Friday, June 6, 2008 1:45 pm

No one can predict the future with 100% accuracy, but for those whose livelihoods depend on spotting trends, there is more science than metaphysics. Researchers and analysts apply an algebraic formula to what’s to come. If A, then B. If not A, then C.  Futurists take a measuring cup of statistics, add a dash of the six o’clock news, a tablespoon of world history, and throw in a dash of social dynamics to come up with a stew of plausible possibilities that businesses, industries and governments can use.

One of the best futurist teams are Marvin Cetron and Owen Davies. The two have co-authored several books: “American Renaissance”, “Probable Tomorrows” and “Cheating Death” and numerous articles. 

Cetron is President of Forecasting International Ltd. and is a member of the World Future Society board of directors. Davies was a senior editor at Omni Magazine and a freelance writer.

 Cetron and Davies wrote a two part series, “Trends Shaping Tomorrow’s World” for The Futurist Magazine, www.wfs.org. The series is well worth the $3 that it will cost to download in PDF format. The duo succinctly covers the world and where it is going in the next fifteen years.