Trees on Mars : Our Obsession with the Future (Paperback)--by Hal Niedzviecki [2015 Edition] ISBN: 9781609806378

The future is big right now—for perhaps the first time, our society is more focused on what is __going to happen in the future__ than __what is happening right now__. In __Trees on Mars: Our Obsession with the Future__, cultural critic and indie entrepreneur Hal Niedzviecki asks how and when we started believing we could and should “create the future.” What is it like to live in a society utterly focused on what is going to happen next? Through visits to colleges, corporations, tech conferences, factories and more, Niedzviecki traces the story of how owning the future has become irresistible to us. In deep conversation with both the beneficiaries and victims of our relentless obsession with the future, Niedzviecki asks crucial questions: Where are we actually heading? How will we get there? And whom may we be leaving behind?__From the eBook edition.__ What Is It Like To Live In A Society Utterly Focused On What Is Going To Happen Next? In Trees On Mars: Our Obsession With The Future, Cultural Critic And Indie Entrepreneur Hal Niedzviecki Asks How And When We Started Believing We Could And Should Create The Future, Arguing That The Short-term Purview Of Innovation Is Not Always As Effective As We Think It Is. On The Contrary, It's Often Damaging. Innovation May Be The Most Overused And Fetishized Term Of The Past Five Years. Tech Bloggers Livecast The Launch Of The Latest Kindle, Crowds Form Serpentine Lines Outside Of Apple Stores On The Eve Of New Iphone Releases, Stock Markets Surge And Recede On Rumors Of What Intel And Microsoft Have In The Pipeline, And, On College Campuses Across The Country, Universities Offer Master's Degrees In Future Studiesa. Trees On Mars Will Introduce Readers To Futurist Consultants Who Preach The Need For Constant Change, To A Fourth-generation New Jersey Dairy Farmer Grappling With The Increasing Complexities Of A Once-bucolic Industry, To A Group Of Stanford Undergraduates Pulling All-nighters In An Effort To Produce The Next Must-have App, To A Michigan Teacher Struggling To Integrate Mandatory Ipad Use Into Her Third-grade Curriculum, And To A Recently Laid Off Auto Worker Being Sent To State-sponsored Retraining. Through These Characters And Others, Niedzviecki Shows How Future-obsession And Future-anxiety Are Affecting Real People. The future is big right now--for perhaps the first time, our society is more focused on what is going to happen in the future than what is happening right now . In Trees on Mars: Our Obsession with the Future , cultural critic and indie entrepreneur Hal Niedzviecki asks how and when we started believing we could and should "create the future." What is it like to live in a society utterly focused on what is going to happen next? Through visits to colleges, corporations, tech conferences, factories and more, Niedzviecki traces the story of how owning the future has become irresistible to us. In deep conversation with both the beneficiaries and victims of our relentless obsession with the future, Niedzviecki asks crucial questions: Where are we actually heading? How will we get there? And whom may we be leaving behind? future studies,history,sociology,technology,global,culture,critic,society,peep diaries,college,factories,economics,business,non-fiction A roller-coaster tour through our obsession with the future - and what's at stake when we neglect our present. Tech bloggers livecast the launch of the latest Kindle, crowds form serpentine lines outside of Apple stores on the eve of new iPhone releases, stock markets surge and recede on rumours of what Intel and Microsoft have in the pipeline, and, on college campuses across the country, universities offer master's degrees in Future Studies. Meet futurist consultants who preach the need for constant change, to a fourth-generation New Jersey dairy farmer grappling with the increasing complexities of a once-bucolic industry, to a group of Stanford undergraduates pulling all-nighters in an effort to produce the next must-have app. Through these characters and others, Niedzviecki shows how future-obsession and future-anxiety are affecting real people. Print run 20,000. The future is big right now—for perhaps the first time, our society is more focused on what is going to happen in the future than what is happening right now . In Trees on Mars: Our Obsession with the Future , cultural critic and indie entrepreneur Hal Niedzviecki asks how and when we started believing we could and should “create the future.” What is it like to live in a society utterly focused on what is going to happen next? Through visits to colleges, corporations, tech conferences, factories and more, Niedzviecki traces the story of how owning the future has become irresistible to us. In deep conversation with both the beneficiaries and victims of our relentless obsession with the future, Niedzviecki asks crucial questions: Where are we actually heading? How will we get there? And whom may we be leaving behind? From the eBook edition. Our lives in the age of tomorrow Chasing tomorrow: dispatches from our obsession with the future Teaching future: why schools are teaching change and preaching tech The group just slows us down: future vs. institution Data harvest: owning the future and everyone in it Our minds in the future After: why our minds are vulnerable to the pull of future Put a spell on me: when the magic became the information The case against the future Consumption, innovation, and the truth of change The human robot: homo economicus in decline Future shock and awe: anxiety factory The end Escape from the permanent future: the problem of hope.