,transcriber's ,note3 ,this etext was produced ,science ,fiction ,stories #aiec4 ,extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the ,u4,s4 copyright on this publication was renewed4 ,it's well established now that the way you put a question often determines not only the answer you'll get1 but the type of answer possible4 ,so 444 a mechanical answerer1 geared to produce the ultimate revelations in reference to anything you want to know1 might have unsuspected limitations4 ,ask ,a ,foolish ,question by ,,robert ,,sheckley 99 99 99 99 99 ,illustration ,answerer was built to last as long as was necessary--which was quite long1 as some races judge time1 and not long at all1 according to others4 ,but to ,answerer1 it was just long enough4 ,as to size1 ,answerer was large to some and small to others4 ,he could be viewed as complex1 although some believed that he was really very simple4 ,answerer knew that he was as he should be4 ,above and beyond all else1 he was ,the ,answerer4 ,he ,knew4 ,of the race that built him1 the less said the better4 ,they also ,knew1 and never said whether they found the knowledge pleasant4 ,they built ,answerer as a service to less-sophisticated races1 and departed in a unique manner4 ,where they went only ,answerer knows4 ,because ,answerer knows everything4 ,upon his planet1 circling his sun1 ,answerer sat4 ,duration continued1 long1 as some judge duration1 short as others judge it4 ,but as it should be1 to ,answerer4 ,within him were the ,answers4 ,he knew the nature of things1 and why things are as they are1 and what they are1 and what it all means4 ,answerer could answer anything1 provided it was a legitimate question4 ,and he wanted to6 ,he was eager to6 ,how else should an ,answerer be8 ,what else should an ,answerer do8 ,so he waited for creatures to come and ask4 99 99 99 99 99 ,how do you feel1 sir8 ,morran asked1 floating gently over to the old man4 ,better1 ,lingman said1 trying to smile4 ,no-weight was a vast relief4 ,even though ,morran had expended an enormous amount of fuel1 getting into space under minimum acceleration1 ,lingman's feeble heart hadn't liked it4 ,lingman's heart had balked and sulked1 pounded angrily against the brittle rib-case1 hesitated and sped up4 ,it seemed for a time as though ,lingman's heart was going to stop1 out of sheer pique4 ,but no-weight was a vast relief1 and the feeble heart was going again4 ,morran had no such problems4 ,his strong body was built for strain and stress4 ,he wouldn't experience them on this trip1 not if he expected old ,lingman to live4 ,i'm going to live1 ,lingman muttered1 in answer to the unspoken question4 ,long enough to find out4 ,morran touched the controls1 and the ship slipped into sub-space like an eel into oil4 ,we'll find out1 ,morran murmured4 ,he helped the old man unstrap himself4 ,we're going to find the ,answerer6 ,lingman nodded at his young partner4 ,they had been reassuring themselves for years4 ,originally it had been ,lingman's project4 ,then ,morran1 graduating from ,cal ,tech1 had joined him4 ,together they had traced the rumors across the solar system4 ,the legends of an ancient humanoid race who had known the answer to all things1 and who had built ,answerer and departed4 ,think of it1 ,morran said4 ,the answer to everything6 ,a physicist1 ,morran had many questions to ask ,answerer4 ,the expanding universe2 the binding force of atomic nuclei2 novae and supernovae2 planetary formation2 red shift1 relativity and a thousand others4 ,yes1 ,lingman said4 ,he pulled himself to the vision plate and looked out on the bleak prairie of the illusory sub-space4 ,he was a biologist and an old man4 ,he had two questions4 ,what is life8 ,what is death8 99 99 99 99 99 ,after a particularly-long period of hunting purple1 ,lek and his friends gathered to talk4 ,purple always ran thin in the neighborhood of multiple-cluster stars--why1 no one knew--so talk was definitely in order4 ,do you know1 ,lek said1 ,i think ,i'll hunt up this ,answerer4 ,lek spoke the ,ollgrat language now1 the language of imminent decision4 ,why8 ,ilm asked him1 in the ,hvest tongue of light banter4 ,why do you want to know things8 ,isn't the job of gathering purple enough for you8 ,no1 ,lek said1 still speaking the language of imminent decision4 ,it is not4 ,the great job of ,lek and his kind was the gathering of purple4 ,they found purple imbedded in many parts of the fabric of space1 minute quantities of it4 ,slowly1 they were building a huge mound of it4 ,what the mound was for1 no one knew4 ,i suppose you'll ask him what purple is8 ,ilm asked1 pushing a star out of his way and lying down4 ,i will1 ,lek said4 ,we have continued in ignorance too long4 ,we must know the true nature of purple1 and its meaning in the scheme of things4 ,we must know why it governs our lives4 ,for this speech ,lek switched to ,ilgret1 the language of incipient-knowledge4 ,ilm and the others didn't try to argue1 even in the tongue of arguments4 ,they knew that the knowledge was important4 ,ever since the dawn of time1 ,lek1 ,ilm and the others had gathered purple4 ,now it was time to know the ultimate answers to the universe--what purple was1 and what the mound was for4 ,and of course1 there was the ,answerer to tell them4 ,everyone had heard of the ,answerer1 built by a race not unlike themselves1 now long departed4 ,will you ask him anything else8 ,ilm asked ,lek4 ,i don't know1 ,lek said4 ,perhaps ,i'll ask about the stars4 ,there's really nothing else important4 ,since ,lek and his brothers had lived since the dawn of time1 they didn't consider death4 ,and since their numbers were always the same1 they didn't consider the question of life4 ,but purple8 ,and the mound8 ,i go6 ,lek shouted1 in the vernacular of decision-to-fact4 ,good fortune6 his brothers shouted back1 in the jargon of greatest-friendship4 ,lek strode off1 leaping from star to star4 99 99 99 99 99 ,alone on his little planet1 ,answerer sat1 waiting for the ,questioners4 ,occasionally he mumbled the answers to himself4 ,this was his privilege4 ,he ,knew4 ,but he waited1 and the time was neither too long nor too short1 for any of the creatures of space to come and ask4 99 99 99 99 99 ,there were eighteen of them1 gathered in one place4 ,i invoke the rule of eighteen1 cried one4 ,and another appeared1 who had never before been1 born by the rule of eighteen4 ,we must go to the ,answerer1 one cried4 ,our lives are governed by the rule of eighteen4 ,where there are eighteen1 there will be nineteen4 ,why is this so8 ,no one could answer4 ,where am ,i8 asked the newborn nineteenth4 ,one took him aside for instruction4 ,that left seventeen4 ,a stable number4 ,and we must find out1 cried another1 ,why all places are different1 although there is no distance4 ,that was the problem4 ,one is here4 ,then one is there4 ,just like that1 no movement1 no reason4 ,and yet1 without moving1 one is in another place4 ,the stars are cold1 one cried4 ,why8 ,we must go to the ,answerer4 ,for they had heard the legends1 knew the tales4 ,once there was a race1 a good deal like us1 and they ,knew--and they told ,answerer4 ,then they departed to where there is no place1 but much distance4 ,how do we get there8 the newborn nineteenth cried1 filled now with knowledge4 ,we go4 ,and eighteen of them vanished4 ,one was left4 ,moodily he stared at the tremendous spread of an icy star1 then he too vanished4 99 99 99 99 99 ,those old legends are true1 ,morran gasped4 ,there it is4 ,they had come out of sub-space at the place the legends told of1 and before them was a star unlike any other star4 ,morran invented a classification for it1 but it didn't matter4 ,there was no other like it4 ,swinging around the star was a planet1 and this too was unlike any other planet4 ,morran invented reasons1 but they didn't matter4 ,this planet was the only one4 ,strap yourself in1 sir1 ,morran said4 ,i'll land as gently as ,i can4 99 99 99 99 99 ,lek came to ,answerer1 striding swiftly from star to star4 ,he lifted ,answerer in his hand and looked at him4 ,so you are ,answerer1 he said4 ,yes1 ,answerer said4 ,then tell me1 ,lek said1 settling himself comfortably in a gap between the stars1 ,tell me what ,i am4 ,a partiality1 ,answerer said4 ,an indication4 ,come now1 ,lek muttered1 his pride hurt4 ,you can do better than that4 ,now then4 ,the purpose of my kind is to gather purple1 and to build a mound of it4 ,can you tell me the real meaning of this8 ,your question is without meaning1 ,answerer said4 ,he knew what purple actually was1 and what the mound was for4 ,but the explanation was concealed in a greater explanation4 ,without this1 ,lek's question was inexplicable1 and ,lek had failed to ask the real question4 ,lek asked other questions1 and ,answerer was unable to answer them4 ,lek viewed things through his specialized eyes1 extracted a part of the truth and refused to see more4 ,how to tell a blind man the sensation of green8 ,answerer didn't try4 ,he wasn't supposed to4 ,finally1 ,lek emitted a scornful laugh4 ,one of his little stepping-stones flared at the sound1 then faded back to its usual intensity4 ,lek departed1 striding swiftly across the stars4 99 99 99 99 99 ,answerer knew4 ,but he had to be asked the proper questions first4 ,he pondered this limitation1 gazing at the stars which were neither large nor small1 but exactly the right size4 ,the proper questions4 ,the race which built ,answerer should have taken that into account1 ,answerer thought4 ,they should have made some allowance for semantic nonsense1 allowed him to attempt an unravelling4 ,answerer contented himself with muttering the answers to himself4 99 99 99 99 99 ,eighteen creatures came to ,answerer1 neither walking nor flying1 but simply appearing4 ,shivering in the cold glare of the stars1 they gazed up at the massiveness of ,answerer4 ,if there is no distance1 one asked1 ,then how can things be in other places8 ,answerer knew what distance was1 and what places were4 ,but he couldn't answer the question4 ,there was distance1 but not as these creatures saw it4 ,and there were places1 but in a different fashion from that which the creatures expected4 ,rephrase the question1 ,answerer said hopefully4 ,why are we short here1 one asked1 ,and long over there8 ,why are we fat over there1 and short here8 ,why are the stars cold8 ,answerer knew all things4 ,he knew why stars were cold1 but he couldn't explain it in terms of stars or coldness4 ,why1 another asked1 ,is there a rule of eighteen8 ,why1 when eighteen gather1 is another produced8 ,but of course the answer was part of another1 greater question1 which hadn't been asked4 ,another was produced by the rule of eighteen1 and the nineteen creatures vanished4 99 99 99 99 99 ,answerer mumbled the right questions to himself1 and answered them4 99 99 99 99 99 ,we made it1 ,morran said4 ,well1 well4 ,he patted ,lingman on the shoulder--lightly1 because ,lingman might fall apart4 ,the old biologist was tired4 ,his face was sunken1 yellow1 lined4 ,already the mark of the skull was showing in his prominent yellow teeth1 his small1 flat nose1 his exposed cheekbones4 ,the matrix was showing through4 ,let's get on1 ,lingman said4 ,he didn't want to waste any time4 ,he didn't have any time to waste4 ,helmeted1 they walked along the little path4 ,not so fast1 ,lingman murmured4 ,right1 ,morran said4 ,they walked together1 along the dark path of the planet that was different from all other planets1 soaring alone around a sun different from all other suns4 ,up here1 ,morran said4 ,the legends were explicit4 ,a path1 leading to stone steps4 ,stone steps to a courtyard4 ,and then--the ,answerer6 ,to them1 ,answerer looked like a white screen set in a wall4 ,to their eyes1 ,answerer was very simple4 ,lingman clasped his shaking hands together4 ,this was the culmination of a lifetime's work1 financing1 arguing1 ferreting bits of legend1 ending here1 now4 ,remember1 he said to ,morran1 ,we will be shocked4 ,the truth will be like nothing we have imagined4 ,i'm ready1 ,morran said1 his eyes rapturous4 ,very well4 ,answerer1 ,lingman said1 in his thin little voice1 ,what is life8 ,a voice spoke in their heads4 ,the question has no meaning4 ,by 'life1' the ,questioner is referring to a partial phenomenon1 inexplicable except in terms of its whole4 ,of what is life a part8 ,lingman asked4 ,this question1 in its present form1 admits of no answer4 ,questioner is still considering 'life1' from his personal1 limited bias4 ,answer it in your own terms1 then1 ,morran said4 ,the ,answerer can only answer questions4 ,answerer thought again of the sad limitation imposed by his builders4 ,silence4 ,is the universe expanding8 ,morran asked confidently4 ',expansion' is a term inapplicable to the situation4 ,universe1 as the ,questioner views it1 is an illusory concept4 ,can you tell us anything8 ,morran asked4 ,i can answer any valid question concerning the nature of things4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the two men looked at each other4 ,i think ,i know what he means1 ,lingman said sadly4 ,our basic assumptions are wrong4 ,all of them4 ,they can't be1 ,morran said4 ,physics1 biology-- ,partial truths1 ,lingman said1 with a great weariness in his voice4 ,at least we've determined that much4 ,we've found out that our inferences concerning observed phenomena are wrong4 ,but the rule of the simplest hypothesis-- ,it's only a theory1 ,lingman said4 ,but life--he certainly could answer what life is8 ,look at it this way1 ,lingman said4 ,suppose you were to ask1 ',why was ,i born under the constellation ,scorpio1 in conjunction with ,saturn8' ,i would be unable to answer your question in terms of the zodiac1 because the zodiac has nothing to do with it4 ,i see1 ,morran said slowly4 ,he can't answer questions in terms of our assumptions4 ,that seems to be the case4 ,and he can't alter our assumptions4 ,he is limited to valid questions--which imply1 it would seem1 a knowledge we just don't have4 ,we can't even ask a valid question8 ,morran asked4 ,i don't believe that4 ,we must know some basics4 ,he turned to ,answerer4 ,what is death8 ,i cannot explain an anthropomorphism4 ,death an anthropomorphism6 ,morran said1 and ,lingman turned quickly4 ,now we're getting somewhere6 ,are anthropomorphisms unreal8 he asked4 ,anthropomorphisms may be classified1 tentatively1 as1 ,a1 false truths1 or ,b1 partial truths in terms of a partial situation4 ,which is applicable here8 ,both4 ,that was the closest they got4 ,morran was unable to draw any more from ,answerer4 ,for hours the two men tried1 but truth was slipping farther and farther away4 ,it's maddening1 ,morran said1 after a while4 ,this thing has the answer to the whole universe1 and he can't tell us unless we ask the right question4 ,but how are we supposed to know the right question8 ,lingman sat down on the ground1 leaning against a stone wall4 ,he closed his eyes4 ,savages1 that's what we are1 ,morran said1 pacing up and down in front of ,answerer4 ,imagine a bushman walking up to a physicist and asking him why he can't shoot his arrow into the sun4 ,the scientist can explain it only in his own terms4 ,what would happen8 ,the scientist wouldn't even attempt it1 ,lingman said1 in a dim voice2 he would know the limitations of the questioner4 ,it's fine1 ,morran said angrily4 ,how do you explain the earth's rotation to a bushman8 ,or better1 how do you explain relativity to him--maintaining scientific rigor in your explanation at all times1 of course4 ,lingman1 eyes closed1 didn't answer4 ,we're bushmen4 ,but the gap is much greater here4 ,worm and super-man1 perhaps4 ,the worm desires to know the nature of dirt1 and why there's so much of it4 ,oh1 well4 ,shall we go1 sir8 ,morran asked4 ,lingman's eyes remained closed4 ,his taloned fingers were clenched1 his cheeks sunk further in4 ,the skull was emerging4 ,sir6 ,sir6 ,and ,answerer knew that that was not the answer4 99 99 99 99 99 ,alone on his planet1 which is neither large nor small1 but exactly the right size1 ,answerer waits4 ,he cannot help the people who come to him1 for even ,answerer has restrictions4 ,he can answer only valid questions4 ,universe8 ,life8 ,death8 ,purple8 ,eighteen8 ,partial truths1 half-truths1 little bits of the great question4 ,but ,answerer1 alone1 mumbles the questions to himself1 the true questions1 which no one can understand4 ,how could they understand the true answers8 ,the questions will never be asked1 and ,answerer remembers something his builders knew and forgot4 ,in order to ask a question you must already know most of the answer4 ,illustration 99 99 99 99 99