Intel Released A Sci-Fi Book With Douglas Rushkoff!?


Brian David Johnson has one hell of a cool job: He’s one of Intel’s official ‘futurist’ soothsayers, and his ‘Tomorrow Project’ has brought together notable science fiction authors to write plausible fiction based on Intel’s research. The best part is you can download the stories for free. Writers involved this year include Douglas Rushkoff (of Life Inc. and Digital Nation fame), Ray Hammond, Scarlett Thomas, and Markus Heitz.

“When we design the chips that go into your televisions, computers, your phones — we need to do it in about 5-10 years in advance. So we need to have an understanding of what people may actually do with those devices….Our brand of futurism isn’t about prediction…What we do is really future casting…It involves, social science research, technology research, global trends, and science fiction.”

Maybe our Shadow Minister for Communications should talk to this guy: Malcolm Turnbull Can’t Imagine Need For Speeds Faster Than 25Mbps.

As Brian says, good science fiction isn’t about technology, it’s about people, the world they live in, and where technology and humanity intersect. He’s no stranger to his own writing, either. Last year he wrote a book called Screen Future — which was basically Intel’s vision of next generation televisions, shared with companies like Sony and Google.

If you’re after some free science fiction reading, you can download the four short stories at:
[The Tomorrow Project via Electronista]


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