5/18 (Sat.) Study the future (Host: Rock)

[Rock]

Session One
Why study the future? Because our existence depends upon the anticipation of what is to come and our preparation and policymaking responses.

https://www.elon.edu/u/imagining/why-st ... ormalized.

Quotes about the future
“If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favorable.” – Seneca, Roman philosopher, 3 BC-65 AD

“Change is the law of life, and those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.” – John F. Kennedy, US politician, 1963

“Our moral responsibility is not to stop the future but to shape it… to channel our destiny in humane directions and to try to ease the trauma of transition.” – Alvin Toffler, futurist

“Nothing we can do can change the past but everything we do changes the future.” – Ashleigh Brilliant, US artist

“The empires of the future will be the empires of the mind.” – Winston Churchill, UK leader, writer

“The future is ours to shape. We are in a race that we need to win. It’s a race between the growing power of the technology and the growing wisdom we need to manage it.” – Max Tegmark, MIT physicist, 2015

“In a time of drastic change it is the learners who inherit the future; the learned usually find themselves equipped to live in a world that no longer exists.” – Eric Hoffer, US writer

“Somewhere, there is something incredible waiting to be known.” – Carl Sagan, physicist

“The future for tomorrow belongs only to the people who prepare for it today.” – Malcolm X, 1964





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Session One
1. What are the answers to the question "你長大後想要做甚麼?" for 11-year-old kids in Taiwan? What was your own answer at that age? Does it come true? Why or why not?
2. Did you foresee your future life when you were younger? Is it more like an imagination or prediction when you are thinking about your future? Is it even possible to predict the future?
3. Do you agree that biology is destiny, the past equals to the future, or the future is decided by yourself, not the family or genes? What decides your future anyway?
4. Are you in your 20s, 30s or 60s? What do you want from your life in 10 years? Are you dreaming big or being practical? Please share your ideas and give feedbacks in your group.


Session Two
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Futures_studies
Futures studies, futures research, futurism, or futurology is the systematic, interdisciplinary and holistic study of social/technological advancement, and other environmental trends; often for the purpose of exploring how people will live and work in the future. Predictive techniques, such as forecasting, can be applied, but contemporary futures studies scholars emphasize the importance of systematically exploring alternatives.[1][2][3] In general, it can be considered as a branch of the social sciences and an extension to the field of history. Futures studies (colloquially called "futures" by many of the field's practitioners) seeks to understand what is likely to continue and what could plausibly change. Part of the discipline thus seeks a systematic and pattern-based understanding of past and present, and to explore the possibility of future events and trends.[4]

Unlike the physical sciences where a narrower, more specified system is studied, futurology concerns a much bigger and more complex world system. The methodology and knowledge are much less proven than in natural science and social sciences like sociology and economics. There is a debate as to whether this discipline is an art or science, and it is sometimes described as pseudoscience;[5][6] nevertheless, the Association of Professional Futurists was formed in 2002,[7] developing a Foresight Competency Model in 2017,[8] and it is now possible to study it academically, for example at the FU Berlin in their master's course.[9] To encourage inclusive and cross-disciplinary discussions about futures studies, UNESCO declared December 2 as World Futures Day.
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Session Two
5. What are the biggest things happened in the world in recent years? What would they affect us in the near future?
6. What decides the future of the world?
7. What are the things you want to see the most and the least in the future? Are they likely to come true?
8. Are you optimistic or pessimistic about the future of humanity? Why?

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Agenda:
3:45 ~ 4:00pm Greetings & Free Talk / Ordering Beverage or Meal / Getting Newcomer’s Information
4:00 ~ 4:10pm Opening Remarks / Newcomer’s Self-introduction / Grouping
(Session I)
4:10 ~ 4:50pm Discussion Session (40 mins)
4:50 ~ 5:10pm Summarization (20 mins)
5:10 ~ 5:20pm Regrouping / Instruction Giving / Short Break (Intermission)
(Session II)
5:15 ~ 5:55pm Discussion Session (40 mins)
6:00 ~ 6:20pm Summarization (20 mins)
6:20 ~ 6:30pm Concluding Remarks / Announcements

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Meeting Date: As shown on the Subject Line
Meeting Time: 4:00pm – 6:30pm
Meeting Venue: 丹堤咖啡 Dante Coffee (Minimum Order $85)
Address: 台北市濟南路三段25號[MAP]-捷運忠孝新生站3號出口步行3分鐘

Important Notes:
1. We suggest that participants read the articles and think about the questions in advance.
2. Newcomers should prepare a two-to-three-minute self-introduction in English to deliver when called upon by the host before the start of the discussion.
3. We welcome newcomers and other guests to attend the meetings and join the discussion freely for three times. After that, we hope you will consider becoming a YoYo English Club member. We charge a NT$1000 lifetime membership fee, or NT$500 for students.

[janet12tw]

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