The future is the indefinite time period after the present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently exists and will exist can be categorized as either permanent, meaning that it will exist for the whole of the future or temporary, meaning that it won't and thus will come to an end. The future and the concept of eternity have been major subjects of philosophy, religion, and science and defining them non-controversially has consistently eluded the greatest of minds. It is the opposite of the past. In the Occidental view, which uses a linear conception of time, the future is the portion of the projected time line that is anticipated to occur. In special relativity, the future is considered to be absolute future or the future light cone. In physics, time is considered to be the fourth dimension of the universe.
In the philosophy of time, presentism is the belief that only the present exists and the future and the past are unreal. Religions consider the future when they address issues such as karma, life after death, and eschatologies that study what the end of time and the end of the world will be. Religious figures such as prophets and diviners have claimed to see into the future. Organized efforts to predict or forecast the future may have derived from observations by early man of heavenly objects.
Future studies, or futurology, is the science, art and practice of postulating possible futures. Modern practitioners stress the importance of alternative and plural futures, rather than one monolithic future, and the limitations of prediction and probability, versus the creation of possible and preferable futures.
In art and culture, the future was explored in several art movements and genres. The futurism art movement at the beginning of the 20th century, explored every medium of art, including painting, sculpture, poetry, theatre, music, architecture and even gastronomy. Futurists had passionate loathing of ideas from the past, especially political and artistic traditions. Instead, they espoused a love of speed, technology, and violence. Futuristic music involved homage to, inclusion of, or imitation of machines. Futurism expanded to encompass other artistic domains and ultimately included industrial design, textiles, and architecture.
Read more about Future: Forecasting, Future Studies, Physics, Philosophy, Psychology, Religion
Other articles related to "future":
... Curtis Mayfield's song "Future Shock" on the album "Back to the World" took its name from this book, and was in turn covered by Herbie Hancock as the title track ... opened their 1974 release "The Handsome Devils" with a track titled "Future Shock" ... their title from the book include the Futurama episode "Future Stock" a segment on The Daily Show starring Samantha Bee Kevin Goldstein's recurring column on the ...
... as “ realistic speculation about possible future events, based solidly on adequate knowledge of the real world, past and present, and on a thorough understanding of the nature and significance of the scientific method ... a broad genre of fiction that often involves speculations based on current or future science or technology ... Settings may include the future, or alternative time lines, and stories may depict new or speculative scientific principles, such as time travel or psionics, or new technology, such as nanotechnology, faster-than-l ...
... Experiments are taking place with a Gauge Change Train to enable direct operation between standard-gauge Shinkansen and narrow-gauge conventional lines this could be useful for the Kyushu Shinkansen branch to Nagasaki and other conventional lines ... Future implementation awaits practical operational tests ...
Famous quotes containing the word future:
“It is given to few to add the store of knowledge, to strike new springs of thought, or to shape new forms of beauty. But so sure as it is that men live not by bread, but by ideas, so sure is it that the future of the world lies in the hands of those who are able to carry the interpretation of nature a step further than their predecessors.”
—Thomas Henry Huxley (1825–95)
“The primary function of myth is to validate an existing social order. Myth enshrines conservative social values, raising tradition on a pedestal. It expresses and confirms, rather than explains or questions, the sources of cultural attitudes and values.... Because myth anchors the present in the past it is a sociological charter for a future society which is an exact replica of the present one.”
—Ann Oakley (b. 1944)
“You have too much of a life yet before you, and have shown too much of promise as an officer, for your future to be lightly surrendered.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)