Wild Cards contributed by Nicholas John
Vegetarianism becomes a mass worldwide movement with huge implications for the food industry and the global economy
Super-efficient power lines with almost zero resistance
Future breakthrough in high-temperature superconductors or carbon nanotubes (CNT) enable loss-less transmission of electrical power. Carbon nanotubes exhibit so-called "ballistic conductivity", which is effectively similar to s...
Advances in automation, robotics and ICT renders most human work unnecessary, with major economic and social consequences. Unemployment becomes a norm.
Unexpected environmental change due to nano-tech
Nanosensors designed to detect trace concentrations of biochemicals lead to absorption of nanoparticles into the body and environment, concentrating in water and soil, and eventually linking with natural organisms, causing unkn...
Owing to the proven harmful health impacts of eating meat and the inefficiencies involved in the production of eggs, milk and so on, all animal-based products are illegalised
Future parents are able to select a huge range of genetic characteristics for their unborn children
Reading and writing are no longer considered fundamental to children's education. New visual forms of communication combined with ubiquitous touch screens replace reading and writing.
The idea of a group mind, or hive mind, is popular in science fiction, and refers to the ability of a group of discrete individuals to communicate – either telepathically or through hardware. This means that each individual k...
Outbreak of foot and mouth disease (FMD)
A new strain of FMD crosses into Europe from a neighbouring country and decimates cattle herds
The nuclear fusion facility ITER is destroyed either by a natural disaster (earthquake? fire?) or in a terrorist attack, setting back European nuclear fusion research by decades
Alternative centres of excellence
India or China emerge as the global centre for scientific excellence (i.e., ERA becomes irrelevant)
