“…future shock is no longer a distantly potential danger, but a real sickness from which increasingly large numbers already suffer.”–Alvin Toffler, in Future Shock
Alvin Toffler published those words in the Introduction to Future Shock, fifty years ago. If it was already a widespread malady in 1970, is it anything less than a rampant pandemic now? If you can’t see the trappings of it all over the world, I have a guide dog I want to sell you.
Cosmic Quote #111
January 26, 2020 by Leave a Comment
Cosmic Quote #110
December 28, 2019 by Leave a Comment
“An optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves.”– Bill Vaughan
If you’ve read my thread on quantum weirdness, you know where I stand on this. I’m in a state of superposition–simultaneously optimistic and pessimistic. So what does that portend for New Year’s eve? If you see somebody asleep on his feet at midnight, it’s probably me. Happy Old/New Year.
Cosmic Quote #109
December 19, 2019 by 2 Comments
“You call it procrastinaion; I call it thinking.”–Aaron Sorkin
It seems there is a theory that procrastinators are more creative. Aha! So the fact that I am years behind on the other threads on this blog should be proof positive that I’m incubating more brilliant ideas to dazzle you with. Right!? Or maybe I’m just lazy…
Cosmic Quote #108
November 27, 2019 by Leave a Comment
“It took me three weeks to stuff the turkey. I stuffed it through the beak.”–Phyllis Diller
Hmm. Thanksgiving is the only day of the year my wife cooks. I suppose you can say it takes her a year to stuff the turkey. Wait–we are visiting relatives this year. The next one will take two years. Happy stuffing day.
Seeking Delphi, Episode #38: Science Fiction, Evolutionary Mythology of The Future.
November 26, 2019 by Leave a Comment
This post is re-blogged from Seeking Delph™
“Politicians should read science fiction, not westerns and detective stories.”– Arthur C. Clarke
“I’m leaving my body to science fiction.”–Steven Wright
Science fiction pervades our culture. Movies, television, books, even stage productions. It’s rich history, and its significance in shaping our views of the future–or for that matter, inspiring us to invent the future–is the subject of this wide ranging discussion with author Tom Lombardo. Among the subjects we cover:
- Science Fiction as a pervasive view of the future; all aspects of human experience, not just technology and science.
- Parallels between mythology and science fiction
- Science Fiction as social satire and even humor (think Kurt Vonnegut and Douglas Adams, for instance).
- The danger of Hollywood’s apocalyptic future visions becoming self-fullfilling prophecies
- Some of the best future predictions from scifi.
You can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ on Apple podcasts , PlayerFM, MyTuner, Listen Notes, and YouTube
Tom Lombardo, click image for bio
Science Fiction, The Evolutionary Mythology of The Future. Click for Amazon link.
Episode #38, Science Fiction, The Evolutionary Mythology of The Future
Center for Future Consciousness (Tom’s web site)
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Seeking Delphi episode #36: The Future of Nursing and Caregiving, Part One
November 8, 2019 by Leave a Comment
“Constant attention by a good nurse may be just as important as a major operation by a surgeon.”
– Dag Hammarskjold
Image: Shutterstock
While many futures are generalists, there is a need for foresight professionals centered on specific fields, as well. Perhaps no area is more in need of innovative outlooks for the future than healthcare. With rising costs, aging populations and personnel shortages, the challenges are many. But so are the opportunities to employ emerging technologies. In the first part of a two part series, host Mark Sackler discusses these challenge with two nursing Ph.D.’s, Oriana Beaudet and Dan Pesut. Part One addresses the need for foresight both in nursing specifically and healthcare in general, as well as the global challenges of an aging population. Part two will drill down to individual ssues, including automation, robotics and artificial intelligence as caregiving tools for the future.
You can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ on Apple podcasts , PlayerFM, MyTuner, Listen Notes, and YouTube
Oriana Beaudet, DNP–click image for bio
Dan Pesut, Ph.D.–click image for bio
Episode #36, The Future of Nursing and Caregiving, Part 1
Episode #36 YouTube slide show
Links:
University of Minnesota School of Nursing
University of Minnesota Health Innovation and Leadership
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Seeking Delphi episode #35: NASA, the next ten years, with Dan Dumbacher
October 29, 2019 by Leave a Comment
This post reblogged from Seeking Delphi™
“I did not come to NASA to make history.”–Sally Ride
“Going to Mars would make NASA great again.”–John Grunsfeld
A new space race is upon us. But unlike the two-way competion days of the 1960’s and early 1970’s, it is now a multi-player competition to dominate and exploit the final frontier.
Where does NASA sit in all of this, in the rapidly changing world of the second space race? In Seeking Delphi episode #35, host Mark Sackler gets an overview of where the agency is headed, from former NASA program director for launch systems, Dan Dumbacher. There’s also a very special announcement of the upcoming ASCEND** space conference, slated for Las Vegas in November of 2020.
**Accelerating Space Commerce, Exploration, and New Discovery
You can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ on Apple podcasts , PlayerFM, MyTuner, Listen Notes, and YouTube
Orion Capsule. NASA
Episode #35, NASA: The Next Ten Years, with Dan Dumbacher
YouTube slideshow for episode #35
Links:
Subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ on Apple Podcasts
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Cosmic Quote #107
October 29, 2019 by Leave a Comment
“I’m so ugly, when I open the door for trick-or-treaters, the kids give me candy.”–Rodney Dangerfield
Ah, poor Rodney. Who else would be born in ready-made Halloween costume? Enjoy the spookiest day of the year, and don’t let those ghouls get to you.
Cosmic Quote #106
October 12, 2019 by 4 Comments
“Life is wasted on the living.”–Douglas Adams
If anybody is counting, I’m pretty sure Mr. Adams has had more quotes in this series than anybody else. He should probably have his own series. Let’s hope this isn’t wasted on the late author: today is the 40th anniversary of the publishing of The Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy. Happy Birthday, Arthur Dent! I bet you can’t wait until he turns 42.
Cosmic Quote #105
June 18, 2019 by Leave a Comment
“I’m a peripheral visionary. I can see the future but only way off to the side.”–Steven Wright
Oh, my. What does Friday taste like? Where are those “future of food” people when you need them? (I might add that any professional futurist knows that you have to look way off to the side, as well as straight ahead, to get any idea of what the future might really hold).
