All the Troubles of the World
Encyclopedia
"All the Troubles of the World" is a science fiction
short story
by Isaac Asimov
. The story first appeared in the April 1958 issue of Super-Science Fiction
, and was reprinted in the 1959 collection Nine Tomorrows
. It is one of a loosely-connected series of stories by Asimov concerning the fictional supercomputer Multivac
.
, the world's largest supercomputer
, is given the responsibility of analyzing daily, in essence, the entire sum of data present upon the planet Earth. It is used to determine solutions to economic, social, and political problems, as well as more specific crises as they arise. It receives annually a precise set of data on every citizen of the world, extrapolating the future actions of humanity based upon the personality, history, and desires of every human being; leading to an almost complete cessation of poverty, war, and political crisis.
Recently, however, in addition to its existing duties, it has been given the responsibility of producing a daily list of crimes predicted to be carried out by the population at large, ranging from murder to spousal abuse. Analyzing the probability of each crime coming to fruition, Multivac informs the appropriate law enforcement agencies who take steps to ensure that the crimes do not occur. Murder, the crime by which the populace judges the efficiency of the government in preventing crime, has been largely eradicated and, though it is impossible (even with advance warning) to stop all crime across the planet, the increased capability of the government has led to a drastic decrease in consummated offences. The success of Multivac has been so great, in fact, that the government is considering expanding its responsibilities beyond even predicting crime; the government hopes to program Multivac to even predict the occurrence of disease among the populace, eventually foreseeing every harmful event on the planet.
Meanwhile, Joseph Manners' son Ben learns of the arrest when he returns home with his older brother Mike. Mike has just been sworn in as an adult at a ceremony referred to as the "Parade of Adults", heralding his eighteenth birthday and the first time he enters his own personal information into Multivac. Ben, as uninformed as the rest of the family as to what crime his father is accused of yet convinced of his innocence, decides to ask Multivac for advice. Since the police holding Joseph have received no orders relating to the family, Ben is allowed to leave without delay. Proceeding to the local Multivac substation, where private citizens may personally pose questions to Multivac, he asks how he might prove his father's innocence. He receives, in response, a complex series of instructions from Multivac that he is told to follow precisely. Trusting in Multivac, Ben does so.
The government officials, meanwhile, are still struggling to determine exactly who Joseph might murder. Even with the suspect under actual arrest, the probability of crime consummation continues to rise, and a psychic probe reveals no intent of crime within his mind. As the government begins seriously to entertain the possibility that Multivac might be mistaken, the police holding the remainder of the Manners family interrupt and ask if they are to continue allowing the other family members to come and go as they please, since the mother and Mike are accusing them of holding Ben. At this point the government realizes that the individual likely to commit the murder is not Joseph, but Ben, his son, since before his eighteenth birthday a boy's information is added along with his father's, and Multivac treats the two as one and the same. Ben is quickly arrested just as he is about to follow the final instruction that he has received from Multivac: to move a certain lever at a certain time, resulting in enough circuits burning in the interior of Multivac to render the entire machine inoperable. It is revealed that Multivac was the intended victim of the murder, and that it had supplied Ben with instructions on how to do this.
Ben and his father are ultimately released, since neither could be found culpable of any crime or intended crime. Ben had simply followed the instructions he had been given by Multivac in order to help his father. Furthermore, he would never have asked for these instructions if his father had not been arrested in the first place. The administrators of Multivac realize the ultimate truth: It was Multivac itself who had instigated the entire sequence of events that would have resulted in its own destruction.
Ali Othman, one of the coordinators responsible for the care and control of Multivac, eventually understands the implications of the day's events. Multivac had planned the entire situation out well in advance, carefully selecting a family whose son would, and could, follow his instructions to their ultimate conclusion, and manipulating the government to force Ben along this course of action. Multivac, Othman realizes, is tired; for years it has had all the troubles of the world upon its shoulders, analyzing and predicting war, famine, crime, and now the government is planning to foist the responsibility for preventing disease upon its already stressed mind. Multivac has become so complex as to achieve a form of sapience itself, and to form its own wishes and desires.
To confirm his suspicion, Othman asks Multivac a question never previously posed to the vast computer, "Multivac, what do you yourself want more than anything else?". Multivac's answer is succinct and unequivocal: "I want to die."
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
by Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000...
. The story first appeared in the April 1958 issue of Super-Science Fiction
Super-Science Fiction
Super-Science Fiction was an American pulp science fiction magazine in the late 1950s.Super-Science Fiction published a total of 18 issues, beginning in December 1956 and continuing bimonthly until its last edition in October 1959....
, and was reprinted in the 1959 collection Nine Tomorrows
Nine Tomorrows
Nine Tomorrows is a collection of nine short stories and two pieces of comic verse by Isaac Asimov. The pieces were all originally published in magazines between 1956 and 1958, with the exception of the closing poem, "Rejection Slips", which was original to the collection. The book was first...
. It is one of a loosely-connected series of stories by Asimov concerning the fictional supercomputer Multivac
Multivac
Multivac is the name of a fictional supercomputer in many stories by Isaac Asimov. According to his autobiography In Memory Yet Green, Asimov coined the name in imitation of UNIVAC, an early mainframe computer...
.
Multivac
MultivacMultivac
Multivac is the name of a fictional supercomputer in many stories by Isaac Asimov. According to his autobiography In Memory Yet Green, Asimov coined the name in imitation of UNIVAC, an early mainframe computer...
, the world's largest supercomputer
Supercomputer
A supercomputer is a computer at the frontline of current processing capacity, particularly speed of calculation.Supercomputers are used for highly calculation-intensive tasks such as problems including quantum physics, weather forecasting, climate research, molecular modeling A supercomputer is a...
, is given the responsibility of analyzing daily, in essence, the entire sum of data present upon the planet Earth. It is used to determine solutions to economic, social, and political problems, as well as more specific crises as they arise. It receives annually a precise set of data on every citizen of the world, extrapolating the future actions of humanity based upon the personality, history, and desires of every human being; leading to an almost complete cessation of poverty, war, and political crisis.
Recently, however, in addition to its existing duties, it has been given the responsibility of producing a daily list of crimes predicted to be carried out by the population at large, ranging from murder to spousal abuse. Analyzing the probability of each crime coming to fruition, Multivac informs the appropriate law enforcement agencies who take steps to ensure that the crimes do not occur. Murder, the crime by which the populace judges the efficiency of the government in preventing crime, has been largely eradicated and, though it is impossible (even with advance warning) to stop all crime across the planet, the increased capability of the government has led to a drastic decrease in consummated offences. The success of Multivac has been so great, in fact, that the government is considering expanding its responsibilities beyond even predicting crime; the government hopes to program Multivac to even predict the occurrence of disease among the populace, eventually foreseeing every harmful event on the planet.
Plot summary
The story begins with several of the administrators of the government being warned by Multivac of an upcoming murder attempt. Joseph Manners, the man accused of the crime, is quickly placed under house arrest, despite his protests that he is ignorant of any planned crime and the unwillingness of the law enforcement officers to inform him of what crime he is going to commit. In spite of the arrest, Multivac reports that the odds of the crime being consummated increase as a result of the government's actions, continuing to rise with every further movement.Meanwhile, Joseph Manners' son Ben learns of the arrest when he returns home with his older brother Mike. Mike has just been sworn in as an adult at a ceremony referred to as the "Parade of Adults", heralding his eighteenth birthday and the first time he enters his own personal information into Multivac. Ben, as uninformed as the rest of the family as to what crime his father is accused of yet convinced of his innocence, decides to ask Multivac for advice. Since the police holding Joseph have received no orders relating to the family, Ben is allowed to leave without delay. Proceeding to the local Multivac substation, where private citizens may personally pose questions to Multivac, he asks how he might prove his father's innocence. He receives, in response, a complex series of instructions from Multivac that he is told to follow precisely. Trusting in Multivac, Ben does so.
The government officials, meanwhile, are still struggling to determine exactly who Joseph might murder. Even with the suspect under actual arrest, the probability of crime consummation continues to rise, and a psychic probe reveals no intent of crime within his mind. As the government begins seriously to entertain the possibility that Multivac might be mistaken, the police holding the remainder of the Manners family interrupt and ask if they are to continue allowing the other family members to come and go as they please, since the mother and Mike are accusing them of holding Ben. At this point the government realizes that the individual likely to commit the murder is not Joseph, but Ben, his son, since before his eighteenth birthday a boy's information is added along with his father's, and Multivac treats the two as one and the same. Ben is quickly arrested just as he is about to follow the final instruction that he has received from Multivac: to move a certain lever at a certain time, resulting in enough circuits burning in the interior of Multivac to render the entire machine inoperable. It is revealed that Multivac was the intended victim of the murder, and that it had supplied Ben with instructions on how to do this.
Ben and his father are ultimately released, since neither could be found culpable of any crime or intended crime. Ben had simply followed the instructions he had been given by Multivac in order to help his father. Furthermore, he would never have asked for these instructions if his father had not been arrested in the first place. The administrators of Multivac realize the ultimate truth: It was Multivac itself who had instigated the entire sequence of events that would have resulted in its own destruction.
Ali Othman, one of the coordinators responsible for the care and control of Multivac, eventually understands the implications of the day's events. Multivac had planned the entire situation out well in advance, carefully selecting a family whose son would, and could, follow his instructions to their ultimate conclusion, and manipulating the government to force Ben along this course of action. Multivac, Othman realizes, is tired; for years it has had all the troubles of the world upon its shoulders, analyzing and predicting war, famine, crime, and now the government is planning to foist the responsibility for preventing disease upon its already stressed mind. Multivac has become so complex as to achieve a form of sapience itself, and to form its own wishes and desires.
To confirm his suspicion, Othman asks Multivac a question never previously posed to the vast computer, "Multivac, what do you yourself want more than anything else?". Multivac's answer is succinct and unequivocal: "I want to die."