observations – What The Future Now?

A few of my favourite things

Posted on October 26, 2020January 5, 2021 by bronwynruthwilliams in big data, futurenomics, Ideas

I find myself sharing the same essays over and over again, and I thought it would be useful to collect all these perennial favourites into one resource. Enjoy the rabbit hole. On the tyranny of the minority - or why the most unreasonable win: https://medium.com/incerto/the-most-intolerant-wins-the-dictatorship-of-the-small-minority-3f1f83ce4e15O On luxury beliefs: https://nypost.com/2019/08/17/luxury-beliefs-are-the-latest-status-symbol-for-rich-americans/ On why there are (still) no … Continue reading A few of my favourite things →

The Hare and the Camel

Posted on July 3, 2020 by bronwynruthwilliams in observations

I have an affinity for dark Soviet humour. There is a lot we can learn from those who have been through the dark places we are headed towards. One such old joke runs as follows: A hare is running frantically though a forest. A bear stops him and asks, "Why are you running?". The hare … Continue reading The Hare and the Camel →

SEX as a leading indicator

Posted on May 4, 2020 by bronwynruthwilliams in futurenomics, futurism, observations

If you are a futurist, you should be watching the sex industry. The world's oldest industry is full of shiny new ideas and quick to adopt new trends and technologies. It's also very flexible. (Puns all fully intended). I wrote in more detail about this subject here. Enjoy.

On cults, climate and culture

Posted on February 1, 2020February 1, 2020 by bronwynruthwilliams in economics, futurenomics, futurism

Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood - based, of course (loosely) on the infamous, real-life story of the Manson Family's murder of Sharon Tait and her friends story gives us a glimpse of the dark side of happy hippie culture - and how counter-culture-culture can turn into a cult. Recently, I was asked to co-author … Continue reading On cults, climate and culture →

ancient gods Wikimedia image new gods new religions

(A)I Am

Posted on August 17, 2019August 17, 2019 by bronwynruthwilliams in futurism, observations, Random

When fallible human priests fail to fill the void, and reveal themselves to be more human than divine; we turn to man-made synthetic deities. Japan's robot priest confirms that we are looking for new gods for our new age - made in our own image, yet perfectly, and programmable. (And not all that different from … Continue reading (A)I Am →

Secrets and Lies

Posted on August 12, 2019 by bronwynruthwilliams in futurenomics, futurism, Ideas, Libertarianism, privacy, Trends

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 →

The Emperor Has No Clothes

Posted on November 2, 2018 by bronwynruthwilliams in artificial intelligence, Design, observations, Science and Technology

In Hans Christian Anderson's famous tail, The Emperor's New Clothes, a vain ruler is tricked by a pair or shrewd into walking around naked, in the belief that he was wearing clothes so fine and luxurious that only those with exquisite taste could see them. Today, we are all close to sharing that Emperor's delusions. … Continue reading The Emperor Has No Clothes →

A Slip of The Keyboard

Posted on September 20, 2018September 20, 2018 by bronwynruthwilliams in Ideas, Libertarianism, observations, Reading Right Now

It's no secret, Terry Pratchett is my all-time favourite author, and has been since I was an 11-year-old girl-child, told by my English teacher to "go read this book [Lords and Ladies] at the back of the classroom. You're too smart for what I'm about to teach the rest of them." (true story). Although dismissed … Continue reading A Slip of The Keyboard →

Conspiracy (with a very interesting cast)

Posted on July 19, 2018July 19, 2018 by bronwynruthwilliams in Libertarianism, Questions, Reading Right Now

I'll be honest. I bought this book because of the title. I was bored, stuck in an airport with a delayed flight, killing time in a bookshop and the title called to me from across the store - after all who doesn't like a good conspiracy? Despite its random impulse purchase status, I loved this book. … Continue reading Conspiracy (with a very interesting cast) →

It’s all relative

Posted on February 21, 2018 by bronwynruthwilliams in observations

"We define ourselves in relative terms, not absolute ones. More stuff, more power, less this or less that. Who's up and who's down?" - Seth Godin Why do talks about equality so often equate to moving the top half of the ladder down towards the lowest common denominator rather than moving the bottom half of … Continue reading It’s all relative →