Those among us who say “Live long and prosper” can’t miss a recent mention of West Virginia University’s Isaac Asimov collection.

The text of a speech by James Gunn presented at WVU’s Festival of Ideas appears in the April/May 2011 edition of Asimov’s Science Fiction magazine, a publication dedicated to science fiction and fantasy writing.

In the preface to the article “Celebrating Isaac,” Gunn notes his visit to Morgantown as well as WVU Chief of Staff Jay Cole and “his marvelous assistant Molly Simis” who “came up with the happy idea of featuring a talk about Isaac, in large part because the library’s special collections have what probably is the largest collection of Asimov materials after that held by Boston University.”

Gunn went on in the article to explain how WVU’s collection came about through the generous donations of WVU alumnus Larry Shaver and California resident Carlos Patterson.

The WVU Libraries has collected more than 600 of Asimov’s works and related memorabilia, including many first and signed editions in the rare book collection.

Cole and Simis launched a year of emphasis on science communication with Gunn’s speech at the Festival of Ideas and a related tour of the WVU Libraries’ Asimov collection. WVU is also hosting a symposium on clear communication about scientific issues on April 5.

“Isaac Asimov was and remains a supernova in the universe of science fiction,” Cole said. “From his Foundation novels to his short stories, Asimov’s works still shine 50 years after he wrote them.

“It is a great distinction for WVU and our library’s Asimov collection to be profiled in a leading science fiction magazine – and one named in Asimov’s honor. Thanks to this article, science fiction fans from all over the world will now know about WVU and our special trove of Asimoviana.”

-WVU-

dm/03/23/11

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