Selling Tomorrows

We Love Vampires Because We're Freaked About Change & Technology

Guillermo del Toro of Pan's Labrynth fame, wrote an interesting Op-Ed in today's NYTimes about what the resurging popularity of vampires reflects about our fears of change and technology.  Definitely worth the read. Snip: 

"In a society that moves as fast as ours, where every week a new "blockbuster" must be enthroned at the box office, or where idols are fabricated by consensus every new television season, the promise of something everlasting, something truly eternal, holds a special allure...Part of the reason for the great success of his "Dracula" is generally acknowledged to be its appearance at a time of great technological revolution. The narrative is full of new gadgets (telegraphs, typing machines), various forms of communication (diaries, ship logs), and cutting-edge science (blood transfusions) - a mash-up of ancient myth in conflict with the world of the present.  Today as well, we stand at the rich uncertain dawn of a new level of scientific innovation."

Artificial Intelligence Scare Echoes 1950s Call for Robot Commission

The New York Times did a story earlier in the week on fears faced over the rise of artificial intelligence. Spurred by a meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence at the Asimolar Conference, John Markoff reports:

"Impressed and alarmed by advances in artificial intelligence, a group of computer scientists is debating whether there should be limits on research that might lead to loss of human control over computer-based systems that carry a growing share of society’s workload, from waging war to chatting with customers on the phone."

The AAAI is giong to issue a report from the conference later this year assessing "the possibility of “the loss of human control of computer-based intelligences."

A lot of this sounds like a proposal made by Edmund C. Berkeley, a "thinking machine expert" in 1950.  As reported in the new book Future, A Recent History, he said "'If we are not to be displaced by robots we must establish social control over them' he argued, suggesting perhaps the creation of a Robot Machine Commission whose oversight function would be analogous to that of the Atomic Energy Comission."

Critically, Markoff cites the PR war against genetically modified foods as a model for how the AI industry could be undermined.  The topic deserves serious thought...by humans, of course. 

Very proud: Commercial Spaceflight Federation Appoints Makovsky + Company as Public Relations Advisor

Washington, D.C. – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation today announced the appointment of Makovsky + Company, one of the nation’s largest independent public relations firms, as its public relations advisor. Makovsky, which was recently recognized as the “Public Relations Agency of the Year” by the American Business Awards, will provide public relations, traditional and social media relations and public affairs counsel to the Federation.

“Makovsky’s deep understanding of the commercial spaceflight industry and their expertise in traditional and social media make them a valuable partner,” said Brett Alexander, President of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. “We look forward to working with this talented organization to increase awareness of the industry’s importance among leaders in government and the public at-large.”

“While many people are reflecting on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, it’s critical that we look at what’s ahead,” said David Rosen, Group Vice President, Makovsky + Company. “The commercial spaceflight industry can make significant contributions to both our economy and body of scientific knowledge, but not until its model and vision are better understood by business and government leaders.”

About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation

The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. Commercial Spaceflight Federation member organizations include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, and spaceports. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation is governed by a board of directors, composed of the member companies’ CEO-level officers and entrepreneurs. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org 

About Makovsky + Company 
Founded in 1979, Makovsky + Company (www.makovsky.com) is one of the nation’s leading independent global public relations and investor relations consultancies, focused in financial services, professional services, health care, technology, branding and investor relations. The firm attributes its success to its original vision: that the Power of Specialized Thinking™ is the best way to build reputation, sales and fair valuation for a client. Based in New York City, the firm has agency partners in more than 20 countries and in 35 U.S. cities through IPREX (IPREX.com), the third largest worldwide public relations agency partnership, of which Makovsky is a founder.

What search engines think you want when you ask "what is the future of"

Here are are top 10 suggestions that pop up when you type "what is the future of" into the major search engines. "Internet" tops each list, though it's clear there's a lot of curiosity and concern about financial institutions and energy.  (Bing didn't have any suggestions. Their service is probably too new to have data on similar searches.)  

Google

• Internet
• America
• AIG
• Solar energy
• Nuclear energy
• Citigroup
• Computers
• Geothermal energy
• Social security
• Natural gas

Yahoo!

• Internet
• Technology
• America
• Computers
• Social Security
• E-commerce
• Education
• The printed book 
• Gas prices
• The world

Ask.com

• Internet
• Planet Earth
• Fiber optics
• Earth
• Dell
• Cougers
• Computer science
• Mini vans

Top 50 Dystopian Movies of all Time - Snarkerati

It's settled then.  And we have Snarketrati.com to thank for it.  The 50 best dystopian movies of all time have been scientifically calculated by combining IMDB fan rankings and Rottentomatoes professional critic rankings into one definitive list.  And #1 on the list? Metropolis.  Here's the famous robot transformation scene from the movie that gave dystopias a good name in cinema. 

Exhibit of "Darwin's Dystopias" Shows how Artists Interpreted and Misinterpreted Evolution

The Yale Center for British Art held a fascinating exhibit to celebrate Darwin's 200th birthday.  It closed in May, but you can see pictures of some of the most startling sculptures and paintings online at Discover Magazine Online. Snip:

"The collection explores how artists interpreted and misinterpreted Darwin's science to create fantastical versions of our past, present and future."

Be sure to check out the nativity scene featuring primates, and images of mother nature -- who was traditionally depicted as nurturing -- but now seen as uncaring. 

There's also a companion book to the exhibit with tons of pictures and essays on the impact of evolution on art.  

io9.com: 3 Futuristic PSAs Warn on Robots, Hyperspeed and Time Machines

Where to Put Your Visions for Tomorrow in Wikipedia

Thought that Wikipedia only applied to events and concepts since the universe's inception?  Guess again. Here's a category page called "Years in the Future."  It's just crying out for entries on what tomorrow holds.  True, wikipedia's guidelines don't allow for promotional entries, but it's entirely appropriate to put in predictions -- and some folks already have -- like this section on the 22nd century.  A lot of the individual year entries are filled with astronomical data; dates of eclipses and such.  But there are also extensive lists of movies, literature, TV shows and video games that are set within certain timeframes, making for a very useful catalogue of what the crowd in its wisdom thinks will happen.  And you can't tell me that the people from the 11th millennium won't be looking at their page to see what we thought would happen. 

Kubrick's Vision for 2001 Included Watches - Watchsimo blog

The Watchismo blog is reporting that Hamilton Watches has released a new 2001 A Space Odyssey-inspired timepiece called the ODC X02.  The company was hired by Kubrick in the 60s to imagine what timepieces would look like in 50 years, and their watches were ultimately used in the movie.  Watchismo has a great photo essay that shows which watch designs Kubrick was presented, rejected and ultimately accepted.  It's an insightful look at how people a half century ago thought that time would be displayed once space travel became mainstream.

People from the Future Say we're Living in the "Age of Stupid"

The Bronze Age.  The Space Age.  And now the "Age of Stupid?"  That's what director Franny Armstrong is trying to get across in her new film, "The Age of Stupid."  Snip:

"Oscar-nominated Pete Postlethwaite stars as a man living alone in the devastated world of 2055, looking at old footage from 2008 and asking: why didn't we stop climate change when we had the chance?"

One of the most effective ways to get people to believe a vision of the future is to explain it from the perspective of hindsight, precisely as this movie does.  It taps into our "if only I had made X decision instead of Y" experiences and fears.  Typically companies, organizations and other thought leaders try to paint a picture of the future by pointing out conditions that exist today and identifying conditions that are likely to develop, the combination of which would result in a tomorrow that's good or bad.   But mentally, as Nicolas Kristof explains, that just provides too much wiggle room for people who are looking for reasons not to act.  The evolutionarily programmed fear buttons just don't get pressed. Watch this trailer, reflect,and offer your thoughts below.