Acceleration: The Forces Driving Human Progress - Hardcover

Havelock, Ronald G.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 161614212X ISBN 13: 9781616142124

Publisher: Prometheus, 2011

Synopsis

In this positive yet realistic appraisal of the human condition, social psychologist Ronald G. Havelock examines "the forward function," a cluster of six forces that has driven human progress from the Stone Age to the present. The author explains that the key to humanity’s past and future success is our ability to pass on what has been learned from one generation to the next, resulting in an ever larger and more widely shared knowledge platform. This has been especially evident in the last two hundred years, when the scientific revolution has produced an explosive growth of knowledge building and the application of that knowledge to human needs.

Today, the most exciting and hopeful development is that the transfer of knowledge is increasingly not just from generation to generation but within generations and across cultures. And it extends from the rich to the middle class and even to the poor. The primary consequence of knowledge expansion is thus the empowerment of those who can understand and use it and a better life for more and more people.

The author argues that, despite periodic setbacks, progress is actually accelerating on many dimensions of human existence. In his view, fears for the human future are wildly exaggerated and overlook both the knowledge resources at hand to solve problems and the ingenuity of succeeding generations in using those resources for both individual and planetary well-being.

Grounded in a wealth of solid research, this optimistic outlook on human destiny offers a realistic hope that we human beings are fully capable of solving even our most challenging problems.

About this title

About the Author:

Ronald G. Havelock, PhD (Shady Side, MD) is the director of the Knowledge Transfer Institute, a consulting practice formerly affiliated with The American University of Washington, D.C. He is the author of five books, including The Change Agents Guide to Innovation (with S. Zlotolow).

Review:

""Acceleration is an upbeat philosophical perspective on humanity's past, present, and future. Audiences from all walks of life will find it thought-provoking and inspirational.”-The Futurist“Be prepared to be taken on an amazing ride filled with eye-opening detail that will change the way you view the world. Here is an upbeat, optimistic view of the world. With a positive outlook on life and the world, he describes in eloquent English just how the world can be saved. He does this without condescending remarks or a preachy attitude. His is a work that will endure and set realistic goals for the benefit of mankind.”-San Francisco Book Review

About this edition

• Publisher: Prometheus
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 161614212X
• ISBN 13: 9781616142124
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 363