BEST RECENT BOOKS ABOUT THE FUTURE
FUTURE SURVEY editor Michael Marien recently announced his
choices for the 100 best future-oriented books and articles published in the last two to
three years, covering world futures, resources and environmental issues, society, politics
and government, business and the economy, science and technology, education, crime and
justice, and much more. A sampling of his selections:
INEVITABLE SURPRISES by Peter Schwartz
(Gotham/Penguin, 2003). Chair of Global Business Network views surprises in the next 25
years as the norm, but many can be anticipated: the U.S. as "rogue superpower"
in a truly new world order, return of the Long Boom, major science and technology
breakthroughs, global climate change, and older and healthier people.
ORDER: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1592400272/thefuturistbooks
WHY GLOBALIZATION WORKS by Martin Wolf (Yale
University Press, 2004). A good introduction to the pro-globalization view: why a global
market economy makes sense in the long run, and why the critics are wrong.
ORDER: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0300102526/thefuturistbooks
THE PROGRESS PARADOX by Gregg Easterbrook
(Random House, 2003). In the U.S. and western Europe, almost everything is getting better
for everyone. We should be happy and helping others to join in our affluence; rather, we
are depressed and anxious. Original and provocative.
ORDER: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0679463038/thefuturistbooks
THE FUTURE OF FREEDOM by Fareed
Zakaria (W.W. Norton, 2003). NEWSWEEK columnist warns that, while democracy is
flourishing, liberty is not. He cites regimes around the world, America's undemocratic
system, and the need for decision makers to enact long-term policies.
ORDER: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0393047644/thefuturistbooks
THE COMING GENERATIONAL STORM by Laurence J. Kotlikoff and
Scott Burns (MIT Press, 2004). By 2030, U.S. retirees will double, with only 15% more
workers to support them. Unless adults make large sacrifices soon, our children's tax
rates will double. The fiscal gap, growing by more than $1 trillion a year, is "the
moral crisis of our age."
ORDER: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0262112868/thefuturistbooks
THE COMPLETE LIST: http://www.wfs.org/fsbest04.htm
THREE WAYS TO POPULARIZE SCIENCE
A comic book whose heroes are engineers, an "adults only"
science museum, and a science-communication competition modeled on the TV talent show
"Pop Idol" are three creative new projects for helping make science and
technology more interesting for today's public--and tomorrow's scientists.
The American Society of Mechanical Engineers recently launched a new,
online comic strip series to introduce young readers to the valuable contributions that
engineers have made through history. LEARN MORE:
http://anniversary.asme.org/comicbook.shtml
London's Science Museum opened an adults-only extension, the Dana
Centre, which includes a cafe for debates, lectures, and conversations on science topics
that grown-ups might feel inhibited discussing in front of kids, such as antidepressants,
terrorism, and sexuality. LEARN MORE: http://www.danacentre.org.uk
And finally, the FameLab offers the science world's answer to the Pop
(or American) Idol phenomenon by giving science communicators the opportunity to showcase
their ability to inspire and excite the public about science in the same way that great
science communicators such as Carl Sagan and David Attenborough have done. LEARN MORE:
http://www.famelab.org
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BUILD THE FUTURE AND SAVE $150!
Build your future now with the latest tools for foresight, innovation,
and strategy! Join nearly a thousand of your fellow futurists at the World Future
Society's next annual meeting, to be held July 29-31 in Chicago.
Register before February 28 for "WorldFuture 2005: Foresight,
Innovation, and Strategy" in order to save $150 off the on-site fee!
The conference will be packed with vital information and stimulating
ideas. Among the more than 150 speakers you'll get to meet are former Venezuelan Minister
of Intelligence and author Luis Alberto Machado, Esther Franklin of Starcom Worldwide,
former assistant Secretary of Commerce Kelly Carnes, Age Wave president and CEO Ken
Dychtwald, and Infinity Limited president Joel Barker.
LEARN MORE: http://www.wfs.org/2005main.htm
DOWNLOAD brochure: http://www.wfs.org/WorldFuture2005_January.pdf
REGISTRATION NOW: https://www.wfs.org/2005regfrm.htm
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PLAY MORE ATTENTION
A tool similar to that used by astronauts and pilots to stay alert in
the cockpit may soon help people with attention deficit disorder learn how to focus
better.
The Play Attention Learning System trains the brain to pay attention by
using interactive computer technology and one-on-one support. Users wear a sensor-lined
helmet that monitors their attentive state and cognitive process while interacting with
the characters on the computer screen.
With the guidance of trained Play Attention staff members, players
complete a series of exercises that are like a video game but controlled by the brain
rather than a joystick. With feedback from the computer, users get real-time evaluations
of their progress in focusing, finishing tasks, increasing memory, and filtering out
distractions.
DETAILS: Play Attention Learning System, http://www.playattention.com
CLICK
OF THE MONTH: TOD MAFFIN'S FUTURE FILE
http://todmaffin.com/futurefile/
This weblog maintained by Canadian broadcaster and technology futurist
Tod Maffin provides links to a variety of news stories on economic, retail, and consumer
trends, as well as concise summaries of each article.
Recent stories include a device for scanning receipts, new risks in
business travel, and methods that retail giant Wal-Mart uses to predict the future.
The clean, clutter-free site stays up to date with new stories, but
older stories and links are also easy to search for.
NOMINATE A CLICK OF THE MONTH: Share a link to your
favorite future-oriented, resource-rich Web site! Click nominees (and other feedback) may
be e-mailed to the editors at mailto:cwagner@wfs.org
NEWS FROM WFS PARTNERS AND THE FUTURES COMMUNITY
- MODELING FUTURE CIVILIZATION: Frankfurt University in
Germany will host a forum on how new methods for modeling complex adaptive systems and
network theory can assist forecasting and scenario planning. The symposium, to be held May
2 through 6, will include speakers presenting state-of-the-art simulations of social,
ecological, climate, and astrophysical systems, as well as leading futurists presenting
their visions of the future of civilization and humanity. "We believe this mixture to
be very fruitful, as the modern computer simulation tools have progressed to a state at
which they can be applied to examine hypotheses of long-term human and cultural
development," says organizing committee member Claudius Gros of the University of the
Saarland. DETAILS: http://www.lifeciv.future2.ru
- CONFERENCE IN TAIWAN: Papers are now being invited for
an international conference on "Global Soul, Global Mind, Global Action: Futuring
from Survival to Thrival," to be held November 5-7 at Tamkang University. The
conference will address the role of science and technology in accelerating human
evolution, the expansion of the concept of "global" from empires to a collective
consciousness, and the emergence of global networks for solving collective problems. The
deadline is April 31 for submitting an abstract and August 15 for the final paper.
CONTACT: Professor Sohail Inayatullah, mailto:sohail@mail.tku.edu.tw
- CALL FOR SUCCESS STORIES: How have futuring methods,
foresight, or other future-oriented thinking helped you achieve success--or avoid
catastrophe? The World Future Society would like to see your story. "We're trying to
collect anecdotes or case histories that illustrate the value of futuring to individuals,
organizations, and communities," says WFS President Timothy C. Mack. The best stories
will be published in the Society's journals and online Forums to "help promote the
futures field to the general public."
DETAILS: Futuring Success Stories,
http://www.wfs.org/futuringsuccess.htm
FUTURIST UPDATE: News & Previews from the World Future Society is an
e-mail newsletter published monthly as a supplement to THE FUTURIST magazine. Copyright ©
2005, World Future Society, 7910 Woodmont Avenue, Suite 450, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA.
Telephone 1-301-656-8274; e-mail mailto:info@wfs.org;
Web site http://www.wfs.org.
Editor: Cindy Wagner
Assistant Editor: Clifton
Coles
Network Administrator: Jeff
Cornish
Webmaster: Sarah Warner
Vice President, Membership/Conference Operations: Susan Echard
To subscribe, send an e-mail message to mailto:majordomo@wfs.org
with "subscribe futurist-update" in the BODY of the message.
To unsubscribe or change your e-mail address, send message to Jeff Cornish, mailto:jcornish@wfs.org.
Submit feedback at http://www.wfs.org/fbfeb05.htm
The WORLD
FUTURE SOCIETY is a nonprofit, nonpartisan scientific and educational association with
a global membership. Regular membership in the Society, including a subscription to THE
FUTURIST, is $45 per year, or $20 for full-time students under age 25. Professional and
Institutional membership programs are also offered; contact Society headquarters for
details: http://www.wfs.org
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