353:
have subsequently become more compact, as evidenced in the "Microvac", a smaller and more advanced iteration of
Multivac, noted in the second era of the story, which details humanity's inhabitation on "Planet X-23". In each era, someone decides to ask the ultimate "last question" regarding the reversal and decrease of entropy. Each time that Multivac's descendant is asked the question, it finds itself unable to solve the problem, and all it can answer is (linguistically increasingly-sophisticated) "THERE IS AS YET INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR A MEANINGFUL ANSWER."
47:
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its available data in every possible combination and so begins the arduous process of rearranging and combining every last bit of information that it has gained throughout the eons and through its fusion with humanity. Eventually AC discovers the answer—that the reversal of entropy is, in fact, possible—but has nobody to report it to, since the universe is already dead. It therefore decides to answer by demonstration. The story ends with AC's pronouncement:
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I may have written, and tell them where to find it. They don't remember the title but when they describe the story it is invariably 'The Last
Question'. This has reached the point where I recently received a long-distance phone call from a desperate man who began, "Dr. Asimov, there's a story I think
321:
Why is it my favorite? For one thing I got the idea all at once and didn't have to fiddle with it; and I wrote it in white-heat and scarcely had to change a word. This sort of thing endears any story to any writer. Then, too, it has had the strangest effect on my readers. Frequently someone writes to
365:
beyond the bounds of gravity or time, the entropy question one last time, before the last of humanity merges with AC and disappears. AC is still unable to answer but continues to ponder the question even after space and time cease to exist. AC ultimately realizes that it has not yet combined all of
352:
The story jumps forward in time into later eras of human and scientific development. These new eras highlight humanity's goals of searching for "more"; more space, more energy, more planets to inhabit once the current one becomes overcrowded. As humanity's imprint on the universe expands, computers
336:
The story centers around
Multivac, a self-adjusting and self-correcting computer. Multivac had been fed data for decades, assessing data and answering questions, allowing man to reach beyond the planetary confines of Earth. However, in the year 2061, Multivac began to understand deeper fundamentals
360:
descendant of humanity, the unified mental process of over a trillion, trillion, trillion humans who have spread throughout the universe, watches the stars flicker out, one by one, as matter and energy end, and with them, space and time. Humanity asks AC ("Analog
Computer"), Multivac's ultimate
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Multivac's purpose was conceptualized with a desire for knowledge, promoting the idea that more knowledge will lead to a better and more fruitful future for humanity. However, the computer's answers regarding the future suggest an inevitable exhaustion of the Sun, and this thirst for knowledge
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you wrote, whose title I can't remember—" at which point I interrupted to tell him it was 'The Last
Question' and when I described the plot it proved to be indeed the story he was after. I left him convinced I could read minds at a distance of a thousand miles.
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In conceiving
Multivac, Asimov was extrapolating the trend towards centralization that characterized computation technology planning in the 1950s to an ultimate centrally managed global computer. After seeing a
254:(1990). While he also considered it one of his best works, "The Last Question" was Asimov's favorite short story of his own authorship, and is one of a loosely connected series of stories concerning a fictional
392:"). In Asimov's story, aspects like the great meaning of existence are culminated through both technology and human knowledge. The evolution from Multivac to AC also emulates a sort of cycle of existence.
310:" (1976). The story asks the question of humanity's fate, and human existence as a whole, highlighting Asimov's focus on important aspects of our future like population growth and environmental issues.
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349:(used in the story as the increase of the entropy of the universe) be reversed?" Multivac's only response after much "thinking" is "INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR MEANINGFUL ANSWER."
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579:"Someone had once told Jerrodd that the 'ac' at the end of 'Microvac' stood for 'analog computer' in ancient English, but he was on the edge of forgetting even that."
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of humanity. In each of the first six scenes, a different character presents the computer with the same question, how the threat to human existence posed by the
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Although science and religion are frequently presented as having an oppositional relationship, "The Last
Question" explores some biblical contexts ("
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adaptation of his work, Asimov "privately" concluded that the story was his best science fiction yet written. He placed it just higher than "
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It was adapted for the Gates
Planetarium at the Denver Museum of Natural History in 1973 under the direction of Mark B. Peterson
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It was adapted for the
Edmonton Space Sciences Centre in Edmonton, Alberta (early 1970s), under the direction of John Hault.
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Vanderbilt
Planetarium in Centerport New York, in 1978, read by singer-songwriter and Long Island resident Harry Chapin.
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Landon, Brooks (2008). "computers in science fiction". In Gunn, James; Barr, Marleen S.; Candelaria, Matthew (eds.).
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becomes an obsession with the future. The story's end displays a dichotomy between annihilation and peace.
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of the universe be massively decreased?" That is equivalent to asking, "Can the workings of the
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In 1989 Asimov updated the star show adaptation to add in quasars and black holes.
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Oles, Paul (July 18, 1974). "The Pittsburgh Press". Viewing the Stars. p. 17.
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The Space Transit Planetarium of the Museum of Science in Miami during 1977
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in Rochester, New York (in 1969), under the direction of Ian C. McLennan.
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415:"The Last Question" was first adapted for the Abrams Planetarium at
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892:"Asimov, Isaac, 1920-1992 - Social Networks and Archival Context"
794:"Religion vs. Humanism: Isaac Asimov on Science and Spirituality"
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775:"Science Fiction Quarterly New Series v04n05 (1956 11) (slpn)"
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The big book of science fiction : the ultimate collection
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The big book of science fiction : the ultimate collection
849:, University of Minnesota Press, pp. 23–46, 2019-10-29,
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ask me if I can give them the name of a story, which they
843:"There Is Yet Insufficient Data for a Meaningful Answer"
513:, saying that there is insufficient data for an answer.
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Works originally published in Science Fiction Quarterly
946:"'The Last Question' appeals to viewers at planetarium"
262:. Through successive generations, humanity questions
556:" – Science-fiction short story by Isaac Asimov
520:
509:) seems to make a nod towards Multivac, at least in
686:. Ann VanderMeer, Jeff VanderMeer. New York. 2016.
604:. Ann VanderMeer, Jeff VanderMeer. New York. 2016.
1207:
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208:. It first appeared in the November 1956 issue of
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1094:"BBC Radio 7 - Isaac Asimov - The Last Question"
1064:"Planetarium asks sci-fi 'star' to update tale"
281:. It has been recognized as a counterpoint to
1324:
1193:
1477:Fiction set in the 7th millennium or beyond
1115:"Isaac Asimov's The Last Question (6 p.m.)"
341:can be averted: "How can the net amount of
16:Science-fiction short story by Isaac Asimov
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1035:"Planetarium presents 'The Last Question'"
714:: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
632:: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
480:in Salt Lake City, Utah (in 1980 and 1989)
251:Isaac Asimov: The Complete Stories, Vol. 1
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239:The Best Science Fiction of Isaac Asimov
982:"The Miami News September 2, 1977 pg53"
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423:, as Asimov wrote in his autobiography
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289:"Answer," published two years earlier.
1482:Multivac short stories by Isaac Asimov
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1467:Fiction about artificial intelligence
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1152:Internet Speculative Fiction Database
1119:Denver Museum of Nature & Science
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653:The Whys of a Philosophical Scrivener
483:A reading of the story was played on
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506:The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
468:Buhl Planetarium, Pittsburgh in 1974
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273:The story overlaps science fiction,
493:in Denver, Colorado (in early 2020)
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419:(in 1966), featuring the voice of
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745:. Sphere Books. pp. ix–xiv.
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822:Creative Writing Prompt Contests
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313:"The Last Question" ranks with "
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944:Walsh, John F. (30 June 1974).
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1462:End of the universe in fiction
1070:. May 30, 1989. Archived from
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1492:Short stories by Isaac Asimov
1269:All the Troubles of the World
1255:I'm in Marsport Without Hilda
586:
383:
818:"The Last Question Analysis"
792:Popova, Maria (2013-08-13).
777:. November 1956 – via
347:second law of thermodynamics
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1487:Religion in science fiction
516:
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361:descendant that exists in
339:heat death of the universe
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242:(1986), the retrospective
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1227:I Just Make Them Up, See!
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1169:reads "The Last Question"
920:The Philadelphia Inquirer
560:Technological singularity
417:Michigan State University
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211:Science Fiction Quarterly
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1341:The Best of Isaac Asimov
741:The Best of Isaac Asimov
651:Gardner, Martin (1983).
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540:The Best of Isaac Asimov
450:Fels Planetarium of the
434:Strasenburgh Planetarium
306:" (September 1958) and "
227:The Best of Isaac Asimov
19:Not to be confused with
1276:Spell My Name with an S
668:Reading Science Fiction
459:Reading School District
454:in Philadelphia in 1973
432:It was adapted for the
356:In the last scene, the
733:Asimov, Isaac (1973).
503:'s Deep Thought (from
396:Dystopian happy ending
376:
374:" And there was light—
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1150:title listing at the
855:10.5749/j.ctvr7fd26.4
718:) CS1 maint: others (
636:) CS1 maint: others (
463:Reading, Pennsylvania
368:
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109:Columbia Publications
1241:The Feeling of Power
405:Dramatic adaptations
308:The Bicentennial Man
1472:Fiction set in 2061
1290:The Ugly Little Boy
1262:The Gentle Vultures
1157:"The Last Question"
1074:on 25 February 2021
896:snaccooperative.org
457:Planetarium of the
372:LET THERE BE LIGHT!
304:The Ugly Little Boy
218:in the collections
204:by American writer
29:"The Last Question"
1457:1956 short stories
1358:Marooned off Vesta
1041:. January 28, 1980
1007:The New York Times
922:. 2 September 1973
478:Hansen Planetarium
452:Franklin Institute
390:Let there be light
266:on the subject of
1444:
1443:
1428:The Billiard Ball
1400:The Last Question
1306:
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1283:The Last Question
1147:The Last Question
916:"Untitled briefs"
693:978-1-101-91009-2
611:978-1-101-91009-2
491:Gates Planetarium
487:in 2008 and 2009.
426:In Joy Still Felt
410:Planetarium shows
287:short short story
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1393:The Fun They Had
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1166:Isaac Asimov
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1127:. Retrieved
1123:the original
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1097:. Retrieved
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1078:26 September
1076:. Retrieved
1072:the original
1068:Deseret News
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1045:23 September
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1039:Deseret News
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824:. 2015-06-20
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332:Plot summary
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233:Robot Dreams
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206:Isaac Asimov
194:
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85:Published in
39:Isaac Asimov
1421:Anniversary
485:BBC Radio 7
300:planetarium
216:anthologies
214:and in the
202:short story
80:Publication
35:Short story
1451:Categories
1234:Profession
1129:2020-01-31
1020:2017-02-06
901:2021-07-25
878:2022-04-06
828:2023-01-29
803:2023-01-29
587:References
384:Philosophy
363:hyperspace
279:philosophy
143:Chronology
115:Media type
99:Periodical
1365:Nightfall
1015:0362-4331
873:242355987
710:cite book
702:928107748
628:cite book
620:928107748
315:Nightfall
128:Paperback
105:Publisher
1386:The Deep
517:See also
358:god-like
275:theology
264:Multivac
260:Multivac
256:computer
245:Opus 100
236:(1986),
230:(1973),
224:(1959),
182:Jokester
152:Multivac
124:Hardback
120:Magazine
70:Genre(s)
62:Language
1372:C-Chute
1171:at the
1159:at the
761:74-2863
465:in 1974
429:(1980).
343:entropy
293:History
268:entropy
258:called
197:" is a
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170:Someday
118:Print (
65:English
54:Country
1099:14 Aug
1013:
987:17 Jul
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379:Themes
277:, and
167:
148:Series
126:&
869:S2CID
567:Notes
324:think
1101:2015
1080:2016
1047:2013
1011:ISSN
989:2024
957:2016
928:2016
859:ISBN
757:LCCN
747:ISBN
720:link
716:link
698:OCLC
688:ISBN
638:link
634:link
616:OCLC
606:ISBN
1344:by
1213:by
851:doi
461:in
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