The Oracle of Colombo: How Arthur C. Clarke Revealed the Future - Softcover

One of the pivotal minds of the 20th century was none other than Sir Arthur C. Clarke. No other forecaster of the future even comes close. This newly released book from the Arthur C. Clarke Foundation, entitled The Oracle of Colombo and written by Dr. Joseph N. Pelton and skillfully edited by Peter Marshall, provides a thoughtful, delightful and often wry romp through Clarke’s extraordinary range of predictions. The list of accurate and compelling forecasts is truly mind-boggling. Here we find amazing predictions about communications, navigation and weather satellites, new types of “green” energy systems, new concepts in transportation, artificial intelligence, “smart” robots, “driverless” cars, e-commerce, the Internet, DNA testing, Project Safeguard to protect our planet ... and the beat goes on and on. For the serious futurologist, Pelton has provided a readable, well documented and compelling guide to Clarke’s many predictions, inventions, and even conceptions yet to be realized. These tables are neatly stowed in the appendices at the back, but those who would like to explore Arthur’s many “profiles of the future” should just sit back and read Oracle from cover to cover. This is truly a well-crafted presentation of over a hundred of his many wonderful forecasts and “Clarkian inspirations”. Chapters not to be missed include: “When Clarke Got It Wrong” and “Why Arthur Clarke is Still Relevant.” Get your copy today. Proceeds go the admirable work of the Clarke Foundation’s many educational programs.

Joseph N. Pelton is the award winning author or editor of some 40 books and over 300 articles in the field of space, satellite communications systems, and technology. His books include Global Talk, which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, Basics of Satellite Communications, Handbook of Cosmic Hazards and Planetary Defense, Handbook of Satellite Applications, e-Sphere: The Rise of the World Wide Mind, MegaCrunch, and Future Shock. In July 2013 he received in the UK the International Award known as “The Arthurs” in honor of Arthur C. Clarke. He also received the Arthur C. Clarke Foundation’s Lifetime Achievement award in 2001. He played a key role in the founding of the Arthur C. Clarke Foundation in 1983 while he acted as Managing Director of the World Communications Year panel—a US Presidential Appointment. Dr. Pelton is also known as a futurist and is a member of the International Advisory Board of the World Future Society. He is the Director Emeritus of the Space and Advanced Communications Research Institute (SACRI) at George Washington University where he headed various programs for nearly a decade. He served as Chairman of the Board (1992-95) and Vice President of Academic Programs and Dean (1995-96) of the International Space University in Strasbourg, France. From 1988 to 1996 Dr. Pelton was Director of the Interdisciplinary Telecommunications Program at the University of Colorado Boulder. Dr. Pelton also held a number of executive positions at the COMSAT Corporation and at INTELSAT. Dr. Pelton is a Fellow of the International Association for the Advancement of Space Safety (IAASS) and former President of the International Space Safety Foundation. He was the founding president of the Society of Satellite Professionals International and the Global Legal Information Network (GLIN). Dr. Pelton was elected to full membership in the International Academy of Astronautics in 1998 and was elected to the Hall of Fame of the Society of Satellite Professionals International in 2001, an honor extended to less than 100 people in the field. In 2004 he was elected an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Joseph N. Pelton received his Ph.D. from Georgetown University, his Masters from New York University and his BS from the University of Tulsa. He lives in Arlington, Virginia.