foundation

foundation (foun-dâ´shen) noun
1. The act of founding, especially the establishment of an institution with provisions for future maintenance.
2. The basis on which a thing stands, is founded, or is supported.
3. a. Funds for the perpetual support of an institution; an endowment. b. An institution founded and supported by an endowment.
4. A foundation garment.
5. A cosmetic used as a base for facial makeup.
- founda´tional adjective

foundation

foundation (foun-dâ´shen), institution through which private wealth is contributed and distributed for public purposes. Foundations have existed since Greek and Roman times, when they honored deities. The medieval European church had many foundations, and the Arab waqf (pious endowment) developed with the growth of Islam. Modern European foundations are generally smaller than those in the U.S. and are closely regulated by the state. There were a few early American foundations, e.g., those endowed by Benjamin FRANKLIN (1791) and by James Smithson (1846; to form the SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION), but foundations in the U.S. developed rapidly after the Civil War. From 1896 to 1918 many wealthy Americans created private foundations for the public benefit, e.g., Andrew CARNEGIE and John D. ROCKEFELLER, Sr. Many of the larger modern U.S. foundations have devoted themselves to broad areas, e.g., the Carnegie Corporation of New York (est. 1911) concentrates on American education and underprivileged groups; the Rockefeller Foundation (est. 1913) works in the areas of hunger, overpopulation, education, equal opportunity, cultural improvement, and ecology; and the Ford Foundation (est. 1936) concentrates on world peace, democratic government, economic well-being, education, and the scientific study of humanity. More recent foundations include the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation (est. 1979), best known for its annual awards to creative individuals (often called "genius" prizes).

• book _Foundation_ authored by Isaac Asimov

• Hari Seldon
• audio book track _Foundation part ? of ?)_ MP3 (64k)(28:32)(13.4megs)
• Foundation is the first book in Isaac Asimov's Foundation Trilogy (later The Foundation Series). Published in 1951, it is a collection of stories originally published in Astounding Magazine.
• The novel, written as small stories and then joined together, is divided into five parts:

  In the first part (The Psychohistorians), we are introduced to Hari Seldon and all the Galactic Empire story. Gaal Dornick comes to Trantor and joins Seldon and his team in his mysterious project: psychohistory. They are harassed by Imperial officials, who believe that Seldon is dangerous for the Empire. After convincing them that psychohistorians are just scientists, the Seldon team is exiled to Terminus to build an Encyclopedia Galactica.

  In the second part (The Encyclopedists), fifty years have passed. We are at Terminus ("the Foundation") and meet the first efforts of the encyclopedists to survive their bellicose neighbours, who have separated from the Empire. Seldon, dead years ago, helps them out of danger.

  In the third part (The Mayors), years later, relationships between the Foundation and nearby systems are based in technology transfer and religion. A bellicose warlord in planet Anacreon tries to take over the Foundation but Seldon's inevitable psychohistory saves the day again, and gives the Foundation a little more power.

  In the fourth part (The Traders), later again, a Foundation priest is killed and a traitor is being charged for it, but it is finally proved that he [the priest] was a spy from another powerful system.

  In the final part (The Merchant Princes), trade has become the main link between the Foundation worlds. A trader has been held captive in a hostile planet, and a Foundation agent must use greed to manipulate the locals, so they free him.

  The Foundation is still far from the huge power the former Empire had, but it's rapidly growing.
   

•  _Foundation and Empire_

• Foundation and Empire is a novel written by Isaac Asimov in 1952. It is the second book in the Foundation Series. It takes place in two halves, originally published as separate novellas.

  The General
  The first half of the book, titled The General, is all about how the empire, now well into its collapse, launches an attack against the Foundation. They are led by General Bel Riose. The Empire, despite its decay, far outclasses the Foundation. Lathan Devers, a Foundation agent, goes on a mission to Trantor to attempt to see the Emperor. He fails and is nearly killed. However, the Empereor does recall and execute Riose, for being too sucessful and therefore too much of a threat. The war ends with the General's death.

  The Mule
  The second half of the book, titled The Mule, is all about the rise of a myserious man called the Mule. He is a man who has the ability to sense and manipulate the emotions of others. He uses this ability take over one of the sovereignties bordering the Foundation, and has them wage a war against the Foundation.

  While his sovereignty is waging the war, he then travels under the guise as refugee clown with Toran and Bayta Darrell to different worlds of the Foundation, using his abilities to undermine the Foundations' war effort by destroying morale. In the end, the Foundation falls without much of a fight.

  While still under the guise of refugee clown, he travels with Bayta and Toran, along with psychologist Ebling Mis to Great Library of Trantor. They seek to contact the Second Foundation to help get rid of the Mule. The Mule, on the other hand, wishes to know the location of the Second foundation so he can use the First foundation to destroy it.

  The Mule surreptitiously stimulates Ebling's mind, allowing him to make powerful insights while using the library as a resource. As Ebling lies dying, the insights having come at the cost of his health, he is just as he is about to reveal the location of the Second foundation when Bayta shoots him. She had shortly before realized the Mule had been traveling with them. She kills Ebling to prevent him from revealing the location. The Mule, defeated, leaves them to go reign over the Foundation.

•  _Second Foundation_

• Second Foundation is the third novel of the Foundation series.

  The term also describes the organization by that name which is the

  focus of the book. The organization's existence had been revealed in Foundation (and nothing more), searched for in Foundation and Empire, and it makes brief apperances in this novel. It would not be described in detail until Foundation's Edge.

  The Novel
  It is written in two distinct parts.

  Part I: Search By the Mule is about the Mule's search for the elusive Second Foundation, with the intent of destroying it. In the end, Preem Palver, the first Speaker of the Second Foundation, telepathically modifies the Mule to make him not care about finding the Second Foundation.

  Part II: Search By the Foundation takes place a few decades after the first part, some years after the Mule's death (natural causes). The members of the (first) Foundation are now fully aware that the Second foundation is out there (they had known of its existence all along, but it had never sunk in until they were able to turn the Mule back)

  After inventing a device that jams telepathic abilities while simultaneously causing telepaths great pain, the Foundation finds and locates telepaths on Terminus, `at the other end of the galaxy' (from the first foundation, also at Terminus). Thus, they declare the Second Foundation destroyed and are content to forget the matter. This would be revisited in Foundation's Edge.

  The Organization
  The Second Foundation was founded by Hari Seldon as budding colony of mentalics, people with telepathic abilites. Located at Star's End (The Great Library of Trantor), they are governed by a council of the strongest telepaths, called the Speakers. The leader of the group is the first speaker.
  

•  _Foundation's Edge_

• first edition cover art used for 604 release _Enlightenment_ compilation  12"x3 on Koyote (1998)

At last, the costly and bitter war between the two Foundations had come to an end. The  scientists of the First Foundation had proved victorious; and now they return to Hari Seldon's long-established plan to build a new Empire that the Second Foundation is not destroyed after all-and that its still-defiant survivors are preparing their revenge. Now the two exiled citizens of the Foundation-a renegade Councilman and the doddering historian-set out  in search of the mythical planet Earth. . .and proof that the Second Foundation still exists.  Meanwhile someone-or something-outside of both Foundations sees to be orchestrating events to suit its own ominous purpose. Soon representatives of both the First and Second Foundations will find themselves racing toward a mysterious world called Gaia and a final shocking destiny at the very end of the universe.

This novel won the 1983 Hugo Award for best science fiction novel of the year. This book is the sequel to Asimov's Second Foundation (1953), beginning about 98 years after the end of the events described in that novel. It is, in turn, followed by Foundation and Earth (1986). In this story, a renegade Councilman of the First Foundation (Golan Trevize), together with a
historian, are sent out ostensibly to search for the original planet from which man comes (Earth). Actually, Trevize is in search for the Second Foundation, which most of the members of the First Foundation believed to have been destroyed. A renegade leader of the “underground” Second Foundation sets out to stop him. They both discover another controlling force in the galaxy.

• _Foundation and Earth_
  • Foundation and Earth (1986) is a science fiction novel by Isaac Asimov, the fifth novel of the Foundation Series and chronogically the last in the series.

    Plot summary:
    Councilman Golan Trevize, historian Janov Pelorat and Bliss of the planet Gaia (all of whom we last met in Foundation's Edge) set out on a journey to find humanity's ancestral planet -- Earth. The purpose of the journey is to settle Trevize's doubt with his decision at the end of Foundation's Edge.

    First, they go to Comporellon, which claims to be the planet on which humanity originated. Although many other planets make the claim, Comporellon has a very long history which could back up its claim. On arrival, they are imprisoned, but escape. While there, they find the coordinates of three Spacer planets. The Spacers were the first colonists from Earth. They are planets that are fairly close to Earth.

    The first Spacer planet they visit is Aurora, where they are nearly killed by a pack of wild dogs, the descendants of household pets long since reverted to wolf-like savagery. They escape when Bliss manipulates the dogs' emotions to make them retreat.

    Next, they go to Solaria, where they find what the Spacers have evolved into self-reproducing hermaphrodites who are individualistic to the point of isolation. They have also evolved the ability to mentally channel great amounts of energy ("transduce"). The Solarians intentionally avoid ever having to interact with each other, and only reproduce when necessary to replace someone who has died. Bliss, Pelorat, and Trevize are nearly killed by a Solarian named Bander, whom they kill in self defense. While escaping, they find Bander's child, Fallom. In the event of Bander's death, Fallom is to be killed and replaced by the other Solarians. Upon finding this out, Bliss insists that they take Fallom with them.

    They next go to Melpomenia, the third and final spacer coordinate they have. They find the atmosphere has become oxygen depleted. They go in space suits into the library, and find a statue with the coordinates of all of the spacer worlds. Using that, they deduce that the location of Earth is one of two uncharted systems (Which we later learn are Alpha Centauri and Sol) While departing Melpomenia, a oxygen feeding fungus infects the spacesuits and the spaceship. They are barely able to avert disaster and disinfect themselves.

    Next, they go to Alpha Centauri. They find the remanants of the inhabitants of Earth, who many millennia ago were resettled following an enviromental disaster. The natives are quite friendly, and Bliss, Trevize, Pelorat, and Fallom decide to enjoy some rest and relaxation. It turns out that the natives secretely intend to kill them. They are warned by a native woman who is sympathetic and make their escape in the middle of the night. Knowing that Alpha Centauri is the wrong system, they head towards the other uncharted system, Sol.

    On the approach to Earth, they detect that it is highly radioactive, and not capable of supporting life. Instead, they are drawn to the moon. They land, and find R. Daneel Olivaw, who explains why he manipulated them all along. He says that he has been manipulating humanity for many millennia. He manipulated the galactic emperor into resettleing the population of earth to Alpha Centauri after it became too radioactive to support life; the creation of Gaia; for encouraging Hari Seldon's study of psychohistory (A central point of the prequels to the series); and for manipulating Trevize into his decision at the end of Foundation's Edge.

    Daneel explains that since the dawn of civilization, man has been divided. This was the reason for his manipulating the creation of psychohistory and Gaiai. The book ending tells us: "In all human history, no other intelligence has impinged on us, to our knowledge. This need only continue a few more centuries, perhaps a little more than one ten thousandth of the time civilization has already existed, and we will be safe. After all," and here Trevize felt a sudden twinge of trouble, which he forced himself to disregard, "it is not as though we had the enemy already here among us." And he did not look down to meet the brooding eyes of Fallom - hermaphroditic, transductive, different - as they rested unfathomably, on him.

    The Unwritten Sequel
    Foundation and Earth takes place only some 600 years into the 1000 year Seldon plan. The ending hints greatly at the next part of the story. As detailed by his wife in It's Been a Good Life, Asimov intended to write a sequel but his attempts were fruitless. He did not know what to do next. That is why he wrote the prequels (Prelude to Foundation and Forward the Foundation) instead.

    The book states several times that the Seldon plan does not take into account alien influences. Combined with the ending (see above), one could surmise that for the sequel, he planned to introduce aliens (possibly the Solarians) who would upset and possibly destroy the Seldon plan.

    Further notes
    Although hinted at in Foundation's Edge, this book was the first book of the series that merged it with Asimov's Robot series. The radioactive earth theme was begun in Pebble in the Sky, which is set thousands of years earlier. R Daneel Olivaw's role in events would later be described in the prequels.

    This book serves as a kind of epilogue to the Robot series. We get to see what has become of the Spacer worlds of Solaria and Aurora, described extensively in The Naked Sun and the Robots of Dawn respectively. We also find out what has happened to Earth, as described in Robots and Empire.

• _Prelude To Foundation_
  • In Prelude to Foundation, for the first time Isaac Asimov chronicles the life of Hari Seldon, the man who invented psychohistory and intellectual hero of the series.

    Plot
    The story takes place on Trantor during the reign of Emperor Cleon I. It starts with Hari's presentation of a paper at a mathematics convention detailing how psychohistory might be possible. The Emperor of the Galactic Empire learns of it, and wants to use Hari for political gain. Hari fears this and goes on his "flight."

    He is helped by reporter Chetter Hummin, who introduces him to Dors Venabili. Hari takes an immediate liking to Dors. During his flight, he would also meet a Raych (who he adopts as his son), and Yugo Amaryl (who would become Hari's partner in developing psychohistory).

    The ending tells us that Hummin is actually Cleon's first minister Eto Demerzel, who we later learn is in fact R. Daneel Olivaw. Also, by the end of the novel, Hari also suspects Dors of being a robot too. (A theme that would later be picked up in Forward the Foundation)

• _Forward The Foundation_
  • In Forward the Foundation, Isaac Asimov continues the chronicles of the life of Hari Seldon (begun in Prelude to Foundation), the man who laid the framework for the grandest project humanity has ever attempted.

    Plot
    The story takes place on Trantor, and picks up ten years after the events of Prelude to Foundation. It depicts how Hari developed his theory of Psychohistory from hypothetical concept to practical application in galactic events.

    Beginning during the latter years of the reign of Emperor Cleon I, Hari's work inexorably brings him into the world of galactic politics, and takes him to the height of Imperial power as Cleon's first minister, after the mysterious disappearance of his previous first minister, Eto Demerzel (whom Hari knows as R. Daneel Olivaw. Hari becomes First minister to the emperor, but loses it ten years later after the Emperor is killed.

    Gradually, Hari loses all those who are close to him. Hari's wife Dors is killed saving his life from an assassin (we find out that she is, in fact, a robot). His son Raych is killed in the Rebellion in Santanni, his daughter-in-law and grandson are missing and never found. Yugo Amaryl dies early, brought on by the strain of his work. Except for grand-daughter Wanda, Hari is alone. He eventually sends her off to start the second foundation.

    The Galactic Empire's decline begins to accelerate. While at the same time, Hari finally begins to unravel the secrets of psychohistory and begin a grand plan that will come to be known as the Foundation.

Psychohistory deals with reactions of large human conglomerates to social and economic stimuli.    -- Asimov

the series was later on fused with the _Robots_ series

Gaia.

Planet in the Sayshell Sector, 10 parsecs from Sayshell Planet. Gaia is an ancient word for "Earth".  Has one small (100km) natural satellite.  Population; 1,000,000,000.  Engineered by the humaniform robot R. Daneel in order to resolve the conflict of the Zeroth Law.  In 498FE Gaia maneuvered Golan Trevize, Stor Gendibal and Harla Branno to the vicinity of Gaia in order that Trevize determine the future of the Galaxy.  A decision that Gaia couldn't make but believed that Trevize had a special aptitude that would enable him make the correct decision.

Although Gaia felt responsible for the Mule, they allowed the Second Foundation to correct the problem.  Gaia
wanted Trevize to be convinced that he had made the correct decision in choosing Galaxia and so, through
one of their members, Bliss, assisted Trevize in his search for Earth.

Statistics.

Period of rotation: 22 hours.
Axial inclination: 12o

from Encyclopedia Galactica

• BBS _Foundation_ in 1985 located in Los Angeles, ran on an Atari 800 8-bit and two floppy drives.  sysop - atomjack
• track _The Mule_ by Naked Raygun off of _Jettison_ 12" on Caroline (1988)

• Mule - a character in the book _Foundation and Empire_ by Isaac Asimov.  portrayed as a villain disrupting the smooth flow of psychohistory.  an anomaly and intrusion that was not forseen.  he played a wind instrument.
• a brilliance under mane
  cloudy lens and subtle strain
  a fury sears the vein in time
  and momentum is decline
  you see the man is sick
  with power's arsenic
  history will predict
  what politic contradicts

  change
  change in sight
  change
  the lay is right
  time
  time ignite
  like a freak, in a beast, in the least
  hang, hang, hang

  in a spiralling humanity
  there's a cycle we can see
  in a throng's monstrosity odds are
  there'll always be a mule
  you never can predict
  the mind of a lunatic
  a mind so badly sick
  with strange arithmetic

• release _Green Flash ep_ 12" by Memory Foundation on Mosaic #012 (1998)
• techno track _A Texture #2 (Memory Foundation Remix)_ MP3 by Pacou off of _Symbolic Language Remixes_ 12" on Tresor #89 (1998)

• tech-house track _Passge Of Time_ MP3 (192k) by H-Foundation off of _Passage Of Time_ 12" on Soma Recordings Limited #116 (2002)
• track _One Foundation_ MP3 (160k) by Bob Marley & The Wailers off of _Burnin'_ 12" on Tuff Gong (1973)
• techno dub track _New Foundation_ MP3 (vK) by Foundation Sound Works off of _Isn't It Time_ CD on Foundation Sound Works #005 (1997)
• techno track _The Founder_ MP3 by Andreas Kramer
• space rock entity Third Eye Foundation
  • track _Dreams On His Fingers_ MP3 (160k) off of _Semtex_ CD on Domino Recording Company Limited #002 (1996)
  • release _You Guys Kill Me_ 12" on Domino Recording Company Ltd. #053 (1998)
    • a3 _There's A Fight At The End Of The Tunnel_ MP3 (192k)
    • b3 _I'm Sick & Tired Of Being Sick & Tired_ MP3
  • track _Push Off My Wire_ MP3 off of _I Poo Poo On Your Juju_ on Merge (2001)
• trip hop dub track _Asian Foundation_ MP3 (192k) by George Pallikaris off of _Silk_ on Elektrolux (2001)
• trip hop track _The Foundation_ MP3 (192k) by Thievery Corporation off of _Sounds From The Thievery Hi-Fi_ 12"x2 on Eighteenth Street Lounge Music (1996)
• track _Charged (ADF soundsystem mix)_ MP3 (160k) by Asian Dub Foundation
• track _Nothing Without You (Tery Bina remix)_ by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan remixed by The Dhol Foundation & Fun Da Mental as well as track _Taa Deem_ remixed by Asian Dub Foundation  off of _Star Rise: Remixes_ CD on Realworld (1997)

• cover art of 604 release _Enlightenment_ 12"x3on Koyote depicts the cover art of the paperback 1984 edition of _Foundation's Edge_

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