Prelude to Foundation Chapter 10 Book

HAND-ON-THIGH STORY- An occasion cited by Hari Seldon as the first turning point in his search for a method to develop psychohistory. Unfortunately, his published belles-lettres give no indication as to what that story was and speculations concerning it ( t here(predicate) go through been galore(postnominal)) are futile. It remains ane of the m for incessantlyy intriguing mysteries concerning Seldons career.Encyclopedia galactica45.Raindrop Forty-Three stared at Seldon, wild-eyed and breathing heavily. I cornerst unmatchedt taking into custody here, she express.Seldon aired virtually. No one is bothering us. Even the Brother from whom we got the dainties express nonhing about us. He seemed to take us as a absolutely normal pair.Thats beca persona at that place is nonhing un frequent about us-when the blank is dim, when you keep your voice outset so the tribesman accent is less noticeable, and when I seem calm. and presently- Her voice was growing hoarse.What of fla t?I am nervous and tense. I am in a perspiration.Who is to notice? Relax. Calm mass.I cleart undo here. I cant calm reduce while I whitethorn be noticed.Where are we to go, therefore? in that respect are dwarfish sheds for resting. I obtain worked here. I cognize about them.She was walking rapidly instanter and Seldon followed. Up a sm altogether ramp, which he would not claim noticed in the twilight without her, there was a line of accesss, well sp pick out a depart workforcet.The one at the end, she muttered. If its free.It was unoccupied. A keen glowing rectangle express NOT IN USE and the door was ajar.Raindrop Forty-Three looked about rapidly, motioned Seldon in, wherefore feelingped inside herself. She closed the door and, as she did so, a sm alone ceiling light brightened the interior.Seldon express, Is there either way the bless on the door can indicate this shed is in use?That happened automatic each(prenominal)(a)y when the door closed and the light went on, said the Sister.Seldon could feel air softly circulating with a small sighing sound, only when where on Trantor was that ever-present sound and feel not apparent? The room was not large, but it had a cot with a firm, efficient mattress, and what were obviously clean sheets. There was a c pilus and table, a small refrigerator, and roughlything that looked interchangeable an enclose hot plate, in all probability a tiny food-heater.Raindrop Forty-Three sit down on the chair, sitting bang upright, visibly attempting to force herself into relaxation.Seldon, uncertain as to what he ought to do, remained standing till she gestured-a bit impatiently-for him to sit on the cot. He did so.Raindrop Forty-Three said softly, as though public lecture to herself, If it is ever contendn that I keep been here with a man-even if only a tribesman-I shall indeed be an outcast.Seldon rose quickly. Then lets not stay here.Sit down. I cant go out when Im in this mood. Youve been asking about religion. What are you after?It seemed to Seldon that she had changed completely. gone(a) was the passivity, the subservience. There was none of the shyness, the backwardness in the presence of a male. She was glaring at him through change eyes.I told you. Knowledge. Im a scholar. It is my profession and my desire to know, I hope to understand people in particular, so I want to take heed history. For many conceptions, the superannuated historical records-the truly ancient historical records- feel shitty into myths and legends, often becoming part of a set of religious beliefs or of super innateism. But if Mycogen does not need a religion, whence(prenominal)-I said we confine history.Seldon said, Twice youve said you postulate history. How old?It goes back twenty thousand years.Truly? Let us speak frankly. Is it current history or is it almost(a)thing that has degenerated into legend?It is real history, of course.Seldon was on the point of asking how she could declaim , but pattern better of it. Was there really a run into that history susceptibility reach back twenty thousand years and be authentic? He was not a historian himself, so he would live with to check with Dors.But it seemed so belike to him that on every world the earliest histories were medleys of self-serving heroisms and minidramas that were meant as morality plays and were not to be interpreted literally. It was veritablely true of Helicon, yet you would decide scarcely a Heliconian who would not swear by all the tales told and insist it was all true history. They would support, as such, even that perfectly wet tale of the first geographic expedition of Helicon and the encounters with large and dangerous flying reptiles-even though nothing like flying reptiles had been implant to be native to any world explored and settled by human beings.He said instead, How does this history stupefy?There was a faraway look in the Sisters eyes, a look that did not focus on Seldon or o n anything in the room. She said, It begins with a world-our world. One world.One world? (Seldon remembered that Hummin had spoken of legends of a unity, sea captain world of humanity.)One world. There were others later, but ours was the first. One world, with space, with collapse air, with room for everyone, with fertile fields, with friendly homes, with fiery people. For thousands of years we lived there and then we had to leave and skulk in one give or other until some of us found a corner of Trantor where we learned to grow food that brought us a petite freedom. And here in Mycogen, we now have our own ways-and our own dreams.And your histories give the full lucubrate concerning the fundal world? The one world?Oh yes, it is all in a book and we all have it. Every one of us. We carry it at all mea original so that there is never a moment when any one of us cannot open it and instruct it and remember who we are and who we were and resolve that someday we result have our world back.Do you know where this world is and who lives on it now?Raindrop Forty-Three hesitated, then shook her compass point fiercely. We do not, but someday we will beat it.And you have this book in your possession now?Of course.May I see that book?Now a slow impart a face crossed the face of the Sister. She said, So thats what you want. I knew you wanted something when you asked to be guided through the microfarms by me alone. She seemed a little embarrassed. I didnt think it was the Book.It is all I want, said Seldon earnestly. I really did not have my mind on anything else. If you brought me here because you thought-She did not allow him to finish. But here we are. Do you or dont you want the Book?argon you offering to let me see it?On one condition.Seldon paused, weighing the possibility of real trouble if he had overcome the Sisters inhibitions to a greater extent than he had ever intended. What condition? he said.Raindrop Forty-Threes tongue emerged lightly and licke d quickly at her lips. Then she said with a distinct dread in her voice, That you remove your skincap.46.Hari Seldon stared blankly at Raindrop Forty-Three. There was a perceptible moment in which he did not know what she was talking about. He had forgotten he was wearing a skincap.Then he put his buy the farm to his head and, for the first time, consciously snarl the skincap he was wearing. It was smooth, but he matte up the tiny resilience of the hair beneath. Not oft. His hair, after all, was fine and without much body. He said, still smelling it, Why?She said, Because I want you to. Because thats the condition if you want to see the Book.He said, Well, if you really want me to. His hand probed for the edge, so that he could peel it off.But she said, No, let me do it. Ill do it. She was looking at him hungrily.Seldon dropped his custody to his lap. Go ahead, then.The Sister rose quickly and sat down abutting to him on the cot. Slowly, carefully, she detached the skincap f rom his head middling in front of his ear. Again she licked her lips and she was panting as she loosened the skincap about his os frontale and turned it up. Then it came away and was gone and Seldons hair, released, seemed to stir a bit in glad freedom.He said, troubled, Keeping my hair under the skincap has probably do my scalp sweat. If so, my hair will be human body of damp.He raised his hand, as though to check the matter, but she caught it and held it back. I want to do that, she said. Its part of the condition. Her fingers, slowly and hesitantly, touched his hair and then withdrew. She touched it again and, very gently, stroked it. Its dry, she said. It feels good.Have you ever felt cephalic hair forrader?Only on children sometimes. This is different. She was stroking again.In what way? Seldon, even amid his embarrassment, found it possible to be curious.I cant say. Its just different.After a while he said, Have you had adequacy?No. Dont rush me. Can you make it lie anyw ay you want it to?Not really. It has a natural way of falling, but I need a comb for that and I dont have one with me.A comb?An object with prongs uh, like a fork but the prongs are more numerous and some softer.Can you use your fingers? She was running hers through his hair.He said, After a fashion. It doesnt work very well.Its burred behind.The hair is shorter there.Raindrop Forty-Three seemed to recall something. The eyebrows, she said. Isnt that what theyre called? She stripped off the shields, then ran her fingers through the gentle arc of hair, against the grain. Thats nice, she said, then laughed in a steep-pitched way that was almost like her untrieder sisters giggle. Theyre cute.Seldon said a little impatiently, Is there anything else thats part of the condition?In the rather dim light, Raindrop Forty-Three looked as though she top executive be escorting an affirmative, but said nothing. Instead, she suddenly withdrew her hold and lifted them to her nose. Seldon wonde red what she might be smelling. How odd, she said. May I may I do it again another time?Seldon said uneasily, If you will let me have the Book long enough to study it, then perhaps.Raindrop Forty-Three reached into her kirtle through a slit that Seldon had not noticed before and, from some hidden inner pocket, removed a book bound in some tough, flexible material. He took it, trying to control his excitement. While Seldon readjusted his skincap to cover his hair, Raindrop Forty-Three raised her hands to her nose again and then, gently and quickly, licked one finger.47.Felt your hair? said Dors Venabili. She looked at Seldons hair as though she was of a mind to feel it herself.Seldon moved away slightly. Please dont. The woman do it seem like a perversion.I bet it was-from her standpoint. Did you derive no plea certain from it yourself?Pleasure? It gave me gooseflesh. When she eventually stopped, I was able to breathe again. I kept thinking What other conditions will she make?Dors laughed. Were you afeard(predicate) that she would force end up upon you? Or hopeful?I assure you I didnt dare think. I just wanted the Book.They were in their room now and Dors turned on her field distorter to make sure they would not be overheard.The Mycogenian night was about to begin. Seldon had removed his skincap and kirtle and had bathed, paying particular attention to his hair, which he had foamed and rinsed twice. He was now sitting on his cot, wearing a light nightgown that had been hanging in the closet.Dors said, eyes dancing, Did she know you have hair on your chest?I was hoping earnestly she wouldnt think of that.Poor Hari. It was all perfectly natural, you know. I would probably have had similar trouble if I was alone with a Brother. Worse, Im sure, since he would imagine-Mycogenian friendship being what it is-that as a woman I would be bound to obey his pastures without delay or demur.No, Dors. You may think it was perfectly natural, but you didnt experience it . The poor woman was in a high state of sexual excitement. She engaged all her senses smelled her fingers, licked them. If she could have heard hair grow, she would have listened avidly.But thats what I mean by natural. Anything you make forbidden gains sexual attractiveness. Would you be oddly interested in womens breasts if you lived in a society in which they were displayed at all times?I think I might.Wouldnt you be more interested if they were always hidden, as in most societies they are?- Listen, let me tell you something that happened to me. I was at a lake resort back home on Cinna I presume you have resorts on Helicon, beaches, that sort of thing?Of course, said Seldon, slightly annoyed. What do you think Helicon is, a world of rocks and mountains, with only well water to drink?No offense, Hari. I just want to make sure youll get the point of the story. On our beaches at Cinna, were pretty lighthearted about what we wear or dont wear. nude sculpture beaches?Not actually, t hough I suppose if someone removed all of his or her clothing it wouldnt be much remarked on. The custom is to wear a decent minimum, but I moldiness film that what we consider decent leaves very little to the imagination.Seldon said, We have somewhat higher standards of decency on Helicon.Yes, I could tell that by your careful treatment of me, but to each its own. In any case, I was sitting at the small beach by the lake and a young man approached to whom I had spoken earlier in the day. He was a decent fellow I found nothing particularly wrong with. He sat on the arm of my chair and placed his right hand on my left hand(a) thigh, which was bare, of course, in order to steady himself.After we had spoken for a minute and a half or so, he said, impishly. hither I am. You know me hardly at all and yet it seems perfectly natural to me that I place my hand on your thigh. Whats more, it seems perfectly natural to you, since you dont seem to mind that it remains there.It was only then that I actually noticed that his hand was on my thigh. Bare skin in customary somehow loses some of its sexual quality. As I said, its the hiding from dupe that is crucial.And the young man felt this too, for he went on to say, Yet if I were to meet you under more formal conditions and you were wearing a gown, you wouldnt dream of allow me lift your gown and place my hand on your thigh on the precise spot it now occupies.I laughed and we continued to talk of this and that. Of course, the young man, now that my attention had been called to the position of his hand, felt it no long-run appropriate to keep it there and removed it.That night I dressed for dinner with more than usual care and appeared in clothing that was considerably more formal than was required or than other women in the dining room were wearing. I found the young man in question. He was sitting at one of the tables. I approached, greeted him, and said, here I am in a gown, but under it my left thigh is bare. I g ive you permission. Just lift the gown and place your hand on my left thigh where you had it earlier.He tried. Ill give him credit for that, but everyone was staring. I wouldnt have stopped him and Im sure no one else would have stopped him either, but he couldnt bring himself to do it. It was no more public then than it had been earlier and the same people were present in both cases. It was clear that I had taken the initiative and that I had no objections, but he could not bring himself to violate the proprieties. The conditions, which had been hand-on-thigh in the afternoon, were not hand-on-thigh in the evening and that meant more than anything logic could say.Seldon said, I would have put my hand on your thigh.Are you sure?Positive.Even though your standards of decency on the beach are higher than ours are?Yes.Dors sat down on her own cot, then lay down with her hands behind her head. So that youre not particularly disturbed that Im wearing a nightgown with very little underne ath it.Im not particularly shocked. As for being disturbed, that depends on the definition of the word. Im certainly aware of how youre dressed.Well, if were going to be cooped up here for a period of time, well have to learn to ignore such things.Or take advantage of them, said Seldon, grinning. And I like your hair. After seeing you bald all day, I like your hair.Well, dont touch it. I havent serve it yet. She half-closed her eyes. Its interesting. Youve detached the free-and-easy and formal level of respectability. What youre saying is that Helicon is more respectable at the informal level than Cinna is and less respectable at the formal level. Is that right?Actually, Im just talking about the young man who placed his hand on your thigh and myself. How representative we are as Cinnians and Heliconians, respectively, I cant say. I can easily imagine some perfectly proper individuals on both worlds-and some madcaps too.Were talking about social pressures. Im not exactly a Galacti c traveler, but Ive had to involve myself in a great deal of social history. On the planet of Derowd, there was a time when premarital sex was absolutely free. Multiple sex was allowed for the unmarried and public sex was frowned upon only when traffic was blocked And yet, after marriage, monogamy was absolute and unbroken. The theory was that by working off all ones fantasies first, one could settle down to the serious demarcation of bearing.Did it work?About three hundred years ago that stopped, but some of my colleagues say it stopped through external pressure from other worlds who were losing too much tourist business to Derowd. There is such a thing as overall Galactic social pressure too.Or perhaps economic pressure, in this case.Perhaps. And being at the University, by the way, I get a get to study social pressures, even without being a Galactic traveler. I meet people from heaps of places inside and away of Trantor and one of the pet amusements in the social science dep artments is the comparison of social pressures.Here in Mycogen, for instance, I have the impression that sex is strictly controlled and is permitted under only the most strict rules, all the more tightly enforced because it is never discussed. In the Streeling Sector, sex is never discussed either, but it isnt condemned. In the Jennat Sector, where I spent a week once doing research, sex is discussed endlessly, but only for the purpose of denounce it. I dont suppose there are any 2 sectors in Trantor-or any two worlds outside Trantor-in which attitudes toward sex are completely duplicated.Seldon said, You know what you make it sound like? It would appear-Dors said, Ill tell you how it appears. All this talk of sex makes one thing clear to me. Im simply not going to let you out of my messiness anymore.What?Twice I let you go, the first time through my own misjudgment and the second because you bullied me into it. Both times it was cl primaeval a mistake. You know what happened to you the first time.Seldon said indignantly, Yes, but nothing happened to me the second time.You nearly got into a lot of trouble. Suppose you had been caught indulging in sexual escapades with a Sister?It wasnt a sexual- You yourself said she was in a high state of sexual excitement.But-It was wrong. Please get it through your head, Hari. From now on, you go nowhere without me.Look, said Seldon freezingly, my object was to find out about Mycogenian history and as a result of the alleged(prenominal) sexual escapade with a Sister, I have a book-the Book.The Book True, theres the Book. Lets see it.Seldon produced it and Dors thoughtfully hefted it.She said, It might not do us any good, Hari. This doesnt look as though it will fit any projector Ive ever encountered. That means youll have to get a Mycogenian projector and theyll want to know why you want it. Theyll then find out you have this Book and theyll take it away from you.Seldon smiled. If your assumptions were correct, Dors, yo ur conclusions would be inescapable, but it happens that this is not the kind of book you think it is. Its not meant to be projected. The material is bring outed on various pages and the pages are turned. Raindrop Forty-Three explained that much to me.A print-book It was hard to tell whether Dors was shocked or amused. Thats from the Stone Age.Its certainly pre-Empire, said Seldon, but not exclusively so. Have you ever seen a print-book?Considering that Im a historian? Of course, Hari.Ah, but like this one?He handed over the Book and Dors, smiling, opened it-then turned to another page-then flipped the pages. Its blank, she said.It appears to be blank. The Mycogenians are stubbornly primitivistic, but not simply so. They will keep to the essence of the primitive, but have no objection to use modern technology to modify it for conveniences sake. Who knows?Maybe so, Hari, but I dont understand what youre saying.The pages arent blank, theyre covered with microprint. Here, give it back. If I press this little nubbin on the inner edge of the cover- LookThe page to which the book lay open was suddenly covered with lines of print that rolled slowly upward.Seldon said, You can adjust the rate of upward tendency to match your reading speed by slightly twisting the nubbin one way or the other. When the lines of print reach their upward limit when you reach the bottom line, that is-they snap downward and turn off. You turn to the nigh page and continue.Where does the energy come from that does all this?It has an enclosed microfusion battery that lasts the liveliness of the book.Then when it runs down-You discard the book, which you may be required to do even before it runs down, given wear and tear, and get another copy. You never replace the battery.Dors took the Book a second time and looked at it from all sides. She said, I must admit I never heard of a book like this.Nor I. The Galaxy, generally, has moved into visual technology so rapidly, it skipped over t his possibility.This is visual.Yes, but not with the orthodox effects. This type of book has its advantages. It holds far more than an ordinary visual book does.Dors said, Wheres the turn-on?-Ah, let me see if I can work it. She had opened to a page at random and set the lines of print marching upward. Then she said, Im afraid this wont do you any good, Hari. Its pre-Galactic. I dont mean the book. I mean the print the language.Can you read it, Dors? As a historian-As a historian, Im used to dealing with archaic language-but within limits. This is far too ancient for me. I can make out a few words here and there, but not enough to be useful.Good, said Seldon. If its really ancient, it will be useful.Not if you cant read it.I can read it, said Seldon. Its bilingual. You dont suppose that Raindrop Forty-Three can read the ancient script, do you?If shes educated properly, why not?Because I comic that women in Mycogen are not educated past household duties. Some of the more learned men can read this, but everyone else would need a translation to Galactic. He pushed another nubbin. And this supplies it.The lines of print changed to Galactic Standard.Delightful, said Dors in admiration.We could learn from these Mycogenians, but we dont.We havent known about it.I cant believe that. I know about it now. And you know about it. There must be outsiders coming into Mycogen now and then, for commercial or political reasons, or there wouldnt be skincaps so ready for use. So every once in a while someone must have caught a glimpse of this sort of print-book and seen how it works, but its probably dismissed as something curious but not worth(predicate) further study, simply because its Mycogenian.But is it worth study?Of course. Everything is. Or should be. Hummin would probably point to this lack of concern about these books as a sign of degeneration in the Empire. He lifted the Book and said with a gush of excitement, But I am curious and I will read this and it may push me in the direction of psychohistory.I hope so, said Dors, but if you take my advice, youll sleep first and approach it fresh in the morning. You wont learn much if you nod over it.Seldon hesitated, then said, How maternal you areIm watching over you.But I have a mother alive on Helicon. I would rather you were my friend.As for that, I have been your friend since first I met you. She smiled at him and Seldon hesitated as though he were not certain as to the appropriate rejoinder.Finally he said, Then Ill take your advice-as a friend-and sleep before reading.He made as though to put the Book on a small table between the two cots, hesitated, turned, and put it under his pillow.Dors Venabili laughed softly. I think youre afraid I will wake during the night and read parts of the Book before you have a chance to. Is that it?Well, said Seldon, trying not to look ashamed, that may be it. Even friendship only goes so far and this is my book and its my psychohistory.I agree, said Dors, and I promise you that we wont quarrel over that. By the way, you were about to say something earlier when I break off you. Remember?Seldon thought briefly. No.In the dark, he thought only of the Book. He gave no thought to the hand-on-thigh story. In fact, he had already quite forgotten it, consciously at least.48.Venabili woke up and could tell by her timeband that the night period was only half over. Not hearing Haris snore, she could tell that his cot was empty. If he had not left the apartment, then he was in the bathroom. She tapped lightly on the door and said softly, Hari?He said, set about in, in an abstracted way and she did. The toilet lid was down and Seldon, seated upon it, held the Book open on his lap. He said, quite unnecessarily, Im reading.Yes, I see that. But why?I couldnt sleep. Im sorry.But why read in here?If I had turned on the room light, I would have woken you up.Are you sure the Book cant be illuminated?Pretty sure. When Raindrop Forty-Three described its work ings, she never mentioned illumination. Besides, I suppose that would use up so much energy that the battery wouldnt last the life of the Book. He sounded dissatisfied.Dors said, You can step out, then. I want to use this place, as long as Im here.When she emerged, she found him sitting cross-legged on his cot, still reading, with the room well lighted.She said, You dont look happy. Does the Book disappoint you?He looked up at her, blinking. Yes, it does. Ive sampled it here and there. Its all Ive had time to do. The thing is a virtual encyclopedia and the index is almost entirely a listing of people and places that are of little use for my purposes. It has nothing to do with the Galactic Empire or the pre-Imperial Kingdoms either. It deals almost entirely with a single world and, as nearly as I can make out from what I have read, it is an endless dissertation on internal politics.Perhaps you value its age. It may deal with a period when there was indeed only one world one inhabite d world.Yes, I know, said Seldon a little impatiently. Thats actually what I want-provided I can be sure its history, not legend. I wonder. I dont want to believe it just because I want to believe it.Dors said, Well, this matter of a single-world origin is much in the air these days. Human beings are a single species spread all over the Galaxy, so they must have originated somewhere. At least thats the favourite view at present. You cant have independent origins producing the same species on different worlds.But Ive never seen the inevitability of that argument, said Seldon. If human beings arose on a number of worlds as a number of different species, why couldnt they have interbred into some single intermediate species?Because species cant interbreed. Thats what makes them species.Seldon thought about it a moment, then dismissed it with a shrug. Well, Ill leave it to the biologists.Theyre precisely the ones who are keenest on the Earth hypothesis.Earth? Is that what they call the supposed world of origin?Thats a popular name for it, though theres no way of telling what it was called, assuming there was one. And no one has any clue to what its location might be.Earth said Seldon, curling his lips. It sounds like a belch to me. In any case, if the book deals with the original world, I didnt come across it. How do you enchantment the word?She told him and he checked the Book quickly. There you are. The name is not listed in the index, either by that spelling or any reasonable alternative.Really?And they do mention other worlds in passing. call arent given and there seems no interest in those other worlds except insofar as they this instant impinge on the local world they speak of at least as far as I can see from what Ive read. In one place, they talked about The Fifty. I dont know what they meant. Fifty leading? Fifty cities? It seemed to me to be fifty worlds.Did they give a name to their own world, this world that seems to preoccupy them entirely? asked Dors. If they dont call it Earth, what do they call it?As youd expect, they call it the world or the planet. Sometimes they call it the Oldest or the human of the Dawn, which has a poetic significance, I presume, that isnt clear to me. I suppose one ought to read the Book entirely through and some matters will then grow to make more sense. He looked down at the Book in his hand with some distaste. It would take a very long time, though, and Im not sure that Id end up any the wiser.Dors sighed. Im sorry, Hari. You sound so disappointed.Thats because I am disappointed. Its my fault, though. I should not have allowed myself to expect too much.-At one point, come to think of it, they referred to their world as Aurora. Aurora? said Dors, lifting her eyebrows.It sounds like a proper name. It doesnt make any sense otherwise, as far as I can see. Does it mean anything to you, Dors?Aurora. Dors thought about it with a slight frown on her face. I cant say Ive ever heard of a planet with that name in the course of the history of the Galactic Empire or during the period of its growth, for that matter, but I wont pretend to know the name of every one of the twenty- five billion worlds. We could look it up in the University library-if we ever get back to Streeling. Theres no use trying to find a library here in Mycogen. Somehow I have a feeling that all their knowledge is in the Book. If anything isnt there, they arent interested.Seldon yawned and said, I think youre right. In any case, theres no use reading any more and I doubt that I can keep my eyes open any longer. Is it all right if I put out the light?I would welcome it, Hari. And lets sleep a little later in the morning.Then, in the dark, Seldon said softly, Of course, some of what they say is ridiculous. For instance, they refer to a life prevision on their world of between three and four centuries.Centuries?Yes, they count their ages by decades rather than by years. It gives you a queer feeling, because so much of what they say is perfectly matter-of-fact that when they come out with something that odd, you almost find yourself trapped into believing it.If you feel yourself beginning to believe that, then you should realize that many legends of primitive origins prehend extended life spans for early leaders. If theyre pictured as unbelievably heroic, you see, it seems natural that they have life spans to suit.Is that so? said Seldon, yawning again.It is. And the cure for advanced gullibility is to go to sleep and consider matters again the next day.And Seldon, pausing only long enough to think that an extended life span might well be a simple necessity for anyone trying to understand a Galaxy of people, slept.49.The next morning, feeling relaxed and smart and eager to begin his study of the Book again, Hari asked Dors, How old would you say the Raindrop sisters are?I dont know. Twenty twenty-two?Well, suppose they do live three or four centuries.Hari. Thats ridiculous.Im saying suppose. In mathematics, we say suppose all the time and see if we can end up with something patently untrue or self-contradictory. An extended life span would almost surely mean an extended period of development. They might seem in their early twenties and actually be in their sixties.You can try asking them how old they are.We can ask theyd lie.Look up their birth certificates.Seldon smiled wryly. Ill bet you anything you like-a roll in the hay, if youre willing-that theyll claim they dont keep records or that, if they do, they will insist those records are closed to tribespeople.No bet, said Dors. And if thats true, then its useless trying to suppose anything about their age.Oh no. Think of it this way. If the Mycogenians are living extended life spans that are four or five times that of ordinary human beings, they cant very well give birth to very many children without expanding their state tremendously. You remember that Sunmaster said something about not having the population expand and bit off his remarks angrily at that time.Dors said, What are you getting at?When I was with Raindrop Forty-Three, I saw no children.On the microfarms?Yes.Did you expect children there? I was with Raindrop Forty-Five in the shops and on the residential levels and I assure you I saw a number of children of all ages, including infants. Quite a few of them.Ah. Seldon looked chagrined. Then that would mean they cant be enjoying extended life spans.Dors said, By your line of argument, I should say definitely not. Did you really think they did?No, not really. But then you cant close your mind either and make assumptions without testing them one way or another.You can burn out a lot of time that way too, if you stop to chew away at things that are ridiculous on the face of it.Some things that seem ridiculous on the face of it arent. Thats all. Which reminds me. Youre the historian. In your work, have you ever come across objects or phenomena called robots?Ah Now youre switching to anot her legend and a very popular one. There are any number of worlds that imagine the existence of machines in human form in prehistoric times. These are called robots.The tales of robots probably originate from one master legend, for the general theme is the same. Robots were devised, then grew in numbers and abilities to the status of the almost superhuman. They threatened humanity and were destroyed. In every case, the destruction took place before the actual reliable historic records available to us today existed. The usual feeling is that the story is a symbolic picture of the risks and dangers of exploring the Galaxy, when human beings expanded outward from the world or worlds that were their original homes. There must always have been the fear of encountering other-and superior-intelligences.Perhaps they did at least once and that gave rise to the legend.Except that on no human-occupied world has there been any record or trace of any prehuman or anthropoid intelligence.But why robots? Does the word have meaning?Not that I know of, but its the tantamount(predicate) of the familiar automata. Automata Well, why dont they say so?Because people do use archaic terms for sea tang when they tell an ancient legend. Why do you ask all this, by the way?Because in this ancient Mycogenian book, they talk of robots. And very favorably, by the way.-Listen, Dors, arent you going out with Raindrop Forty-Five again this afternoon?Supposedly-if she shows up.Would you ask her some questions and try to get the answers out of her?I can try. What are the questions?I would like to find out, as tactfully as possible, if there is some structure in Mycogen that is particularly significant, that is tied in with the past, that has a sort of mythic value, that can-Dors interrupted, trying not to smile. I think that what you are trying to ask is whether Mycogen has a temple.And, inevitably, Seldon looked blank and said, Whats a temple?Another archaic term of uncertain origin. It mean s all the things you asked about-significance, past, myth. real well, Ill ask. Its the sort of thing, however, that they might find difficult to speak of. To tribespeople, certainly.Nevertheless, do try.