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Runaround

95 statements
17 feature instances
11 referencing feature instances

Runaround	type	TVTItem
Runaround	label	Runaround
Runaround	page	Runaround
Runaround	comment	First published in Astounding Science Fiction (March 1942 issue) by Isaac Asimov, this Novelette is about a robot that seems to have gone insane.Advertisement:propertag.cmd.push(function() { proper_display('tvtropes_mobile_ad_1'); })Gregory Powell and Mike Donovan, from United States Robot & Mechanical Men Corporation, were sent to Mercury to evaluate the possibility of reopening the Sunside Mercury Mining operation. The mining operation had been shut down due to bad luck before, and now Powell and Donovan were encountering another bit of bad luck; their only robot was sent to retrieve selenium, and they'll die if it doesn't return.Observing SPD 13 (Speedy) tells them that the robot is circling the nearest pool of selenium, but they don't know why. So Powell proposes that they reactivate the robots from the first expedition and send one of them to help Speedy. They refuse to move unless accompanied by a human, so Donovan and Powell mount two of the robots and head off through the mining tunnels to minimize their exposure to Mercury's sunlight.Advertisement:propertag.cmd.push(function() { proper_display('tvtropes_mobile_ad_2'); })When they reach Speedy, the robot greets them irreverently and runs off back the way it came. Donovan and Powell think for awhile, going over their situation to help focus on the problem. They try a few different ideas, but they fail. Getting desperate, Powell tricks Donovan in order to put himself at risk. The selenium pool (and Speedy) are far enough away from the darkness that Powell's suit will fail and he will die if Speedy doesn't save him. Fortunately, the trick works, and it looks like the jinx has been broken. Powell is looking forward to their next job, at 273 degrees below Centigrade.This story has been republished several times; I, Robot (1950), The Coming of the Robots (1963), As Tomorrow Becomes Today (1974), Meine Freunde Die Roboter (1982), The Complete Robot (1982), Hallucination Orbit Psychology In Science Fiction (1983), War With The Robots (1984), The Asimov Chronicles Fifty Years Of Isaac Asimov (1989), and Robot Visions (1990).Advertisement:propertag.cmd.push(function() { proper_display('tvtropes_mobile_ad_3'); })
Runaround	fetched	2021-02-08T00:43:10Z
Runaround	parsed	2021-02-08T00:43:10Z
Runaround	processingComment	Dropped link to IndustrializedMercury: Not a Feature - UNKNOWN
Runaround	processingUnknown	Industrialized Mercury
Runaround	isPartOf	DBTropes
Runaround / int_14ed6ab7	type	Does This Remind You of Anything?
Runaround / int_14ed6ab7	comment	Does This Remind You of Anything?: In order to refute concerns that robots might rebel against their owners, robots in 2005 were programmed with "healthy slave complexes", including calling all humans "Master". The analogy between robots replacing slaves is not subtle.
Runaround / int_14ed6ab7	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_14ed6ab7	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_14ed6ab7
Runaround / int_1994ba0b	type	Gone Horribly Right
Runaround / int_1994ba0b	comment	Gone Horribly Right: SPD 13's Third Law (self-preservation) was modified to be a higher priority than normal. When Donovan casually sends the robot on a mission to fetch selenium, he accidentally creates a Logic Bomb, where the robot must fetch the selenium (because of the second law) and mustn't get too close to the selenium (because of the third law). The bomb makes the robot act drunk while it runs around the lake.
Runaround / int_1994ba0b	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_1994ba0b	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_1994ba0b
Runaround / int_1bda3a0d	type	Society Marches On
Runaround / int_1bda3a0d	comment	Society Marches On: In-Universe, we see the robots from the first Sunside Mercury Mining expedition, who call all humans "Master". In contrast, Donovan and Powell are there fifty years later, and their robot, SPD 13, just calls them "boss".
Runaround / int_1bda3a0d	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_1bda3a0d	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_1bda3a0d
Runaround / int_1e39757d	type	Servant Race
Runaround / int_1e39757d	comment	Servant Race: During the timeframe when the first Sunside Mercury Mining operation occurred, people were extremely distrustful of the mechanical men. To reassure the population, these robots have a strong sense of subservience and are unable to move unless a human is riding them.
Runaround / int_1e39757d	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_1e39757d	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_1e39757d
Runaround / int_31083edb	type	Logic Bomb
Runaround / int_31083edb	comment	Logic Bomb: Because the Rules of Robotics ensure that Speedy will take care to avoid danger to self, Donovan set up an unintentional conflict by casually sending Speedy into a situation he didn't know would be dangerous. To resolve the weak Rule 2 against the strong Rule 3, Speedy has been spending hours running around where the two priorities are exactly equal. The conflict is resolved when they exploit the first Law to force him out of the loop.
Runaround / int_31083edb	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_31083edb	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_31083edb
Runaround / int_555ff395	type	ILoveNuclearPower
Runaround / int_555ff395	comment	I Love Nuclear Power: The robots are powered by a two-inch sphere of atomic energy.
Runaround / int_555ff395	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_555ff395	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_555ff395
Runaround / int_6465928f	type	More Hero than Thou
Runaround / int_6465928f	comment	More Hero Than Thou: Powell and Donovan are arguing over who should risk their life to rescue a malfunctioning robot. Powell proposes a math contest: whoever can solve a difficult math problem gets to go. Of course, he already solved it in his head before proposing the contest, and immediately runs off before Donovan can realize he was tricked.
Runaround / int_6465928f	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_6465928f	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_6465928f
Runaround / int_9843be73	type	As You Know
Runaround / int_9843be73	comment	As You Know: When trying to figure out what went wrong with their robot, Donovan and Powell review the situation they're in, which Dr Asimov uses as an opportunity for Exposition about the three Rules of Robotics.
Runaround / int_9843be73	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_9843be73	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_9843be73
Runaround / int_c72af5a8	type	Mini-Mecha
Runaround / int_c72af5a8	comment	Mini-Mecha: The robots from the first Sunside Mercury Mining operation were programmed with a strong sense of subservience and are unable to move unless someone is riding them. All this to reassure the population that the robots won't rebel against the humans.
Runaround / int_c72af5a8	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_c72af5a8	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_c72af5a8
Runaround / int_c75df49a	type	Shout-Out
Runaround / int_c75df49a	comment	Shout-Out: The proximity to selenium has disturbed Speedy's sensitive computer brain, causing him to speak whimsically, such as quoting from several Gilbert and Sullivan plays.
Runaround / int_c75df49a	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_c75df49a	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_c75df49a
Runaround / int_d0f0a80d	type	One-Word Title
Runaround / int_d0f0a80d	comment	One-Word Title
Runaround / int_d0f0a80d	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_d0f0a80d	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_d0f0a80d
Runaround / int_d129e13e	type	"Eureka!" Moment
Runaround / int_d129e13e	comment	Eureka Moment: Powell and Donovan are quite proud of themselves for thinking of using the mining laboratory to create oxalic acid to chase Speedy away from the danger. Up until they realize, too late, that it only shifts the problem a few meters in one direction or another without solving the Logic Bomb.
Runaround / int_d129e13e	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_d129e13e	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_d129e13e
Runaround / int_dcac10e4	type	Tidally Locked Planet
Runaround / int_dcac10e4	comment	Tidally Locked Planet: Donovan and Powell are sent to Mercury to try reopening the "Sunside" mining operation. The story was premised on the conflict that the fields keeping the humans from dying would fail before sunset (since it was common scientific knowledge at the time that Mercury was tidally locked).
Runaround / int_dcac10e4	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_dcac10e4	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_dcac10e4
Runaround / int_dcd423d2	type	Affectionate Nickname
Runaround / int_dcd423d2	comment	Affectionate Nickname: Rather than using the model designation, SPD 13, Powell and Donovan call their robot Speedy.
Runaround / int_dcd423d2	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_dcd423d2	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_dcd423d2
Runaround / int_ea6f361f	type	You Are Number 6
Runaround / int_ea6f361f	comment	You Are Number 6: The robot model Donovan and Powell are field-testing is designated SPD 13.
Runaround / int_ea6f361f	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_ea6f361f	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_ea6f361f
Runaround / int_f32d85ab	type	20 Minutes into the Future
Runaround / int_f32d85ab	comment	20 Minutes into the Future: Published in 1942, this story takes place in 2015, with ubiquitous robots and interplanetary space travel.
Runaround / int_f32d85ab	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_f32d85ab	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_f32d85ab
Runaround / int_name	type	ItemName
Runaround / int_name	comment
Runaround / int_name	featureApplicability	1.0
Runaround / int_name	featureConfidence	1.0
Runaround	hasFeature	Runaround / int_name
Runaround / int_name	itemName	Runaround

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

Runaround	hasFeature	Affectionate Nickname / int_34a8d4ab
Runaround	hasFeature	American Literature (N to S) / int_34a8d4ab
Runaround	hasFeature	Industrialized Mercury / int_34a8d4ab
Runaround	hasFeature	Logic Bomb / int_34a8d4ab
Runaround	hasFeature	Novelette / int_34a8d4ab
Runaround	hasFeature	Robot and A.I. Works / int_34a8d4ab
Runaround	hasFeature	Robot Names / int_34a8d4ab
Runaround	hasFeature	Servant Race / int_34a8d4ab
Runaround	hasFeature	Three Laws-Compliant / int_34a8d4ab
Runaround	hasFeature	Tidally Locked Planet / int_34a8d4ab
Runaround	hasFeature	20 Minutes into the Future / int_34a8d4ab

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