Article: Donald E. Palumbo. Chaos Theory, Asimov's Foundations and Robots, and Herbert's Dune: the Fractal Aesthetic of Epic Science Fiction.(Book Review)

Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2002. xi + 240 pp. $67.95.

DON'T BE PUT OFF by the catchy title of this book. Dr. Palumbo has produced a volume which is itself a trilogy of sorts, composed of three parts, each with three chapters. The irony (or self-similarity) of this structure was not lost on me because one of the topics of the book is the "trilogies-within-trilogies" structure found in Isaac Asimov's Robot and Foundation novels and also in the Dune books of Frank Herbert. Such a structure--form mirroring content--can be likened to the structure of fractals and the spiraling feedback loops of chaos theory. Dr. Palumbo's study may also be divided into a different ...

Related newspaper, magazine, and journal articles:

 
 
Newsweek Harper's Magazine The Washington Post Chicago Tribune Crain's Chicago Business PRNewswire Pediatric News The Nation Advertising Age The Economist (US) A FREE trial gives you access to over 80 million articles! Access over 6,500 publications with a FREE trial!