calvin is almost as cold and calculating as her robots, but is forced to reveal her tender, human emotions in LIAR! And the politician Stephen Byerley makes quite an impression...
  Naturally, being a collection of short stories rather than a novel proper, some stories are stronger than others. RUNAROUND, REASON, LIAR, and EVIDENCE are particularly strong, well THE EVITABLE CONFLICT is a little weak, and serves more as a talking point or epilogue - much in the same way that ROBBIE serves as a whimsical introduction. Regardless, all nine stories do entertain you, and at the very least, introduce some interesting point on robotics. Highly recommended - Asimov remains an essential read to anyone with a passing interest in Science-Fiction.
  Consequently, this book has almost nothing to do with the Will Smith movie of same title - save for the three laws of robotics, and character's names - so, be warned, you've been advised!
  
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• Posted on 2009-07-28
  Got me thinking
  
  This book really caught me by surprise. First off I was expecting it to follow the same ideas put forth in the movie with Will Smith. Not even close. It was an exceptional collection of stories that were all interesting to me in one way or another. It left me wondering more about the ideas Asimov puts forth and I like that in science fiction!
  
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