Isaac Asimov
A
Chronological List of the MF&SF
Essays
(Nov 1958 – Feb 1992)
Between November 1958 and February 1992 (just two months before he died!), Isaac Asimov published an essay in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction every single month – without fail. 33 years and 3 months! 399 essays! 373 of them were collected in 22 collections, each consisting of 17 essays, published between 1962 and 1991. The other 26, to the best of my knowledge, remain uncollected.[1]
As you may note below, these 26 uncollected pieces are very unevenly distributed. Only seven of them date from the early years (Nov 1958 – Sep 1963). Isaac frankly admitted he was dissatisfied with these essays[2], a good enough reason not to want them in the more permanent book form. The other 19 essays are the last 19 (381–399, Jul 90 – Feb 92). I guess Isaac’s health was the reason why a 23rd collection was not published. In the beginning of 1992, the latest 17 essays (Jul 90 – Dec 91) were ready to be collected in book form, but by that time Isaac must have been far too ill to bother. It’s a pity, and a shame, that Janet and Doubleday didn’t make that collection happen by the end of 1992. Isaac’s body was hardly cold in the grave, yet his essayistic fame was fast fading away. Sic transit gloria mundi!
The list is chronological. In square
brackets are given the books in which the essay in question was collected,
including the important reprints in the four updated Asimov on
Chemistry/Physics/Astronomy/Numbers volumes, plus two miscellaneous
collections of lesser importance. The work of Edward Seiler and Richard Hatcher is gratefully
acknowledged. Nobody interested in Asimov’s essays can afford to ignore it.
Abbreviations
AC = Asimov on Chemistry (1974)
AA = Asimov on Astronomy (1974)
AF = Asimov on Physics (1976)
AN = Asimov on Numbers (1977)
ET = The Edge of Tomorrow (1985)
AS = Asimov on Science (1989)
FF = Fact and Fancy (1962, MFSF #1)
VH = View from a Height (1963, MFSF #2)
AD = Adding a Dimension (1964, MFSF #3)
TSOT = Of Time and Space and Other Things (1965, MFSF #4)
FEH = From Earth to Heaven (1966, MFSF #5)
SNI = Science, Numbers, and I (1968, MFSF #6)
SSB = The Solar System and Back (1970, MFSF #7)
STC = The Stars in their Courses (1971, MFSF #8)
LHE = The Left Hand of the Electron (1972, MFSF #9)
TM = The Tragedy of the Moon (1973, MFSF #10)
MGS = Of Matters Great and Small (1975, MFSF #11)
TPW = The Planet That Wasn’t (1976, MFSF #12)
QQBB = Quasar, Quasar, Burning Bright (1978, MFSF #13)
TRI = The Road to Infinity (1979, MFSF
#14)
TSSB = The Sun Shines Bright (1981, MFSF #15)
CE = Counting the Eons (1983, MFSF #16)
XSU = X Stands for Unknown (1984, MFSF #17)
SM = The Subatomic Monster (1985, MFSF #18)
FHE = Far as Human Eye Could See (1987, MFSF #19)
RW = The Relativity of Wrong (1988, MFSF #20)
OE = Out of the Everywhere (1990, MFSF #21)
SU = The Secret of the Universe (1991, MFSF #22)
1.
1958
Nov: The Dust of Ages [AS]
2.
1958
Dec: Catching Up with Newton [FF] [AP]
3.
1959
Jan: No More Ice Ages? [FF] [AC]
4.
1959
Feb: Love Those Zeroes [uncollected]
5.
1959
Mar: Nothing [SSB]
6.
1959
Apr: Life’s Bottleneck [FF] [AC]
7.
1959
May: Of Capture and Escape [FF] [AP]
8.
1959
Jun: The Planet of the Double Sun [FF] [AA]
9.
1959
Jul: Battle of the Eggheads [FF]
10. 1959 Aug: The Ultimate
Split of the Second [VH] [AP] [AS]
11. 1959 Sep: Varieties of the
Infinite [AD] [AN]
12. 1959 Oct: The Height of Up
[VH] [AP]
13. 1959 Nov: C for Celeritas [TSOT]
[AP]
14. 1959 Dec: Thin Air [FF]
[AP]
15. 1960 Jan: Those Crazy Ideas
[FF]
16. 1960 Feb: The Sight of Home
[FF] [AA]
17. 1960 Mar: The Flickering
Yardstick [FF] [AA]
18. 1960 Apr: About Time [uncollected]
19. 1960 May: A Piece of Pi [AD]
[AN] [AS]
20. 1960 Jun: Bug-Eyed Vonster
[uncollected]
21. 1960 Jul: Beyond Pluto [FF]
[AA]
22. 1960 Aug: Catskills in the
Sky [FF]
23. 1960 Sep: Tools of the
Trade [AD] [AN]
24. 1960 Oct: Stepping Stones
to the Stars [FF] [AA]
25. 1960 Nov: The Element of
Perfection [VH] [AC]
26. 1960 Dec: Now Hear This [VH]
[AP]
27. 1961 Jan: Here It Comes;
There It Goes [FF]
28. 1961 Feb: Order! Order! [VH]
[AP]
29. 1961 Mar: The Imaginary
That Isn’t [AD] [AN]
30. 1961 Apr: My Built-in
Doubter [FF]
31. 1961 May: Heaven on Earth
[FF] [AA] [AS]
32. 1961 Jun: Four Steps to
Salvation [uncollected]
33. 1961 Jul: Recipe for a
Planet [VH] [AC]
34. 1961 Aug: The Evens Have It
[VH] [AC]
35. 1961 Sep: Not as We Know It
[VH] [AC]
36. 1961 Oct: That’s About the
Size of It [VH] [AN]
37. 1961 Nov: Dethronement
[uncollected]
38. 1961 Dec: The Trojan Hearse
[VH] [AA]
39. 1962 Jan: The Modern
Demonology [VH] [AP]
40. 1962 Feb: Superficially
Speaking [VH] [AA]
41. 1962 Mar: That’s Life! [VH]
[AC]
42. 1962 Apr: The Weighting
Game [VH] [AC]
43. 1962 May: By Jove! [VH] [AA]
44. 1962 Jun: The Egg and Wee
[VH] [AC] [AS]
45. 1962 Jul: Hot Stuff [VH]
46. 1962 Aug: The Light
Fantastic [AD] [AP]
47. 1962 Sep: Shape of Things
[AD]
48. 1962 Oct: Slow Burn [AD] [AC]
49. 1962 Nov: Pre-fixing It Up
[AD] [AN]
50. 1962 Dec: One, Ten, Buckle
my Shoe [AD] [AN]
51. 1963 Jan: He’s Not My Type
[AD]
52. 1963 Feb: The Lost
Generation [AD]
53. 1963 Mar: You, Too, Can
Speak Gaelic [AD] [AC] [AS]
54. 1963 Apr: The Rigid Vacuum
[AD] [AP]
55. 1963 May: Just Mooning
Around [TSOT] [AA]
56. 1963 Jun: The Light That
Failed [AD] [AP]
57. 1963 Jul: The Isaac Winners
[AD] [AC]
58. 1963 Aug: T-Formation [AD] [AN]
59. 1963 Sep: Who’s Out There?
[uncollected]
60. 1963 Oct: Twinkle, Twinkle,
Little Star [AD] [AA]
61. 1963 Nov: Welcome,
Stranger! [TSOT] [AC]
62. 1963 Dec: Roll Call [TSOT]
63. 1964 Jan: Round and Round
and – [TSOT] [AA]
64. 1964 Feb: The Slowly Moving
Finger [TSOT] [AS]
65. 1964 Mar: Forget It! [TSOT]
[AN]
66. 1964 Apr: A Piece of the
Action [TSOT] [AP]
67. 1964 May: Ghost Lines in
the Sky [TSOT]
68. 1964 Jun: The Heavenly Zoo
[TSOT]
69. 1964 Jul: Nothing Counts
[TSOT] [AN]
70. 1964 Aug: The Days of Our
Years [TSOT] [AN]
71. 1964 Sep: The Haste-makers
[TSOT] [AC]
72. 1964 Oct: First and
Rearmost [TSOT] [AP]
73. 1964 Nov: The Black of
Night [TSOT] [AA]
74. 1964 Dec: A Galaxy at a
Time [TSOT] [AA]
75. 1965 Jan: Begin at the
Beginning [TSOT] [AN]
76. 1965 Feb: Harmony in Heaven
[FEH] [AA]
77. 1965 Mar: Oh, East Is West
and West Is East [FEH]
78. 1965 Apr: The Certainty of
Uncertainty [FEH] [AP]
79. 1965 May: To Tell a Chemist
[FEH] [AC]
80. 1965 Jun: Future? Tense!
[FEH]
81. 1965 Jul: Exclamation
Point! [FEH] [AN] [AS]
82. 1965 Aug: Behind the
Teacher’s Back [FEH] [AP]
83. 1965 Sep: Death in the
Laboratory [FEH] [AC]
84. 1965 Oct: The Land of Mu
[FEH] [AP]
85. 1965 Nov: Squ-u-u-ush!
[FEH]
86. 1965 Dec: Water, Water,
Everywhere [FEH] [AN]
87. 1966 Jan: The
Proton-Reckoner [FEH] [AN]
88. 1966 Feb: Up and Down the
Earth [FEH] [AN]
89. 1966 Mar: The Rocks of
Damocles [FEH] [AA]
90. 1966 Apr: The Nobelmen of
Science [FEH] [AC]
91. 1966 May: Time and Tide
[FEH] [AA]
92. 1966 Jun: The Isles of
Earth [FEH] [AN]
93. 1966 Jul: Balancing the
Books [SNI]
94. 1966 Aug: BB or Not BB,
That is the Question [SNI]
95. 1966 Sep: I’m Looking over
a Four-leaf Clover [SNI] [AS]
96. 1966 Oct: Portrait of the
Writer as a Boy [SNI]
97. 1966 Nov: Old Man River
[SNI]
98. 1966 Dec: Symbol-minded
Chemist [SNI]
99. 1967 Jan: Right Beneath
Your Feet [SNI]
100.
1967
Feb: Impossible, That’s All [SNI]
101.
1967
Mar: Crowded! [SNI]
102.
1967
Apr: A Matter of Scale [SNI]
103.
1967
May: Times of Our Lives [SNI]
104.
1967
Jun: Non-time Travel? [SNI]
105.
1967
Jul: Twelve Point Three Six Nine [SNI] [AS]
106.
1967
Aug: Kaleidoscope in the Sky [SNI]
107.
1967
Sep: The Great Borning [SNI]
108.
1967
Oct: Music to my Ears [SNI]
109.
1967
Nov: Knock Plastic [SNI] [AS]
110.
1967
Dec: The First Metal [SSB]
111.
1968
Mar: The Seventh Planet [SSB]
112.
1968
Feb: The Predicted Metal [SSB]
113.
1968
Jan: The Seventh Metal [SSB]
114.
1968
Apr: The Dance of the Sun [SSB]
115.
1968
May: Backward, Turn Backward – [SSB]
116.
1968
Jun: Counting Chromosomes [SSB]
117.
1968
Jul: Little Lost Satellite [SSB]
118.
1968
Aug: The Terrible Lizards [SSB]
119.
1968
Sep: The Dying Lizards [SSB]
120.
1968
Oct: Little Found Satellite [SSB]
121.
1968
Nov: The Planetary Eccentric [SSB]
122.
1968
Dec: View from Amalthea [SSB]
123.
1969
Jan: The Dance of the Satellites [SSB]
124.
1969
Feb: Uncertain, Coy, and Hard to Please [SSB] [AS]
125.
1969
Mar: Just Right [SSB]
126.
1969
Apr: The Incredible Shrinking People [SSB]
127.
1969
May: The Power of Progression [STC]
128.
1969
Jun: Fateful Lightning [STC] [ET]
129.
1969
Jul: Two at a Time [STC]
130.
1969
Aug: On Throwing a Ball [STC]
131.
1969
Sep: The Man Who Massed the Earth [STC] [ET]
132.
1969
Oct: Worlds in Confusion [STC]
133.
1969
Nov: The Sin of the Scientist [STC]
134.
1969
Dec: The Luxon Wall [STC] [AS]
135.
1970
Jan: The Lunar Honor Roll [STC]
136.
1970
Feb: The Multiplying Elements [STC]
137.
1970
Mar: Bridging the Gaps [STC]
138.
1970
Apr: The Nobel Prize That Wasn’t [STC] [ET]
139.
1970
May: Playing the Game [STC]
140.
1970
Jun: The Distance of Far [STC]
141.
1970
Jul: My Planet, ‘Tis of Thee [STC]
142.
1970
Aug: The Stars in Their Courses [STC]
143.
1970
Sep: Lopsided Sun [STC]
144.
1970
Oct: Stop! [LHE]
145.
1970
Nov: But How? [LHE]
146.
1970
Dec: The Thalassogens [LHE]
147.
1971
Jan: Hot Water [LHE]
148.
1971
Feb: Cold Water [LHE]
149.
1971
Mar: Euclid’s Fifth [LHE] [ET]
150.
1971
Apr: The Plane Truth [LHE] [ET]
151.
1971
May: Pompey and Circumstance [LHE] [AS]
152.
1971
Jun: The Eureka Phenomenon [LHE] [ET]
153.
1971
Jul: Bill and I [LHE]
154.
1971
Aug: Prime Quality [LHE]
155.
1971
Sep: Holes in the Head [LHE]
156.
1971
Oct: Odds and Evens [LHE]
157.
1971
Nov: The Left Hand of the Electron [LHE]
158.
1971
Dec: Seeing Double [LHE]
159.
1972
Jan: Three-D Molecule [LHE]
160.
1972
Feb: The Asymmetry of Life [LHE]
161.
1972
Mar: Lost in Non-translation [TM] [AS]
162.
1972
Apr: Moon over Babylon [TM]
163.
1972
May: Academe and I [TM]
164.
1972
Jun: The Week Excuse [TM]
165.
1972
Jul: The Tragedy of the Moon [TM]
166.
1972
Aug: Doctor, Doctor, Cut My Throat [TM]
167.
1972
Sep: The World Ceres [TM]
168.
1972
Oct: The Unlikely Twins [TM]
169.
1972
Nov: The One and Only [TM]
170.
1972
Dec: The Clock in the Sky [TM]
171.
1973
Jan: The Ancient and the Ultimate [TM] [AS]
172.
1973
Feb: Through the Microglass [TM]
173.
1973
Mar: Down from the Amoeba [TM]
174.
1973
Apr: The Cinderella Compound [TM]
175.
1973
May: By the Numbers [TM]
176.
1973
Jun: Triumph of the Moon [TM]
177.
1973
Jul: The Cruise and I [TM]
178.
1973
Aug: Constant as the Northern Star [MGS]
179.
1973
Sep: Signs of the Times [MGS]
180.
1973
Oct: The Mispronounced Metal [MGS]
181.
1973
Nov: The Figure of the Fastest [MGS] [ET]
182.
1973
Dec: The Figure of the Farthest [MGS]
183.
1974
Jan: The Eclipse and I [MGS]
184.
1974
Feb: Dance of the Luminaries [MGS]
185.
1974
Mar: The Uneternal Atoms [MGS]
186.
1974
Apr: A Particular Matter [MGS]
187.
1974
May: At Closest Range [MGS]
188.
1974
Jun: The Double-Ended Candle [MGS]
189.
1974
Jul: As Easy as Two Plus Three [MGS]
190.
1974
Aug: Updating the Asteroids [MGS]
191.
1974
Sep: Look Long upon a Monkey [MGS] [AS]
192.
1974
Oct: O Keen-eyed Peerer into the Future! [MGS]
193.
1974
Nov: Skewered! [MGS]
194.
1974
Dec: Star in the East [TPW]
195.
1975
Jan: Thinking about Thinking [TPW] [AS]
196.
1975
Feb: The Rocketing Dutchmen [TPW]
197.
1975
Mar: The Bridge of the Gods [TPW]
198.
1975
Apr: The Judo Argument [TPW]
199.
1975
May: The Planet That Wasn’t [TPW] [ET]
200.
1975
Jun: The Olympian Snows [TPW]
201.
1975
Jul: Titanic Surprise [TPW]
202.
1975
Aug: The Wicked Witch Is Dead [TPW]
203.
1975
Sep: The Wrong Turning [TPW]
204.
1975
Oct: The third Liquid [TPW]
205.
1975
Nov: Best Foot Backward [TPW] [AS]
206.
1975
Dec: The Smell of Electricity [TPW]
207.
1976
Jan: Silent Victory [TPW]
208.
1976
Feb: Change of Air [TPW]
209.
1976
Mar: The Nightfall Effect [TPW]
210.
1976
Apr: All Gall [TPW]
211.
1976
May: It’s a Wonderful Town! [QQBB]
212.
1976
Jun: Surprise! Surprise! [QQBB]
213.
1976
Jul: Making It [QQBB]
214.
1976
Aug: Moving Ahead [QQBB]
215.
1976
Sep: To the Top [QQBB]
216.
1976
Oct: Quasar, Quasar, Burning Bright! [QQBB]
217.
1976
Nov: The Comet That Wasn’t [QQBB] [ET]
218.
1976
Dec: The Sea-Green Planet [QQBB]
219.
1977
Jan: Discovery by Blink [QQBB]
220.
1977
Feb: Asimov’s Corollary [QQBB]
221.
1977
Mar: The Magic Isle [QQBB]
222.
1977
Apr: The Dark Companion [QQBB]
223.
1977
May: Twinkle, Twinkle, Microwaves [QQBB] [ET]
224.
1977
Jun: The Final Collapse [QQBB]
225.
1977
Jul: Of Ice and Men [QQBB]
226.
1977
Aug: Oblique the Centric Globe [QQBB]
227.
1977
Sep: The Opposite Poles [QQBB]
228.
1977
Oct: The Subtlest Difference [TRI] [AS]
229.
1977
Nov: The Sons of Mars Revisited [TRI]
230.
1977
Dec: Dark and Bright [TRI]
231.
1978
Jan: The Real Finds Waiting [TRI]
232.
1978
Feb: The Lost Art [TRI]
233.
1978
Mar: Anyone for Tens? [TRI]
234.
1978
Apr: The Floating Crystal Palace [TRI] [AS]
235.
1978
May: By Land and Sea [TRI]
236.
1978
Jun: We Were the First That Ever Burst – [TRI]
237.
1978
Jul: Second to the Skua [TRI]
238.
1978
Aug: Rings and Things [TRI]
239.
1978
Sep: Countdown [TRI]
240.
1978
Oct: Toward Zero [TRI]
241.
1978
Nov: Fifty Million Big Brothers [TRI]
242.
1978
Dec: Where Is Everybody? [TRI]
243.
1979
Jan: Proxima [TRI]
244.
1979
Feb: The Road to Infinity [TRI]
245.
1979
Mar: Out, Damned Spot! [TSSB]
246.
1979
Apr: A Long Day’s Journey [TSSB]
247.
1979
May: The Inconstant Moon [TSSB]
248.
1979
Jun: Alas, All Human [TSSB] [AS]
249.
1979
Jul: Below the Horizon [TSSB]
250.
1979
Aug: Clone, Clone of My Own [TSSB]
251.
1979
Sep: How Little? [TSSB]
252.
1979
Oct: Just Thirty Years [TSSB]
253.
1979
Nov: The Sun Shines Bright [TSSB]
254.
1979
Dec: The Useless Metal [TSSB]
255.
1980
Jan: Neutrality! [TSSB]
256.
1980
Feb: The Finger of God [TSSB]
257.
1980
Mar: The Noblest Metal of Them All [TSSB]
258.
1980
Apr: Nice Guys Finish First! [TSSB]
259.
1980
May: More Crowded! [TSSB]
260.
1980
Jun: The Unsecret Moon [TSSB]
261.
1980
Jul: Siriusly Speaking [TSSB]
262.
1980
Aug: Milton! Thou Shouldst Be Living at This Hour [CE] [AS]
263.
1980
Sep: Getting Down to Basics [CE]
264.
1980
Oct: The Word I Invented [CE]
265.
1980
Nov: Counting the Eons [CE]
266.
1980
Dec: Beyond Earth’s Eons [CE]
267.
1981
Jan: All and Nothing [CE]
268.
1981
Feb: Nothing and All [CE]
269.
1981
Mar: Light as Air? [CE]
270.
1981
Apr: Too Deep for Me [CE]
271.
1981
May: Under Pressure [CE]
272.
1981
Jun: Yes! With a Bang! [CE]
273.
1981
Jul: The Runaway Star [CE]
274.
1981
Aug: The Dance of the Stars [CE]
275.
1981
Sep: And After Many a Summer Dies the Proton [CE] [AS]
276.
1981
Oct: Let Me Count the Days [CE]
277.
1981
Nov: The Crucial Asymmetry [CE]
278.
1981
Dec: Let Einstein Be! [CE]
279.
1982
Jan: The Long Ellipse [XSU]
280.
1982
Feb: The Circle of the Earth [XSU] [AS]
281.
1982
Mar: Whatzishame’s Orbit [XSU]
282.
1982
Apr: Change of Time and State [XSU]
283.
1982
May: Read Out Your Good Book in Verse [XSU]
284.
1982
Jun: Four Hundred Octaves [XSU]
285.
1982
Jul: The Three Who Died Too Soon [XSU] [ET]
286.
1982
Aug: X Stands for Unknown [XSU]
287.
1982
Sep: Big Brother [XSU]
288.
1982
Oct: Bread and Stone [XSU]
289.
1982
Nov: A Difference of an ‘E’ [XSU]
290.
1982
Dec: Silicon Life After All [XSU]
291.
1983
Jan: To Ungild Refined Gold [XSU]
292.
1983
Feb: Ready and Waiting [XSU]
293.
1983
Mar: The Armies of the Night [XSU]
294.
1983
Apr: Dead Centre [XSU]
295.
1983
May: Out in the Boondocks [XSU]
296.
1983
Jun: The Properties of Chaos [SM]
297.
1983
Jul: Green, Green, Green is the Color [SM]
298.
1983
Aug: What Truck? [SM] [AS]
299.
1983
Sep: Where All the Sky is Sunshine [SM]
300.
1983
Oct: Updating the Satellites [SM]
301.
1983
Nov: More Thinking about Thinking [SM] [AS]
302.
1983
Dec: Arm of the Giant [SM]
303.
1984
Jan: The World of the Red Sun [SM]
304.
1984
Feb: The Subatomic Monster [SM]
305.
1984
Mar: Love Makes the World Go Round [SM]
306.
1984
Apr: E Pluribus Unum [SM]
307.
1984
May: Up We Go [SM]
308.
1984
Jun: The Two Masses [SM]
309.
1984
Jul: The Victorious General [SM]
310.
1984
Aug: Coming Full Circle [SM]
311.
1984
Sep: The Different Years of Time [SM]
312.
1984
Oct: The Different Years of the Universe [SM]
313.
1984
Nov: Far as Human Eye Could See [FHE] [AS]
314.
1984
Dec: Made, Not Found [FHE]
315.
1985
Jan: Far, Far Below [FHE]
316.
1985
Feb: Salt and Battery [FHE]
317.
1985
Mar: Current Affairs [FHE]
318.
1985
Apr: Forcing the Lines [FHE]
319.
1985
May: Arise, Fair Sun! [FHE]
320.
1985
Jun: The Rule of Numerous Small [FHE]
321.
1985
Jul: Poison in the Negative [FHE]
322.
1985
Aug: Tracing the Traces [FHE]
323.
1985
Sep: The Goblin Element [FHE]
324.
1985
Oct: A Little Leaven [FHE]
325.
1985
Nov: The Biochemical Knife-Blade [FHE]
326.
1985
Dec: The Discovery of the Void [FHE]
327.
1986
Jan: Chemistry of the Void [FHE]
328.
1986
Feb: Time is Out of Joint [FHE]
329.
1986
Mar: Superstar [FHE]
330.
1986
Apr: The Moon and We [RW]
331.
1986
May: The Minor Objects [RW]
332.
1986
Jun: The Second Lightest [RW]
333.
1986
Jul: Labels on the Molecules [RW]
334.
1986
Aug: The Consequences of Pie [RW]
335.
1986
Sep: The Enemy Within [RW]
336.
1986
Oct: The Relativity of Wrong [RW] [AS]
337.
1986
Nov: The Unmentionable Planet [RW]
338.
1986
Dec: The Dead-End Middle [RW]
339.
1987
Jan: Opposite! [RW]
340.
1987
Feb: Sail On! Sail On! [RW]
341.
1987
Mar: The Incredible Shrinking Planet [RW]
342.
1987
Apr: The Light-Bringer [RW]
343.
1987
May: Beginning With Bone [RW]
344.
1987
Jun: New Stars [RW]
345.
1987
Jul: Brightening Stars [RW]
346.
1987
Aug: Super-Exploding Stars [RW]
347.
1987
Sep: A Sacred Poet [OE] [AS]
348.
1987
Oct: The Very Error of the Moon [OE]
349.
1987
Nov: Asking the Right Question [OE]
350.
1987
Dec: The Road to Humanity [OE]
351.
1988
Jan: Standing Tall [OE]
352.
1988
Feb: The Unrecognized Danger [OE]
353.
1988
Mar: The Radiations That Wasn’t [OE]
354.
1988
Apr: Iron, Cold Iron [OE]
355.
1988
May: From Pole to Pole [OE]
356.
1988
Jun: Is Anyone Listening? [OE]
357.
1988
Jul: The Longest River [OE] [AS]
358.
1988
Aug: The Fire of Life [OE]
359.
1988
Sep: The Slave of the Lamp [OE]
360.
1988
Oct: The Horse Under the Hood [OE]
361.
1988
Nov: Out of the Everywhere [OE]
362.
1988
Dec: Into the Here [OE]
363.
1989
Jan: The Unforgiving Minute [OE]
364.
1989
Feb: The Cosmic Lens [SU]
365.
1989
Mar: The Secret of the Universe [SU] [AS]
366.
1989
Apr: The Moon’s Twin [SU]
367.
1989
May: The Changing Distance [SU]
368.
1989
Jun: A Change of Air [SU]
369.
1989
Jul: The Importance of Pitch [SU]
370.
1989
Aug: Long Ago and Far Away [SU]
371.
1989
Sep: The True Rulers [SU]
372.
1989
Oct: The Nearest Star [SU]
373.
1989
Nov: Massing the Sun [SU]
374.
1989
Dec: What Are Little Stars Made Of? [SU]
375.
1990
Jan: Hot, Cold, and Con Fusion [SU]
376.
1990
Feb: Business as Usual [SU]
377.
1990
Mar: Smashing the Sky [SU]
378.
1990
Apr: Worlds in Order [SU]
379.
1990
May: Just Say ‘No’? [SU]
380.
1990
Jun: The Salt-Producers [SU]
381.
1990
Jul: At the Edge [uncollected]
382.
1990
Aug: The Greatest Conquest [uncollected]
383.
1990
Sep: Target: Earth [uncollected]
384.
1990
Oct: Out of the Typewriter, Endlessly Writing [uncollected]
385.
1990
Nov: The Invention of the Devil [uncollected]
386.
1990
Dec: Trapping the Rainbow [uncollected]
387.
1991
Jan: The Illusion of Motion [uncollected]
388.
1991
Feb: Down the Electron Stream [uncollected]
389.
1991
Mar: All Four Stanzas [uncollected]
390.
1991
Apr: Skimming the Nearest [uncollected]
391.
1991
May: The Pitiless Storm [uncollected]
392.
1991
Jun: Royal Gamma [uncollected]
393.
1991
Jul: The Legacy of Wine [uncollected]
394.
1991
Aug: The March of the Amino Acids [uncollected]
395.
1991
Sep: Something for Nothing [uncollected]
396.
1991
Oct-Nov: The Unchanging Amount [uncollected]
397.
1991
Dec: Beyond Light [uncollected]
398.
1992
Jan: Star Bright [uncollected]
399.
1992
Feb: On Human Folly [uncollected][3]
[1] To be precise, seven essays (1, 4, 18,
20, 32, 37, 59) never made it to the 22 collections, nor did the last 19 (381-399)
to any later collections. Only one of them, the very first, “The Dust of Ages”,
was reprinted at all, though hardly collected; it was quoted in the Introduction to Asimov
on Science (1989). Two essays in the 22 collections were taken from
different magazines, “Our Lonely Planet” from Astounding Science Fiction (Nov 1958) and “The Inevitability of
Life” from Science Digest (Jun 1974);
they appeared in Fact and Fancy and Of Matters Great and Small, respectively.
One of the collections, The Solar System
and Back (1970), contains, unusually, 18 essays. Now let’s check the math: 380
(essays, Nov 58 – Jun 90) – 7 (uncollected) + 2 (from other sources) = 375 =
357 (21 x 17) + 18.
[2] The
Road to Infinity, Doubleday, 1979, p. 169. In a prefatory note evidently
added for the publication in book form of “Fifty Million Big Brothers”, Isaac
frankly admits that “seven of my early essays were never included in any of the
collections I have periodically published with Doubleday. In each case, it was
because, for one reason or another, I was dissatisfied with the essay.”
[3] An essay
No. 400, titled “A Way of Thinking”, was added posthumously in the December
1996 issue of MF&SF. It was
credited to Isaac and Janet Asimov, the title coming from Carl Sagan’s words
that science “is much more than a body of knowledge. It is a way of thinking.”
A prefatory note by Janet explains that she still wanted the 400th
essay, as did Isaac but was too ill to write it for the March 1992 issue (he died in
April!), so she “put one together from our discussions and letters, plus an
excerpt from his recently published autobiography.” It’s a fascinating
compilation of Asimovian reflections, deliberately and delightfully left
unpolished, but I don’t think it can be considered a legitimate part from the
series. Therefore, it is omitted. If you so much want to read it, you can find
it in It’s Been a Good Life (2002),
together with plenty of excerpts from Isaac’s three autobiographical volumes,
all edited by Janet Asimov.
