This line is hilarious: "But as even a small dose it was lethal, it quickly lost popularity."

Idk that particular game, but I think the silence thing has been around for a long time: 1) it makes a person seem smarter than they are; 2) it creates mystery and so is part of the 'mysterious stranger' trope.

I like Asimov's detailed and factual style, very much in line with his fiction. Gorbachev I do not love, for obvious reasons, but this was an interesting account.