Dr. David Brin

Dr. David Brin is author of the new novel Existence which mentions our many programs.
 
David is a scientist, public speaker, and author. His papers in scientific journals cover an eclectic range of topics from astronautics, astronomy, and optics to alternative dispute resolution and the role of neoteny in human evolution. His Ph.D in Space Physics from the University of California at San Diego followed a masters in optics and an undergraduate degree in astrophysics from Caltech. He was a postdoctoral fellow at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
 
His new and astonishingly broad “Interactive communication between a plurality of users” patent brings online many basic tricks that people have used in real-life conversation for ages. e.g. adjusting semantic content and presentation according to distance, orientation, reputation, time, and traits of the content itself.
 
David’s 1998 non-fiction book The Transparent Society: Will Technology Force Us to Choose Between Freedom and Privacy? deals with a wide range of threats and opportunities facing our wired society during the information age. His chief argument, that openness is more effective than secrecy at fostering freedom, sparked controversy and garnered the prestigious Obeler Freedom of Speech Prize from the American Library Association.
 
He is on the Board of Advisors of the Planetary Society. He has been the keynote speaker at more than 50 major conferences, gatherings, and meetings, not including numerous SF conventions. Among his scientific and academic papers, he published Optics and Theory of Polarized Light in Applied Optics, Nature and Activity of Comets in Astrophysical Journal, Astronomical and Philosophical Questions Posed by SETI (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence) in Quarterly Journal of Royal Astronomical Society and Neoteny and Two-Way Sexual Selection in Human Evolution: Paleo Anthropological Speculation in Journal of Social and Evolutionary Systems.
 
Several of his fifteen novels have been New York Times Bestsellers, winning multiple Hugo, Nebula and other awards. His 1989 ecological thriller, Earth, foreshadowed global warming, cyberwarfare, the flooding in New Orleans, and near-future trends such as the World Wide Web including the creation of mass-collaborative projects like Wikipedia. A 1998 movie, directed by Kevin Costner, was loosely based on LOCUS and John W. Campbell Memorial award winnerThe Postman. His novels have been translated into more than twenty languages.
 
David authored the Nebula, Hugo, and LOCUS award winning novel, Startide Rising, the Hugo and LOCUS award winning novel, The Uplift War. With Foundation’s Triumph he tied up the loose ends left behind by the late Isaac Asimov, bringing to a grand finale Asimov’s famed Foundation Universe. Reaching out to a new generation, David developed the Out Of Time series of novels for young adults. His Webs of Wonder Contest offered cash prizes to promote web sites that help teachers convey difficult subjects with exciting stories.
 
As a speaker, David shares unique insights — serious and humorous — about ways that changing technology may affect our future lives. Listen to a talk he gave at the Institute for Accelerating Change about “exploring horizons”, or how people peer ahead, spotting errors and opportunities, not hobbled by crippling assumptions. This is “laugh-out-loud funny at times”.
 
Listen to David on The Future And You.