The Third Millennium: A History of the World AD 2000-3000
Encyclopedia
The Third Millennium: A History of the World AD 2000-3000 is a 1985 book written by Brian Stableford
and David Langford
. It is a fictional historical account, from the perspective of the year 3000, giving a future history
of humanity and its technological and sociologial developments.
Some of these developments include:
As this book was written in the 1980s, some predictions for the near future were off - for example, the Soviet Union
was predicted to exist as late as the year 2800.
, as well as the novels of his Emortality series, four of which were expanded versions of the previously-mentioned stories.
Brian Stableford
Brian Michael Stableford is a British science fiction writer who has published more than 70 novels. His earlier books were published as by Brian M. Stableford, but more recent ones have dropped the middle initial and appeared under the name Brian Stableford...
and David Langford
David Langford
David Rowland Langford is a British author, editor and critic, largely active within the science fiction field. He publishes the science fiction fanzine and newsletter Ansible.-Personal background:...
. It is a fictional historical account, from the perspective of the year 3000, giving a future history
Future history
A future history is a postulated history of the future and is used by authors in the subgenre of speculative fiction to construct a common background for fiction...
of humanity and its technological and sociologial developments.
Some of these developments include:
- Implementation of fusion powerFusion powerFusion power is the power generated by nuclear fusion processes. In fusion reactions two light atomic nuclei fuse together to form a heavier nucleus . In doing so they release a comparatively large amount of energy arising from the binding energy due to the strong nuclear force which is manifested...
.
- Genetic engineering, including Life ExtensionLife extensionLife extension science, also known as anti-aging medicine, experimental gerontology, and biomedical gerontology, is the study of slowing down or reversing the processes of aging to extend both the maximum and average lifespan...
and TranshumanismTranshumanismTranshumanism, often abbreviated as H+ or h+, is an international intellectual and cultural movement that affirms the possibility and desirability of fundamentally transforming the human condition by developing and making widely available technologies to eliminate aging and to greatly enhance human...
as some humans become engineered to live in extreme environments such as cold, zero-g, and even water-breathing humans for aquatic communities.
- Geopolitical events such as war, famine, pestilence, and terrorism (as well as the "Sinking of Japan" by an earthquake).
- Bioengineered foods including whimiscal items such as the Jack Spratt Grass Chop, photosynthetic suits grafted to human skin meant to provide a means of sustinence without eating.
- Self-driving automobiles (the "Tiger-Dream Machine" from Ford Autocar).
- L5L5L5 or L-5 may refer to:* L5 Society, society promoting Dr. Gerard K. O'Neill's vision of space colonizationIn entertainment:* L5 , French female pop music group* L5 Games, video games developer published by Gravity Interactive...
(Lagrange Point) space colonies such as those proposed by Scientist Gerard K. O'Neill.
- Asteroid miningAsteroid miningAsteroid mining refers to the possibility of exploiting raw materials from asteroids and planetoids in space, including near-Earth objects. Minerals and volatiles could be mined from an asteroid or spent comet to provide space construction material , to extract water and oxygen to sustain the lives...
(such as the "Cracking of Ceres").
- Artificial IntelligenceArtificial intelligenceArtificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
.
- Extreme cosmetic Body ModificationBody modificationBody modification is the deliberate altering of the human body for any non-medical reason, such as aesthetics, sexual enhancement, a rite of passage, religious reasons, to display group membership or affiliation, to create body art, shock value, or self expression...
such as skin with pockets, flashing irises, fur, claws, and fingernails which function as timepieces.
- Sublight starships such as the Bussard RamjetBussard ramjetThe Bussard ramjet is a theoretical method of spacecraft propulsion proposed in 1960 by the physicist Robert W. Bussard, popularized by Larry Niven in his Known Space series of books, and referred to by Carl Sagan in the television series and book Cosmos....
.
- TerraformingTerraformingTerraforming of a planet, moon, or other body is the hypothetical process of deliberately modifying its atmosphere, temperature, surface topography or ecology to be similar to those of Earth, in order to make it habitable by terrestrial organisms.The term is sometimes used more generally as a...
.
- Interstellar colonization, and eventual extraterrestrialExtraterrestrial lifeExtraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...
contact.
As this book was written in the 1980s, some predictions for the near future were off - for example, the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
was predicted to exist as late as the year 2800.
Later Stableford works set in the same history
Stableford commented in a 2001 interview that a number of his stories were set in updated versions of the future history imagined in The Third Millennium, such as the story ...And He Not Busy Being Born, the novellas Les Fleurs du Mall, Inherit the Earth, and Mortimer Gray's History of DeathMortimer Gray's History of Death
"Mortimer Gray's History of Death" is a science fiction novella published in 1995 by Brian Stableford. It was nominated for the 1996 Nebula Award for Best Novella...
, as well as the novels of his Emortality series, four of which were expanded versions of the previously-mentioned stories.