The only nonscientist among the passengers of the Triple G. is 20-year-old Mark Annuncio of the "Mnemonic Service", who has been trained from the age of five to memorize and correlate vast amounts of information.

After the expedition's microbiologist Rodriguez declares that the local life forms are noninfectious, Annuncio and a handful of scientists travel to the original site of the colony.

When Annuncio finally realizes that the abnormally high concentration of beryllium in the soil and plants of Junior was what killed the colonists, and that they all have to leave immediately, he does not trust the scientists to deal with it.

When Annuncio is put on trial for fomenting the mutiny, he explains his actions, is acquitted, and the ship returns to the Earth to seek medical treatment for its crew for beryllium poisoning.

However, Anthony Boucher praised the novella, commending its balance of science and fiction "worthy of that Golden Age in which Asimov began his career.

Only Annuncio, the professional generalist, can make the connections between seemingly unrelated facts that solves the mystery of the deaths of the original colonists, and he saves the crew and passengers of the Triple G. from sharing that fate.