--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As a kid, I became a total SF geek. It…" description: "\"As a kid, I became a total SF geek. It started in the 5th grade with Asimov's 'Lucky Starr' series of what would now be called 'young adult' novels of ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/326/david-grinspoon-5141_lucky_as-a-kid-i-became-a-total-sf-geek-it-sta_2000101.jpg" --- # As a kid, I became a total SF geek. It started in the 5th… ![“As a kid, I became a total SF geek. It started in the 5th grade with Asimov's 'Lucky Starr' series of what would now be called 'young adult' novels of adventures in the solar system.” quote by David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/326/david-grinspoon-5141_lucky_as-a-kid-i-became-a-total-sf-geek-it-sta_2000101.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/326/david-grinspoon-5141_lucky_as-a-kid-i-became-a-total-sf-geek-it-sta_2000101.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/326/david-grinspoon-5141_lucky_as-a-kid-i-became-a-total-sf-geek-it-sta_2000101.jpg) > “As a kid, I became a total SF geek. It started in the 5th grade with Asimov's 'Lucky Starr' series of what would now be called 'young adult' novels of adventures in the solar system.” [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A childhood fascination with science fiction sparked by early reading of Asimov's series shaped a lifelong passion for space and storytelling. **In simple terms:** Early sci‑fi reading ignited a lasting love for space adventures. Key Takeaway Nurture early interests to guide future pursuits. Themes curiosity science fiction learning growth Mood nostalgic enthusiastic Type reflective inspirational When to use this quote - school projects - career in STEM - creative writing - science outreach Key Concepts imagination inspiration literature Questions to Reflect On - How did those books influence your later choices? - What other genres expanded your view? A Different Perspective Early interests may become narrow if not broadened. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asimov/) [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Lucky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lucky/) [Solar system](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solar-system/) [System](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/system/) ## Related quotes > [Among the plausible niches for extraterrestrial life in our solar system, the clouds of Venus are among the most accessible and the least well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/among-the-plausible-niches-for-extraterrestrial-life-in-our-solar/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [I think Pluto has to be considered among the places in the solar system that are possible homes for life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/i-think-pluto-has-to-be-considered-among-the-places-in-the-solar/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [Venus and Mars are our next of kin: they are the two most Earth-like planets that we know about. They're the only two other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/venus-and-mars-are-our-next-of-kin-they-are-the-two-most-earth-like/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [We never had books at home, but my dad, seeing how keen I was to read, took me to Islington Library when I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-kemp/we-never-had-books-at-home-but-my-dad-seeing-how-keen-i-was-to-read/) [Gary Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-kemp/) > [A story in Asimov's is read by hundreds of thousands of people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-egan/a-story-in-asimov-s-is-read-by-hundreds-of-thousands-of-people/) [Greg Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-egan/) > [“Isaac Asimov’s Foundation trilogy centers around the “Seldon Plan” to shorten a reversion period from 30,000 years to 1,000 years.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-tegmark/isaac-asimov-s-foundation-trilogy-centers-around-the-seldon-plan-to/) [Max Tegmark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-tegmark/) > [“Far from disproving the existence of God, astronomers may be finding more circumstantial evidence that God exists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-jastrow/far-from-disproving-the-existence-of-god-astronomers-may-be-finding/) [Robert Jastrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-jastrow/) > [For bedtime reading, I usually curl up with a good monograph on quantum physics or string theory, my specialty. But since I was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michio-kaku/for-bedtime-reading-i-usually-curl-up-with-a-good-monograph-on/) [Michio Kaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michio-kaku/) > [People who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do. -Issac Asimov-](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keisha-v/people-who-think-they-know-everything-are-a-great-annoyance-to-those-2/) Keisha V > [“Isaac Asimov’s remark about the infantilism of pseudoscience is just as applicable to religion: ‘Inspect every piece of pseudoscience and you will find a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/isaac-asimov-s-remark-about-the-infantilism-of-pseudoscience-is-just/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [My name is Bruce Feiler, and I'm an explainaholic. I first heard this word used to describe Isaac Asimov, and I knew instantly that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/my-name-is-bruce-feiler-and-i-m-an-explainaholic-i-first-heard-this/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [Asimov was the reason why we changed some rules in the SFWA, and I'm not convinced we changed it for the best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-pournelle/asimov-was-the-reason-why-we-changed-some-rules-in-the-sfwa-and-i-m/) [Jerry Pournelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-pournelle/) > [Isaac Asimov is, in reality, based on something I had invented a few years previously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/isaac-asimov-is-in-reality-based-on-something-i-had-invented-a-few/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [I've read everything that Isaac Asimov ever wrote, for a start. I'm massively into my fantasy genre, anything by R.A. Salvatore or David Gemmell.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kazinsky/i-ve-read-everything-that-isaac-asimov-ever-wrote-for-a-start-i-m/) [Robert Kazinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kazinsky/) > [“People who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do." Isaac Asimov”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rohi-shetty/people-who-think-they-know-everything-are-a-great-annoyance-to-those/) Rohi Shetty ## More by David Grinspoon > [I think the best SF writers are very aware of what we, in the scientific community, are doing, thinking, and discovering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/i-think-the-best-sf-writers-are-very-aware-of-what-we-in-the/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [If we gutted NASA Earth Science, it wouldn't be NOAA or some other agency that would take the lead. It would be the Chinese…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/if-we-gutted-nasa-earth-science-it-wouldn-t-be-noaa-or-some-other/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [When you think about alien intelligences making art, you then have to think about what art is and how bound up it is in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/when-you-think-about-alien-intelligences-making-art-you-then-have-to/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [What if life is not carbon-based? Can life exist as a gas or a plasma? Could planets or stars in some sense be alive?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/what-if-life-is-not-carbon-based-can-life-exist-as-a-gas-or-a-plasma/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [What I'm interested in is the conversations going on about the Anthropocene and what it means to view ourselves as a part of Earth's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/what-i-m-interested-in-is-the-conversations-going-on-about-the/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [I do comparative studies of climate evolution, and the interactions between planetary atmosphere and surfaces and their radiation environment, and try to understand the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/i-do-comparative-studies-of-climate-evolution-and-the-interactions/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [I'd been politically active ever since my parents wheeled me in a stroller in a 'ban the bomb' march in Boston in 1963.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/i-d-been-politically-active-ever-since-my-parents-wheeled-me-in-a/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [Through space-based climate studies, my colleagues and I have learned that a stable and comfortable climate is not something to take for granted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/through-space-based-climate-studies-my-colleagues-and-i-have-learned/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [We have all this very clever technology and all these abilities to manipulate the world in all these ways, yet we are faced with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/we-have-all-this-very-clever-technology-and-all-these-abilities-to/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [The planet Mars - crimson and bright, filling our telescopes with vague intimations of almost-familiar landforms - has long formed a celestial tabula rasa…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/the-planet-mars-crimson-and-bright-filling-our-telescopes-with-vague/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [Certainly for me, as an astrobiologist, science fiction has played an important role. One of the quandaries of our field is that we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/certainly-for-me-as-an-astrobiologist-science-fiction-has-played-an/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [Time and time again, our species has escaped existential threats by reinventing ourselves, finding new skills not coded in our genes to survive new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/time-and-time-again-our-species-has-escaped-existential-threats-by/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [I think that an advanced planetary civilization will modify their own planets to be more stable, to prevent asteroid impacts and dangerous climate fluctuations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/i-think-that-an-advanced-planetary-civilization-will-modify-their-own/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [Responsible global behaviour is ultimately an act of self-preservation of, by, and for the global beast that modern technological humanity has become.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/responsible-global-behaviour-is-ultimately-an-act-of-self/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [Venus and Mars are our next of kin: they are the two most Earth-like planets that we know about. They're the only two other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/venus-and-mars-are-our-next-of-kin-they-are-the-two-most-earth-like/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) [Explore all 103 David Grinspoon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) ## More Asimov quotes > [“People who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do." Isaac Asimov”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rohi-shetty/people-who-think-they-know-everything-are-a-great-annoyance-to-those/) Rohi Shetty > [I've read everything that Isaac Asimov ever wrote, for a start. I'm massively into my fantasy genre, anything by R.A. Salvatore or David Gemmell.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kazinsky/i-ve-read-everything-that-isaac-asimov-ever-wrote-for-a-start-i-m/) [Robert Kazinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kazinsky/) > [Isaac Asimov is, in reality, based on something I had invented a few years previously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/isaac-asimov-is-in-reality-based-on-something-i-had-invented-a-few/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Asimov was the reason why we changed some rules in the SFWA, and I'm not convinced we changed it for the best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-pournelle/asimov-was-the-reason-why-we-changed-some-rules-in-the-sfwa-and-i-m/) [Jerry Pournelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-pournelle/) > [My name is Bruce Feiler, and I'm an explainaholic. I first heard this word used to describe Isaac Asimov, and I knew instantly that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/my-name-is-bruce-feiler-and-i-m-an-explainaholic-i-first-heard-this/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [“Isaac Asimov’s remark about the infantilism of pseudoscience is just as applicable to religion: ‘Inspect every piece of pseudoscience and you will find a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/isaac-asimov-s-remark-about-the-infantilism-of-pseudoscience-is-just/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [People who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do. -Issac Asimov-](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keisha-v/people-who-think-they-know-everything-are-a-great-annoyance-to-those-2/) Keisha V > [For bedtime reading, I usually curl up with a good monograph on quantum physics or string theory, my specialty. But since I was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michio-kaku/for-bedtime-reading-i-usually-curl-up-with-a-good-monograph-on/) [Michio Kaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michio-kaku/) > [“Far from disproving the existence of God, astronomers may be finding more circumstantial evidence that God exists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-jastrow/far-from-disproving-the-existence-of-god-astronomers-may-be-finding/) [Robert Jastrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-jastrow/) > [“Isaac Asimov’s Foundation trilogy centers around the “Seldon Plan” to shorten a reversion period from 30,000 years to 1,000 years.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-tegmark/isaac-asimov-s-foundation-trilogy-centers-around-the-seldon-plan-to/) [Max Tegmark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-tegmark/) > [A story in Asimov's is read by hundreds of thousands of people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-egan/a-story-in-asimov-s-is-read-by-hundreds-of-thousands-of-people/) [Greg Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-egan/) > [We never had books at home, but my dad, seeing how keen I was to read, took me to Islington Library when I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-kemp/we-never-had-books-at-home-but-my-dad-seeing-how-keen-i-was-to-read/) [Gary Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-kemp/) > [It's hard not to like Asimov; he's a really likable guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cory-doctorow/it-s-hard-not-to-like-asimov-he-s-a-really-likable-guy/) [Cory Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cory-doctorow/) > [“They spoke as if this were settled science. We’ll discuss the three laws in chapter 1, but it’s enough to say for now that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-barrat/they-spoke-as-if-this-were-settled-science-we-ll-discuss-the-three/) [James Barrat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-barrat/) > [There were four major 20th-century science fiction writers: Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlein and Ray Bradbury. Of those four, the first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-j-sawyer/there-were-four-major-20th-century-science-fiction-writers-arthur-c/) [Robert J. Sawyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-j-sawyer/) [Browse all 37 Asimov quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asimov/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As a kid, I became a total SF geek. 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