(1920 – 1992) Russian-born biochemistry professor at Boston University, Asimov became better known for his science fiction and popularizations of science, especially for young people.

An extraordinarily prolific writer (over 300 books), Asimov is remembered for his visionary Foundation trilogy (1951–3) whose images of a galactic empire in collapse certainly prefigure Star Wars. He returned to writing about this universe in the 1980s with new volumes, while continuing to write both scientific texts and popular mysteries.