Call For Papers
AAG 2017 Boston (April 5-8, 2017)
Session title: Future Technologies, Future Geographies
The beginning premise of this session is that humanity is on a trajectory of rapidly accelerating technological progression that will fundamentally change our world in the not too distant future. Yet, while there is much evidence for such a trajectory, geographers have shied away from engaging its geographical implications. This is odd. Whereas geographers are willing to hypothesize the possible future outcomes of rising global temperatures, they seem reluctant to think through the possible consequences of emergent technologies. One indication of this reluctance is the almost complete absence of transhumanism within any academic geographical discussions. This session seeks to establish a forum for geographers interested in thinking through some of the many possible humangeographical implications of future technologies.
For the purposes of this session, there is no clear boundary for what is considered a future technology, but generally the term refers to technologies that have not yet become fully implemented or marketed. Some future technologies that appear to be just on the horizon include autonomous robots/vehicles, nanotechnology, 3-D printing, and ubiquitous computing. Further off technologies that are still in the exploratory realm include radical life extension, advanced artificial intelligence (AI), nuclear fusion energy, and molecular manufacturing. This session is open to constructive geographical engagements with any future technologies. Papers are particularly encouraged that point to specific ways that current political-economic-social structures will be challenged and potentially rethought via these future technologies.
Possible questions to be addressed include:
- What impact will autonomous vehicles have on city planning? On transportation infrastructure?
- What are the implications of autonomous vehicles/robots and AI for thegeography of labor?
- What will some of the economic geographic consequences be of 3-D printing, nanotechnology, ubiquitous computing?
- Will economic globalization be threatened or strengthened by future technologies?
- What are the implications of these technologies for the developing world?
- Will the geography of raw material acquisition change with the advent of new forms of manufacturing?
- Will advanced AI lead to a decentralization of the service sector?
- Could manufacturing and services be de-commoditized through future technology shareware? What would the geography of that look like?
- What are the geographic consequences of a future economy that is run autonomously?
- Will cryptocurrencies come to impact the geography of money?
- What will the future geography of energy look like?
- Can future technologies lead to the fracturing of scalar power dynamics, i.e. a diminishing of corporate and state power in favor of increased local and regional power?
- Would an increasingly decentralized economy brought about by future technologies bring about changes in political boundaries?
- What are some of the possible demographic consequences of radically extended life?
- What would the geography of access to life extension technology look like?
- What are some geographical dimensions to transhumanism?
*** Please send an abstract, with contact information, to Hannes Gerhardt (hgerhard@westga.edu) by October 20, 2016.
This session is organized by Hannes Gerhardt (Associate Professor at University of West Georgia)