Rating: 
Summary: "Robot" like me
Review: The three laws of Robotics are that a robot may not (through action or inaction) harm or allow a human to be harmed, that they must obey humans unless it violates Law 1, and must protect themselves unless it violates Laws 1 and 2. With that basic concept, Isaac Asimov spun a collection of thought-provoking stories about these robots of the future.Told within the framework of a robot-shrink's reminiscences, "I, Robot" contains several stories: "Robbie," about a little girl's robot nursemaid and best friend who is sent away by her shallow, controlling mother. "Runaround," in which Gregory Powell and Mike Donovan find themselves in a dangerous situation on Mercury -- with Speedy (SPD), a robot who seems to be drunk. Powell and Donovan find more robot trouble with Cutie (QT-1), who creates an entire religious structure with himself as the Master's prophet. "Catch The Robot," where Donovan and Powell have trouble with Dave (DV-5), who takes his underling robots on military marches. "Liar!" presents Herbie (RB), a robot who can read minds -- and is somehow messing with the humans. "Little Lost Robot" presents the Nestor (NS-2) robots, who have a modified sense of the first law -- and one of the robots is lying. "Consolidated" presents the Brain, which builds a ship and sends it away -- with the unlucky Donovan and Powell on board. "Evidence" is against Stephen Byerley, a politician with a very deep, dark secret. And "The Inevitable Conflict" offers a glimpse into the growing influence of machine over man. It's a testament to Isaac Asimov's skill that the stories of "I, Robot" are still so impressive today, despite having been written from 1940 to 1950. With a variety of futuristic robots and the three laws of Robotics, he offers intriguing looks at politics, ethics, theology, and other concepts. Even stuff like senses of humor and white lies are looked at. If a robot can't harm a human, could it tell a human a truthful answer that would make that human feel bad? Could a mass of metal and circuits grow to feel? It also leaves the reader with the feeling that these robots are, in some ways, a little better than humans while resembling them. Like humans, the robots have nutcases, savants, religious fanatics, and egomaniacs -- but the normal robots have a core command that they should not harm humans, something that real humans are sadly lacking in. Susan Calvin is sort of the framework for this collection, although she is only really humanized in "Liar!" Powell and Donovan are everymen who just happen to be "accursed." These poor guys careen helplessly from one disaster to another, and provide most of the comic relief as well. The writing is fairly ordinary, not extremely detailed; it's the subject matter that makes the stories classic. From many generic scifi books, from Star Trek's Data to Star Wars' Threepio and Artoo, there have been a lot of robots who thought, felt, and provided insights or amusement. So take a look at "I, Robot," to see what inspired them.
Rating: 
Summary: Seminal and misunderstood
Review: This collection of short stories by Asimov seems to generate a huge variety of responses, from those who take it as a masterpiece to those who wouldn't use it for toilet paper. I think both sides are wrong. The book is a collection of some of Asimov's short stories involving robots. They're arranged in "chronological" order with a wrapper story to make this volume an outline of the rise of robots and robotics in the Asimov universe. As such, he explores the ideas of what it means to be human versus being a robot. This is done largely through the application of the three laws of robotics (quoted by many a review of this book) to real-life situations - in other words when things get complicated. The result is a bunch of stories which are a bit like logical puzzles, often with a philosophical basis. I enjoyed them and despite their limitations they made me think. My favourite is Reason with the philosophical rantings of Cutie - the first robot to question his/her existence. The limitations are that Asimov was writing this many a decade ago and our current conceptions of what machines can and can't do (yet) are dramatically different - his robots will seem much too human to someone looking at the field today. To counteract the criticism, no this work is not character driven and yes the characters are one-dimensional because that's what they're meant to be. This isn't an emotional/psychological drama, it's a good piece of science fiction exploring notions of technology and humanity with all the other elements of fiction used as tools. No-one would criticise a textbook for its lack of lack of believable characters of flowery prose and I don't see how this is different - both are genres which focus on other things. The only thing that matters is whether the book is enjoyable and has some good ideas which I think it does and I hope that people will agree after they read I Robot with an attitude that doesn't expect exhuberant literary style and realise that this is Asimov's first stab at the application of formal things like robotics to human situations. And I think it's a pretty good one at that!
Rating:
Summary: Not To Be Missed!
Review: This is a classic science fiction book, consisting of nine works of shorter fiction by Isaac Asimov linked together by the premise of Dr. Susan Calvin looking back on the history of robotics and her career on the event of her retirement. This book was published first in 1950, while the stories themselves were published in "Astounding Science Fiction" between September 1940 and June of 1950.
If I were to rate this solely on the content, it would probably be a four-star book, but I don't think one can ignore the importance roll it has played in Asimov's writing, and in the field of science fiction as a whole. It was this book that first introduced the three laws of robotics that were developed by John W. Campbell, Jr. and Asimov. This book would also lay the foundation for much of Asimov's work for the rest of his career.
This books importance to the genre has increased as time has passed. In 1952, it was rated 23rd on the Astounding/Analog All-Time Poll, it then was rated 21st in 1956, and all the way up to 12th in 1966. In addition, it was tied for 4th on the Locus All-Time Poll for Collection in 1999.
1) "Robbie" was published in September of 1940 under the title "Strange Playfellow", and is the story of a young girl who grows attached to her nursemaid robot, Robbie, against the wishes of her mother. The story is supposed to take place in 1996. This became the only story in this book to be recognized by readers separate from the book as a whole when it tied for 37th on the list of short stories in the Locus All-Time Poll in 1999.
2) "Runaround" was published in March of 1942, and in terms of the story's chronology is the first of the Greg Powell and Mike Donovan stories. They are setting up a mining operation, when their robot malfunctions where they are unable to safely reach it, and it is running around in circles. This story takes place around 2015.
3) "Reason" was published in April of 1941 and is the second of the Greg Powell and Mike Donovan stories. In this one they are bring a new type of robot to a power generating space station to set it up to run the operation so that fewer men will have to stay there. When the robot develops a religion of its own they need to determine what the consequences will be. This story takes place six months after "Runaround".
4) "Catch That Rabbit" was published in February of 1944, and is the last of the Greg Powell and Mike Donovan stories. It is probably the weakest story in the entire book. They are looking into a problem with the new multiple robot, where they sometimes fail to function when there are no humans present to watch them. This entire story appears to be written for the punch line at the end, and takes place 6 months after "Reason".
5) "Liar!" was published in May of 1941. In this story a telepathic robot is accidentally developed, and a team of experts, including Dr. Susan Calvin, try to determine what happened in the build process caused the error. This story takes place in 2021.
6) "Little Lost Robot" was published in March of 1947. In this story a specially built robot with a weakened first law has disappeared, and his hiding in a group of 62 other robots that are physically identical. Dr. Susan Calvin searches for a solution that will not force them to destroy all 63 robots. This story takes place in 2029.
7) "Escape" was published as "Paradoxical Escape" in August of 1945. In this story, Dr. Calvin tries to prevent the plans for a Hyperatomic Drive from destroying the positronic brain of U.S. Robots as happened to their competitor, `Consolidated'. This story takes place immediately after "Little Lost Robot".
8) "Evidence" was published in September of 1946. In this story a candidate for office threatens to leak a rumor that his opponent is a robot unless U.S. Robots can prove otherwise. This story takes place in 2032.
9) "The Evitable Conflict" was published in June of 1950. In this story, super robotic brains are running the world. However, there appear to be mistakes being made and Dr. Calvin is trying to determine how and why. This story takes place in 2052.
Rating:
Summary: The classic first short stories in the robot series.
Review: This is a collection of nine classic short stories about robots, each of which appeared previously in a pulp SF magazine. The stories contain Asimov's famous three "laws" of robotics as well as the positronic brain (consisting of a platinum/iridium sponge), now quite familiar with "Star Trek" fans. All of these have been great influences in both science and science fiction: 1) A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm; 2) A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law; and 3) A robot must protect its own existence, as long as such protection does not conflict with the First and Second Laws. It should also be noted that Asimov coined the word "robotics" in these stories, a term very common today. I really enjoyed these when I first read them as a teenager (my father had introduced me to Asimov's works). And, now rereading them many years later, I can understand why I enjoyed them. They are straight-forward science fiction in which a problem is presented and a solution posed. The first story, "Robbie," first appeared in 1940 (when Asimov 20 years old) in a slightly different form as "Strange Playfellow." Robbie is a companion robot for a child and the child's mother is apprehensive in allowing her daughter to play with it. "Runaround" (1942) is a story concerning a problem encountered by two trouble-shooters on a mining operation on the surface of Mercury. A robot has been given orders to retrieve some ore yet keeps walking in circles, to the detriment of the two human workers. They come to the conclusion that the problem lies with the three Laws and they have to find a solution. (This type of story [that is, of a problem presented needing a solution] becomes a common format for Asimov's science fiction and mystery stories.) In "Reason" (1941) the two trouble-shooters of the previous story are still on Mercury and have to reason with a robot who has been designed to take over the mining operation and energy conversion plant on Mercury. The robot has come to a conclusion that humans did not construct him and that his role is to serve the "Master" (the conversion apparatus). In "Catch That Rabbit" (1944), the two trouble shooters are on an asteroid attempting to train a robot that has control over six subsidiary robots. For some unknown reason, the robot ceases to function properly if no human is watching. "Liar!" (1941) is a story about a robot, still subject to the Three Laws, that can read minds. In "Little Lost Robot" (1947) a robot, which has had its first law modified, has hidden itself among sixty-two other robots and it has to be found. In "Escape!" (1945), a robot has to design an interstellar ship that may be hazardous to humans; yet, design it without violating the first law. "Evidence" (1946) is a story concerned with the problem of identifying a possible humaniform robot hiding itself among humans. The final short story, "The Evitable Conflict" (1950), takes place several years after the others on an Earth where much of human economics is directed through massive robot machines. There have been apparent stoppages and unexpected delays and the human overseers have to find out why. This story actually introduces the "Zeroeth Law" of Robotics: "No machine may harm humanity; or, through inaction, allow humanity to come to harm."
Rating:
Summary: Worth a read
Review: This is a collection of very early short stories about robots. The book is dominated by explorations of the implications and manifestations of Asimov's famous Three Laws of Robotics. For those unfamiliar with Asimov's science fiction about robots, these are absolutely inviolable rules which govern the behavior of all robots in Asimov's fiction. They are: 1 - A robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2 - A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3 - A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law. Asimov's explorations are engaging and thought-provoking, and many of his stories take some unexpected twists (although at other times they are painfully predictable). My main complaint is with the characters. It sometimes seems as if the only characters with any personality, or even with a sense of humor, are the robots. When the humans aren't completely emotionless, they are constantly bickering with each other or bemoaning each others' incompetence. While this certainly emphasizes one character's view that robots are "a cleaner, better breed then we are," both the dispassion and the disagreeability of the main characters are painfully overemphasized. Even so, this is definitely worth a read, especially given its history among the earliest fictional writings about robots.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best books I've ever read!
Review: This is not merely one story, but a collection of stories taken from eras of time from 1998 to 2059. The book is set with the premise of a reporter interviewing one of the head 'robopsychologists' at US Robots and Mechanical Men, Inc. She tells of many of her and her fellow scientists' encounters with a runaway 'lost' robot, a mind-reading robot, a practical jokester robot, and a robot named Cutie, who refuses to believe that human beings created him and goes on to form a robot 'cult', recruiting other robots who then proceed to bowdown and worship the self-proclaimed 'prophet'. Although written over 50 years ago, Isaac Asimov gives great insight into the future world of science and culture that we can only imagine.
Rating:
Summary: Worth to read
Review: This is the first volume of the robot series and to get to understand the other Robot books, you have to read this. It will make it much easier to undesrstand the concept of Robot and the laws of Robotics, as well as some 'Asimov histories' ocassionally mentioned in his other Robot books. This book has bunch of short stories of robots which are all written in diffrent time and was on diffrent magazines however they all fit into the Asimove's world timeline.(Timeline in Asimov's Robot, Empire and Foundation series is quite important because they all connect together somehow) So if you wanna make a fresh new start on Asimov books, start with this book.. or other books with those robot short stories. Sometimes it's a bit confusing because there are books with diffrent titles and the same content-those books seem to be containing some new stories but they don't because Asimov wrote only about 20 stories (or little more i'm not sure) and that's all they can get since Asimov's dead(sadly).
Rating:
Summary: A storyteller's history of robots
Review: While it is quite possible for many of these stories to stand on their own, each individual chapter in Asimov's classic on the mind, behavior, and history of robots is connected with the others, forming a coherent personalized account of his fabled robot histories.
"I, Robot" features robots from a time many modern science-fiction fans can't remember--the 40s. Given the age of these stories, they hold up surprisingly well, with a few small exceptions such as the absense of microchips and even the mention of "vacuums" being used in the robots' construction. The robots' construction is not the main interest of Asimov though, and this book would have been just as interesting and important had he not introduced the positronic brain. Asimov's interest is the activities of the robot brain itself.
A robot will go insane if presented with a logical fallacy? Robots will often lose their nerve if confronted with situations of varying danger to humans? Robots will outright lie to a human if they think the truth will hurt them? All consequences of Asimov's now legendary Three Laws of Robotics. Through these laws, Asimov's series of stories not only tell the history, but also how certain problems within the laws came to light and were solved. The strict programmed code of behavior (later correctly compaired to a rigid ethical system or religion) is what guides every robot's action--unless it is tampered with, and even then the actions of merely perverted responses to the Three Laws.
So what do we have here? We have a series of well-written and fascinating stories involving puzzling problems and troubleshooting by technicians and "robopsychologists". More than that, the three laws exemplify human behavior in relation to religion. Only with robots, to break these rules or go against leads to insanity, or no action at all. Or maybe you don't need to be thinking about that while reading. Asimov's fatherly writing style, neither entirely quaint or mind-numbingly complicated, and ability to write "out of time", so to speak, maybe for a very long-lived classic of SF, both fun to read and interesting in its influence. His characters follow a few standard models and hardly vary too much, but I was not bothered by this seeing as how the stories were crafted so well and the characters weren't unrealistic. Now if he could only take care of the Gilbert and Sullivan references, there'd be nothing stopping this from attaining the status of a truely timeless classic.
Rating:
Summary: Asimov predicted the computer nerd stereotype
Review: While rereading this book, I was struck at how prescient Asimov was concerning computers and the mysteries of their apparent anomalous behavior. As a computer programmer, I see many similarities between debugging software and the intricacies of robopsychology. Dr. Susan Calvin, the preeminent expert in the psychology of the robot brain, is the stereotypical computer geek. She was largely humorous, unattractive and had no romantic life, so Asimov predicted what we now see as the typical computer nerd personality. Considering that the stories were all written on or before 1950, long before computers became ubiquitous, the accuracy of his stories regarding the increase in the use of computers is amazing. Recall that this was a time when most experts believed that there was a worldwide market of somewhere around a dozen computers. Also, no one had any idea that it was possible to shrink computers down to the size we have now. Asimov had to postulate a device called a positronic brain to explain it.
In the first story, there is the love between a robot and a little girl, something that is certainly realistic. The concern that the mother has about the girl's affection for the robot and her insistence that it is damaging the child's personality is also fairly predictable. There will always be people who are afraid of new things, while automobiles are now considered a necessity, at first they were considered monstrosities.
Several of the other stories involve robots whose behavior appears to be unbalanced. However, after examining the situation and sticking to the unshakable three laws of robotics, the human characters are able to determine the reasons for the behavior. This really struck a chord with me. There have been so many times when I was convinced that my program was behaving mysteriously and contrary to what it should be doing. However, in all cases, detailed analysis by following the rules of logic led to the inevitable conclusion that the computer was operating according to the innate laws of programming.
While the final story is in this collection of stories about robots, it deals more with the growing roles of computers in human society. The world has been broken up into large economic and political blocks, and computers control nearly all-economic activity. This story is the one that is closest to the current situation, as the growth of the Internet can be considered the first step in a world wide computing structure controlling the economy.
I love these stories and have read this book about five times. Asimov is both optimistic and pessimistic in writing about robots. He is optimistic in the belief that technology will continue to advance in dramatic fashion, but is pessimistic about the degree of reaction to it. Opposition to the use of robots is a theme woven throughout the stories, sometimes reaching
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