Prophets of a High-Tech Age

Abstract

A summary is provided of one futurist's career, noting the significance of various issues in the study of the future. A major theme running through the analysis is that futurists can be effectively understood as high-tech equivalents of the ancient prophets. Like prophets, they are usually motivated by a compelling vision of how the world is changing and how these changes can be best achieved. They frequently suffer from indifference and criticism when presenting results of their work and expressing their personal views. Because the study of the future is a somewhat marginal role, they often try to assimilate into ordinary professions and the power structure. Finally, they occasionally find great satisfaction in seeing their forecasts realized.

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