Future Now
The IFTF Blog
Robotics For Sustainability
As you may have read earlier in the week, this week we here at IFTF have been collaborating with the American Chemical Society on a new Signtific Lab thought experiment. In "Robotics for Sustainability" we have been seeing some fantastic conversations about the future of chemistry, robotics, and sustainability.
Now we need your help in in making this a really high-resolution forecast. We need more cards. We need more details. We need your passion.
So here's the CHALLENGE: Between now and Monday at noon, we want to double the number of forecasts. Go to acs.signtific.org, play a new Robotics or Sustainability card, or just click on any existing card and add your comment.
Participants in the lab have already contributed 250 micro-forecasts, and have helped us think about topics like nano-energy sources and nano-storage, conductive polymers, electrolyte gels, composite materials, and biomimetics.
Now we want to know: WHAT ARE YOU REALLY PASSIONATE ABOUT? What would it take to be your hero in chemistry in 2020? What would it take to win a Nobel prize?
We've already conferred some of our own Signtific Lab awards:
OUR HEIZENBERG AWARD: Player i-on, a student at GWU, won this award for having the biggest impact on the conversation. More than half of i-on's cards garnered responses. Here are a couple examples:
**Creating chemical reactions at nano-Kelvin temperatures will enable precisely controlled chemical reactions.**
**Electronic 'skin' sensors enabling robots to detect where they were touched and how hard. The force changes electric resistance properties.**
OUR TED TALK AWARD: Player amyameretta won this award for several provocative forecasts that mad her worthy of the kind of 18-minute talk that could stir audiences around the world.
**Nuclear waste eating bacteria.
www.biology-online.org/articles/radioactive-waste-problem-metal-munching-bacteria.html**
There are lots more awards to win. And points to score. Right now, i-on, amyameretta, openthefuture, drdoom and oli are all battling it out for first place, but you can still unseat them. The more cards you play, the more points you score.
Remember, this thought experiment ends at noon on Monday. So sign on now and sign on often before Monday—let's build a body of forecasts that changes the way the world thinks about chemistry, robotics, and sustainability.
Go now to acs.signtific.org. We're standing by to hand out awards.
The Signtific Lab Team
@Institute for the Future
P.S. We thought you might like to see this illustration of the topic clusters that emerged at the end of day 3:
