The Observer recently posted their take on predicted advances for the next 25 yrs. The article covers everything from energy to shifting world powers. Most of the points raised don’t really tell us any thing new, for example everyone expects India to take a step forward in the world powers game and I don’t think anyone thought we’d have stopped using fossil fuels by 2030. Still it’s always interesting to hear these ideas articulated. What I did find interesting was novelist Naomi Aldermans take on the future of the written word. Here’s a quick excerpt

“Twenty-five years from now, we’ll be reading fewer books for pleasure. But authors shouldn’t fret too much; e-readers will make it easier to impulse-buy books at 4am even if we never read past the first 100 pages. And stories aren’t becoming less popular – they’re everywhere, from adverts to webcomics to fictional tweets – we’re only beginning to explore the exciting possibilities of web-native literature …  – and eventually there’ll be a Twitter-based classic.”

To read more (sorry don’t want to infringe on copyright) visit http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/jan/02/25-predictions-25-years