From Jules Verne to the Jetsons, from a 500-passenger flying wing to an anti-aircraft flying buzz-saw, the vision of the future as seen through the eyes of the past demonstrates the play of the American imagination on the canvas of the future.
How the communist revolution failed, presented in a series of catastrophes. The communist project in the twentieth century grew out of utopian desires to oppose oppression and abolish class structures, to give individual lives collective meaning. The attempts to realize these ideals became a series of colossal failures. In Yesterday's Tomorrow, Bini Adamczak examines these catastrophes, proceeding in reverse chronological order from 1939 to 1917: the Hitler-Stalin Pact, the Great Terror of 1937, the failure of the European Left to prevent National Socialism, Stalin's rise to power, and the bloody rebellion at Kronstadt. In the process, she seeks a future that never happened.
It was supposed to be a relaxing vacation. Even though he can't spend time in the warm waters of Belize, policeman Conrad Bishop is happy to spend time with his girlfriend, Amber, at a private beachfront home in Nantucket. After a tranquil evening walking the beach, Conrad wakes at 3:00 AM, turns on the television, and hears a disturbing news report about a deadly influenza plague-the direct result of a terrorist attack on the United States. Rushing into his bedroom, he finds his girlfriend unconscious and suffering from a high fever. When he tries to take her to the hospital, the town is in a panic. Cars clog the road, and he's forced to return to the beach house. Amber never regains consciousness, and by that evening, she is dead. Grief stricken, Bishop is suddenly thrust into a world that changes by the minute. Terrorists attack every major city in the United States with car bombs and invade American embassies overseas. With a small group of survivors, Conrad struggles to stay alive. His fight will take him to the very steps of the White House and have him waging a valiant crusade to keep a dying nation alive.
2012 was a year of financial crises and ecological disasters, of endings and forebodings. The world did not end on December 21st as the Mayan calendar predicted, but became the stage for new beginnings, utopian communities, protest groups and solidarity movements. The essays in this book form an intertextual space for negotiating meaningful facts and fictions with an aim to understanding the present. Discussions focus on utopia and dystopia from literature and film, not only within the framework of science fiction but also critical theory, gender politics and social sciences. The authors of these essays are international academics whose interest lies in utopian studies and who attended the 13th International Conference of Utopian Studies, “The Shape of Things to Come”, held in Tarragona, Spain, in 2012.
From the enrapturing tales of H. G. Wells to the punishing dystopian visions of 1984 and beyond, the evolution of science fiction from the 1890s to the 1960s is a fascinating journey to undertake. Setting out this span of years as what we can now recognize as the 'classic' period of the genre, Mike Ashley takes us on a tour of the stars, utopian and post-apocalyptic futures, worlds of AI run amok and techno-thriller masterpieces asking piercing questions of the present. This book does not claim to be definitive; what it does offer is an accessible view of the impressive spectrum of imaginative writing which the genre's classic period has to offer. Towering science fiction greats such as Asimov and Aldiss run alongside the, perhaps unexpected, likes of C. S. Lewis and J. B. Priestley and celebrate a side of science fiction beyond the stereotypes of space opera and bug-eyed monsters; the side of science fiction which proves why it must continue to be written and read, so long as any of us remain in uncertain times.
Recipient of the Hugo and Nebula Awards for his writing, Barry Longyear flexes his creative and comic chops in Yesterday’s Tomorrow. In these true stories, Longyear wanders from scenic Maine backdrops to the smoky hum of backwoods Twelve Step meetings, all while dissecting why some recoveries don’t come naturally—and why it’s okay to let down our guard and laugh. Recovery is one hell of a roller coaster. It twists and plummets, upending our stomachs, while some maniac cackles hysterically in the front car. What’s so damn funny? Besides our stomach’s contents, what are we missing? Truth is, while we all sit anxiously awaiting that next drop, Barry Longyear is enjoying the wild ride. An award-winning author and proprietor of the Life Sucks Better Clean blog, Barry has been on recovery’s ride for a while now. He understands the importance of stupid questions and sarcastic responses. He’s honest to the point of embarrassment. And he has real problems: with friends, with self-ordained recovery police, and with the god of his childhood. But he also has a strong recovery full of laughter. Despite all its ups and downs, your recovery, too, can be a good one.
Yesterday's Tomorrow is a valentine to an era of optimism, relaxed lifestyle, and innovative design; a large-format, general audience book, illustrated with rarely seen art and photography of the mid-20th century reflecting the unique style that Walt Disney and his artists contributed to the era. If you've seen Sleeping Beauty, read Dwell Magazine, shopped at Design Within Reach, or watched Mad Men, this book is for you and all those who love this extraordinary era of Disney.
The current crisis of democracy, the growing economic inequality between rich and poor, our narcissistic social media culture and the looming menace of AI all threaten us as never before. The challenges presented by technology have long been central in these issues, but how can we take advantage of the opportunities it provides to shape a better twenty-first century? The most important division of our age is between the 'tomorrows', those who believe that the future can be better than the past, and the 'yesterdays' who harbor a nostalgic desire to return to a rose-tinted past. This division is encapsulated by how we answer a simple question: can we trust the future? In Tomorrows Versus Yesterdays, Andrew Keen discusses the issue with some of the most influential thinkers of our time. The book is split into four sections. The first identifies the challenges of our digital age. The second focuses on the failure of the internet revolution to realize its ambitious goals. The third untangles the complex relationship between populism and digital media, before the final part presents possible solutions to the challenges of our age. The result is an insightful examination of the most important issues facing us today, and essential reading for anyone interested in the impact of the digital revolution.
First published in 1968, Yesterday’s Tomorrows elucidates on the favourite occupation of man: forecasting the future. By man’s predictions, he mirrors his own wish-fulfilments, displacements, projections, denials, evasions and withdrawals. These predications can take the form of countries of the imagination, ‘mirror worlds’ like Rabelais’ Ever-Ever lands or the Erewhon of Butler. Alternatively, they may spring from panic, reflecting fear rather than hope, often manifesting themselves, in our technological age, as reports of ‘flying saucers’ or invasions from another planet. In either form, they provide philosophers, scientists, doctors and sociologists with material for evaluating man’s future needs, offering both criticism of our present society, plans for our future, and release from tension and disequilibrium. Professor Armytage shows in this book how such ‘visions’ can, and do, refresh minds for renewed grappling with the present by arming them with ideas for man’s future needs. He indicates that, out of an apparent welter of futuristic fantasies, a constructive debate about tomorrow is emerging, providing us with operational models of what tomorrow could be. This book will hold special interest for students of philosophy and of English literature.