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Anticipatory Biographies is a collection of future scenarios written in the form of individual biographies that span the breadth of human experience: from the privileged to the marginalized and across diverse cultures. Grounded in design fiction, futures research, anticipation science, and scenario writing, the essays in this book envision how the world will be reshaped by artificial intelligence, technological automation, climate change, political disintegration, and the decline of higher education. Each chapter brings readers into the perspective of a fictional person living in this anticipated world, capturing how future technologies and societal shifts will impact daily lives. and personal choices. In exploring the the inner lives of these individuals, Anticipatory Biographies innovates beyond conventional scenario writing ,inviting readers to contemplate not only the technological and political dimensions of the future but also the emotional, ethical, and existential aspects. This work of creative non-fiction bridges literary and scholarly forms, blending biography and design fiction with research-based insights. to offer an immersive, narrative-based method for exploring futures. This work pushes beyond speculative visions toward an experiential understanding of the future.
List of contents
Annika Stern: War Correspondent.- Chioma Amaechi: Athlete.- Tekkeitsertok: Farmer.- Lawrence Schumann: Physicist.- Jennifer Nanabah: Mayor.- Emily Woodward: Mother America.- Matthew Shaw: Designer.- Lindsay Davidson: Muse.- Richard Blankenship: Unproductive.- Jayden Meyrick: Climate Immigrant.- Zheng Jiehong: President.- Amar Chaudhri: Storm Chaser.- Saito Miku: Supercentenarian.- Martin Solis: Jurist.- George MacGowen: Dreamer.- Taniya Hughers: Tutor.
About the author
David J. Staley is a writer, designer, futurist, historiographer, presenter, educator, strategist, and artist, and was recently described as an "eclectic academic." He is an Associate Professor in the Departments of History and (by courtesy) Design at The Ohio State University. He is the author of Alternative Universities: Speculative Design for Innovation in Higher Education (Johns Hopkins, 2019), the co-author of Knowledge Towns: Colleges and Universities as Talent Magnets (Johns Hopkins, 2023) and author of Visionary Histories (Center for Science and the Imagination, 2022), a collection of his essays about the future. He is the author of three books of historical theory: Historical Imagination (Routledge, 2021); Computers, Visualization, and History 2nd ed. (Routledge, 2013); and History and Future: Using Historical Thinking to Imagine the Future (Lexington Books, 2007). He has also written Brain, Mind and Internet: A Deep History and Future. (Palgrave Pivot, 2014). He is the host of the "Voices of Excellence" podcast, and president of Columbus Futurists, a local think tank. In 2022 he was awarded "Best Freelance Writer" by the Ohio Society of Professional Journalists for his "Next" futures column with Columbus Underground.
Summary
Anticipatory Biographies is a collection of future scenarios written in the form of biographies, individual stories that span the breadth of human experience: from the privileged to the marginalized and across diverse cultures. Grounded in design fiction, futures research, anticipation studies, and scenario writing, the essays in this book envision how the world will be reshaped by artificial intelligence, technological automation, climate change, political disintegration, and the decline of higher education. Each chapter brings readers into the perspective of a fictional person living in this anticipated world, capturing how future technologies and societal shifts will impact daily lives and personal choices. In exploring these inner lives, actions, and consequences, Anticipatory Biographies innovates beyond conventional scenario writing by bringing futures studies to the individual level. By presenting these futures on a human scale, Anticipatory Biographies invites readers to contemplate not only the technological and political dimensions of the future but also the emotional, ethical, and existential aspects. The work bridges literary and scholarly forms, blending biography and design fiction with research-based insights to offer an immersive, narrative-based method for exploring futures. This piece of creative non-fiction pushes beyond speculative visions toward an experiential understanding of the future.
