President Barack Obama: Why I'm Optimistic
Looking ahead to the next 40 years, President Obama writes about our nature as Americans to dream big and solve problems
By Barack Obama
The Changing Demographics of America
The United States population will expand by 100 million over the next 40 years. Is this a reason to worry?
By Joel Kotkin
Los Jetsons
Experts predict the U.S. population will become increasingly diverse, with the greatest gains among Latinos. The Chicano cartoonist Lalo Alcaraz, creator of the syndicated "La Cucaracha" comic strip and illustrator of the book Latino USA, reinterprets a now-classic vision of mid-21st-century life
By Lalo Alcaraz
George Friedman on World War III
The geopolitical scientist predicts which nations will be fighting for world power in 2050
By Terence Monmaney
Poll: Americans Predict Life in 2050
A joint poll from the Pew Research Center and Smithsonian magazine finds high hopes about science but anxiety about the environment
By T. A. Frail
Rosamond Naylor on Feeding the World
The economist discusses the stresses that climate change and a greater world population will have on our food supply
By Amanda Bensen
The Age of Peace
Maturing populations may mean a less violent future for many societies torn by internal conflict
By Carolyn O'Hara