Fremtidsprognoser, fremtidsstudier

Dystopian States of America is a crucial resource that studies the impact of dystopian works on American society-including ways in which they reflect our deep and persistent fears about environmental calamities, authoritarian governments, invasive technologies, and human weakness.Dystopian States of America provides students and researchers with an illuminating resource for understanding the impact and relevance of dystopian and apocalyptic works in contemporary American culture. Through its wide survey of dystopian works in numerous forms and genres, the book encourages readers to connect with these works of fiction and understand how the catastrophically grim or disquieting worlds they portray offer insights into our own current situation.In addition to providing more than 150 encyclopedia articles on a large and representative sample of dystopian/apocalyptic narratives in fiction, film, television, and video games (including popular works that often escape critical inquiry), Dystopian States of America features a suite of critical essays on five themes-war, pandemics, totalitarianism, environmental calamity, and technological overreach-that serve as the foundation for most dystopian worlds of the imagination. These offerings complement one another, enabling readers to explore dystopian conceptions of America and the world from multiple perspectives and vantage points.

The Future of the City Centre: Global Perspectives debates future directions. It looks beyond the post-industrial, post-commercial and post-retail city centres to examine differing visions of the future form and function of the urban core.

'David Christian's approach to understanding history can help all of us learn to prepare for the future' - Bill GatesA user's guide to the future: from the algorithms in DNA to why time is like a cocktail glass, interstellar migrations, transhumanism, the fate of the galaxy, and the last black hole...Every second of our lives - whether we're looking both ways before crossing the street, celebrating the birth of a baby, or moving to a new city - we must cope with an unknowable future by telling stories about what will happen next. Where is the future, the place where we set those stories? Can we trust our future stories? And what sort of futures do they show us?David Christian, historian and bestselling author of Origin Story, is renowned for pioneering the emerging discipline of Big History, which surveys the whole of the past. But with Future Stories, he casts his sharp analytical eye forward, offering an introduction to the strange world of the future, and a guide to what we think we know about it at all scales, from the predictive mechanisms of single-celled organisms and tomato plants to the merging of colossal galaxies billions of years from now.Drawing together science, history and philosophy from a huge range of places and times, Christian explores how we prepare for uncertain futures, including the future of human evolution, artificial intelligence, interstellar travel, and more. By linking the study of the past much more closely to the study of the future, we can begin to imagine what the world will look like in the next hundred years and consider solutions to the biggest challenges facing us all.

«These influential essays by one of the world¿s leading experts in the field revisit the central methodological debates in Utopian Studies over the past half century. They include recent commentary on the development of key disagreements respecting the concepts of utopia, eutopia and dystopia, as well as the relations between the three ¿faces¿ of the subject, literature, ideas or theory, and intentional communities. Sargent¿s encyclopaedic knowledge of utopianism is deployed throughout to illuminate many areas of concern. This collection provides an essential starting-point for any student of this vibrant, controversial, increasingly popular, and ever-mutating subject.»(Gregory Claeys, Professor Emeritus of History, University of London)«Utopia is about change, and how better to promote it than to model it? Here a world-leading bibliographer and scholar reconsiders his considerable opus with an open mind but no less passion for his urgently timely topic. The imperfect, critical utopia ¿ whether in fiction, practice, or theory, whether as dystopian warning or eutopian inspiration ¿ is the only one we can trust. Sargent rejects the naysaying of cynics and anti-utopians, urging us to envision and struggle for betterment. ¿Utopias will not go away,¿ he contends. ¿They will always remain the conscience of the world.¿ Indeed they won¿t, and indeed they will.»(Michael S. Cummings, Distinguished Teaching Professor Emeritus ofPolitical Science, University of Colorado, Denver)«This collection makes available Professor Sargent¿s most important essays on utopia, particularly those dealing with attempts to define and delimit the genre. This is an absolutely essential work which reveals the full breath of Sargent¿s contributions to the study of utopia.»(Peter Fitting, Professor Emeritus of French, University of Toronto)«Sargent¿s contribution to the emergence of Utopian Studies as a distinct field is unparalleled. It comprises encyclopaedic knowledge, theoretical rigour, and tireless support of new work. This volume contains seminal essays notable for their impact, but also for their clarity, originality, and erudition. To have them together in one place, with his reflections on them, is an invaluable resource for both young and established scholars ¿ and essential reading for anyone working in the field.»(Ruth Levitas, Emeritus Professor of Sociology, University of Bristol)Utopianism envisions a significantly different society than the current one and includes utopian literature, intentional communities, and utopian social theory. This volume reprints some of the author¿s articles on utopianism together with two not previously published and notes on how they came to be written and his reflections from 2021.

Responding to the increasing urgency for reimagining futures beyond dystopias and utopias, this book explores the challenges of how to think about compelling futures, what these better futures might be like, and what personal and collective practices are emerging that support the creation of more desirable futures.

This book is dedicated to what may be the most important concept in human history, namely, the Singularity - what it is, what it is not, the steps by which we may reach it, and, crucially, how to make it more likely that we'll experience a positive singularity rather than a negative singularity. For now, here's a simple definition. The Singularity is the emergence of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), and the associated transformation of the human condition. Spoiler alert: that transformation will be profound. But if we're not paying attention, it's likely to be profoundly bad. Despite the importance of the concept of the Singularity, the subject receives nothing like the attention it deserves. When it is discussed, it often receives scorn or ridicule. Alas, you'll hear sniggers and see eyes rolling. That's because there's a kind of shadow around the concept - an unhelpful set of distortions that make it harder for people to fully perceive the real opportunities and the real risks that the Singularity brings. These distortions grow out of a wider confusion - confusion about the complex interplay of forces that are leading society to the adoption of ever-more powerful technologies, including ever-more powerful AI. This book seeks to dispel the confusion, to untangle the distortions, and to attract much more serious attention to the Singularity. The future of humanity is at stake. Reviewer comments "An excellent and detailed introduction to the AI Safety problem, the Singularity, and our options for the future."Roman Yampolskiy, Professor of Computer Science, The University of Louisville "It truly is gratifying to see deep thought on these crucial issues."David Brin, Science fiction author and scientist, Winner of Nebula, Locus, Campbell, and Hugo Awards "One of the most important books that you will read this decade, which David Wood calls 'The Decade of Confusion'. The 2020s bring us to the cusp of a transformation in human civilization quite unlike any we have previously experienced. David's book is an essential handbook to aid you in navigating this transformation."Ted Shelton, Expert Partner, Automation and Digital Innovation, Bain and Company "David's book provides a powerful overview of what's ahead of us, and thoughtfully describes the opportunities and challenges brought on by the rise of exponential technologies. A must-read for anyone that is looking to increase their Future-Readiness."Gerd Leonhard, Futurist, CEO The Futures Agency, Author and Film Maker, The Good Future "I have followed David's work for nearly twenty years. It's great to see him taking his thinking to the next level. AGI is arriving faster than many expected. It's vital to raise the calibre of the discussion on AGI and on the Singularity. That's what this timely, valuable book achieves."Ajit Jaokar, Visiting Fellow and Course Director, Artificial Intelligence: Cloud and Edge Implementations, >"David Wood is a man of great intellect which shines through in this erudite analysis of the potential benefits and costs of cataclysmically disruptive technologies. David's Singularity Principles provide a strong basis for the critical tasks of the anticipation and management of alternative outcomes. I commend this book most warmly to friends and colleagues alike."Hugh Shields, Chairman and Founder, The Centre for Research into AI and Mankind "The Singularity Principles is an absorbing, comprehensive overview of the challenges I truly believe we will soon face as AGI arrives. Are we intellectually and emotionally ready to have serious discussions about it?"Patty O'Callaghan, Google's Women Techmakers Ambassador

"WORLDS WITHOUT END: EXOPLANETS, HABITABILITY, AND THE FUTURE OF HUMANITY will present the scientific missions exploring exoplanets through the lens of habitability and our survival in the universe"--

Your first step to understanding what the metaverse is all aboutYou've probably heard that the metaverse--a word that seemingly went from nonexistent to everywhere -- is the next big thing in technology. What is it, anyway? Written by a leading futurist, Metaverse For Dummies unravels the mysteries of the metaverse, for the curious and for anyone looking to get in on the ground floor. Discover how to carve out your niche in the metaverse with easy-to-understand breakdowns of the major technologies and platforms, a guide to doing business in the metaverse, and explorations of what meta means for sports, education, and just about every other area of life. The book even gives you a guide to safety in the metaverse, including how much of your real life you should share in your virtual one. This book answers all the big questions about the metaverse, in simple terms.* Explore the metaverse and the major players* Get a look at how the metaverse will disrupt industries from gaming to online commerce* Discover business opportunities on the metaverse* Dive into metaverse gaming and virtual events--safelyThis book is a must for anyone looking for an approachable primer on what the metaverse is, how it works, and the opportunities within it.

"Roz is a born storyteller. This is a haunting, moral, knee-buckling compilation of how humans have utterly lost their way, an astounding deconstruction of homo moderna, a unique species that has learned to destroy its home. In sixteen chapters, she rows across the ocean of our fading planet. When her story finally hits sacred land, the reader will never be the same. I will read it twice."Paul Hawken, international bestselling author of eight books, including Regeneration: ending the climate crisis in one generation

A compelling and persuasive look at the social transformations needed to cope with our environmental crises. As this major German bestseller reports, our world is at a tipping point, and we feel it every day. On the one hand, we have never been so well off; on the other hand, we find destruction and crisis everywhere we look. Whether throughout the environment or within society, our systems are under stress. In this book, Maja Göpel, co-founder of the Scientists for Future initiative and a former secretary-general of the German Advisory Council on Global Change, explains that this new reality didn't just happen overnight, but rather is a result of our continuous actions--actions propelled by principles and beliefs, which have shaped us as a society over generations. We do not solely face an environmental crisis, but also a social one. It's time to question our principles, set new goals, and re-evaluate our priorities. It's time to rethink our world, because if we want to keep our livelihoods, we need to find a way of living without draining our planet any further. We need a fair distribution of wealth and a way to reconcile the social with the ecological. Critical, yet full of encouragement, Maja Göpel chooses surprising and enlightening examples to illustrate how we can leave behind our familiar ways of living to achieve a better future. With that, she invites us to look at this future we are shaping every day in a new and completely different way.

"The beloved author of The Revenge of Analog lays out a case for a human future--not the false technological utopia we've been living. For years, consumers have been promised a simple, carefree digital future. We could live, work, learn, and play from the comforts of our homes, and have whatever we desire brought to our door with the flick of a finger. Instant communication would bring us together. Technological convenience would give us more time to focus on what really mattered. When the pandemic hit, that future transformed into the present, almost overnight. And the reviews aren't great. It turns out that leaving the house is underrated, instant communication spreads anger better than joy, and convenience takes away time rather than giving it to us. Oops. But as David Sax argues in this insightful book, we've also had our eyes opened. There is nothing about the future that has to be digital, and embracing the reality of human experience doesn't mean resisting change. In chapters exploring work, school, leisure, and more, Sax asks perceptive and pointed questions: what happens to struggling students when they're not in a classroom? If our software is built for productivity, who tends to the social and cultural aspects of our jobs? Can you have religion without community? For many people, the best parts of quarantine have been the least digital ones: baking bread, playing board games, going hiking. We used our hands and hugged our children and breathed fresh air. This book suggests that if we want a healthy future, we need to choose not convenience but community, not technology but humanity"--

The book is intended as a thought-provoking meditation on the idea of the future. It asks questions about different aspects of the relationship between past, present and future, claiming that the connections between them may not be as clear cut as expected. It also touches upon the concept of time, which seems to influence the relationships between these three ideas, but which also complicates their seeming dependency on one another. It is also very concerned with the topic that the present might not actually exist. The rest of the book follows from this one intriguing assertion.

Nel 1962 il settimanale siciliano ¿Trapani Nuovä così titolava un suo articolo: ¿Nel 2000 i telefoni faranno tutto loro. Leggeremo i giornali attraverso la rete telefonica e potremo anche servircene per le operazioni di bancä. Una profezia che annunciò giornali via fax, telefoni multimediali, banche online, lezioni a distanza, comandi vocali, esposizioni d¿arte virtuali e libri elettronici. Non sarebbe stata la prima, né l¿ultima previsione degli anni `60. Si pensavano telefoni da polso, videogame, social network e tanto altro. ¿Il futuro è sempre esistito¿ è un viaggio nel futuro visto dal passato, tra curiosità, coincidenze, cultura pop, aneddoti, scienza, tecnologia, storia sociale e culturale. Il saggio rivela, e documenta, le fonti e le ragioni politiche ed economiche dell¿articolo sui telefoni del 2000 che anticipa gli usi degli smartphone. Il libro svela anche che si trattava di una previsione frutto di ricerche e scoperte dell¿epoca, oltre che di un preciso clima sociale e culturale, raccontato a cavallo tra Stati Uniti e Italia, dimostrando che il futuro è sempre esistito. Con una domanda finale, oggi che le previsioni si sono realtà: il futuro esisterà ancora?

The fifteen years from 2020 to 2035 could be the most turbulent of human history. Revolutions are gathering pace in four overlapping fields of technology: nanotech, biotech, infotech, and cognotech, or NBIC for short. In combination, these NBIC revolutions offer enormous new possibilities: enormous opportunities and enormous risks.Rapid technological change tends to provoke a turbulent social reaction. Old certainties fade. New winners arrive on the scene, flaunting their power, and upturning previous networks of relationships. Within the general public, a sense of alienation and disruption mingles with a sense of profound possibility. Due to the increased scale, speed, and global nature of the ongoing NBIC revolutions, the disruptions that followed in the wake of previous industrial revolutions - seismic though they were - are likely to be dwarfed in comparison to what lies ahead.Amidst these turbulent waves, RAFT 2035 offers a Roadmap to Abundance, Flourishing, and Transcendence. RAFT issues a bold call to action, to encourage more people around the world to recognise the true scale of the opportunities ahead, to set aside distractions, and to build effective coalitions in pursuit of a set of 15 goals to be achieved by 2035.Written by the Chair of London Futurists, David Wood, RAFT shows that futurism isn't just about describing futures that are likely or possible. It's also about highlighting futures that are highly desirable, and seeking to change the arc of human history in the light of that insight.The 15 goals of RAFT range from significantly improved mental wellbeing, a radical new social contract, transformations in education and politics, a sustainable relationship with the environment, reductions in the threat of violence and crime both locally and internationally, and a renewed focus on humanity's journey into new realms of both inner and outer space. For each goal, two interim targets for 2025 are identified, as important steps towards the radically better future that is within our grasp."It's often said that technology is poised to make humans stronger and more intelligent. But RAFT emphasises the possibility of a change that is much more important - the potential for technology to make us kinder and more empathetic. It's a message that deserves to be widely heard."- David Pearce, Philosopher, and advocate of Paradise Engineering"In RAFT, David Wood challenges all of us to reconsider how technology can best serve ethics, safety, and values that uplift the human spirit. A future that champions the very best aspects of what it means to be human is within our grasp, if we can humanise technology, and harmonize the interests of advanced civilization with nature."- Nell Watson, Chair of EthicsNet.org and IEEE's Certification for Ethics in Transparency"The need for a different set of politics is more pressing than ever. RAFT is a framework for the transition we need to make which is beyond the faultlines of traditional political positions."- Hannes Sjöblad, Co-founder DSruptive Sweden, and Chief Disruptive Officer of Epicenter Stockholm"I've often enjoyed listening to David Wood set out his hopes and fears for the future. In RAFT 2035 he applies his formidable insight to the very important question of securing a truly great future, for the United Kingdom and beyond, by 2035."- Matt O'Neill, Futurist Keynote Speaker, Futurist.Matt"RAFT 2035 maps out the possibilities and the trade-offs our exponential world is going to need. Continuing as before with tiny incremental steps is no longer an option: we need a RAFT of big ideas to make a step-change. Let's pick up these ideas and get on board for a brave new 2035."Paul Imre, VP of Education, Data Science Speakers Club, Toastmasters International

This is my original doctoral dissertation, which I submitted to New York University and successfully defended in 1978. The dissertation presents my "anthropotropic" theory of media evolution (anthropo = human; tropic = towards) which argues that as media evolve, they become increasingly human in function. Thus, telegraph gives way to telephone (we hear words not dots and dashes), photography changes from black-and-white to color, etc. The theory also explains why some media survive the advent of successor media and others do not: radio survived the advent of television because hearing without seeing is a natural mode of human communication (it gets dark every night and we still hear, we can easily close our eyes and continue to hear), whereas silent movies were obliterated by talkies (it is very difficult in the natural world to see without hearing something or other). The theory also predicts the creation of media that will enable us to access all kinds of information from any place in the world, any time, regardless of where we and that information might be - or, exactly what we now do with smartphones.

'Beyond The Black Stump of Eternity' provides a toolkit for exploring the deeper meaning to life, its existence and global issues. This book is the first in a series of three books and at a time when anyone can be published, I feel it is my responsibility to "Awaken others" to what I know. Written uniquely for an Australian audience, it's also suited for broader global readership. It's intended to be an easy read that interweaves a mix of stories associated with my journey growing up in what I call, "The Black Stump" to defining concepts around spirituality, soul evolution, "Awakening the Spirit" and a toolkit for spiritual fulfillment and success. Nevertheless, what is peculiar to this book are the series of chapters that relate to important societal and global issues such as Gender Equality; Politics; The Environment; Australian Indigenous Culture; HIV and it's Global Impact; Humanitarianism; Diversity in Life; Mental Health and Substance Use; Dis-ability; Happiness and Wellbeing; Living, Loving, Ageing and Dying.In conclusion, I write a compelling story about the emergence of the Republic of Australia and impact of the next global shift, Humanity and 2023/24.Please note 20% of all proceeds from the sale of my book are donated to: --Doctors Without Borders (Medicines Sans Frontières)

"How to Lead Yourself" is a compilation of stories written by young leaders hoping to spark a change in their community. They share their stories, from the beginning to end, of their road to becoming a leader, and all the stops along the way. The 1/1/1 Leadership Project, a concept that has changed all of their lives, exemplifies the potential for a huge change in communities, but through the smallest of actions. They hope for this book to have an impact on other kids' lives, to spread this significant project with others outside their small community, and for the project to become prevalent in as many places in the world as possible. These young leaders hope to inspire the next generation of leaders through sharing their challenges, successes, and failures. They hope to motivate others to leave their comfort zone behind and look their challenges in the eye.