Isaac Asimov Short Stories Trivia Quiz

Answer: He is a Neanderthal

One of Asimov's favorite short stories, it was no surprise that it was later expanded into a full-length novel. The story follows a Neanderthal boy brought to the present through a time-travel experiment. Confined to harsh and restrictive conditions, he is forbidden from venturing outside. Edith Fellowes, a caregiver hired by the organization responsible for the experiment, names him Timmy and strives to provide him with as nurturing a childhood as possible despite the difficult and isolating circumstances.

Answer: Nuclear war

In the story, the Hurrians exploit humanity's tendency toward self-destruction. They monitor civilizations, and when one destroys itself in a nuclear war, they "rehabilitate" it by cleansing the land of radioactivity and performing genetic experiments to make the species more peaceful.

In return, they extract resources essential to their own survival. To their great frustration, however, and despite the ongoing Cold War, no nuclear war occurs in planet Earth. Determined to understand the delay, they kidnap a human - only to have a mirror held up to their own nature when he calls them "vultures", birds of prey that feed on carrion.

Answer: Teleportation

Asimov, who has a distinguished academic background as a lecturer at Boston University, opens a window in this story to the intrigues and rivalries of the academic world. The plot centers on two questions: Did Villiers truly tell the truth about his invention? And which of his colleagues supposedly murdered him?

Answer: The Singing Bell

In "The Singing Bell", we encounter Dr. Wendell Urth for the first time. He appears in a total of four short stories published during the 1950s and 1960s. In each of these, he uses his professional expertise to help solve a scientific mystery. Dr. Urth is the galaxy's most brilliant and renowned extraterrologist - a specialist in alien worlds, life forms, and environments.

Although he is considered the leading expert in his field, he could be described as an armchair extraterrologist, as he has never personally visited any of the planets he studies due to a pathologically intense fear of travel (aka agoraphobia).

Answer: "What after death?"

This question, which has troubled mankind since the beginning of its existence, is revealed to be also found in creatures such as the siliconies. In the story, his death was described as "a death rock, as death as the rock which gave it birth, as death as the wall of the ship, as dead as dead human".

According to Asimov, isliconies are fictional, silicon-based lifeforms. These beings inhabit asteroids, absorbing gamma rays from radioactive ores, and are capable of limited telepathic communication.

Answer: To improve his career prospects

The meeting, which at first seems meaningless, later proves to be of extraordinary importance not only for the character of Zebatinsky himself but also for the fate of humanity. Asimov wrote it out of frustration with the frequent misspelling of his name - using a "Z" instead of an "S." The story contains a surprise twist and explores the butterfly effect as a central theme.

Answer: Bar

This early story by Asimov reflects the Cold War era's fears surrounding nuclear arms and the possibility of humanity's self-annihilation. In the story - set entirely in a bar - a group of technicians meet a man who claims to have invented a time machine and used it to travel back to the Mesozoic era, when dinosaurs ruled the Earth.

Answer: Water

A political campaign led by a demagogue and ambitious Earth politician triggers a water crisis among Mars inhabitants. A daring expedition to Saturn in search of an alternative water source may change their grim reality. The story responds to the debates and controversies about Mars that were prominent during Asimov's era.

Answer: Science fiction author

In the story "The Monkey's Finger", a dispute between a science fiction writer and his editor is settled by Professor of Science Arndt Rolf Torgesson at N.Y.U. and his unusually intelligent monkey, Rollo - an editor cheeky enough to correct even Shakespeare himself.

Although Rollo isn't a machine, his training makes him work in a machine-like way, following strict rules without deviation. The story reminds us that while such consistency can be useful, it's the human ability to break patterns that makes stories truly creative and surprising.

Answer: Intelligent plants

In this story the plants lure spaceships and use them as unwitting carriers to spread their pollen between two planets. These clever plants possess telepathic abilities, manipulating the explorers' perceptions. Their goal is to send the explorers to another world, unknowingly transporting pollen to help the plants reproduce.

The team unwittingly brings back deadly spores that could potentially take over Earth.