"'What I have done, however, is to show that, in studying human society, it is possible to choose a starting point and to make appropriate assumptions that will suppress the chaos. That will make it possible to predict the future not in full detail, of course, but in broad sweeps; not with certainty, but with calculable probabilities.'" "Mathematician" p. 10.

"'He must have. Here I am.' "'That means nothing. he knows where you are and he'll continue to know. And when he wants you, he'll get you, wherever you are. And if he decides you're useful, he'll squeeze the use out of you. And if he decides you're dangerous, he'll squeeze the life out of you.' "Seldon stared. 'What are you trying to do. Frighten me?' "'I'm trying to warn you.'" "Mathematician" p. 24.

"He continued to scan the sky, vertical creases appearing between his...