In this collection, one of the great classics of science fiction, Asimov set out the principles of robot behavior that we know as the Three Laws of Robotics. Here are stories of robots gone mad, mind-reading robots, robots with a sense of humor, robot politicians, and robots who secretly run the world, all told with Asimov's trademark dramatic blend of science fact and science fiction.

Though a well-regarded physicist Carl Sagan (1934-1996) is best-known as a writer of popular nonfiction and science fiction and as the host of the PBS series Cosmos . Through his writings and spoken commentary, he worked to popularize interests in astronomy, the universe, and the possibility of extraterrestrial life. From the beginning of his public career, when he co-wrote Intelligent Life in the Universe to the very end as he worked on the 1997 film adaptation of his novel Contact , these subjects absorbed him. This interest in space was rooted in his understanding of the smallness and vulnerability of humanity measured against the immense size and power of the universe. This profound philosophical humility, mixed with personal exuberance, comes through in Conversations with Carl Sagan . In interviews and profiles, Sagan discusses with verve a wide variety of topics--the environment, nuclear disarmament, religion, politics, extraterrestrial life, astronomy, physics, robotics. Whether he is discussing his science fiction or his well-researched nonfiction works, his voice embraces reason and skepticism. This volume shows how Sagan, a lifelong skeptic, refined his views and expressed amazement that Earth, for all his belief in extraterrestrial life, encompasses everything about which he cared. Tom Head of Jackson, Mississippi, is a writer and poet whose work includes Women and Families (Voices from the Civil War) , Possessions and Exorcisms (Fact or Fiction?) , and 1966 (The Turbulent 60s) .

William Shatner, Star Trek's much-loved Captain James T. Kirk, returns with another suspenseful adventure novel in the Tek series. Investigator Jake Cardigan is back, this time hired to look into the disappearance of beautiful heiress Alicia Bower. As the daughter of the world's wealthiest robotics industrialist, Alicia has lived an exciting, eventful life, and her family is not concerned. They think this is just another impetuous departure with some handsome young man. But her current boyfriend, who believes she loves him and has changed her ways, thinks Alicia is in danger, and he turns to Jake Cardigan for help. Jake has his own problems. The murder of Beth, the woman he loved (in The Vengeance), has left him lonely and bitter. Still, Jake's son Dan and his trusted sidekick Sid Gomez persuade him to take on the case. His beloved Beth is beyond his help, but Alicia Bower may still be alive and in need of rescue. And even if Jake had tended to discount her boyfriend's emotional plea, the attempts that begin immediately on his own life are enough to convince him that something of deadly importance is going on.