Essays by Isaac Asimov From SciQuest, the Magazine of the American Chemical Society

Copyright © 1995 by Edward Seiler and Richard Hatcher. All rights reserved.

The Joys of the Unexpected

Subject: accidents sometimes trigger scientific advances
First Published In: Sep-79
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

...For Better or For Worse

Subject: science and technology are closely linked
First Published In: Nov-79, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• DOES NOT APPEAR IN ANY COLLECTIONS
  

The Greeks Had a Word For It

Subject: history of the word "energy", a relatively new word
First Published In: Jan-80, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• DOES NOT APPEAR IN ANY COLLECTIONS
  

The Race for Honor

Subject: credit for discovery is given only if one is first to publish to the world
First Published In: Feb-80, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

Playing It Safe

Subject: Galileo protected his right of discovery by a secret code
First Published In: Mar-80, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

Scientists Are Human

Subject: personal problems can cause misery to anyone, even scientists
First Published In: Apr-80, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

Gold from the Sun

Subject: scientific knowledge is valuable for its own sake
First Published In: May-Jun-80, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

To See Is Not Enough

Subject: Uranus was reported as a star before it was recognized as a planet
First Published In: Jul-Aug-80, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

Getting Started

Subject: early scientists had little formal education, but read books
First Published In: Sep-80, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

Thinking Up Names

Subject: elements named after geographic locations
First Published In: Oct-80, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• DOES NOT APPEAR IN ANY COLLECTIONS
  

Sometimes It Takes Time

Subject: Nobel prizes can be too late for the short-lived
First Published In: Nov-80, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

The Absent-Minded Professor

Original Title: The Absentminded Professor
Subject: famous stories about scientist's extreme concentration
First Published In: Dec-80, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

Scientific Heretics

Subject: true advances in science are often hard to sell
First Published In: 1981, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

Nothing Happens

Subject: in an oscillating universe, averaged over all time, nothing happens
First Published In: Jan-81, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• DOES NOT APPEAR IN ANY COLLECTIONS
  

Facing the Giant

Subject: Lord Kelvin's calculation of the age of the earth
First Published In: Feb-81, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

The Moon Hoax

Subject: unusual (sometimes false) stories sell newspapers
First Published In: Mar-81, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

The First Scientist

Subject: terminology: changing natural philosophy to science
First Published In: Apr-81, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

Thoughts in Prison

Subject: concentration has advanced science and kept sanity
First Published In: May-Jun-81, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

Tough Luck

Subject: trying to observe the transit of Venus across the Sun
First Published In: Jul-Aug-81, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

The Knowledge of Good and Evil

Subject: don't try to limit the building of knowledge
First Published In: Sep-81, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

The Ultimate Tool

Subject: language is the ultimate tool of science
First Published In: Oct-81, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• DOES NOT APPEAR IN ANY COLLECTIONS
  

Missed Opportunities

Subject: it's hard to anticipate future knowledge in science fiction
First Published In: Nov-81, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

Two-Toned Satellite

Subject: Saturn's moon Iapetus has a bright half and a dark half
First Published In: Dec-81, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• DOES NOT APPEAR IN ANY COLLECTIONS
  

Learning Science

Subject: knowledge of science can be valuable to anyone
First Published In: Jan-82, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

Self-Correcting

Original Title: Self-Correction
Subject: science polices itself and mostly avoids scandal
First Published In: Feb-82, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1989 The Tyrannosaurus Prescription
  

Losing the Debate

Subject: scientists debating creationism should ask for evidence of it
First Published In: Mar-82, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1983 The Roving Mind
  

Killer Robot?

Subject: even though a robot killed a man, robots will still be used
First Published In: Apr-82, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• DOES NOT APPEAR IN ANY COLLECTIONS
  

Open Mind?

Subject: rejecting crackpot views and demanding reason is not overreacting
First Published In: May-Jun-82, SciQuest
Collection(s):

• 1983 The Roving Mind