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"The European Journal of Futures Research is a peer-reviewed open access jounral published under the brand SpringerOpen: It publishes original research papers on all aspects of foresight and futures studies; Welcomes (inter-)disciplinary articles on society, politics, economy and science and technology, in particular from European and/or comparative perspectives; Encourages empirical, theoretical and/or methodological contributions; Strengthens networking and community building among scholars engaged in European futures studies. This journal provides an international platform for leading and upcoming scholarly work on possible, probable and desirable European and global futures. We invite submissions of articles focusing on both interdisciplinary and disciplinary studies on future developments in society, politics, economy and science and technology. The journal publishes empirically oriented articles as well as contributions of a more methodological, epistemological or theoretical nature.  Envisioning a common future, the journal welcomes lively debates on European affairs - viewed against the backdrop of a shared, yet diverse and complicated history. The journal seeks to foster comprehensive analyses of key European policies, such as those for research and education - among others. A central objective of the journal is to strengthen European dimensions of futures studies. All research articles are subject to double-blind peer review."

" Sustainable computing is a rapidly expanding research area spanning the fields of computer science and engineering, electrical engineering as well as other engineering disciplines. The aim of Sustainable Computing: Informatics and Systems (SUSCOM) is to publish the myriad research findings related to energy-aware and thermal-aware management of computing resource. Equally important is a spectrum of related research issues such as applications of computing that can have ecological and societal impacts. SUSCOM publishes original and timely research papers and survey articles in current areas of power, energy, temperature, and environment related research areas of current importance to readers. SUSCOM has an editorial board comprising prominent researchers from around the world and selects competitively evaluated peer-reviewed papers. "

Developed with the IFF foresight engine "What is Breakthroughs to Cures?Breakthroughs to Cures is an online idea-generating game designed to garner new ideas for how we can change the medical research system to develop treatments and cures for patients faster. Imagine a future scenario (watch the video below) that takes place in 2020. A widespread contamination has triggered a neurological disease that is expected to infect as many as 100 million people in the U.S. Government leaders have convened a panel to investigate ways to accelerate the pace of research and find treatments or cures for this disease before it strikes. Over a 24-hour period, players will be sharing ideas and collaborating to build better ideas to help this panel uncover the best ways to change the current system of medical research and drug development."

"Memory allows for a kind of mental time travel, a way for us to picture not just the past but also a version of the future, according to a growing body of research. The studies suggest that the purpose of memory is far more extensive than simply helping us store and recall information about what has already happened. Researchers from University College London and Harvard University have made strides charting how memory helps us draw a mental sketch of someone's personality and imagine how that person might behave in a future social situation. They detailed their latest findings in work published in the journal Cerebral Cortex last week."

" On November 11th 2013 researchers, innovators and creators will gather in Amsterdam for the co-working unconference LaFutura. The goal of this meeting is to map the business of trend research and future insights in order to create a framework for this new industry. The theme of this event is 'NOW NEW NEXT Building the future industry'. "

The Open Technology Initiative formulates policy and regulatory reforms to support open architectures and open source innovations and facilitates the development and implementation of open technologies and communications networks. OTI promotes affordable, universal, and ubiquitous communications networks through partnerships with communities, researchers, industry, and public interest groups and is committed to maximizing the potentials of innovative open technologies by studying their social and economic impacts - particularly for poor, rural, and other underserved constituencies. OTI provides in-depth, objective research, analysis, and findings for policy decision-makers and the general public. More Info

From August 2-21, a group of doctoral students and research volunteers from Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego embarked on an expedition aboard the Scripps research vessel New Horizon to explore the problem of plastic in the North Pacific Gyre.

This is a USA based project that seeks to crowd source predictions about the future. It is being run by the Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA). IARPA "invests in high-risk/high-payoff research programs that have the potential to provide our nation with an overwhelming intelligence advantage over future adversaries." Jose's little analysis - because it is limited to a US audience it will probably have good technological inputs, but its cultural and political input will be largely worthless. I don't see any cultural studies and political scientist types making a contribution (could be very wrong of course) and commentary will most likely come from a combination of mis-informed moderates and Fox news fruitcakes. For ICT and the CRC project it is an example of crowdsourcing for competitive intelligence.

Keep a gratitude journal. Write down and record what you are grateful for, and then when you need to reaffirm your good lot in life, look back on the journal.Remember the bad. If you do not remind yourself of what it was like to be sick, unemployed, or heartbroken, you will be less likely to appreciate health, your job, or your relationship.Ask yourself three questions every evening. Fill in the blanks with the name of a person (or persons) in your life. What have I received from ___? What have I given to ___? What troubles and difficulty have I caused ___?Learn prayers of gratitude. One Emmons suggests in his book from the Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh: Waking up this morning, I see the blue sky. I join my hands in thanks; for the many wonders of life; for having 24 brand-new hours before me.Appreciate your senses. One approach: Practice breathing exercises.Use visual reminders. For example, Emmons has a refrigerator magnet in his home bearing this quote from Eleanor Roosevelt: "Yesterday is history, tomorrow is mystery … today is a gift."Make a vow to practice gratitude. "Swearing a vow to perform a behavior actually does increase the likelihood that the action will be executed," the psychologist notes.Watch your language: It influences how you think about the world.Go through the motions. Research shows that emotions can follow behavior.Be creative. Look for new situations and opportunities in which to feel grateful, especially when things are not going well.Though he practices these techniques, Emmons acknowledges that maintaining an attitude of thanksgiving is hard work even for him."Most psychologists study what they're bad at," he says.

While people have talked about collective intelligence for decades, new communication technologies-especially the Internet-now allow huge numbers of people all over the planet to work together in new ways.  The recent successes of systems like Google and Wikipedia suggest that the time is now ripe for many more such systems, and the goal of the MIT Center for Collective Intelligence is to understand how to take advantage of these possibilities.   Our basic research question is:  How can people and computers be connected so that-collectively-they act more intelligently than any individuals, groups, or computers have ever done before?' The Center for Collective Intelligence brings together faculty from across MIT to conduct research on how new communications technologies are changing the way people work together.

"A NEW citizen science project will be launched next month to help researchers assess how our marine ecosystems are changing in response to ocean warming. Currently each year over three million Australian's go fishing, diving and boating and scientists want to enlist their help to collect valuable data for the RangeExtension Database and Mapping Project. Redmap invites recreational and commercial fishers, scuba divers, boaters and scientists in Western Australia to spot, log and map any uncommon marine species not usually seen in their particular coastal areas."

Australia's peak ICT research body, National ICT Australia (NICTA), has launched a "Digital Productivity Showcase" facility that displays new applications for digital communications.

200 examples and research detail and definitions of collective intelligence

About the iKNOW projectiKNOW is a new blue sky research and horizon scanning project launched by the European Commission and led by Rafael Popper of the University of Manchester and the participation of seven other partners (FFRC, Z_punkt, TC AS, RTC, ICTAF, Cyber Fox and Mindcom). iKNOW aims to advance knowledge and tools related to events and developments (e.g. wild cards and weak signals) potentially shaping and shaking the future of science, technology and innovation (STI).

"The last year I presented TEFMIBO in Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology - PICMET 2012. This research shows a methodology for technology foresight in order to achieve better implementation and to overcome its problems. With Technological Foresight Model for the Identification of Business Opportunities, I intend to provide a tool to support managers and entrepreneurs to improve the decision making process that address the future of their business."

"Futurescaper creates bespoke solutions for futures research and scenario planning studies, using the power of the internet to gather stories from an unlimited number of individuals. This approach combines the qualitative richness of a traditional scenario planning workshop with the breadth and diversity of online collective-intelligence systems, producing faster, cheaper, and more effective outcomes."

FERN is a global community of foresight students, alumni, faculty, employers, and advocates of graduate foresight education, employment, and research. Please join our FERN LinkedIn group (just started, 35 members), and secondarily, our FERN Ning group (244 members) in Shaping Tomorrow's Foresight Network (STFN). We also maintain a free directory of global foresight resources at GlobalForesight.org. Feel free to add your favorite links and resources there. FERN is presently administered through the ASF nonprofit.

Provides insight + surprising solutions for the dramatic field of peri-urbanisation in Europe Introduces innovative tools for planners, scientists and lay-persons allowing to integratevily analyze the impact of peri-urbanisation onto sustainable development Has unique maps showing EU-periurbanisation effects on a pan-European level Has a conclusive didactic approach + text structure (e.g.  inserts, boxes ...) Presently, peri-urbanisation is one of the most pervasive processes of land use change in Europe with strong impacts on environment and quality of life. Urgently strategies and tools in support of sustainable development have to be developed. The book synthesizes results of PLUREL, a large European Commission funded research project (2007-2010). Tools and strategies of PLUREL address main challenges of managing land use in peri-urban areas. Results will be presented and illustrated through 6 case studies which are at the core of the book. A novel, futures oriented approach to the planning and management of peri-urban areas with a main focus on scenarios and sustainability impact analysis. The book is unique: - futures oriented (e.g. IPCC framework), - links quantitative modeling and sustainability impact analysis with qualitative & in-depth analysis of regional strategies - links study at European level (Nuts 2&3 regions) with case study work - involves a Chinese case study

Scientists are pioneering the use of 3D printers to create drugs and other chemicals at the University of Glasgow. Researchers have used a £1,250 system to create a range of organic compounds and inorganic clusters - some of which are used to create cancer treatments.

Do new information and communication technologies (ICTs) empower repressive regimes at the expense of civil society, or vice versa? For example, does access to the Internet and mobile phones alter the balance of power between repressive regimes and civil society? These questions are especially pertinent today given the role that ICTs played during this year's uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt and beyond. Indeed, as one Egyptian activist stated, "We use Facebook to schedule our protests, Twitter to coordinate and YouTube to tell the world." But do these new ICTs-so called "liberation technologies"-really threaten repressive rule? The purpose of this dissertation is to use mixed-methods research to answer these questions.