Overview

"In the tradition of Bill Bryson's A Short History of Nearly Everything, a smart and entertaining guide to the future. Mark Stevenson-a writer, deep thinker, and stand-up comedian-set out simply, asking, ""What's next for our species?"" and then traveled the globe in pursuit of the answers. Along the way, he visited the Australian outback to visit the farmers who can save us from climate change, met a robot with mood swings, and talked to the Spaniard who's putting a hotel in space. While some might be overwhelmed, or even dismayed by the looming realities of genome sequencing, synthetic biology, a nuclear renaissance, and carbon scrubbing, Stevenson remains, well, optimistic. Drawing on his singular humor and storytelling to break down these sometimes complicated discoveries, An Optimist's Tour of the Future paints a wonderfully readable, and completely enthralling portrait of where we'll be when we grow up- and why it's not so scary."

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9781583334560

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Reviews

Certainly one of the most interesting science books I've read for a long time. <br> - New Statesman <br> A rollicking roller-coaster ride around the cutting edge of science with dozens of laugh-out-loud moments <br> - Scotsman <br> [A] grand tour of charismatic technologies and their prophets ... Stevenson bags an impressive list of interviewees <br> - Financial Times <br> Infectiously enthusiastic... - Sunday Times <br> He makes a good case for believing that we can have a future worth making an effort to reach. <br> - Guardian <br> His tools are curiosity, open-mindedness, clarity and reason. That makes his journey intriguing... and ultimately exhilarating. <br> -Chris Anderson, Curator TED.com <br> Mark Stevenson is the perfect tour guide: optimistic without being naive, fun but not silly, entertaining but enlightening <br> -Michael Brooks - author of 13 Things That Don't Make Sense <br> It's invigorating to be led to the far side by

Stevenson describes our future's possibilities with a journalist's eye for detail, a teacher's knack for translating complexities, and a comic's wry commentary. -- Christian Science Monitor A series of sharp and fascinating interviews with technological innovators and scientific visionaries. -- Wall Street Journal Stevenson surveys a huge number of research fields - synthetic biology, nanotech, robotics and alternative energy to name just a few - in labs on nearly every continent, and weaves the most promising aspects of each into one grand vision. ... The book is a refreshing reminder that the future will always belong to the optimists. -- The New Scientist Stevenson does a great job of delivering all the facts with a sense of wonder and curiosity... I highly recommend this book. -- Wired's Geek Dad From longevity science to robotics to cancer research, Stevenson explores the most cutting-edge ideas in science and technology from around the world, the important ethical and philosophical questions they raise, and, perhaps most importantly, the incredible potential for innovation through the cross-pollination of these different ideas and disciplines. -- The Atlantic

A series of sharp and fascinating interviews with technological innovators and scientific visionaries. -- Wall Street Journal Stevenson describes our future''s possibilities with a journalist''s eye for detail, a teacher''s knack for translating complexities, and a comic''s wry commentary. -- Christian Science Monitor Stevenson surveys a huge number of research fields - synthetic biology, nanotech, robotics and alternative energy to name just a few - in labs on nearly every continent, and weaves the most promising aspects of each into one grand vision. ... The book is a refreshing reminder that the future will always belong to the optimists. -- The New Scientist From longevity science to robotics to cancer research, Stevenson explores the most cutting-edge ideas in science and technology from around the world, the important ethical and philosophical questions they raise, and, perhaps most importantly, the incredible potential for innovation through the cross-pollination of these different ideas and disciplines. -- The Atlantic Stevenson does a great job of delivering all the facts with a sense of wonder and curiosity... I highly recommend this book. -- Wired 's Geek Dad -Stevenson describes our future's possibilities with a journalist's eye for detail, a teacher's knack for translating complexities, and a comic's wry commentary.- -- Christian Science Monitor -A series of sharp and fascinating interviews with technological innovators and scientific visionaries.- -- Wall Street Journal -Stevenson surveys a huge number of research fields - synthetic biology, nanotech, robotics and alternative energy to name just a few - in labs on nearly every continent, and weaves the most promising aspects of each into one grand vision. ... The book is a refreshing reminder that the future will always belong to the optimists.- -- The New Scientist -Stevenson does a great job of delivering all the facts with a sense of wonder and curiosity... I highly recommend this book.- -- Wired's Geek Dad -From longevity science to robotics to cancer research, Stevenson explores the most cutting-edge ideas in science and technology from around the world, the important ethical and philosophical questions they raise, and, perhaps most importantly, the incredible potential for innovation through the cross-pollination of these different ideas and disciplines.- -- The Atlantic Stevenson describes our future's possibilities with a journalist's eye for detail, a teacher's knack for translating complexities, and a comic's wry commentary. -- Christian Science Monitor A series of sharp and fascinating interviews with technological innovators and scientific visionaries. -- Wall Street Journal Stevenson surveys a huge number of research fields - synthetic biology, nanotech, robotics and alternative energy to name just a few - in labs on nearly every continent, and weaves the most promising aspects of each into one grand vision. ... The book is a refreshing reminder that the future will always belong to the optimists. -- The New Scientist Stevenson does a great job of delivering all the facts with a sense of wonder and curiosity... I highly recommend this book. -- Wired's Geek Dad From longevity science to robotics to cancer research, Stevenson explores the most cutting-edge ideas in science and technology from around the world, the important ethical and philosophical questions they raise, and, perhaps most importantly, the incredible potential for innovation through the cross-pollination of these different ideas and disciplines. -- The Atlantic Certainly one of the most interesting science books I've read for a long time. - New Statesman A rollicking roller-coaster ride around the cutting edge of science with dozens of laugh-out-loud moments - Scotsman [A] grand tour of charismatic technologies and their prophets ... Stevenson bags an impressive list of interviewees - Financial Times Infectiously enthusiastic... - Sunday Times He makes a good case for believing that we can have a future worth making an effort to reach. - Guardian His tools are curiosity, open-mindedness, clarity and reason. That makes his journey intriguing... and ultimately exhilarating. -Chris Anderson, Curator TED.com Mark Stevenson is the perfect tour guide: optimistic without being naive, fun but not silly, entertaining but enlightening -Michael Brooks - author of 13 Things That Don't Make Sense It's invigorating to be led to the far side by An unashamedly intelligent comedic talent. - Irish Independent Quite simply one of the funniest, cleverest, and most naturally gifted stand ups I've ever seen. -Jack Milner With warmth and humour Mark can put a panel of experts and an audience at ease and turn dry data into accessible entertainment. -Institute of Psychiatry A unique talent for communicating science in a funny, charming, and accurate way. Highly recommended. -Dana Alliance for the Brain A passionate advocate for science, an innovative approach, a great sense of humour, and the ability to make the mundane seem much more interesting. -Royal College of Surgeons Tall. -Lichfield Mercury

Author Information

Mark Stevenson is codirector of Flow Associates, Britain's most respected cultural learning consultancy, and ReAgency, a leading organization that promotes science communication. He lives in London.

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