I don't know about you, but I cannot live without a few secrets. Without secrets, without a private inner life, we lose our individuality and our sense of self. Today though, we are bombarded with messages telling us that privacy is worth sacrificing for the greater good; for the good of community security, for the … Continue reading Secrets and Lies
Tag: futures
Social Cooling
The below is a transcript of my recent Pecha Kucha (20 slides, 20 seconds each) talk on "Social Cooling" - a disturbing phenomenon I think everyone should be aware of. Personal data is said to be the new oil…not just because of the industry’s value, but because of its power. And, like big oil is blamed … Continue reading Social Cooling
Are we nearing the end of the age of literacy?
“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies . . . The man who never reads lives only one.” ~ George R.R. Martin As we move from the text and screen web to the voice and spacial web (and possibly even into the age of a fully connected human Brainternet), we move one step closer to … Continue reading Are we nearing the end of the age of literacy?
Surely You’re Joking Mr Feynman
"...I have developed a very powerful sense of social irresponsibility..." ~ Richard Feynman The inimitable and endlessly quotable Richard Feynman always makes for entertaining - and enlightening - reading. Surely You're Joking Mr Feynman is part physics lecture, part biography and complete delight. A Nobel prize, winner, atom-bomb contributor, and occasional amateur philosopher, Richard Feynman, … Continue reading Surely You’re Joking Mr Feynman
The future library
"A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in." - Greek proverb It's no secret - I love reading. In particular, I love reading books, real, paper books that don't hurt your eyes and don't require cables or charging. I also love future thinking and foresight. … Continue reading The future library
The Age of Surveillance Capitalism
"I reject inevitability, and it is my hope that as a result of our journey together, you will too. We are at the beginning of this story, not the end... There is still time to take the reins and direct the action towards a human future that we can call home." ~ Shoshana Zoboff … Continue reading The Age of Surveillance Capitalism
Foundation
The Foundation trilogy by grandfather of futurism and former RAND corporation forefather, Isaac Asimov is a masterclass in playing the long game. If you want to understand foresight and strategy, you could do worse than to "waste" a weekend on this highly entertaining work of science fiction; almost like the Art of War, for nerds. … Continue reading Foundation
Facial Justice
Facial Justice by LP Hartley is not a good book. In fact, I would say it is a pretty terrible book. Bad plot, bad characters, badly written. Yet, I am still featuring it here because the book's big idea is brilliant. Facial Justice imagines a not too distant future where women are forced to have … Continue reading Facial Justice
Society 2030: A Set of Socio-Economic Scenario Sketches
We are currently at a cross roads when it comes to the balance of power across the world. Advances in technology are combining with shifting socio-economic trends to form new ideologies, each pushing for a different versions of utopia. Here follows a set of broad-strokes possible macro socio-economic scenarios that could play out in the … Continue reading Society 2030: A Set of Socio-Economic Scenario Sketches
Do you (really) want to live forever?
The following is the original transcript from my TedX talk of the same name. Typos and all. All Illustrations by the lovely Raleen Bagg. Enjoy: Who wants to live forever? From the quest for the Holy Grail to the search for the Fountain of Eternal Youth; human history and mythology is littered with our obsession … Continue reading Do you (really) want to live forever?