Summary of the History of Mankind 2020-2050 by Juliette Axelrod, paleo-history cadet. Spring assignment: Personal Humanities project Faux Mesa High School, Pavonis Mons District.

1. The history of humanity 2010-2050
Juliette Axelrod, paleo-history cadet,
Spring assignment: Personal Humanities project
Faux Mesa High School, Pavonis Mons District.

2. Method
• I have analyzed ~10 billion media artifacts & social
media profiles from the Page/Zuckerberg Mass
Observation Archive to measure societal and
cultural change.
• I use:
– clustering algorithms to identify separate macro stages,
longitudinal analysis of micro behavior to infer evolutionary
drivers (see technical appendix)
– Machine learning selection of music output for gestalt
immersion
• Presenting results with an obsolete technology to
‘set the mood’ 

3. Stage 1: 2010-2020 “towards a scalefree humanity”
Globalisation + Digitisation:
• Concentration of wealth. Exhibitionistic consumption.
• Pseudo-cultural acceleration through social media; mass envy
dynamics; fear for the children.
References: http://phys.org/news95074548.html

4. Stage 2(a): 2020-2030 “bioobsolescence & the troubles”
Them Robots
• Unemployment & pseudoemployment in bullshit jobs.
• Global warming, climate change
refugees, resource scarcity.
• Rhetoric of neo-feudalism
becomes mainstream
• Episodes of urban warfare &
sabotage = The Battle of
Belgravia, White Plague (luxury
apparel contaminated w/
sarcophage virus kills/maims ~
500 high net worth individuals)
References: http://www.bostondynamics.com/

5. Stage 2(b): 2020-2030 “Exodus”
First generation of VR natives grows up.
• Mass migration to virtual worlds
• Formation of pan-national communities of developers/users.
Characters classes replace social classes.
• Hands-on engagement with software tools.
• Ownership of „physical property‟ increasingly seen as quaint.
References: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nicole_Stenger_Virtual_Reality.jpg

6. Stage 3: 2030-2050 “The new new
new deal”
A Keynes M. Banks world
• Last ditch attempt to avert intrasocietal war, mankind speciation.
• Bretton Mumbai megaconference (2028). Global
agreements on tax, climate
change, Intellectual Property
reform, drug legalization.
• Living wage, copyright commons,
advanced health services for all.

7. Stage 4: 2050 onwards “Lift off”
• Mass leisure -> Mass hedonism ->
mass research.
• Users become creators become
savants
• Authentic mass knowledge
society delivers two sci-fi
scenarios:
 True AI
 First-generation FTL drive.
The next stage of our evolution
begins here.
References: http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Lifecycle-Software-Objects-Chiang/dp/1596063173

8. Coda: Gestalt match
Mankind has adapted to realize the potential of technology, and
(arguably) become more enlightened. I have algorithmically identified
two pieces of music that communicate our collective feeling, as we
prepare for the next stage of the journey.
References: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Giraud

9. Gestalt Match (1): Moan
Utopian drone duo feat. Shinji
Masuko (Boredoms)
Conveys the placid
effervescence with which we
slide out of our chrysalis and
slip into the cosmos.
Go here to listen to
"Summer Camp 79"
More information & physical
artifact from Data Garden.

10. Gestalt Match (2): Ben Warfield
Ben Warfield researches the
biological effect of light on
humans.
His music is itself a simulation of
those effects – it induces a
tropic tendency into the night
sky & beyond. There we go.
Go here to listen to "the
Revolutions of the Heavenly
Spheres"
More information & physical
artifact from Data Garden.