Foundation: How Trantor Collapsed the Galactic Empire

[@ioe2767]

Quinn is not a loser and I’m definitely watching this channel

[@Ultra-Ninjakittie]

I wonder if Quinn added that himself. Or, maybe someone is punking him...

[@woodyskywalker]

@@Ultra-Ninjakittie lol he added it himself he was reading it he mustve seen it or wrote it himself lol

[@glynnsea]

I'm shocked that Isaac Asimov wrote that in the Prelude to foundation. How did he know Quinn?

[@allankcrain]

@@glynnsea The psychohistorical equations were pretty simple to prove that eventually social forces would converge to make a video sharing website where a dude named Quinn would talk about nerd stuff.

[@pontusvongeijer1240]

He is tho. 😂

[@hroman5]

It's nice to see a young man so passionate about the books of my youth.

[@kirstencorby8465]

It is, isn't it?

[@TheVellure]

I have introduced my niece and nephew to this channel and now they are reading Ringworld! I'm pretty happy about that.

[@thebovineavenger]

Quinn got my THEN 9 year old son reading. Now 13 year old. My son and I get to read the books. Discuss them. Watch Quinn and then learn things we never thought about. Quinn brought my childhood back to life and has given my son an amazing childhood to connect with me. He is the GOD EMPORIUM.

[@JavaJunky]

Quinn is my go-to source of info for all things Isaac Asimov and Frank Herbert.

[@cryptox826]

All hail Quinn. The massive book nerd. The destroyer of worlds.

[@samuelsilva8364]

Evil Morty vibes

[@ericcalm9924]

Dude don't mess with Quinn

[@branmakmorn]

Knell Before Quinn.

[@seanmcgrath3826]

@@branmakmorn All Hail Quinn

[@MLdoktor]

He killed them, he killed them all. Not only the men, but the women and the children to. They were like animals, and he slaughtered them like animals. He hates them.

[@Winner8501]

The population of Trantor was vastly underestimated by Asimov. In reality, with efficient arcologies you could concentrate 40 billion of people in a single small continent while leaving all areas outside the arcologies green. A true ecumenopolis would have a population of *trillions* of people. So many in fact that heat management would become a serious problem.

[@lordcavalier9688]

Very true that’s why I always laugh when people say earth is getting over populated. Today if we took the entire population of earth and out then in a density of the most dense city right now. We could fit the entire population in an area the size of new York and just as tall.

[@Mukation]

@@lordcavalier9688 To be fair, overpopulation reffers to food production and housing that we are able to sustain "today" not what we in theory could sustain some time in the future.

[@ryanleninfan1337]

@@Mukation modern humans don't have substantial problems with either, it's a distribution problem

[@Mukation]

@@ryanleninfan1337 Yeah in theory we could all fit in Texas, but how would you organise that, my man? :) That was my whole point: We can' do it TODAY, TOMORROW or in 10 years.

[@halzan7467]

@@Mukation it doesn't matter if we are all able to fit in Texas or not. Secondly it doesn't matter if we can't do it today, tomorrow or ten years because that's still not the point of overpopulation because no one wants to live in the area the size of Texas. world isn't overpopulated and it isn't starving. The argument of overpopulation is that we will have no space to live or no more food. Overpopulation is a yes or no question. Do we have still have a lot of space? yes. Do we have a lot of food? yes. As mentioned its a distribution problem and a distribution problem does not concern overpopulation because its a new subject entirely. The point of overpopulation is that we all not be able to sustain ourselves in the future, but we are because of declining birthrates.

[@mistermoaronn228]

Got a hearty laugh reading along with the book quotes.

[@QuinnsIdeas]

Damn that Organism 9186!

[@CZpersi]

@@QuinnsIdeas That is what happens, when you rely on artificial intelligence to remove it. Have you not learned the lesson of Buttlerian Jihad?

[@mingerone]

@@QuinnsIdeas Organism report :9186 Turdus ? Hmmm....

[@mh_dot_fm]

Could you please explain what happened so these quotes came to be? Missed something big lately

[@darthgorthaur258]

@@mh_dot_fm did you manage to go figure it out ?

[@braxxian]

For me the most fascination period of Trantor was when it was being reclaimed by the farmers and all the metal being scrapped and traded with other worlds. As Elijah Bailey would say, “ Back to the soil “

[@chadcuckproducer1037]

Africa... IN SPACE!

[@TS-jm7jm]

@@chadcuckproducer1037 hah, well put

[@Will-tn8kq]

@@chadcuckproducer1037 Africa is already in space, isn’t it?

[@71oliver1]

Quinn is an absolute legend. His understanding of sci fi themes are second to none.

[@stanislavstoimenov1729]

I'm not entirely convinced... I mean, within the text at 06:10 there's a message that says that Quinn is lame. The one at 04:41 says: "Quinn is a loser, don't watch this channel". It seems that the "absolute legend" fails to compensate his editor properly...😁

[@MinistryPhenom]

​@@stanislavstoimenov1729 i always notice egregious spelling and structure errors in the excerpts he has on screen too. strikes me as odd given how polished everything else is by comparison.

[@Ahuratum]

@@stanislavstoimenov1729 Watch the entire video for context, jabroni.

[@Ahuratum]

@@MinistryPhenom Watch the entire video for context, jabroni.

[@SuperRobertoClemente]

And that music goes HARD!

[@frglee]

I loved reading the Foundation Trilogy as a teenager. As regards to the forgotten origins of the human race, there is a nice little conversation somewhere in the story, where someone is offered an orange which he has never tried before. He remarks on how delicious it is, and asks where it is from. He is told that it is from a rather obscure planet called Earth, which is apparently one of the many worlds that claims to be the birthplace of humanity. A nice touch!

[@ButtersCCookie]

Thank you for tidbit. Why keep Earth though. Even the other ecosystems (in show) mimic it's environment. If they never seen it before? Obviously, needs it's technology and structure. This is where I find Dune superior. No need for the computers. I believe or hoped humankind would have progressed as it had. But people like their politician, celebrities and pseudo scientists. Who never had any intention of improving the World. Only fattening their pockets. And each generation has grown greedier and ethically bankrupt. Doesn't look utopian to me but I'm no genius.

[@xManzi]

As I read Foundation I got the feeling that Asimov is really critical about "big organisations", any kind of them. Big companies, countries, empires, you name it. But not about them being inherently bad, but how they lose all the potential that they have because their leaders become incompetent and people who are serving those leaders (emperors, bosses, whatever) just give up and become cogs in the system and let the inertia of the system propell it forward (It was the same for Empire and First Foundation). And they forget that, ultimately, they are that inertia that keeps the system working in the first place.

[@alanpennie8013]

Most likely based on his experience of US universities.

[@gregorymuir1985]

This gets back to the libertarians. They don't trust big government which I get but they think big anything else is fine. If they wanted to be consistent they would distrust big anything. Big business especially is ruinous in the US with regulatory capture. China is your case of true big government when even billionaires can be disappeared. I don't like anything too big to control. That leads to abuse.

[@xManzi]

​@@gregorymuir1985 China and US are the same thing. Only difference is that one pretends to be democracy, other one doesn't. I am not from the US so I don't care about either of them. This was more about how people are in real life. It's not about "big" this or that. It's about what is in human nature. Most of people get easily trapped in "someone else problem" mentality, and waiting for someone to "save" them. I worked in a company with that kind of mentality, and I left after few years. BUT, there have to be big companies because big projects can't be done with 10+ small companies, believe me...

[@spectre111]

It is a common theme in science fiction, especially ones that deal with deep future scenarios like Foundation, Dune, Hyperion and even Warhammer 40K. They all deal with human civilization reaching an almost incredible height in terms of culture and technology only for mankind to become decadent and complacent so it all falls apart. H.G. Wells's The Time Machine might be the first example of it but there are examples just about anywhere you care to look.

[@Limited_Light]

You're missing how R. Daniel Olivaw set up Gaia. Consider the choice of Golan Trevise and what Olivaw told him at the end of "Foundation and Earth". "The purpose of the journey is to settle Trevize's doubt of his decision, at the end of Foundation's Edge, to embrace the all-encompassing noosphere of Galaxia."

[@BaoNguyen-bh2rk]

In the Dune universe, Leto II spun humanity out of the control of anyone as powerful as him so that nothing can wipe us out. If I remember the correctly, when Daneel bonded with the telepath child, there was a hint that the new creature might not have our best interest in mind.

[@montecristo1845]

Mr. Quinn already knows this, but for those of you who don’t: You can read the three major phases in the ACU (not a thing, I know, but let me dream) in timeline order rather than publication order, according to Asimov. Key: R=Robot novel E=Empire novel F=Foundation novel I, Robot (intro, short stories-R) The Caves of Steel (R) The Naked Sun (R) The Robots of Dawn (R) Robots and Empire (R) The Currents of Space (E) The Stars Like Dust (E) Pebble in the Sky (E) Prelude to Foundation (F prequel) Forward the Foundation (F prequel) Foundation (F) Foundation and Empire (F) Second Foundation (F) Foundation’s Edge (F) Foundation and Earth (F) Again, not the order they were written, but amazing how Asimov kept the events in order. Some readers claim there are a few inconsistencies, but I didn’t notice them. I enjoyed learning how humanity first utilized robots, realized its dependency on them needed to change (as well as expanding beyond Earth), and eventually experienced the rise and fall and rebirth of an empire. Not to mention how Earth comes back in the end, full circle. The End of Eternity is another good one (a stand-alone novel that loosely connects but I’m not sure where it fits in timeline-wise because it involves time travel).

[@USSEnterprise3]

Thanks for posting this! I own all the books but always forgot their original order, especially with the robot series. The only inconsistency I ever noticed was the description of earth in the original foundation trilogy as being something everyone had forgotten to it being known but forgotten somewhere in the universe

[@montecristo1845]

Ben Vargas, you’re absolutely right. I remember one character mentioning to another (I forget which book) the idea that humanity had an origin, and the other saying: “Oh, please! All the trillions of humans in the galaxy originating from ONE PLANET?! This mythological ‘Earth’? That’s insane and impossible!”

[@montecristo1845]

A JobDunWell, 🤫 That would be an awesome twist! 😉

[@Iron-Bridge]

@@montecristo1845 Thanks. That's a super helpful guide. Been looking to get started after hearing a lot of good things about Asimov for some time.

[@TheChrisSig]

That's the order I first read them in after I found and read Foundation in my dad's collection and asked if there were more books around. There were lol. I liked timeline order but there are some spoilery things, kind of like if your first intro to Star Wars was the prequels, you lose some of the mystery. But overall it still works, and makes some of the references later punchier.

[@lghammer778]

You’re awesome! Those hidden messages in the text should be more positive towards you man, your content is excellent & sophisticated in many ways 🙏🏽

[@k8tina]

I agree! Quinn is amazing!!

[@Docktavion]

He does it to cause conversation and comments, resulting in more exposure by adding in these talking points. It targets the folk who won’t comment on the subject matter but on other matters, these negative inputs generate greater outcomes.

[@alansokelisatruehero8520]

5:30 "Quin is a loser don't watch this' wonder who did that and how jokingly it was done. i tend to use self deprecating humor so i hate to assume it was mean spirited

[@joshuabarrios9738]

"Revenge is a dish best served in the billions."-Quinn (Unofficial quote... probably)

[@ShawnGBR]

I started reading Asimov in the mid 70s when I found out he was exactly fifty years older than I am (we share a birthday). Seeing these videos, and the thought of the upcoming TV show, makes me happy to an extent I can't really explain. Thank you, Quinn.

[@everdinestenger1548]

The series is great. Save the series and binge watch. Enjoy

[@WalterVermeir]

An empire that last for 12 000 years can not be considered a failure.

[@mosalah8551]

In the galactic scale is still a failure

[@daleeasternbrat816]

The Empire lost the drive and individual initiative that made the Empire possible . It coasted along on economic inertia , gradually losing way , see stagnating and then rolling backwards into dissolution. Not all individuals lost the virtues. Enough did . Edit: clumsy spelling.

[@Wertsir]

That’s about the time it takes light to cross 12% of our galaxy.

[@carlkillough4196]

But can still fail.

[@kronoscamron7412]

unless it's run by quinn, the guy is a loser.

[@rebelgonebad]

Genuinely genius! The switch from malevolent overlord to engaging host, priceless. Keep the Spice flowing...

[@Mamaki1987]

I read Asimov's Foundation first when I was a Teenager, then in my Mid-twenties and now I am in my early 40s ... and I really want to read it all again. I don't remember a lot about the series anymore

[@samueldimmock694]

@Joseph Douek Pretty good.

[@HiDesert004]

@Joseph Douek And there's very little actual action and even less women characters.

[@doppelwaffen]

It was claimed Asimov was influenced by Gibbon's "History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire". Trantor is the city of Rome and doomed to fall for similar reasons.

[@alanpennie8013]

Oh it's not a claim. Asimov himself was quite candid about how much his space opera was influenced by Gibbon. The most obvious shout out is Bel Riose = Belisarius.

[@Rivenburg-xd5yf]

there was much talk at publishing time that he had copied, i believe robert siverberg? In any case the story predated foundation by years and had a similar story about a galactic empire but it was written as a comedic parody and critique of the royal system ( and governments as a whole) and had a capitol city named almost exactly like trantor that was 100% covered in metal. for the life of me i cant find reference to it in the last few days of searching. anyone remember what im talking about, might not be silverberg.

[@alanpennie8013]

@@Rivenburg-xd5yf Are you thinking of, Bill The Galactic Hero?

[@vincespeedmk223]

Ive never considered that Trantor was the influence behind Coruscant. About the sunlight. I believe that at least some of the dome space is dedicated to parks with synthetic sunlight. In several chapters, Seldon is followed through parks by Humin.

[@Rivenburg-xd5yf]

@@alanpennie8013 YES! A howl of a book. what was the capitol city? edit: ive got a $#/& copy SOMEWHERE in the library havent seen it a decade.

[@casbot71]

I love the art style used for the original book covers. 1970's Chris Foss mostly. I had his coffee table books as a kid. I find it very evocative of the background and helps the imagination with the visualisation. I hope the series takes a lot of cues from it - the trailer implies some stylistic similarities.

[@markdal49]

I had '21st Century Foss' might still have it somewhere....superb artwork!

[@rdecredico]

Agreed. The original art far superior to the shit being used now.

[@exposingproxystalkingorgan4164]

I loved Issac Asimov's novels. That man had a lot of talent.

[@seanhewitt603]

I aswell, but Frank Herbert is the best.

[@mikeinqueens7854]

"Quinn is a loser don't watch..." Quinn needs a goddamn hug. >Hugs

[@isomeme]

What's the deal with that?

[@BrianScott1111]

This is your best ever, thank you. This series was the first big sci fi opera for me

[@weebee6922]

Same. I do have a signed copy of "Nightfall and Other Stories" by him. Naw.. I am no regular Asimov fan. I am an avid one.

[@FattyTrades]

Make sure you guys check out The Expanse if you love this! Incredible book series and the shows do pretty good

[@DemonMage]

"Quinn is a loser don't watch his channel." Wow, Asimov predicted the future so we'll be left clues in his books?

[@robertpfaff7992]

In terms of statistical psychohistory, it was a near certainty a lame channel would exist, and a 56.2% certainty one of those channels would belong to [*a*] Quinn. So no, predicting the rise of this particular Quinn is outside the purview of psychohistory, but the general trends that allowed this Quinn to rise are well defined and quantifiable.

[@F00LSG0LD215]

@@robertpfaff7992 Quinn's editor must REALLY dislike him for him to sneak or try to sneak that in there.

[@TakZ000]

Quinn is probably checking on us whether we read on what is shown in the video. XD

[@hikermanwa]

Yeah, i saw that and was like what the... somebody got hacked?

[@hikermanwa]

Lol great engagement.

[@jezlawrence720]

What I love is the whole Foundation series is predicated on the idea that the establishment can't be trusted with Big Data.

[@jeremyanderson3819]

Huh? 10/10 for your mental gymanstics routine. The "establishment" being the galactic empire, its an unwillingness to imagine there is a flaw in their perfect system, or indeed that their system is inherently flawed, that leads to its downfall. Think on that.

[@marsmotion]

@Riorozen bingo plus agendas of enslaving

[@rudyvalle9022]

3:55 Quinn unveils his plans within plans within plans

[@MonolithMike]

“MY plan!” “ Theee plan…”

[@cj-hw3pv]

I can see Danika's influence on Quinn's development as a creator, and I love it

[@johntshorter]

Ah Quin, casually committing genocide against millions of Trollian citizens and then getting right back to his KZbin outro 😅

[@mavismoi1]

what the heck is written in the middle of the screen in caps at 05:42 :)))) Somebody played a prank on him :)))))

[@Muerinho]

@@mavismoi1 watch till the end ;)

[@leverman7517]

I knew it! Trollians are the ones constantly giving thumbs down for no apparent reason!! Trolls!

[@felipedelapena4325]

I just found your channel and subscribed within 5 minutes of watching this video. In the era we are living in now, your content is like an oasis. Thanks!

[@stardude2006]

All empires , no matter how powerful they are, No matter how large - Eventually Fall. It’s Inevitable.

[@stardude2006]

@damien chall Tell that to : USSR and the Brits and Ancient Persia.

[@jeffgoode9865]

Love Quinn's earnest, nerdy passion. It's nice to see someone doing what they love, how they love to do it. Refreshing. 😌

[@dorbie]

I was delighted when you got to the spoilers, I remember my surprise when the Mule (who started out in disguise) and fellow travelers reached ancient Earth and its Moon and discovered the real puppet master (linking it all the way back to Robots).

[@craigkdillon]

In Foundation, there was a character called the "Mule". This character was totally unexpected and unpredicted, and he put the Empire into a different future. Trump reminds me of the Mule. A character so different, that he has changed American politics, and possibly American society profoundly, setting us on a path very different than it would have been had any normal politician been elected president.

[@patreekotime4578]

Except that Trump is exactly the predictable path Republicans have been on since GWB and then Sarah Palin.

[@morlokkurak4763]

Are you saying Trump was a mutant? 😂😂😂😂🇺🇲👍

[@jayfredrickson8632]

Except the Mule was intelligent.

[@douglasbarton7135]

The arguments surrounding types of government was a fundamental part of academic thought at the beginning of the Cold War. You may be interested in the field of Game Theory and in particular the work of John von Neumann.

[@alanpennie8013]

You could also read James Blish's stories of the flying cities.

[@deoradh]

I could swear one of those early “Trantor” images was actually a still of Coruscant with a shuttle flanked by TIE fighters.

[@stephenkenney8290]

It is, though I would say Coruscant is what most people would think of today when presented with the concept of an ecumenopolis.

[@deoradh]

no doubt .. but it was labeled and attributed otherwise. Dunno if it’s part of the gag or not, but I suspect it is.

[@morlokkurak4763]

Where do you think Lucas got the idea?

[@deoradh]

@@morlokkurak4763 Did Lucas get TIE fighters flanking an Imperial Shuttle -- and still calling it Trantor -- as well?

[@morlokkurak4763]

@@deoradh probably not. That's just standard military procedure. I'm just saying he probably got the idea of a galactic empire from the foundation series. the idea for Star wars itself came from the old Buck Rogers serials back in the 30s. Lucas used to watch them as a kid.

[@herbertpocket8855]

I didn’t realize when the Foundation series came out, so when I read it I thought it was derivative rather than foundational (pun intended). Asimov’s ideas and concepts now live in the genre, and the world is better for it.

[@Trygvar13]

Nothing I've seen so far appear to come from any of the novels so yes I would say it's derivative.

[@herbertpocket8855]

Let me clarify for Pyro. I had seen Star Wars Episode 2 as a little before reading the book, and 10 year old me thought it was ripping it off. If you want to get more angry Pyro, the Will Smith adaptation of I, Robot was my introduction to the author. Flame America’s inner city public school system for my poor understanding of how genres and adaptations work dude.

[@WmJared]

"A single human or group of humans should not be in charge" 12 seconds later: Unrelated casual genocide

[@ClaireYunFarronXIII]

If there is some things I can probably credit and thank _Game of Thrones_ for starting, one of them would be popularizing the "page-to-small-screen" trend. Therefore getting some of my other favourite books (soon to be) adapted to television. I love _Foundation._ The series is one of my inspirations when writing.

[@MestreDentistaGUC]

Man, that art work you splice in, is fantastic and creates some great imagery!

[@wreckstate7778]

I like that the Foundation fan content is starting to get going. Quinn is great!

[@Volhybo1t]

Dude your page has grown and blew up in the past year, Congrats!!!

[@marvinprice7284]

I liked I ROBOT. It was a completely different story than Asimov’s short, but very entertaining, and more than a bit thought provoking.

[@willemvandeursen3105]

I liked the series about Elijah Bailey and R. Daneel's realm better than that of Foundation. Less massive and more entertaining.

[@andrewbatts7678]

I just finished "Foundation and the Empire" all I have to say is WOW!!!! You turned me on to it a few months ago. I started with the 2 prequels. unlike the Dune series I made sure to listen to them in proper order. the Dune novels I sort of listened to in random order. but thank you for the recommendation, I am so far not dissatisfied!

[@andrewbatts7678]

@Daniel Rumbacher I didn't decide to, I bought the novels through Google play books who gave very little info about which was the 1st 2nd 3rd and so on, plus there were like 13 books in the entire series prequels included, the difference is I made sure to ask Google which order to listen to them in

[@andrewbatts7678]

@Daniel Rumbacher i was a little late to the world of smart phones, i had the same cosmos slide phone from 2006 until last year. I'm still learning what my galaxy note 10 5g can do

[@Pikaroth]

Outstanding video as always! Love the channel! However, that one artist rendition of Trantor was actually Coruscant from the end of Revenge of the Sith when Palpatine is returning Vader's burned body after his defeat on Mustafar.

[@stevenkothenbeutel448]

I have to say that your voice and selection of soundtrack is what puts me to sleep at bedtime. Quinn ASMR!

[@StatsScott]

Dune and Foundation are two of my favorite series so really enjoyed your discussion of them. Given how different their respective universes see technology, it would be interesting to hear your take on contrast that topic.

[@tyedrichill8097]

Well doesn't Frank Herbert's novel go through all of that to eventually assert that technology is the way forward in the end, since Leto II is preparing humanity for the Scattering, and calling for the advent of technologies like no ships and other stuff. Doesn't humanity eventually go back to tech in the end?

[@JoannaHammond]

It is also intersting to see how much Foundation influenced Dune.

[@deeacosta2734]

You have the best voice Quinn. Such clear annunciation. Calming, yet intriguing.

[@AshtonCoolman]

I feel like the Golden Age/Dark Age of Technology in the Warhammer 40k universe is loosely based on the Foundation series.

[@theblimeypilgrim4492]

I always describe 40k as "What if Foundation *failed*? What if we never escaped the coming dark? What then would the galaxy look like? What would humanity looks like?"

[@covenawhite4855]

@@theblimeypilgrim4492 Well a fanatical empire took over during the Termoil of the collapse.

[@wills.8662]

Just add a parallel space that is fueled by negative human emotions and spawns flesh corrupting entities a few of which can be considered gods/demons

[@mattsantana7701]

Quinn your work is amazing! Keep up the great work and sharing to others great visual artists as well as writers. Love to have links to the music you often use as well. Such good production value to your videos. Thank you

[@tavanium]

I am asking him for the same thing.

[@IrueltheSystem]

I just finished the first book after watching your video on it. It was so good thanks for the recommendation.

[@drewmurdaugh6264]

It seems to be a common theme among great writers of warning humanity against the dangers of a centralized government. The lead to tyranny and eventually nunning stagnation which in turn leads to rebellion. Great job Quinn love your channel just discovered it I've watched all the DUNE videos I remember reading those books when I was around 20 years old awesome

[@richardmorgan1588]

Isaac Asimov is my favorite author and I read every book I could get my hands on which had any connection to the Foundation/Robot universe along with a few stand alone stories and nonfiction titles of his. It’s so refreshing to find someone such as yourself who truly gets Asimov as well as other classic Sci Fi authors!

[@stevenpilling3773]

When Asimov first wrote of Trantor, it was before astronomers knew of supermassive black holes and high radiation at the cores of galaxies; the Milky Way being certainly no exception. In the later novels, thereby, Trantor was located at the edge of the galactic hub.

[@Janoha17]

A concept directly copied by George Lucas for Coruscant.

[@RocketeerAndRoll]

Dude, your voice is amazing. I just want to tell you how much I enjoy this channel, your thoughts, and all the work you've put into this.

[@nikblakely4315]

Who tf knew Quinn could be so cold. The ending has me almost in tears man. F

[@seanmcgrath3826]

I didn't think Quinn had planet killing in him...

[@nikblakely4315]

Power makes people do crazy things.

[@RollinShultz]

I grew up on the old greats of scifi and their predictions of where our societies would inevitably run into troubles. In my early youth, I believed technology to be very positive and massive sities as well. As I matured, I turned 180° and decided that technology is a two edged sword. A quote of mine goes: "Just because we CAN do something, doesn't mean we SHOULD". I have learned to discern that some technologies are beneficial and some are very much impediments to us in general. We should therefore become very selective about which technologies we embrace and which we reject. One of the biggest problems on which I tend to espress controversial opinions is that of the effects of scale. I firmly believe that almost everything in life has less benefit and quality when scaled in size. Industrial technology is the main culprit. Industry creates many problems such as wasting resources and constant competition for market share creating ever cheaper low quality goods. In a world of small communities which make most of the things they need, a break in the infrastructure does less harm as it affects less people, however in large cities resources are quickly depleted and a majority of the people are affected in negative ways.

[@DrLynch2009]

Asimov suffered from claustrophobia. Never took a plane in his life for that reason.

[@CortexNewsService]

I thought it was agoraphobia. He absolutely hated open spaces and rarely left his home.

[@josedelgado7479]

Actually, it was quite the opposite, he hated open spaces.

[@josedelgado7479]

@pyropulse I care, it gives us his perspective on whether or not Trantor should be seen as something to be avoided or pursued. I wouldn't mind living in a Ecumenopolis, open spaces make me feel uncomfortable.

[@CortexNewsService]

@@josedelgado7479 it did play a part in his Robot series. He was honestly surprised that people thought Earth people being restricted to residential hives as horrible. To him, it seemed like the best thing ever.

[@alanpennie8013]

@@CortexNewsService It's pretty droll that he actually liked the human antheaps known as caves of steel.

[@John_Mack]

Because someone put that comment in there... i am going to do nothing but watch this channel over and over and over and over again! Take that!!!

[@themeatpopsicle]

Just a note, the book covers credited to Aldomann on deviantart are actually works by Chris Foss as well

[@zaphods2ndhead193]

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. I think that what Leto and Daneel have in common is the inability to be corrupted. Daneel is a robot that not only lacks human passions but also has the laws of robotics, including the Zeroth Law, to have humankind's greater good guiding him. Leto has the ancestral knowledge and foresight to guide him in the same way as Daneel. A normal human would be unable to steer away from being corrupted by the power so the trope of a "superman" type of character had to be invented.

[@MateoLegaspi]

I'm optimistically excited for this adaptation. Foundation/Empire/Robots is one of my favorite interconnected works

[@kcm069]

Other worlds play equally prominent roles in the Foundation series, particularly Terminus ( the selected successor of Trantor) and Gaia (an alternative society to that of both Terminus and Trantor). Loved Asimov's work ... so glad you are discussing it.

[@AshtonCoolman]

I also applaud your destruction of that filthy Xenos world, Trollion. Your willingness to resort to Exterminatus is admirable. You'll make a fine Inquisitor.

[@Lorgar64]

Something I liked about dark heresy is that people from different worlds actually had big differences. For instance hive worlders (from places like Trantor) are agoraphobic, while people raised on a starship are weaker due to unreliable gravity, but also luckier because they spent a relatively large part of their life in the warp. Also given the size of ship crews (a destroyer having about 30,000 if memory serves) these places get their own dialects.

[@IndigoVagrant]

Hey Quinn, fellow lover of Sci-Fi here. I highly reccomend you check out works by Peter Hamilton(Pandora's Star, Commonwealth Universe), Neal Asher(The Polity Universe books, they get progressively greater as they go), and Iain Banks(The Culture Universe books). I can tell based on your tastes you will enjoy these.

[@giovannifranzetti6214]

Casual show of appreciation: I love your work Quinn, it would be great to meet in person one day, although I live across the pond. Thanks for making me rediscover reading, I'm totally lost in science fiction now and put down the phone after dinner, and that's very much thanks to you! Would hate living on Trentor by the way, I need forests, lakes and mountains, and just plain space. And hello to all the fellow enthusiasts!

[@carlbrittain1993]

"...has specialized rooms to simulate sunlight. Thia is the only way its enormous population could exist on one planet..." Laughs in Imperial Low Gothic.

[@chromedog68]

and both 40k's hive worlds and Star Wars' Coruscant can trace their look and entire being back to this story and world.

[@dupre7416]

Woah, KZbin's recommendation engine finally delivered me a video I really like. Definite subscription. ✅

[@deepfriedsammich]

The central problem, even for a "god emperor" is the nature of value itself. The problem with command economies is that at their foundation they are rooted in seductive and intractable human superstitions about the nature of value. The idea that a command economy "can work" in some fashion is rooted in one or more fallacies about the nature of value: that it is objective, intrinsic, collectively determined, or context invariant, when the actual nature of value is that it is subjective, individually imputed, extrinsic, and context dependent. The best that a "god emperor" could do, is simply "guess" or "know" the value imputations of all participants in the economy, in every second, and make choices that those people otherwise would have made if free to act on their own value imputations. In practice, this is flatly impossible. The consequence of this impossibility is that production, distribution, and consumption in a command economy become irrational, leading to shortages, scarcity, gluts, surpluses, wastes of resources and misdirection of capital. The phenomenon is known as The Economic Calculation Problem.

[@AndrewHarter579]

This is really interesting, and completely fits both series. ill be reading more about this, thanks!

[@astronut06]

Agree very germaine. Wish we talked more about this and fairness as way to cross the aisle.

[@kathleenhensley5951]

I remember reading it when I was a teenager. (at least the first trilogy. ) With your explanation, it reminds me of Ancient Rome and what happened when Roma was sacked several times in the 5th century (410AD, 450 AD particularly) I never realized that the Mule was a Robot! How did I miss that? my youth?

[@matiasdevaglia4541]

Great work! Dear people: please watch the entire video before commenting on supposed text mistakes.

[@jonathanfrost8767]

Quinn, your research is ultimately extensive and your love of the genre is obvious. Thank you!

[@Hitchpster]

Huge SPOILER here, but the secret of how Asimov's Galactic Empire is was able to function at all is _outside_ both the Empire saga and Robots saga. Read "The End of Eternity". In a way, Asimov aligns with the Many World's Interpretation of Quantum Physics.

[@Procopius464]

Interesting take. I never thought to make this comparison between Asimov and Herbert.

[@no_one01-5]

2:22 "Trantor"? Judging by the ships on the foreground, it might as well say Coruscant. 😆

[@angel_machariel]

For those who lost track of the fictional timeline: in 260 FE (260 years after Seldon died), or 12328 CE (earth years), Trantor is being sacked. That's the start of the Dark Age of the entire milky way. Notice that that in "Foundation and Empire" during the events of the General, the Dark Age was only a lifetime away. The famous "Mule" arrived when the milky way was way deep into misery already for 50 years (310 FE).

[@lashlarue59]

Here is my take on the order of books to read in the Asimov Universe. For the record I think Apple's Foundation series is probably going to suck. There is just no way to portray the ideas from all these books in motion pictures when the decisions are made by committee for profit. Remember the Will Smith version of I Robot? Outside of the title there was next to nothing of the Asimov story in that film. Remember World War Z? Another great book where the film outside of the title was nothing like the original source. Oh well... 1. The End of Eternity --Prequel 2. I Robot --The Robot series 3. The Caves of Steel 4. The Naked Sun 5. The Robots of Dawn 6. Robots and Empire 7. The Currents of Space --The Empire Series 8. The Stars, Like Dust 9. Pebble in the Sky 10. Prelude to Foundation --The Foundation Series 11. Forward the Foundation 12. Foundation 13. Foundation and Empire 14. Second Foundation 15. Foundation's Edge 16. Foundation and Earth

[@michaelbarnard3636]

So crazy that you mentioned Ringworld, I just finished reading that book series before reading Foundation (which I finished today).

[@Bobo56Bear]

SyFy babe on cover of that book, and the foundation books is HOT :P ( one of main reason's why I bought and read the books with those covers at 14y old many years ago :) 😀

[@MaharionPendragon]

First to comment 😁. What's up with those "Quinn is a loser" and "Quinn is lame" phrases in your script? Wondering how many of us would notice? Edit: yes yes, guys, it comes from that alien skit thing, but instead of friendly banter with it, this time he actually snuck in those sentences. Just questioning if he wondèrs how many of us would notice.

[@BoxStudioExecutive]

Maybe watch the whole video first?

[@dionysianapollomarx]

@@BoxStudioExecutive it's in the text in the video 😂

[@dionysianapollomarx]

@@BoxStudioExecutive check the quotes on screen

[@ticler]

Rogue editor?

[@xManzi]

@@dionysianapollomarx I think he just wanted to say that it is explained at the end of the video. And it's implied that he read it on screen also🤦

[@codybanks4632]

We will never stop watching!!!! Quinn grabs the unique, obscure and niche stuff... We need you. Keep it up!

[@count4045]

And that, my friend, is why we should never concentrate and centralize everything in the same place.

[@DeadlyblueEdward]

AKA never put all your eggs in one basket.

[@count4045]

@@DeadlyblueEdward AKA don't bet on the wrong horse xD

[@rudmanpaul2812]

Good job we're not all stuck one planet.....😮

[@rudmanpaul2812]

*on one planet... 😂

[@count4045]

@@rudmanpaul2812 Wait a minute... Na we all know that Hitler and the nazis are hidden on the dark side of the moon. I know it's technically not a planet but still... it still counts.

[@Robert-hz9bj]

A) I too dislike the sun, I'm glad someone else finally said it, B) Very good video, and C) Trying to parse out specifically what Asimov is trying to say about centralized authority is a bit confusing, as the Re-Unification of the Galactic Empire seems to be spearheaded by centralized authorities of grander and grander scope. First, there is the First Foundation, essentially trying to create Galactic Empire 2.0, then the Second Foundation which is also a centralized authority manipulating the First (and galaxy at large through the shadows), THEN there is Gaia trying to create Galaxia, and FINALLY Daneel driving everything forward in the name of the Zeroth Law. If anything, the Empire's previous bureaucracy has been replaced with an even grander, more elaborate one, admittedly one headed by telepaths, hive minds, and ancient robots...

[@SSNewberry]

Also in another frame: "Quinn is lame stop watching"

[@ericarndt3855]

legit one of the best narrators I've heard

[@wanderingursa8184]

I absolutely love Foundation, but the idea of an ecumenopolis holding "well in excess of 40 billion", is laughable, 40 billion, even 90 billion would make for a practically deserted ecumenopolis. I know Trantor is smaller than earth, but still... If earth was an ecumenopolis, and each person had 155.2 square meters. The population would be close to 650 trillion.

[@The_Bird_Bird_Harder]

Sounds like you could have 40 billion people with........... You know that might be too much room assuming even spread.

[@peterknutsen3070]

Yes, with people living in large and well-designed giga-buildings (arcologies), you can house a lot on very little ground footprint, without them missing out on living space, being able to get around, and so forth.

[@o-wolf]

Why are you assuming everyones stacked on top of each other like sardines? lmao

[@o-wolf]

@@peterknutsen3070 that's assuming they're well designed or forward thinking New York could easily hold twice as many ppl if it were more efficiently built but if you've ever BEEN to NY u couldn't imagine that because it FEELS pretty crowded.. gradual organic outbuilding &layering would result in less structured space management.. plus trantor had 40% less surface area than earth &as quinn pointed out it was run by extremely corrupt bureaucratic wasteful &ineffective rulers

[@wanderingursa8184]

@O-Wolf are you asking me? Cause 155 square meters is.... Not stacked like sardines.

[@Iron-Bridge]

Lol at the organism 9186 sequence towards the end 😄😄. The rest of it plus the other Foundation and Dune content are a joy to watch.

[@casbot71]

Another sci-fi IP that r̶i̶p̶s̶ ̶o̶f̶f̶ pays homage to the idea of Trantor is the prequel trilogy from Star Wars with Corescant. And it plays with a similar theme of a stagnant old Empire/Republic that is gradually falling due to mismanagement and indifference to the outer territories. It's just in that case it was given a push… due to preexisting plot conditions. And it doesn't get totally trashed (maybe episode 10?)

[@casbot71]

Additional note *SPOILERS* for the latter books Foundation and Empire, Second Foundation. _You have been warned…_ ⬇️ The original concept for Jar Jar Binks was as the secret evil mastermind who traveled with the heroes while playing the clown, to keep everyone off guard, while using his psychic abilities (Force mind control) to further his plans. The whole plot was referred to as Darth Jar Jar, and he was supposed to be Darth Plagueis reincarnated via his Force powers. He's using Palpatine as his pawn, without his knowledge(?), to carry out his plans and be the visible face of the new Sith Empire. But Lucas chickened out after the backlash from The Phantom Menace when everyone hated Jar Jar (he did too good a job of hiding the clues - which are there, Google them… "Darth Jar Jar", there are a lot of KZbin videos that show the relevant CGI scenes that were deliberately animated to show Darth Jar Jar Force manipulating people ect.). It's not the first time he's used that concept, he introduced Yoda the same way as a impish creature but did the reveal only a few scenes later. The clown who travels with the heroes is of course a direct r̶i̶p̶s̶ ̶o̶f̶f̶ homage to the Mule from the later Foundation books. Except the ending is different of course, Plagueis doesn't care for kindness or pity.

[@101Mant]

@@casbot71 pretty sure that's just a load of internet conspiracy theory

[@knitfrau]

Appreciate your videos, I just reread Dune and now Foundation and watching your channel gives me deeper understanding of what's going on in those novels. Thanks!!!

[@ben-ty9jo]

I'm about to finish Chapterhouse:Dune and start Foundation. Really looking forward to it

[@davidboivin7996]

You need to read Sandworms of Dune and Hunters of Dune to complete the story. Enjoy the original Foundation Trilogy before reading the 2 prequels and 2 sequels.

[@ben-ty9jo]

@@davidboivin7996 havent read the expanded Dune books but I'm currently on Foundation and Earth. Really enjoyed the original trilogy, the sequels have been eh, and im reading the prequels next

[@inkeldinky]

I paused this video to avoid spoilers two weeks ago, now I started and finished the foundation series and watched it. Great vid.

[@Qba86]

What Organism said: "Billions of Trollion people! Feminine units..." What he meant to say: "You blew up all of our porn!"

[@drigondii]

Since right after that he said fledglings... I hope not.

[@louiscarr9587]

Keep it up young brother, You are very much needed. Foundation and Ringworld are my favorites.

[@davebowman9000]

Quin showed what he's learned from the God-Emperor in this video

[@RichardAugust]

The Foundation books, mostly the first three, are among my most treasured books. It was easy to overlook some of the technology, like the use of microfiche viewers instead of monitor-based computers, because the depth of the story is so compelling. I can't wait for the series.

[@iYehuk]

So, Quinn is a warcriminal now.

[@yaddahaysmarmalite4059]

There's no law against massacring Trollians. Besides, Quinn didn't actually push the button.

[@iYehuk]

@@yaddahaysmarmalite4059 Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot and others didn't personally kill either. They made others do it, just like Quinn. Creating a situation, where someone inintentionally commits a genocide is a war crime no matter how you look at it.

[@gresvig2507]

It's been a long time since I read the series, but the parallels between it and Dune really are coming to mind pretty quick now. I'll have to re-read it. Thinking at the moment about Foundation and Earth and the Golden Path and their similarities, from the need to modify humanity as a whole to protect it from some vague threat, to whatshisname's denial and finally acceptance of the path, Daneel merging with the Solarian (who is implied a bit to BE representative of the threat, man I wish there was another book), etc, etc. Bet comparing the Golden Path with the rise of Gaia/Galaxia would be one heck of a vid.

[@Whitehorze]

I wonder if Asimov was inspired to sprite this series after reading about the rise and fall of the Roman empire? So many parallels...

[@Alexthealright]

Yes Asimov was influenced by Gibbon's "History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

[@phillipmargrave]

That background with the slowly moving multicolor lights is really cool

[@cryptox826]

Trantor: The Coruscant of Foundation

[@brebenelandrei]

You are right in a way - but Coruscant's final design was inspired by Trantor. It's great that Foundation is finally getting an adaptation, it's a shame that something that set the basis of science-fiction never got a proper adaptation before

[@nv_spartan1771]

Actually, Coruscant is the Trantor of Star Wars.

[@cryptox826]

Andrei Brebenel I know the comment wasn’t meant to be taken seriously lol

[@ArtemisScribe]

more like Coruscant: The Trantor of Star Wars, because time is linear.

[@BoxStudioExecutive]

ArtemisScribe are you sure about that

[@liberteus]

Planet wide city... That's called an oecumenoplis. See Isaac Arthur video on that topic. If you're here reading comments, you'll love Isaac KZbin channel. Lol, hadn't watched the whole video. Quinn, definitely doing his homework. Nice job.

[@ArtemisScribe]

Damn, Quinn's skits are getting dark

[@seanmcgrath3826]

But the darkness is our friend...

[@Hunpecked]

The planet wasn't really destroyed. He's just playing mind games with his adversary. He's quite diabolical.