Customer Reviews

Future Files: The 5 Trends That Will Shape the Next 50 Years

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Oh, in 2050, how happy we'll be. We'll have "soft" bathtubs that mold to our bodies, smart bullets (that follow bad guys around corners) and "gravity tubes" (small but weightless areas). An Internet that appeals to all five senses. Female Viagra. Driverless cars that are biodegradable and shift their paint jobs with our moods. Cash and coins will go away (we'll all have "wallet-phones"), as will desktop computers, nation-states (like Belgium) and insistence on proper spelling. You'll bag your own groceries and just walk out -- nano-transmitters will scan your purchases and e-mail you the bill. Doctors will listen for cancer (because aggressive but tiny cells still make noise). And the military will download combat "memories" into recruits' minds.

That's what Richard Watson predicts in *Future Files,* anyway. Of course, futurists can be wrong. (Remember "paperless offices" and "more leisure time"?) Still, readers will enjoy Watson's browsable book, which states its organizing principles right off: The "5 Trends That Will Shape the Next 50 Years" include aging (it's not just America's Social Security system that's going to be strained); power-shifts to China (manufacturing), India (services) and the Middle East (finances); connectivity (cell phones, cell phones everywhere, and not a thought to think); GRIN technologies (advances in genetics, robotics, the Internet and nanotechnology that will have computers outsmarting us); and the environment (with sustainability and conservation becoming badges of honor).

But Watson also falls into two traps: hedging his bets and over-generalizing. Today, people like their food fast and convenient -- though there's also a slow-food movement brewing. Watson doesn't sort out which of these alternate trends will predominate; he simply says they'll both continue, which is self-evident and unhelpful. He also shilly-shallies his discussion of targeted shopping (getting in and then out) as opposed to social shopping (making it a leisurely experience).

As for the generalizations, Watson's "5 Things That Won't Change Over the Next 50 Years" amount to mere common sense: People will be anxious and nostalgic, and they'll crave respect. (Well, duh.) But he retains a sense of humor, cites a variety of sources and has organized his book in digestible chunks.

My own prediction? Readers will think Richard Watson's *Future Files* is worth skimming.

I've never been a huge fan of so called trendcasters because a lot of times they'll focus on such limited audiences or topics. A friend raved about Future Files, so I thought I'd give it a glance- I couldn't put it down. Now I'm not naive enough to imagine that just because the author says something means it will happen (and I don't think we'll be around in 50 years to argue whether he was wrong or right anyway) but he brings in such entertaining references that you understand how he reaches these conclusions. I think that it would be interesting to compare a few of the new books about what's next and see the recurring themes. In all, this is a book I thoroughly enjoyed, though some aspects really disturbed me (can you imagine hiring someone to hold your hand after surgery to help soothe you?). A lot of fun and a lot to think about- great gift book too.

In this bold, entertaining book, futurist Richard Watson reports the results of decades of thought about the future. He identifies more than 200 separate trends, which he helpfully winnows down into five overarching themes illustrated with real-world and hypothetical examples. His breezy style weaves these themes into the major areas of life: work, finances, politics, science, health care and entertainment, among others. Watson's vision of the future covers all aspects - literally everything from taking baths to artificial intelligence - and the sweep of his ambition is impressive. He augments his text with good graphics, some perhaps tongue-in-cheek (his "Extinction Timeline" has Belgium biting the bullet around 2049). The book's one weakness is that, while Watson tells readers what will happen in the future, he doesn't always explain why. This caveat aside, getAbstract recommends this engaging book to leaders, innovators and all those interested in the future.

This book has a lot of contradictions in it, as how we are going to live. It gives us the image we are going to be in some kind of technology wonder world at the same time we are running out of resources to make it happen. I'm sure teenagers that read this book will find it absolutely fascinating and that, is what this book is to me, some kind of sci fi jumble for kids. It seems to me that the author has no particular knowledge of anything that he talks about, it's superficial and some kind of guess work that any college student can manage to put together. It also appears that the author had too much data and information he didn't know how to manage. This book is shallow and superficial and very likely wrong about most things. Future will tell us as it flies. Waste of money, unless you are buying it for a 15 year old geek, that needs a temporary wonderment for it's brain. I admit, I bought it by it's cover. Bad Idea.

Loved this incite full, well thought out book. Not everything is likely but found many things already have come about. Need to know this now so you are not surprised.