Future Shock 179219 215615853 2008-05-28T23:32:49Z 13 of Diamonds 6222731 /* In popular culture */ reword {{otheruses}} {{infobox Book | <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Novels or Wikipedia:WikiProject_Books --> | name = Future Shock | title_orig = | translator = | image = [[Image:Future shock.png|200px]] | image_caption = | author = [[Alvin Toffler]] | illustrator = | cover_artist = | country = [[United States]] | language = [[English language|English]] | series = | genre = [[Futurology]] | publisher = [[Random House]] | release_date = 1970 | media_type = Print ([[Hardcover|Hardback]] & [[Paperback]]) | pages = | isbn = ISBN 0-394-42586-3 (Original hardcover) | preceded_by = | followed_by = }} '''''Future Shock''''' is a book written by the [[sociologist]] and [[futurologist]] [[Alvin Toffler]] in [[1970]]. The book is actually an extension of an article of the same name that Toffler wrote for the February 1970 issue of ''[[Nature (journal)|Nature]]''. The book has sold over 6 million copies and has been widely translated. Future shock is also a term for a certain psychological state of individuals and entire societies, introduced by Toffler in his book of the same name. Toffler's shortest definition of future shock is a personal perception of "''too much change in too short a period of time''". The concept of future shock bears resemblance to the late 20th/early 21st century concept of "the [[technological singularity]]", and may have been influenced by [[Thomas Kuhn|Kuhn's]] concept of a [[paradigm shift]]. A documentary film based on the book was released in 1972 with [[Orson Welles]] as on-screen narrator. ==Term== Toffler argues that society is undergoing an enormous structural change, a revolution from an [[industrial society]] to a "[[super-industrial society]]". This change will overwhelm people, the accelerated rate of technological and social change leaving them disconnected and suffering from "shattering stress and disorientation" &ndash; future shocked. Toffler stated that the majority of social problems were symptoms of the '''future shock'''. In his discussion of the components of such shock, he also coined the term "[[information overload]]". His analysis of that phenomenon is continued in his later publications, especially ''[[The Third Wave (book)|The Third Wave]]'' and ''[[Powershift (book)|Powershift]]''. ==In popular culture== {{Trivia|date=September 2007}} [[Curtis Mayfield]]'s song "[[Future Shock (song)|Future Shock]]" on the album "[[Back to the World]]" took its name from this book, and was in turn covered by [[Herbie Hancock]] as the title track for his 1983 recording ''[[Future Shock (album)|Future Shock]]''. That album was considered groundbreaking for fusing [[jazz]] and [[funk]] with [[electronic music]]. [[Darren Hayes]] name checks the phrase many times in his song "[[Me Myself And I]]". At least two more releases have been named for the book, [[Future Shock (Gillan album)|a 1981 album]] by [[Gillan]] and [[Future Shock (Stratovarius album)|a 1988 single]] by [[Stratovarius]]. Other works taking their title from the book include a segment on the ''[[Daily Show]]'' starring [[Samantha Bee]], Kevin Goldstein's recurring column on the ''[[Baseball Prospectus]]'' website, a ''[[Magic: The Gathering]]'' pre-constructed deck, and the [[National Wrestling Alliance]]'s [[Starrcade (1989)|1989 Starrcade]] event. UK Comic [[2000 AD (comic)|2000 AD]] ran a series of short stories called Future Shocks based on this concept, some of which were written by [[Alan Moore]]. The term was abbreviated and applied to citizens in 2000 AD stories as 'Futzies' (Derogatory). Some works used similar titles with a twist, including the third season ''[[Futurama]]'' episode "[[Future Stock]]" (episode 21) and the comic ''[[Future Shocks]]''. The Heavy Metal band [[SINISSTAR]] titled it's debut record "Future Shock" (Geffen Records-2002). Works deriving themes and elements from Future Shock include the science fiction novels ''[[The Forever War]]'' (1974) by [[Joe Haldeman]], ''[[The Shockwave Rider]]'' (1975) by [[John Brunner (novelist)|John Brunner]], and the [[indie RPG]] ''Shock: Social Science Fiction'' (2006) by designer Joshua A.C. Newman. The Baltimore music scene centered around [[Dan Deacon]] and the [[Wham City]] collective calls its spaztic brand of electro pop "Future Shock". In the 1995 film ''[[Johnny Mnemonic]]'', the fictional disease Nerve Attenuation Syndrome (NAS), caused by overexposure to electromagnetic radiation, is described by one character as "[[information overload]]." ==Reprints== The book has been reprinted several times. [[ISBN]]s include: * ISBN 0-394-42586-3 ([[hardcover]], Random House, 1970) * ISBN 0-8488-0645-X (hardcover, Amereon Ltd, 1970) * ISBN 0-553-20626-5 ([[mass market paperback]], 1981) * ISBN 0-553-27737-5 (mass market paperback, 1984) * ISBN 0-553-24649-6 ([[paperback]], 1984) * ISBN 5-553-85765-1 (mass market paperback, 1991) * ISBN 0-8085-0152-6 (mass market paperback in [[library binding]], 1999) == See also == * [[Adhocracy]] * [[Culture shock]] * [[Law of disruption]] * [[Neo-luddism]] == Further reading == * [http://yudkowsky.net/sing/shocklevels.html ''Future Shock Levels''] by [[Eliezer Yudkowsky]] * [http://www.acceleratingfuture.com/michael/works/shocklevelanalysis.htm ''Future Shock Level Analysis''] by [[Michael Anissimov]] ==External links== * [http://www.transpacificradio.com/2006/11/07/words-on-words-big-debut-how-loan-words-exacerbate-future-shock-in-japan/ Discussion the impact of language on Future Shock] (Streaming audio & mp3) * [http://oddculture.com/2004/11/13/movie-review-future-shock/ Movie review for Future Shock] * [http://oddculture.com/2007/05/05/future-shock-documentary-video-toffler/ Click here to watch the whole movie of Future Shock] [[Category:1970 books]] [[Category:Futurology books]] [[Category:Technology in society]] [[fr:Future Shock]] [[he:הלם העתיד]] [[ru:Футурошок]] [[sr:Шок будућности]]