Foundation refers to both the series of novels by Isaac Asimov, and the eponymous institute/world. In the series, the fall of a great galactic empire is predicted and only through Psychohistory and the Foundation can a new dark age be avoided.
Questions tagged [foundation]
77 questions
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Why did he call himself "The Mule?"
In the concluding few sentences of Foundation and Empire, the Mule says that:
I call myself the Mule - but not because of my strength, obviously -
They do not finish the sentence. Earlier in the book some Foundation denizens theorised that it was…
C. R. Yasuo
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Why do distances seem to matter in the Foundation world?
I am reading Asimov's Foundation series again and on multiple occasions the Empire's decay is mentioned and that it is starting from the most distant systems (in the Outer Worlds).
Looking in current today's world, distance is paramount to maintain…
Alexei
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Where are the coal and oil in Foundation coming from?
In Asimov's Foundation, immediately following the exile of the encyclopedists, the envoy of Anacreon is tricked into disclosing critical information. The mayor at Terminus asks whether they could supply plutonium. The envoy is unaware that…
AdamO
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Regarding the ending of Asimov's the Second Foundation
At the end of the last book of the Foundation trilogy, we discover
that the Second Foundation is in Trantor.
This is said to be "Star's End".
Was there any previous mention of the place in a way that associated it with "Star's End"? Or was the…
josinalvo
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How does space war work in Foundation?
I’m confused about how space war works in Foundation, which has instantaneous (or nearly so) FTL.
Note that I am not concerned here with space battles for control of an individual star system.
In particular, each side in every war is shown holding a…
StephenS
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Trantor’s population too low?
Trantor is stated to have a population of “forty billions”.
I haven’t found any mention of Trantor’s surface area, but if we assume it is similar to Earth’s 510,065,623 km², then that means a mere 78 people per km², or less than one person per…
StephenS
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During the Cycle of Foundation, were there any robots helping humanity?
I finished Prelude to Foundation (after reading The Cycle of Foundation), and we learn that:
Dors is a robot
Demerzel is a robot. And not just a robot, but Daneel itself.
Considering that Daneel intervenes only when necessary and that, in the…
Itération 122442
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Why does Lord Dorwin's speech impediment disappear here?
In part II, chapter 4 of Foundation by Isaac Asimov, we meet the character of Lord Dorwin. Lord Dorwin has a speech impediment (later implied to be voluntary): he says "w" instead of "r" (much like Pontius Pilate in Life of Brian).
However, at least…
Arthur
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How powerful was the Gaia collective mind in Foundation's Edge?
In Foundation's Edge, a planet called Gaia is inhabited solely by Mentalics, telepathic beings whose minds are linked together into a vast collective mind. The collective mind calls itself Gaia and includes every organism and inanimate object on the…
RichS
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