Predictions: Thirty Great Minds on the Future

"Predictions: Thirty Great Minds on the Future" is easily one of the most reader-friendly, chin-stroking collections of interviews and essays prognosticating time's arrow I've read, and I've read a lot (Tommorow Now, Metatrends, etc.) Nothing is expanded in depth here. It's more about breadth. If you don't necessarily agree with what Richard Dawkins thinks, then read the interview/essay from Lynn Margulis (re: Margulis, Dawkins once said he'd rather share a conference table with Attila the Hun!).Some of the previous reviewers seem to hold Predictions up to some pre-conceived notion. Well, everyone has pre-conceptions. We don't come to books as tabula rasas. In fact, there's something funny about the person who had trouble with the lack of "God" in this collection. It's like going to St. Peter's Cathedral and complaining you can't find a good postcard. Ie. can't see the forest for the trees. Maybe that's not the best description, but I believe in God, and science, and the ability of deep thinkers to extrapolate upon the present to guide the future, and even intrigue our imaginations and... pre-conceptions. What's life without change?As Umberto Eco says: "Don't fall in love with your own airship."Recommended for general science fans, writers looking for good/new ideas, and anyone who wants to learn about the direction we're going in the time it takes to visit the watercloset.

Review of Predictions by Sian Griffiths (Editor)This book would be a great present for any person who has an interest in intellectual thought and ideas. It comprises a brief biography of each one of thirty great thinkers followed by a contribution from them outlining their view of the future for mankind. The biographies, in addition to giving a quick view of the life and times of those distinguished minds, also give a quick summaries of their contribution to modern thought. The explanations of their theories are clear and lucid but at a level which is comprehensible to the lay reader. The ideas are stimulating and a spur to discovering more about some of the theories and inventions of these great men and women. The contributions of the intellectuals themselves point to exciting changes and challenges for humanity in the 21st century. The contributors include, Noam Chomsky, Richard Dawkins, Umberto Eco, Lyn Margulis, Steven Pinker and 25 others. This is the nicest book I have read for a long time and one I am delighted to own.