Category Archives: Futurism

On Monday, Chinese state-run news agencyXinhuareported that He Jiankui, the researcher responsible for creating the worlds first gene-edited babies, had been sentenced to three years in prison on the charge of illegally practicing medicine.

Given that China condemned Hes research almost immediately after he announced the births of the twin babies, its not particularly surprising to hear that the researcher is being punished for his controversial experiment.

But included in Xinhuas latest report was a bit of news we thought we might never hear: a third gene-edited baby has officially been born.

Back in November 2018, when He first announced the existence of the gene-edited twins, he also let slip that another woman was pregnant with an additional edited embryo.

In January, Stanford bioethicist William Hurlbut told news agency Agence France-Presse that hed talked extensively to He about that third gene-edited baby. He said believed the woman was likely 12 to 14 weeks pregnant at the time, which would make her due to give birth around June or July 2019.

July came and went without any news about the third gene-edited baby, though but now, China has quietly confirmed its birth, with Xinhua reporting that He was sentenced for his experiments in which three genetically edited babies were born.

The report doesnt include any additional information on the baby. We dont know its sex, its health status, whether the birth involved any complications or if the baby is even still alive.

But we do know this baby was born, meaning that at some point this year, there were not two, but three genetically engineered humans walking or, more likely, crawling the Earth.

See the rest here:
China Quietly Confirms Birth of Third Gene-Edited Baby - Futurism

Futurists, academics and technologists have always wondered what life will be like in the years ahead.

Making bold predictions can be a risky move, leaving one looking more fool than oracle especially when the crystal ball gazing is done from several decades away.

We've put together seven predictions for life in 2020, from as far back as the 1960s and as recent as 2017.

In 1984 it turned out Apple founder Steve Jobs was already envisioning how a Siri-like AI companion would be assisting us in our day-to-day lives, in 2020. "The next stage is going to be computers as 'agents,'" he said in a 1984 interview with Newsweek's Access Magazine. "In other words, it will be as if there's a little person inside that box who starts to anticipate what you want. Rather than help you, it will start to guide you through large amounts of information. It will almost be like you have a little friend inside that box." Jobs was bang on the money, as underlined by the advancing digital butler-type tech rolled out by Google, Apple and Amazon.

In 2017 John McAfee, the controversial computer antivirus mogul, predicted that by the end of 2020 the price of a single Bitcoin would reach $1 million. The current Bitcoin price is hovering just over AUD $10,000, so the world's most popular cyptocurrency has a lot of work to do over the next 365 days. McAfee has promised to eat a body part if his bold prediction does not happen.

The average human living 100 years

Thirty years ago, futurist Ray Kurzweil predicted the average life expectancy for humans would be 100. While Kurzweil may have missed the mark with that call, turns out he foresaw the rise of wearable tech and how that kind of data could potentially help us live healthier lives. "Computerised health monitors built into watches, jewellery, and clothing which diagnose both acute and chronic health conditions are widely used. In addition to diagnosis, these monitors provide a range of remedial recommendations and interventions," he wrote in The Age of Spiritual Machines.

In 1968, with the world under the foreboding shadow of a perilous Cold War, a Stamford professor predicted nuclear power would rise to become the dominant force in US energy by the year 2020. Professor Charles Scarlott also believed any advances in renewable energy would be negligible and not figure large in the US energy mix. Turns out his estimations were wildly off-target. According to US government figures, nuclear electric power makes up about 9 per cent of total US energy production. Fossil fuels still dominate, with 79 per cent, and renewables coming in on 12 per cent.

In 2009 Microsoft released a promotional video, laying out its vision for life in 2020 (watch above). Microsoft doesn't proposes anything too radical. A lot of the featured technology hinted at was already in early stage development when the film was made. There is a lot of glass screen computing, touch screen tech and augmented reality too. A man slides apart his mobile phone into a series of cards, which isn't something we can do yet, but Samsung did give us with a foldable phone last year.

In a 1968 paper, a political science professor at world-renowned MIT predicted humans would become a cohesive band of happy and loving people, thanks to better communication, translation of language and a deeper understanding of what makes us tick emotionally and psychologically. "By the year 2018 nationalism should be a waning force in the world," Ithiel de Sola Pool wrote. While we are more connected than ever before, and supposedly know more about ourselves and the human condition than at any other time in history, global nationalism has never been more fierce since the end of WWII.

Excerpt from:
How futurists from the past predicted life in 2020 - 9News

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Image Syd Mead.

Revered as a legend in the field of science-fiction, the American industrial designer Syd Mead has given the world memorable and inspiring designs of what the future could be. Recognized for his contributions on the silver screen, he produced conceptual art for blockbuster Hollywood films like Tron, Alien, Star Trek, Short Circuit, and Blade Runner, to name a few. After graduating fromArt Center College of Design, Mead started his career as an automobile illustrator for the Ford Motor Company in 1959. He eventually became a sought after illustrator creating architectural renderings and drawings for clients all over the world.

Beyond his numerous accolades and unforgettable artwork inspiring retro-futurists and science-fiction enthusiasts alike, what strikes me the most is Mead's commitment to transforming possibilities of the built environment.According to Mead, in a 2008 interview with Rebecca Cathcart of theNew York Times, he regards science-fiction as "reality ahead of schedule."

Besides Mead's legendary imagination and use of form and color, his artwork's detail in perspectives is what can be appreciated by all. Images of a futuristic world and the built environment he shapes in each image illustrates important notes of certainty and idealism that life can be better in the future.When asked in an interview with Curbed why visuals of the future aren't as optimistic anymore Mead replied, "I think it's cathartic to do that, to design a dark future, sort of a "glad it didn't happen to me" situation. To design a nice future is a lot more difficult."

A science-fiction legend that will be missed by all, Mead provided everyone was his optimistic perspective of an alluring world many would want to be apart of. "in visual futurism, the line between total fantasy and futuristic is a thread of reality."

Original post:
Remembering Syd Mead and his futuristic visions of the built environment - Archinect

Pokmon Go Away

CBC News has obtained hundreds of pages of documents detailing the Canadian militarys efforts to overcome an unexpected adversary: Pokmon Go.

Within days of the games July 2016 launch, players reportedly began wandering onto military property in pursuit of its virtual creatures and landmarks and based on the newly released documents, the unexpected intrusion left the military hilariously out of its depth.

The cache of documents includes a number of typo-laden quotes illustrating the Canadian militarys confusion about both the influx of Pokmon Go players and the game itself.

Plse advise the Commissionaires that apparently Fort Frontenac is both a PokeGym and a PokeStop, Maj. Jeff Monaghan of Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Kingston wrote in one email. I will be completely honest in that I have not [sic] idea what that is.

The games premise seems to be going to the PokeStops/Gyms to collect Pokemons (we should almost hire a 12-year-old to help us out with this), security expert David Levenick of CFB Borden wrote in another message.

In true Canadian fashion, at least one military official did manage to find a silver lining in the surge of unexpected visitors to the military bases.

Maybe some extra people will visit the museum! Maj. Alicia Saucier wrote in a document about players flocking to a Pokestop at CFB Petawawas Garrison Museum.

READ MORE: How Canadas military reacted to seeing Pokemon Go players trespassing on its bases [CBC News]

More on Pokmon Go: The Company Behind Pokmon Go Is Making AR Glasses

Read more:
Pokmon Go Led to a Surge in Trespassers on Military Bases - Futurism

WASHINGTON D.C., DC Jetpacks, surveillance, and a life expectancy of 100 years old. Those were just some of the predictions for 2020, made by past generations.

So which were on the right path, and which were way off the mark? WUSA9 looked into it.

Anti-Gravity Belts:

This prediction was made in 1968 by a mathematician and scientist named DG Brennan. In that year, he predicted that anti-gravity belts would "revolutionize the tactics of land warfare."

In particular, Brennan believed Jetpacks and anti-gravity vehicles would become a normal tool in warfare. Clearly this hasn't been developed on a widespread basis.

Although a quick search of Youtube will show various videos of Jetpacks being tested. So perhaps, this technology isn't far from being used in war.

Life-Expectancy:

Here's one we all wish were true. Futurist Ray Kurzweil predicted in 1999 that life expectancy would rise to 100 years old by 2019.

Unfortunately, this has not come true. Globally the rate hovers just below 75-year-old, and in the United States, that number sits just below 80-years-old.

Widespread Tracking:

Kurzweil made another ominous prediction, writing that privacy would become a huge political and social issue in 2020. He predicted that every move we make would be tracked and "stored in a database somewhere."

This prediction has indeed come true in a lot of ways. Smartphones can track our exact location at any given moment. Every Google search and Facebook post is collected and analyzed, creating a digital footprint.

And this new technology has become even more apparent when looking at countries like China, where widespread surveillance programs have been initiated.

China - A Global Power:

Another prediction came from futurists Peter Schwartz and Peter Leyden, who wrote their prediction in a 1997 article, titled 'The Long Boom.'

"By 2020," they wrote. "The Chinese economy [will have] grown to be the largest in the world."

They proved correct that China would see massive economic growth. However, they were wrong that China would surpass the United States. Currently, China has the second-largest nominal GDP at $9 trillion. By comparison, the United States has a nominal GDP of over $21 trillion.

Boris' Rise To Power (Scary Accurate):

What's startling about this prediction is that Boris Johnson was just a journalist at the time, who had never held public office.

World Population:

In 1994, The International Food Policy Research Institute made a prediction for 2020 as well, estimating the world population would reach 2020. That would mean a massive jump of 2.5 billion people in a quarter-century.

This prediction proved to be very close, as the most recent estimate by the United Nations puts the world population at 7.7 billion people.

That same U.N. report estimates that the population will continue rising, jumping by another 2 billion people by 2050.

Nationalism:

Most experts would probably argue that this one has not panned out. In 1968, a political science professor at MIT named Ithiel de Sola Pool, made the following optimistic prediction:

"By the Year of 2018," he wrote. "Nationalism should be a waning force in the world.

Many would argue that the global attitude has in fact gone in the other direction. Whether it's the 'Brexit' fight in England, the 'America First' mentality in the United States, or the rise of populist strongmen in countries like China, the Philippines, and India, this Nationalist sentiment is on full display.

Work-Week:

Here's one we all wish was true. In 1968, physicist Herman Kahn and futurist Anthony J. Weiner said that Americans would have 26-hour work-weeks by 2020.

In reality, Americans work on average 35 hours per week, according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Maybe there's a good chance for 2021?

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Jetpacks, surveillance, and a 26-hour workweek. Here's what past generations expected for 2020 - WUSA9.com

Against these attitudes, Pompeo and others sounding alarms about Huawei can be perfunctorily dismissed as protectionists, xenophobes, or military hawks. The American secretary of state has become a particular target of criticism in China, where government officials and the media have described him as a font of lies and fallacies and a Cold War warrior.

Yet the West has ample reason for caution about Chinese 5G suppliers. For one, the recent Chinese National Intelligence Law requires these companies to comply with Communist Party demands to turn over data or otherwise engage in snooping or network-disruption activities. Party-backed actors in Chinas public and private sectors also have a long record of cyberattacks on the West, including stealing intellectual property from companies and sensitive personal information on citizens.

The case against Huawei isnt just guilt by association. The company itself is suspected of committing blatant corporate espionage: A Justice Department indictment from early 2019 cited highly specific demands by Huawei headquarters in China for information from engineers embedded in T-Mobiles facility in Bellevue, Washington. An email exchange exposed Huaweis pressure on employees in the field to steal even guarded equipment and trade secrets; according to the Justice Department, a bonus program offered rewards for the most valuable information stolen. One Huawei employee, the U.S. government alleges, literally walked out the door with a proprietary robotic arm in his bag.

And recent revelations about how Chinas ruling party exploits the full panoply of personal information it has amassed about its citizensfacial-recognition images, mandatory DNA samples, 24-hour GPS coordinates, and search-history and online-activity tracking, as well as plain old eavesdroppingto quash religious freedom and basic rights should give major pause to Western governments and wireless carriers alike.

While Pompeos State Department has been pressing its case at one international forum to the next, his message has been met with some skepticism in Europe. Simply to acknowledge 5G as a security threat invites headaches that EU governments and telecom carriers would rather not contemplate. Ripping out Chinese gear would be a massive financial and logistical undertaking.

European regulators are used to viewing the American tech industry as a rival, and they bristle today at taking direction from Washington. And despite the fact that two 5G suppliers are European, and EU officials have argued for technological sovereigntya term most reasonably construed to mean technological independence from the United Statesmember nations have not yet settled on a joint policy.

On top of that, the EU single market prides itself on principles of fair competition and an unwillingness to favor or reject a company because of its national origin, especially when its products are competitive, as Huaweis are, on metrics such as price. The irony in this approach, of course, is that the Chinese state has subsidized efforts by Huawei to undercut its European and South Korean competitors, not least because of the possibility of obtaining geopolitical leverage. The Wall Street Journal estimated recently that as much as $75 billion in state support fueled Huaweis rise. The failure to see 5G beyond the consumer lens is also a failure to understand Chinese companies as implements of state power as much as private entities in their own right.

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5G Is Where China and the West Finally Diverge - The Atlantic