"Mathematician" (pp. 1-24) Summary

Prelude to Foundation tells the story of mathematician Hari Seldon, fleeing around the enclosed planet Trantor, evading the Emperor who wants to control his psychohistory, and coming to understand that his invention can indeed have a practical application in predicting the fate of mankind.

Emperor Cleon I and Chief of Staff Eto Demerzel discuss one Hari Seldon, said by the Minister of Science to be a mathematician who claims he can foretell the future mathematically. Demerzel assures the emperor this is "a children's dream of magic" and "self-fulfilling" prophesies, but Cleon feels people will believe a mathematician without understanding him. Cleon wants Seldon brought in and knows that Demerzel has the "strings" everywhere to accomplish this.

Lt. Allen Wellis of the Emperor's Guard escorts Seldon through the wealthiest sections of Trantor to the only part of the...