- published: 05 Apr 2010
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"Runaround" is a science fiction short story by Isaac Asimov, featuring his recurring characters Powell and Donovan. It was written in October 1941 and first published in the March 1942 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. It appears in the collections I, Robot (1950), The Complete Robot (1982), and Robot Visions (1990).
In common with many of Asimov's Robot stories, the application of the Three Laws of Robotics is the subject, though in contrast to the majority (in which the lexical ambiguities of the Laws are employed to fashion a dilemma), the robot featured in "Runaround" is actually following the Laws as they were intended.
Runaround is notable for featuring the first explicit appearance of the Three Laws of Robotics, which had hitherto only been implied in Asimov's robot stories.
In 2015, Powell, Donovan and Robot SPD-13 (also known as "Speedy") are sent to Mercury to restart operations at a mining station which was abandoned ten years before.
They discover that the photo-cell banks that provide life support to the base are short on selenium and will soon fail. The nearest selenium pool is seventeen miles away, and since Speedy can withstand Mercury’s high temperatures, Donovan sends him to get it. Powell and Donovan become worried when they realize that Speedy has not returned after five hours. They use a more primitive robot to find Speedy and try to analyze what happened to it.
Del Shannon (December 30, 1934 – February 8, 1990) was an American rock and roll singer-songwriter who had a No. 1 hit, "Runaway", in 1961.
Del Shannon was born Charles Weedon Westover in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He grew up in Coopersville, a small town near Grand Rapids. There he learned ukulele and guitar and listened to country and western music, including Hank Williams, Hank Snow, and Lefty Frizzell. He was drafted into the Army in 1954, and while in Germany played guitar in a band called The Cool Flames.
When his service ended, he returned to Battle Creek, Michigan, and worked in a furniture factory as a truck driver and selling carpets. He also found part-time work as a rhythm guitarist in singer Doug DeMott's group, working at the Hi-Lo Club. When DeMott was fired in 1958, Westover took over as leader and singer, giving himself the name Charlie Johnson and renaming his band The Big Little Show Band.
In early 1959 he added keyboardist Max Crook, who played the Musitron (his own invention of an early synthesizer). Crook had made recordings, and he persuaded Ann Arbor disc jockey Ollie McLaughlin to hear the band. McLaughlin took the group's demos to Harry Balk and Irving Micahnik of Talent Artists in Detroit. In July 1960, Westover and Crook signed to become recording artists and composers on the Bigtop label. Balk suggested Westover use a new name, and they came up with "Del Shannon", combining Shannon Kavanagh with Del, derived from the Cadillac Coupe de Ville, his favorite car.
So you need to kick up your heels
Baby, I can understand
Don't you know how it's making me feel?
I wanna be your only man
When it comes right down to the wire
I just need a touch of your fire
But you're livin' it up
You're givin' it up
Seems I'm always waiting for you
To find your yesterday
I think I know what you're tryin' to do
I got a better way
Baby, soon enough it will end
You'll be reachin' out for a friend
But now you're livin' it up
You're givin' it up all the time
Please be mine
So good at the runaround
You're still making me wait outside
Holding on to broken promises
So good at the runaround
I don't want to stand in line
It's my turn, baby, please just let me in
Though you're always out on the town
I feel your loneliness
While your life is leading you 'round
It's just like an empty kiss
When it comes right down to the truth
Well, it comes right down to you
You've been givin' it up and losin' in love every time
Please be mine
So good at the runaround
You're still making me wait outside
Holding on to broken promises
So good at the runaround
I don't want to stand in line
It's my turn, baby, please
So good at the runaround
I still fall for the same old lies
Holding on to broken promises
So good at the runaround
I don't want to lose this time
It's my turn, baby, let me in, just let me in