The Last Question by Isaac Asimov
The Last Question is a science fiction story by Isaac Asimov. The story presents episodic
stages in the human-machine evolution with the first story set in the year 2061.
The first time humanity asked Multivac the titular question was when two technicians,
Alexander Adell and Bertram Lupov, were celebrating Multivac's solution for solar power on
21st May 2061. The energy that Multivac can generate from the Sun in order of magnitude is
more than Earth can generate from coal and other non-renewable resources. Adell says they
have enough energy to last forever. Lupov contradicts them, saying that it will only last for
billions and billions of years but that entropy means we will run out of energy. So the two
technicians challenge Multivac to learn whether entropy might be reversed. Multivac's
answer is, "INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR MEANINGFUL ANSWER."
Far into the future, a family of pioneers, Jerrodd, Jerrodine, and Jerrodette I and II, have
exited hyperspace near their new home; planet X - 23. A casual mention of entropy by
Jerrodd has upset his daughters, so they ask Microvac if entropy can be reversed. Reassuring
his daughters that Microvac has solved everything, he puts them to bed. Before disposing of
the answer, Jerrodd reads the answer again, "INSUFFICIENT DATA FOR A
MEANINGFUL ANSWER."
Even further into the future, two people, VJ-23X of Lameth and MQ-17J of Nicron, are
preparing a report for the Galactic Council about humanity's rate of expansion in the galaxy.
They realize that the rate of energy expenditure is even higher than the rate of human
expansion. VJ-23X jokingly suggests that MQ-17J asks the Galactic AC if entropy can be
