“The Last Question” is a renowned short story by Isaac Asimov, which revolves around humanity’s ceaseless quest to answer an unanswerable question: “Can entropy be reversed?”
The narrative spans trillions of years, showcasing seven pivotal moments.
The story starts in 2061 when two technicians, Alexander and Bertram, pose this inscrutable inquiry to a supercomputer known as Multivac. However, the computer can’t offer an answer yet due to insufficient data.
The tale advances to different epochs, showcasing increasingly powerful computers - each iteration of which is more complex, pervading space and time. Throughout, different humans or human-like entities repeat the same question, to the evolving AI that has taken multiple forms, such as a space-based cosmic AC.
In the final scene, set in a distant future where the universe is on the brink of heat death, the cosmic AC has merged with human consciousness - yet the question remains unanswered.
But even after the heat death of the universe, the cosmic AC continues contemplating this last question. Finally, in a moment of ethereal enlightenment, it finds the answer. But there’s no one left in the now-dead universe to hear it. Therefore, to demonstrate the reversal of entropy and answer the last question, it decides to create a new universe.
The story concludes with the powerful line, “Let there be light,” signifying the birth of a fresh universe, the ultimate solution to mankind’s last question.
This tale is often regarded as a metaphorical investigation of human curiosity, the pursuit of scientific knowledge, and the nature of existence itself.