NPUC 2000 - Speakers

NPUC Talks - Unexpected Cyburbia

In the past 20 years, odd factors (building construction styles, transportation routes, etc.) have led to unexpected developments in patterns of housing, commerce and work. Just when things seemed most stable and predictable, the future managed to slide away along new dimensions that were difficult to anticipate. In the same way, the newest change-inducing factors of communication infrastructure, ubiquitous computing and information exchange promise that the future will continue to be surprising: Cyburbia is happening in ways and styles that once seemed implausible.

Speaker Biography

Paul Saffo
Director & Roy Amara Fellow
Institute for the Future (IFTF)

Paul is a technology forecaster studying long-term information technology trends and their impact on business and society. His essays have appeared in numerous publications, including The Harvard Business Review, Wired Magazine, Civilization Magazine, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, and Fortune Magazine, as well as other more specialized periodicals. Paul is the author of Dreams in Silicon Valley and The Road From Trinity, both of which are available in Japan. He was a 1997 McKinsey Judge for the Harvard Business Review, and in the same year was named one of one hundred "Global Leaders for Tomorrow" by the World Economic Forum.

Paul serves on a variety of boards and advisory panels, including the AT&T Technology Advisory Board, the World Economic Forum Global Issues Group, and the Stanford Law School Advisory Council on Science, Technology and Society. Paul holds degrees from Harvard College, Cambridge University, and Stanford University. IFTF is a 30-year old foundation that provides strategic planning and forecasting services to major corporations and government agencies.

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