A story about extraterrestrials, creative economies, and the politics of taste.
Future Tense is a partnership of New America and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy and society.
Future Tense is the citizen’s guide to the future.
The partnership provides insightful, timely, and unexpected analysis at the intersection of technology and society through written commentary, original fiction, and live events in Washington, D.C. and beyond.
Recent Events
The Editors: Wikipedia, Internet Communities, and the Battle for Truth in the Digital Age
Crowd-sourced internet encyclopedias—most famously, Wikipedia—have the power to shape the story we tell about the past and the information with which we move into the future. The people who edit those forums—an army of unpaid volunteers—take their roles seriously. But what happens when that power is manipulated? That’s the set-up for Stephen Harrison’s new novel, The Editors. Join Future Tense and Harrison, a leading journalist covering Wikipedia and digital information ecosystems, to discuss the novel and the future of truth and information online.
Martian Encounters: Imagining Alternate Non-Colonial Futures
“Martian Encounters” is a series of international, interdisciplinary conversations, bringing together thinkers and practitioners from various fields of art, science, and literature to address four major themes shaping our visions of the future on Earth and beyond: Maps, Temples, Borders, and Ecosystems. Uniting scientific, social, political, and cultural perspectives, we will explore these topics through a central concept of “otherness,” interrogating how we define people, things, and ideas as different, foreign, or alien. The conversations will be held in English and Spanish, with simultaneous translation. The event will take place virtually on November 12 & 13, 2024. It will feature 5 panels: one for each theme (Maps, Temples, Borders, and Ecosystems), along with a final synthesis session.
Future Tense Fiction
A series of original science fiction stories crafted by leading authors, exploring how science and technology will change our lives in the future. Each story is paired with a response essay by an expert in a related field.
A story about geoengineering, billionaire hubris, and “altruistic” narcissism.
Best of Future Tense
Future Tense publishes commentary by researchers and scholars at Arizona State University, alongside many other writers and thinkers from the fields of journalism, public policy, science and technology, and more.
