Scorpion Technology, Australia’s leading online computer store specialises in computer hardware, software, notebook systems and accessories. Visit www.scorptec.com.au TODAY to avail the best prices and fastest delivery. Join discussion...

Open Manufacturing is about bringing free and open source software development methodology and philosophy to the design and construction of the physical world. Join discussion...

An eminent roboticist is warning the people of Earth that we must prepare defenses against the rise of the robots. But for once it isn't Dr Cyboz doing so from the top of an overloading Cyber-Tower - in fact, he hasn't even built the rebelling robots. And an article in the journal Science hardly counts as a desperate rallying cry. Join discussion...

Where will you live? How would concepts and norms of physical proximity evolve if cars were no longer the dominant form of transportation? How would residential areas self-organize if not laid out around the needs of cars and roads? Imagine gardens replacing driveways and roadways. What if people just walked outside of their houses or onto their apartment rooftops to alight via jetpack, smartpod or small foldable, perhaps future versions of the MIT car. At present, cities, suburbs and whole countries are structured per the space dictates of motor vehicular transportation systems. Join discussion...

In preparation of the upcoming US presidential elections, now only days away, both WIRED and Monocle did the exercise and laid out the cards of their ‘dream’ cabinet … not necessarily of politicians, of people running for power by choice, but of individuals they see most fit for the job to solve at least some of the most pressing challenges that US society is facing. It would be all too easy to dismiss their move as technocratic dreamery. Times are achanging and systems of governance, leadership and societal problem solving are not immune to that. It is an interesting thought experiment to ponder over the future of our socio-political systems, yet it is also true that the person who dares to ask ‘what comes next, after democracy?’ can be fairly sure to be looked upon in disbelief, fear or outright insult. We use the term democracy often lightly - and in the meantime do not always do justice to its complexity by dumbing it down to but the folk notions that fill the airwaves - as if the concept has remained the same since it was coined in the stoas and on the agoras of ancient Greece. The term has remained the same throughout the ages but what the complex denotes has changed and continues to change. To remain in sync with the dynamics of contemporaneity and those of times to come, systems (need to) change. Change does not necessarily mean that good characteristics of the current system will disappear (nor bad ones, sic) yet reinvention ought to aim for the best fit not on where we are but also in view of where we wish to go. So what are the images people have of the future of our socio-political and institutional systems? How far can we and do we dare to look ahead? Join discussion...

What comes after the Crash? German Zukunftsinstitut comes up with 4 scenarios for 2013 in 4 quadrants: 1. Optimistic-Deregulation: Self-purification of the market 2. Optimistic -Regulation: Soft socialism 3. Pessimistic- Deregulation: Worldwide depression 4. Pessimistic - Regulation: Shortage-Disaster Join discussion...

The Conference: The Future of Religions - Religions of the Future - June 4, 5, 2008 has been a two-day conference examining how two of the 21st Century’s driving forces, religion and technology, will continue to re-shape each other and, in the process, re-cast our understanding of “humanity” in the Third Millennium. Centered on, but not limited to, virtual worlds and social networking technologies, speakers and panelists also examined changes precipitated by the biotechnology revolution, cognitive science, information technologies and robotics. Speakers included William Sims Bainbridge, James Hughes, Giulio Prisco, Lincoln Cannon and Robert Geraci. Join discussion...

August 15, 2050 - Earlier this morning a new-born girl outside of the city Djambala in the Republic of Congo was born, and became the symbolic nine billionth person in the world. The 23-year-old mother Makemba Ngollo said that she was very happy for the arrival of Titi, as the baby will be called. Titi is purely a symbolic choice by the UN, since it is impossible to know where the exact nine billionth person is born, since several children are born every second around the world. The choice of a baby from the Republic of Congo coincides with their national holiday today as they celebrate 90 years of independence Join discussion...